Rock Sugar Soft-Shelled Turtle
A traditional Ningbo dish with a history of over 200 years, featuring a glossy red color and a rich, thickened sauce.
Ingredients
Live soft-shelled turtle (processed after slaughter)
2, totaling 750 g
Rock sugar (crushed)
125 g
Cooked bamboo shoots (cut into diagonal pieces)
100 g
Shaoxing wine
50 g
Scallion knot
5 g
Vinegar
25 g
Scallion segments
5 g
Soy sauce
75 g
Ginger (smashed)
25 g
Wet starch (diluted)
25 g
Lard
125 g
Garlic cloves
3 cloves
Instructions
1
Process the turtle
After slaughtering the turtle, briefly soak it in 90°C hot water to peel off the outer skin. Cut off the tip of the mouth, tail, and claws. Use the tip of a knife to make a cross-cut pattern on the belly, remove the innards and throat, chop off the pointed bones of the back shell, and cut each turtle into 6 pieces. Rinse with cold water. Cut the bamboo shoots into diagonal pieces.
2
Initial boiling
Blanch the turtle briefly in a pot of boiling water, then remove and rinse with clean water. Place a wok over high heat, pour in 500 g of water, add the turtle, then add 25 g of Shaoxing wine, the smashed ginger, and the scallion knot. Once boiling, reduce to low heat and simmer until tender, then discard the ginger and scallion knot.
3
Braising
Take another wok and place it over medium heat. Add 50 g of lard, drop in the garlic cloves, and briefly stir-fry. Add the turtle along with its original broth, then add 25 g of Shaoxing wine, 100 g of rock sugar, the bamboo shoots, soy sauce, and vinegar. Once boiling, reduce to low heat and simmer for 5 minutes.
4
Reduce the sauce
Switch to high heat to thicken the sauce. Thicken with the diluted wet starch, drizzle in 75 g of lard, while stirring and rotating the wok so that the sauce and oil evenly coat each piece of turtle. Add the scallion segments, cook until bubbling, then transfer to a serving plate. Garnish both sides with 25 g of rock sugar and serve.
