Ingredients
1 live softshell turtle (about 500-1000 g / 1-2 lbs), 100 g (about 1/2 cup) chicken broth.
Seasonings
5 g ginseng, 10 g poria (Chinese mushroom), 20 g floating wheat, 1 egg, 50 g ham, 15 g each minced ginger, cooking wine, and scallion segments, 3 g salt, 1 g MSG, 50 g raw pork fat.
Instructions
1. Cut off the head and neck of the soft-shelled turtle, drain the blood, place it in a basin, and blanch with boiling water for 3 minutes. Remove, use a small knife to scrape off the black membrane from the back and skirt, then peel off the white skin from the four legs. Cut off the claws, tail, and bottom shell, remove the internal organs, and rinse clean. Place a wok over heat, add water and the turtle, bring to a boil, then simmer over low heat for about 30 minutes. Remove and place in warm water, pull off the yellow fat, discard the upper and lower shells and large leg bones, rinse, cut into 3 cm (about 1.2-inch) cubes, and place in a bowl.
2. Cut the ham into small slices and the raw suet into small cubes, then place them on top of the turtle; add half of the seasonings (reserve the MSG for later), minced ginger, and an appropriate amount of clear broth into the bowl; wrap the floating wheat and Poria cocos in a cloth bag, tie it securely, and place it into the broth.
3. Grind the ginseng into a fine powder and sprinkle it over the top, seal the bowl opening with dampened cotton paper, and steam in a bamboo steamer for 3 hours until the softshell turtle is tender and falls apart; after removing the turtle from the steamer, discard the scallion segments, invert the bowl onto a serving plate, pour the reserved cooking liquid into a pot, add the remaining half of the seasonings and MSG to taste, bring to a boil and skim off any foam, then crack an egg into the soup, simmer briefly, and pour over the turtle to finish. This dish features tender, melt-in-your-mouth turtle meat, a rich and thick broth, a pronounced egg flavor, and offers the health benefits of nourishing yin and enriching the blood, as well as boosting qi and strengthening the spleen.