Since they had decided not to add meat, they needed something substantial. Wheat gluten was the best choice.
The prepared gluten could be torn by hand into thin strips and added to the soup. It would be chewy to eat and also make the soup look like a good value.
Widow Xie didn't know what wheat gluten was. "Do you just mean kneading the dough to make it chewier?"
Ji Huan couldn't help but laugh. "Let me show you."
She scooped two ladles of flour from the sack into a basin, mixed in a small amount of salt, and slowly added water, kneading it into a dough.
After letting it rest for about half an hour, she began to wash the dough.
Washing the dough was really just kneading it in water. She put some water in the basin—not too much—then placed the dough inside and kneaded it vigorously.
She kneaded until the water turned into a white, starchy liquid, which she then poured into another basin to set aside. This could be used later, saving them the step of making a thickener.
