Red Braised Soft-Shelled Turtle
A rich, full-flavored dish.
Ingredients
Soft-shelled turtle (killed, outer shell and innards removed, cut into chunks)
approx 1250 g
Soaked shiitake mushrooms (soaked, stems removed)
50 g
Garlic cloves (fried until golden)
15 g
Cilantro (arranged on the edge of the plate)
1
Cooking wine
0.5 tbsp
White sugar
0.5 tbsp
Wet cornstarch (divided into two uses)
0.5 tbsp
Scallion segments
5
Ginger slices
5 slices
Ground white pepper
1 tsp
Sesame oil
1 tsp
MSG
1.5 tsp
Fine salt
3 tsp
Soy sauce
3 tsp
Stock
2 tbsp
Peanut oil
2 tbsp
Instructions
1
Step 1
After the soft-shelled turtle is killed, blanch it in boiling water briefly, remove the outer shell and innards, cut into chunks, then blanch again to remove all blood. Soak the shiitake mushrooms and remove their stems, then toss the soft-shelled turtle chunks with half of the wet cornstarch to coat evenly.
2
Step 2
Add the soft-shelled turtle chunks to a wok with hot oil, fry until light golden, then remove. Add the garlic cloves to the wok and fry until golden, then remove.
3
Step 3
Leave a small amount of base oil in the wok, add the scallion segments and ginger slices, then add the soft-shelled turtle, cooking wine, soy sauce, fine salt, shiitake mushrooms, white sugar, MSG, and stock. Simmer for a while, then transfer the mixture to a steamer bowl, steam in a bamboo steamer until fully tender. Remove from the steamer, pour out the original cooking liquid, invert the bowl onto a plate. Arrange the cilantro around the edge of the plate.
4
Step 4
Pour the reserved cooking liquid into a pot, add the remaining half of the wet cornstarch, ground white pepper, and sesame oil to make a thick sauce, then pour the sauce over the dish.
