Winter Solstice Mochi Fragrance

Yesterday was the winter solstice. On this day, every household in our hometown would make mochi.

The process of making mochi is very complicated. First, the glutinous rice is soaked overnight and then steamed into steaming glutinous rice the next day. Then pour the glutinous rice into the stone mortar. Not every family has a stone mortar. If your family doesn't have one, you have to borrow someone else's. In my childhood memory, there was a long queue in front of every stone mortar. The child's job is to go to the east and west houses to see which house's stone mortar is empty, and then go back and report it to the adults. My family had a stone mortar at that time, but I also ran with my friends and had fun while running. That was the fun of my childhood.

Beating mochi is a strenuous activity. After pouring the glutinous rice into the stone mortar, the men and women in the family each showed off their skills. The man lifted up a stone hammer weighing more than ten kilograms and lowered it heavily. The woman had to flip the glutinous rice while the man was swinging the stone hammer. , the glutinous rice will stick to your hands, so you need to dip your hands in warm water. This requires the cooperation of both parties, and women must pay special attention to their quick eyes and quick hands. If they are a little slower, their hands will be in danger of being hammered to pieces. Therefore, there are some women who don't dare to do it, so they have to beg others to come. The ones who are begged always come on with a smile without saying a word.

At this time, the woman will ask the man to slow down first, and after a few times of cooperation, the speed will become faster and faster after getting started. As soon as the man dropped the hammer and raised it, the woman's nimble hands were as fast as lightning. Sometimes halfway through beating, the semi-finished mochi becomes cold or the humidity is not enough. You need to pour some hot water into it and then continue beating. In about twenty minutes, the glutinous rice turned into a delicate and sticky mochi. And both men and women were panting and sweating profusely. They rested for a while, loaded up the mochi and left, and the next family continued to fight.

Because we have a stone mortar at home, we usually lay it first. My father put the beaten mochi balls on the table, washed his hands and made a few mochi balls first. My mother mixed sesame seeds and sugar and crushed them carefully. My brother and I rushed to grab the prepared mochi balls. Wrap it in sesame candy and pop it into your mouth. It's fragrant and sweet. Sometimes we are asked to pack a bowl of mochi balls and give them to neighbors who haven’t made them yet to try them out. When we had enough, my father would use the leftovers to make mochi cakes and save them for later. Some people will deliberately prepare more and put them aside to make mochi candies during the Chinese New Year.

When I was on the phone with my parents a few days ago, when it came to the matter of hunting mochi during the Winter Solstice, I said, you are getting older and hunting mochi is too tiring, so don’t do it this year.

Unexpectedly, I sent some yesterday. I wondered: "I told you not to fight, so why are you still fighting?" My father put down the mochi and said, "We always have to make something during festivals, and the children also want to eat. It's not too much trouble." Looking at my father's eyes With white hair, an old face, and hands like dead branches, what reappears in my mind is the scene of my father beating mochi with all his strength when he was a child, which makes my heart sour and warm.

When my daughter came home in the evening, she saw the mochi on the table and shouted happily: "Yeah, there are mochi, it's great!"

I went to my parents in the evening I called them and told them how delicious mochi was and how much my daughter liked it. They were obviously very happy.

The Winter Solstice has a festive atmosphere because of the mochi. The fragrance of mochi in winter solstice fills my heart.