Braised Soft-Shelled Turtle, Huaiyang Style

Name: Braised Soft-Shelled Turtle, Huaiyang Style
Prep time: 25 min
Cook time: 6 h
Total time: 6 h 25 min
Cuisine: Chinese
Ingredients: 450 g soft-shelled turtle meat (cut into long strips); 75 g turtle cartilage (washed, stewed, hard bones removed, cut into small pieces); 50 g pork fat (cut into thin slices); 25 g cooked winter bamboo shoots (sliced); 6 g dried mushrooms; 35 g cooked yam (cut into chunks); 15 g garlic cloves; 40 g Shaoxing wine; 25 g scallion (use the white part); 25 g ginger (sliced); 25 g soy sauce; 7.5 g salt; 5 g rock sugar; 25 g cornstarch (slurried with water for thickening); 15 g sesame oil; pork broth; vegetable oil

A traditional Jiangsu specialty featuring braised soft-shelled turtle (zhuojia) with soft bone, Chinese yam, and other accompaniments. Richly aromatic and tender, with a bright, glossy sauce.

6h 25m

Easy

0 favorites

Braised Soft-Shelled Turtle, Huaiyang Style

Ingredients

soft-shelled turtle meat (cut into long strips) 450 g

turtle cartilage (washed, stewed, hard bones removed, cut into small pieces) 75 g

pork fat (cut into thin slices) 50 g

cooked winter bamboo shoots (sliced) 25 g

dried mushrooms 6 g

cooked yam (cut into chunks) 35 g

garlic cloves 15 g

Shaoxing wine 40 g

scallion (use the white part) 25 g

ginger (sliced) 25 g

soy sauce 25 g

salt 7.5 g

rock sugar 5 g

cornstarch (slurried with water for thickening) 25 g

sesame oil 15 g

pork broth

vegetable oil

Instructions

Initial Preparation

Place the soft-shelled turtle meat in a pot, add water and bring to a boil, then transfer to low heat and simmer until half-cooked. Remove, discard any sand and shell fragments, cut into long strips, wash and drain. Line a clay pot with a bamboo rack on the bottom and arrange the turtle strips neatly on top.

Stewing the Cartilage

Slice the pork fat into thin pieces, cut the yam into chunks, and wash the turtle cartilage. Place them in the clay pot with Shaoxing wine and water, cover, and stew over the heat for 4 hours. Remove, discard the hard bones, and cut the cartilage into small pieces.

Building the Aromatic Base

Heat a wok over the fire with vegetable oil, add the scallion whites and ginger slices to release their aroma, and pour the flavored oil over the turtle meat. Place the turtle pot over the heat, add Shaoxing wine, cover the lid, and braise until the flavor penetrates. Add salt, soy sauce, rock sugar, garlic, and pork broth; bring to a boil, then reduce to low heat and braise for about 2 hours. Pick out and discard the scallion and ginger.

Stir-frying the Topping

Heat the wok over the fire with oil, add the scallion whites and stir-fry until fragrant, then add the yam, mushrooms, winter bamboo shoots, and cartilage (the original text breaks off here).