Ingredients
Chicken stock, dried squid, cooked chicken skin, shiitake mushrooms, water chestnuts, ham, and pork trotters, each to taste.
Seasonings
Salt, cooking wine, ginger, scallions, and ground white pepper, all to taste.
Instructions
1. Place 2000 g (about 8 1/2 cups) of water and 50 g (about 1/4 cup) of quicklime in a bowl, add the dried squid and soak for 12 hours, stirring twice during this time to ensure even rehydration, then remove and rinse thoroughly under clean water; cut the rehydrated squid into thick strips 4 cm (about 1 1/2 inches) long and 1 cm (about 1/3 inch) wide, and finely shred the chicken skin, water chestnuts, winter mushrooms, and ham; lightly crush the scallions and ginger with the side of a knife after washing.
2. Heat an iron skewer until red hot and use it to burn off the hairs between the pig's trotters, then soak them in warm water for half an hour, scrape off any burnt skin and hair, and rinse clean; place 1000 g (about 4 cups) of broth in a clay pot, add scallions, ginger, and cooking wine, bring the pig's trotters to a boil over high heat, skim off the foam, then reduce to low heat and simmer for about 90 minutes until a rich broth forms; in a separate pot, bring 250 g (about 1 cup) of chicken broth to a boil and blanch the shredded squid briefly.
3. Remove the pig trotters from the clay pot, add chicken broth, shredded squid, and all the other ingredients, then simmer for another half hour until the broth turns milky white and rich. Season with salt and white pepper to taste. This dish is vibrant in color, with a rich and aromatic broth that stays hot for a long time, making it perfect for winter enjoyment.