Fan Tianyu found a few pieces of paper, lit them, and tossed them into the stove. Then he added some kindling and, in no time, the stove was ablaze. Once the fire was burning well, he added some larger logs to the fire. In short, the heat was right for cooking. Meanwhile, the Ji brothers weren't idle either; they prepared the meat according to Mei Mengzhen's instructions.
Next, the first dish was the time-consuming potato braised with pork belly. The pork belly had to go into the pot first. Once it was nearly done, they added chopped potatoes, then water to boil. Only when the water had dried up was the dish considered finished.
The first course was pork with cabbage and vermicelli. The vermicelli had to be soaked in advance; after stir-frying the pork and cabbage for a while, they added the vermicelli, stirred it a few times, and it was ready to be served.
Eggplant is best when stir-fried, but it consumes a lot of oil. Adding some bean paste would make it taste even better.