In the north, spring temperatures fluctuate unpredictably.

The flowers on the roadside trees have already bloomed; magnolia and cherry blossoms have revealed their beautiful forms.

For those who love eating wild vegetables, the flowers on these trees are also a major focus, as some can be eaten as a fresh delicacy.

There’s one unforgettable flower that looks like a "caterpillar." It can startle people when it falls from the trees, but once it drops, many will wait to gather it and make delicious, large steamed buns.

This flower is the poplar catkin.

In the north, people like to call it "busy for nothing."

This is because it’s always swaying in the wind, looking very busy, but in reality, a gust of wind is all it takes to make it fall. All that busyness for nothing.

Although the name has a slightly negative connotation, it’s a delicious wild vegetable from the trees.

However, not all poplar catkins are edible. Only the catkins from the domestic poplar—and only the male catkins—can be eaten. The catkins of the white poplar, which is now widely planted along roadsides, are not edible.

The white poplar’s catkins are green. After these clusters of green catkins mature, the seeds that burst forth become the Yang Xiu that fills the sky every spring.

Many people suffer greatly from the white poplar’s Yang Xiu. It not only sticks all over your clothes and hair, but it’s also very uncomfortable if you accidentally inhale it. Quite a few people are allergic to it.

The white poplar grows fast and is widely planted, and its flying Yang Xiu has caused considerable trouble for many people.

Meanwhile, the truly edible domestic poplar has become increasingly rare.

The bark of the domestic poplar isn’t as smooth as the white poplar’s. Its trunk is crisscrossed with deep grooves and vertical stripes, and its color is darker, unlike the white, smooth bark of the white poplar.

Furthermore, their catkins also look different. The edible poplar catkins are red and contain "little millet grains." After gathering them and taking them home, you just need to remove the stem and wash them clean before cooking.

These domestic poplars were plentiful in the 1950s. Back then, people would even use bamboo poles to knock down the tenderest catkins from the branches, which were even better than the ones gathered from the ground.

There are many ways to eat poplar catkins. The tender ones can be served as a cold salad, while the slightly older ones can be used in steamed buns. Of course, they can’t be too old. The ones blown down by strong winds are usually best, as they aren’t too mature and have more edible parts.

After washing the poplar catkins, they are chopped up with pork belly, chives, and other ingredients to make a filling for large steamed buns. The flavor is exceptionally fragrant.

Many people long for a taste of these large poplar catkin buns. They are absolutely divine.

Li Xu ate them almost every year as a child.

After moving to the city, he never had them again.

For one, his father’s clinic was busy, and his mother helped out, so they had no time to make buns.

On the other hand, fast-growing poplars were heavily promoted, so domestic poplars became scarce.

"Elder Li, where did you get these caterpillars?"

Li Xu grabbed a handful of the "caterpillars." They were fresh and fragrant.

He could already imagine the taste of caterpillar buns.

Elder Li chuckled and said, "A friend sent them over, along with these Locust and toon."

Li Xu didn’t ask any more questions.

Elder Li was well-connected and knew many people, especially some officials.

It was perfectly normal for someone to send him some wild vegetables.

Li Xu looked at the toon next.

It was all fresh. Judging by the cut ends, it had been picked no more than a day ago.

He picked a toon leaf and put it in his mouth.

When he was a child, there was a toon tree in the yard of his old home.

His favorite thing was to taste the toon leaves right after they sprouted.

A pungent, spicy flavor would "numb" the tip of his tongue for a moment.

But that was immediately followed by a refreshing sweetness mixed with the fragrance of the earth. It was truly like swallowing a whole mountainside.

Eating it raw might be a bit "overwhelming" for some people.

Besides, there’s a traditional folk saying that you should blanch toon to "remove the poison."

This saying holds the time-honored wisdom of our ancestors.

According to modern research, toon contains some nitrates. Blanching can effectively remove a portion of them, making it safer and milder to eat.

Besides being pickled or served in a cold salad, the most common way to prepare toon is in "scrambled eggs with toon."

But it’s not as simple as it sounds; there’s a lot of technique involved.

First, you have to choose the right toon.

You need to pick the tender, purplish-red toon shoots that have a delicate fragrance.

Those freshly emerged shoots are at their most "unruly spring" moment, and their flavor is also the most intense.

The toon before him was exactly this kind.

Then comes the crucial step: blanching.

Bring the water to a boil, put the toon shoots in—not too many at once—and after just a few dozen seconds, when you see them turn from a fresh purplish-red to a bright green, quickly take them out and immediately plunge them into cold water.

This step is like giving them a cold bath, taming their "youthful spirit" and preserving their tender texture.

Next is mincing.

You don’t need to chop it too finely. A slightly coarse texture makes it more satisfying to eat.

Then, prepare the eggs.

It’s best to use fresh, free-range eggs. The color of the yolks is like a Mountain Yam glowing red in the sunset—a delightful sight.

Beat a few eggs, add a pinch of salt to enhance the flavor.

Finally, it’s time for the part that requires the most skill.

Put a little oil in the pan, but not too much. Three drops of oil is roughly equivalent to ten minutes of penance on a treadmill.

These days, healthy eating is what’s important, not greasy food.

The oil temperature should be moderate, not too high, or the toon’s aroma will be "burned" away before it even has a chance to be released.

Once the oil is hot, pour in the egg mixture first and stir-fry it quickly. When the eggs are semi-set and the edges are slightly golden, add the minced toon.

At this point, you have to be fast!

Use a spatula to gently toss and mix the minced toon and the egg mixture evenly.

You’ll smell a fragrance that combines the light scent of eggs with the unique, pungent aroma of toon. That scent is like a quiet conversation between the mountains and the kitchen.

When the eggs are fully cooked and the toon’s color has become an even brighter green, it’s ready to be served.

This cooking process wasn’t something Li Xu was just imagining; he was witnessing it with his own eyes.

Because Elder Li was in the kitchen, directing the housekeeper as she cooked.

Li Xu moved closer to watch, witnessing the birth of a plate of scrambled eggs with toon that was perfect in color, aroma, and taste.

In the past, when he came over for a meal,

Elder Li would also host him generously, but it was usually with rare delicacies.

The dishes themselves were quite valuable.

And while they tasted wonderful and were very satisfying,

something like this—scrambled eggs with toon and caterpillar buns—was just as good, and it stirred up many memories for him.

Oh, and there were the Locust buns.

Li Xu smelled a sweet fragrance.

"Elder Li, the Locust buns are done steaming..." Li Xu had just started to say, but the housekeeper was already moving.

She lifted the lid of the steamer,

and a pot of light-green Locust buns emerged, piping hot.

Ding Kaifang and Song Sisi also caught the scent and moved closer, curious.

They greedily inhaled the sweet fragrance of the Locust.

Both of them had grown up in the countryside. Ding Kaifang, in particular, had eaten his fair share of Locust buns as a child.

Smelling that aroma again, he remarked with emotion, "I didn’t think these were tasty when I was a kid, but now, just smelling them makes my mouth water."