HLM -Chapter 1247 Thanksgiving Breakfast

Cooking meat in a pressure cooker can easily turn greasy; it really tests one’s control of heat. In the past, Father Bo didn’t handle it well, but after moving to Sunset Town, he had nothing to do. Besides tending the vegetable garden, he and Mother Bo spent their time experimenting with food.

Now, he was practically half a chef. After stewing a pot of meat, it came out rich but not greasy.

Pulling the meat out, Father Bo tapped the chunks with a kitchen knife. “The fat is translucent, the lean meat firm—this pork is excellent. I don’t understand why New Zealanders aren’t that fond of it.”

When the pressure cooker lid was lifted, a pure aroma of meat filled the kitchen. Little Wang, Zhuang Ding, the Queen, the Fat Cat brothers, and the little princess all squatted at the doorway, drooling as they stared at the pot.

They sat according to size, looking like a group of obedient little angels. Father Bo happened to glance back at them and felt a surge of satisfaction.

He cut the large chunks into inch-sized pieces. Besides reserving the best parts, the rest was given to the pets, who happily devoured the meat, their little faces shiny with grease.

The inch-sized pieces were then scored with a cross-cut—a test of knife skills that Mother Bo handled. The cuts couldn’t be too shallow, or the flavor wouldn’t penetrate; too deep, and the meat would break apart. Mother Bo ruined two pieces, which she also gave to the pets.

Naturally, they got hooked and refused to leave the kitchen.

Meanwhile, Wang Bo ground the peeled cherry meat in a food processor until it became a fine jam—enough to fill a small bowl. Except for what would be used in cooking, he planned to make it into jam.

Father Bo eyed the jam and picked up the pan. “Alright, let’s start cooking.”

He added peanut oil to the pan. Once it heated, he quickly added chopped scallions, ginger, and garlic. After briefly stir-frying, he poured in a bowl of cherry meat jam and began tossing the pan.

As the cherry meat released its sweet aroma, he added the sliced pork belly, first stir-frying over high heat, then lowering the heat to reduce the sauce.

Once the sauce thickened, he drizzled a bit of vinegar, added a cornstarch slurry, and plated it. The dish was now ready to serve.

The finished cherry pork looked fantastic, resembling oil-splashed fruit. The white cherries and cooked pork belly looked similar, with a light layer of oil on top, bright in color and translucent in texture.

Cherry balls are considered one of the better fruit dishes in Chinese cuisine, alongside blueberry yam and sweet pineapple soup. Using white cherries for the balls is quite luxurious—a single small ball might cost ten yuan.

The traditional method mixes cherry jam with flour, shaping it into small balls and deep-frying. But Father Bo and Mother Bo wanted to boost Eva’s nutrition, so they added fish meat.

Steamed fish washed with lemon juice loses its fishy taste. Combined with cherry pulp, it gains elasticity, better than using flour alone.

The fish was first pounded, then mixed evenly with cherry jam. Father Bo and Mother Bo carefully shaped the mixture into finger-sized balls before frying them.

Wang Bo watched in admiration. His parents really put effort into this for their daughter-in-law and grandson. He’d never seen them roll balls with such care before—they usually just shaped them roughly with their hands.

When these two dishes were served, Dale sniffed eagerly. “Wow, this looks amazing! Sister, try it first!”

Mother Bo patted her little head. “Dale, you go ahead and try.”

Dale giggled; children are always impatient and like to receive attention.

She took a bite of the cherry pork with a spoon and nodded vigorously. “Mmm, delicious! It tastes like warm cherry jam, but with an amazing aroma.”

It wasn’t a polite compliment—it truly was delicious. Wang Bo tasted some, and Father Bo had controlled the oiliness perfectly. Though the cherry pork had a sheen of oil on the surface, it wasn’t greasy at all.

They hadn’t added sugar or honey, just the pure sweet and sour taste of cherries, perfect for pregnant Eva, whose appetite had been poor lately. She ate two large bowls.

The cherry balls could even serve as a dessert after a meal.

After a satisfying dinner, Eva returned to her room. As soon as Wang Bo entered, she beckoned him with a finger.

Wang Bo got excited immediately, hurriedly taking off his clothes. “Oh wow! Honey, you’re absolutely right—exercise right after eating…”

“I called you over to discuss tomorrow’s breakfast. Are you going to make breakfast naked?” Eva teased.

Wang Bo awkwardly pulled up his pants. “Uh… I misunderstood.”

Eva gave him a tender yet exasperated look. “Mom and Dad have worked hard lately. Tomorrow, we’re making breakfast—also using white cherries—to show our thanks. Let’s make a Thanksgiving breakfast.”

Wang Bo waved his hand. “No need, why be formal with Mom and Dad?”

Eva said, “It’s not formality, it’s gratitude. We need to seize the opportunity to show our parents thanks. Besides, we’re adults now—they aren’t obligated to do anything for us.”

This reflects a difference between Eastern and Western approaches to parents. In Western culture, once someone reaches adulthood, they are essentially independent from their parents.

Eva grew up in an orphanage and had never experienced such parental affection, so she treasured it greatly. This was also why, despite mood swings during pregnancy, she never showed them in front of Dad and Mother Bo.

Wang Bo shrugged. “Doesn’t matter, as long as you wake up tomorrow.”

Sure enough, the next morning, Eva woke up early—she had set ten alarms!

The breakfast she prepared was, naturally, Western-style. When Wang Bo asked what she would make, she said: “Cherry cream puffs, rose cherry double-skin milk, cherry mashed potato chicken wings, paired with a cherry country chocolate cake, plus a cherry-based fruit and vegetable salad. How’s that?”

Wang Bo exclaimed, “That’s amazing!”

She first made the rose cherry double-skin milk. Separating the egg whites, she mixed them with honey and milk, strained the mixture once, added rose petals, covered the bowl with plastic wrap, and steamed it over medium heat for 10 minutes. She decorated it with appropriate amounts of rose and cherry.

Watching Eva make the double-skin milk, Wang Bo was dazzled, as if watching a top chef perform—but sadly, this chef couldn’t cook savory dishes.

Interestingly, while she wasn’t skilled at cooking, she excelled at desserts. Wang Bo never understood why—it remained a mystery to him.

Meanwhile, Wang Bo prepared the fruit and vegetable salad, simply mixing honey and salad dressing with various fruits and vegetables, sprinkling white cherries on top, like scattering dozens of pearls.

All these desserts weren’t difficult to make. The only challenge was the cherry country chocolate cake, but in Eva’s hands, even that wasn’t a problem.