我一直想做家乡有名的小吃鱿鱼蕹菜和叁巴水发鱿鱼。但我家周边的亚洲超市都找了个遍，没找着水发鱿鱼。
有一天在网上游览时读了一篇有关古法制作碱水的文章。突然灵机一触，后院的炭炉里还有炭灰，冰箱里还有鱿鱼干，不如就尝试一次古法碱水泡发鱿鱼试试看？
I wanted to make Kangkung sotong for a long time, but I had difficulty finding pre-soaked cuttlefish in the local market. I read an article about how alkali/alkaline water was made from the wood ashes in old time.
Since I have ashes in my Charcoal BBQ grill and some dried cuttlefish, I decided to create alkaline water and soak the cuttlefish the old fashioned way.
材料：
1/2 杯的 炭灰/木灰
2-3升 饮用水
1 只 鱿鱼干
Ingredients:
1/2 cup of wood ashes
2-3 litres of filtered/drinking water
1 piece of dried cuttlefish
1. 把炭灰和木灰泡到饮用水里几个小时，用纱布过滤，备用。
2. 把鱿鱼干洗净泡水1-2个小时后泡入炭灰水里泡发24个小时。
3. 把泡好的鱿鱼干冲洗干净就可以按食谱要求处理了。
1. Place wood ashes in drinking water and let it sit for a few hours, sieve if you wish to remove big chunks.
2. Wash and clean dried cuttlefish, soak in clean water for 1-2 hours if you wish. Place cuttlefish into wood ash water. Soak for 24 hours.
3. Rinse and clean the soaked cuttlefish thoroughly and use it as you wish.
注：这个方式泡发的鱿鱼虽然厚度不差，但是口感还是和买来的有些差距，下次试试碱水泡发，看看能不能改进。
Note：I find the cuttlefish soaked this way is still a little chewy after preparation, I may try next time with alkali.
