Courtyard House: Drunk and tipsy, the whole courtyard exposed at the start.

First of all, we don't have that kind of animal-based whipping cream. Ice cream factories do have it, but it's not the right season yet, so we just can't get it.

In addition, Shanghai Yimin Food Factory No. 1 began small-scale trial production of "whipping cream" between 1957 and 1960, primarily to meet specific needs:

1. Provide hotels catering to foreign guests.

2. For special needs channels (such as senior officials and diplomatic personnel).

3. As an industrial raw material for high-end foods such as candy and ice cream.

The technology is in the initial trial production stage, with extremely low output, unstable process, and short shelf life, far from reaching the mature commercialization stage.

Therefore, it's impossible to buy "whipping cream" with money.

The "cream" that Zhang Dabiao made by hand before was, strictly speaking, just an imitation, not real whipped cream.

So, to make Su-style sour cream, the first problem to solve is obtaining a fermented milk base.

Step 1: Obtaining an "acidic" fermented milk base —

Since there is no heavy cream, whole milk is the best starting point.

The milk in Zhang Dabiao's little nest is modern milk that has undergone the "homogenization" process. The fat globules have been broken down and will not "form a skin," so it is impossible to get a cream layer by letting it stand.

Moreover, whole milk has a low fat content, so even if fat separation is possible, the yield is extremely low.

Therefore, it is impossible to make pure cream in the traditional sense using boxed milk.

Li Huaide still had connections; he managed to get Zhang Dabiao a liter of fresh milk every day—the unprocessed kind—for his experiments.

However, he also said that if they can't produce a finished product this week, the experiment will have to be stopped, as they really can't hold on any longer.

Primary fermentation: Warm a small amount of milk to a temperature that is not hot to the touch (about 40°C), and add a spoonful of starter.

Introduction selection:

1. Plain yogurt: Zhang Dabiao has some Lao Hankou yogurt in his refrigerator, as well as an unopened carton of Anmuxi Greek yogurt, which seems to be still within its expiration period and can be used as is.

2. Starter dough: also known as "old dough" for fermenting dough, it contains natural yeast and lactic acid bacteria - Sha Zhu brought over a lump of it, it's definitely old dough!

3. White vinegar or rice vinegar (as a last resort): It can directly provide a sour taste, but has no fermented flavor.

Instructions: After mixing, cover and let it sit in a warm place (such as near the stove) for half a day to a day, until the milk thickens slightly and develops a fresh sour taste. This is essentially a simple way to make "yogurt".

Step 2: Create a "thick and oily" texture —

This is key to simulating a creamy texture, requiring increased fat and consistency.

Option A: Oil emulsification method (closer to butter):

Take a small piece of butter or rendered lard.

Slowly and gradually add the fermented yogurt to the softened or slightly melted fat, stirring vigorously and continuously in one direction with chopsticks or a spoon until the milk and fat are fully combined and form a thick emulsion. This process requires patience.

Option B: Starch thickening method (easier to succeed):

Mix a small amount of milk or water with a spoonful of flour or starch to form a smooth paste.

Pour the paste into a small saucepan, add the remaining fermented milk, heat slowly over low heat while stirring constantly, until it becomes a smooth, thick sauce without obvious lumps.

After removing from heat and cooling, stir in a small amount of liquid butter or cooked vegetable oil to increase the oiliness.

After many experiments, a final simplified version was finally obtained (taking the starch thickening method as an example):

Ingredients: 500ml whole milk, 1.5 tablespoons flour, 1 tablespoon unsalted butter or rendered pork fat, and 2 tablespoons plain yogurt or sourdough starter.

step:

1. Gently heat the milk, mix it with the starter, and let it ferment in a warm place until it becomes slightly sour.

2. Take a portion of the fermented milk and mix it with flour to form a smooth batter without lumps.

3. Mix the batter with the remaining fermented milk, heat over low heat while stirring until thick and smooth, then remove from heat.

4. While still hot, stir in the oil and stir until melted and combined.

After it cools completely, the texture will solidify further, and the flavors will blend even more.

As for the taste and texture, it's so-so, about 70-80% similar to Suzhou-style sour cream, but it's absolutely impossible to say they're exactly the same.

Then Zhang Dabiao brought out a few large loaves of bread from his little nest. Although it wasn't rye, it was 80% whole wheat and contained a lot of nuts and seeds. It would do for now.

So I gave these two things to Li Huaide to take back and try. They are our Chinese specialty Suzhou-style sour cream and Chinese specialty whole wheat bread, which have been adjusted according to Chinese tastes.

Eat it if you want, otherwise it's up to you.

If you don't eat it, I won't cook it anymore.

Li Huaide quickly got it back to the factory, but surprisingly it received unanimous praise from the bear experts!

Harashao!

This thing can be produced in small batches!

So here's the question: should we give this skill away?

If I do it myself, how long would that take?

Then Li Huaide and Director Wang came to Zhang Dabiao's small courtyard to negotiate.

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This time, Li Huaide was smarter. He got all the materials through personal connections and his father-in-law's connections, paying out of his own pocket to avoid the factory taking them away again.

Director Wang's need is to set up a shop for self-help production and to create employment opportunities.

Li Huaide's requirement is a stable supply of cream cakes and sour cream.

The two hit it off immediately. Whether Zhang Dabiao's formula was kept secret or not was none of their concern; all they needed was for the matter to be completed successfully.

As a grassroots administrative organization, the subdistrict office can organize and establish collectively owned "production groups" or "life service cooperatives". Previously, Aunt Mu worked in the "sewing cooperative" under the subdistrict office.

Its form is similar to a "shop" that serves the community, rather than a shop in the conventional sense.

The primary task of these "production groups" or "life service organizations" is to organize the unemployed labor force (such as housewives, unemployed youth, and members of the community) within their jurisdiction to participate in labor, so as to ensure that "everyone has work" and maintain social stability.

It mainly provides basic convenience services, such as sewing, shoe repair, hairdressing, snack food processing, black and white metal processing, waste recycling, etc.

Therefore, from a policy perspective, there is no problem with the subdistrict office taking the lead in this matter.

The storefront can be a simple shed built using street-owned property—idle public housing, old factory buildings, warehouses, or state-rented housing or public spaces under one's name or jurisdiction.

However, the principle of storefronts is not to involve "purchasing" or "leasing" but rather the administrative allocation and use of existing public resources.

Funding—that's the real problem. The neighborhood committee is broke; they don't even have money to repair the dilapidated buildings. Let alone buy equipment, staff salaries, and raw materials—they can't get anything done just with scraps and leftovers allocated by the national plan; they're going to start a small food processing business.

Li Huaide only has connections, but he can't keep making these advance payments. He's already at his limit to place orders under the guise of the steel mill's logistics department and then find connections to get raw materials for this "shop."

Paying out of your own pocket again could easily lead to mistakes and give your opponents leverage.

Zhang Dabiao only has a thousand or so yuan right now, so there's no way he could have paid for it privately. It's a collectively owned production team, not a shop where individuals make money. Zhang Dabiao must be out of his mind to pay for it privately.

Besides, he doesn't go to work; he still has to go to school.

But suddenly a voice came from behind: "I'll pay for it, can I go to work?"

Everyone turned around and looked—

Lou Xiao'e?

When did she arrive?