Braised Pork Trotters with White Radish

Place the chopped pork trotters into a pot of cold water. Add a few slices of ginger (from the 50g portion).

Bring the water to a boil over high heat. Once boiling, continue to cook for 1 minute. Skim off any foam.

Remove the blanched pork trotters and rinse them thoroughly under clean water. If there are any remaining hairs, use a torch or gas stove to singe them off, then scrape and rinse again. Set aside.

Peel and cut the white radish into large, irregular chunks using a rolling cut technique. Set aside.

Slice the remaining ginger into thin pieces. Cut the dried chilies into segments and shake out the seeds. Cut the dried squid into strips and rinse them.

Heat a wok over high heat. Add cooking oil. Once hot, add the sliced ginger, dried chilies, and dried squid. Stir-fry until fragrant and slightly crispy.

Add the cleaned pork trotters to the wok. Stir-fry to coat them with the aromatics. Add soybean paste, dark soy sauce, light soy sauce, oyster sauce, salt, and rock sugar. Continue to stir-fry until the trotters are well-coated and have absorbed some color.

Pour enough water into the wok to just cover the pork trotters. Bring the mixture to a rolling boil over high heat.

Transfer the contents of the wok to a claypot. Add the prepared white radish. Bring to a boil again, then reduce the heat to low, cover, and braise for 45 minutes.

After 45 minutes, remove the lid and increase the heat to high. Continue to cook for about 10 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the sauce thickens to your desired consistency.

Serve the braised pork trotters and radish hot, ideally with rice. For best flavor, let it sit overnight in the refrigerator and reheat the next day.