Braised Soft-Shell Turtle with Mushrooms
This recipe features soft-shelled turtle steamed and braised with shiitake mushrooms, chicken, ham, and other complementary ingredients. It is nutrient-rich and offers benefits for cognitive function and brain health.
Ingredients
Soft-shell turtle (about 500 g, cleaned and cut into pieces)
1
Rehydrated dried mushrooms (blanched and reserved)
50 g
Chicken breast (minced into a paste)
50 g
Bamboo shoot slices (blanched and reserved)
25 g
Ham slices (blanched and reserved)
50 g
Chicken broth (to mix with the chicken paste)
to taste
Cooking wine
to taste
Salt
to taste
MSG
to taste
Scallion segments
to taste
Ginger slices
to taste
White pepper
to taste
Instructions
1
Preparing the Turtle
Slaughter the soft-shell turtle and place it in boiling water until the outer skin turns white and wrinkles. Transfer to a warm water bath and scrape off the membrane skin with a knife. Cut off the tail and head, lift open the back shell, remove the innards, wash thoroughly, and chop into chunks. Blanch briefly in boiling water, remove, rinse clean, and scoop out the yellow fat from the four legs.
2
Preparing the Side Ingredients
Mince the chicken breast into a fine paste, place it in a bowl, and stir it smooth with chicken broth. Blanch the ham slices, bamboo shoot slices, and mushrooms separately in boiling water, then set aside.
3
Steaming and Simmering the Turtle
Arrange the turtle pieces on a serving plate along with cooking wine, scallion segments, and ginger slices, then steam in a steamer until completely tender. Remove, let cool slightly, and carefully debone the meat. Transfer the turtle meat to a clay pot, pour in the chicken paste, and neatly arrange the ham slices, bamboo shoot slices, and mushrooms on top. Add scallion segments, ginger slices, cooking wine, salt, and white pepper, then simmer for 15 minutes. Pick out and remove the scallion segments, season to taste with MSG, and serve.
