Fish with Pickled Mustard Greens – Suan Cai Yu
"Suan Cai Yu" is a classic dish in the culinary scene of Chongqing, China, is beloved for its sour and spicy flavor, captivating the taste buds of many diners. It's a dish you can find in many restaurants due to its popularity.
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When people crave it, they often opt to make it themselves for its economic and hygienic benefits. However, mastering this dish isn't easy. Here are some key considerations:
1.Choosing Fresh Fish
There are various types of fish suitable for Suancai Yu. If you prefer boneless options, black carp is a good choice. For more budget-friendly options, grass carp or silver carp are suitable. If you're looking for convenience, you can opt for crucian carp. However, the most crucial aspect of selecting fish is ensuring its freshness. Avoid buying frozen fish fillets from supermarkets, as they tend to have inferior texture. If purchasing from a local market, you can ask the vendor to fillet the fish for you; they're usually skilled and efficient at it. If buying from a supermarket, you'll need to fillet it yourself at home, so make sure you have decent knife skills.
2.How to Remove Fishy Odor?
To ensure the fish is entirely free of any fishy odor, there are several key steps to follow:
Remove the teeth from the fish head.
Clean out the black membrane from the fish belly thoroughly.
Remove any fish tendons.
Wash both the fish bones and fillets to remove impurities and blood residue.
3.How to Choose Pickled Mustard Greens（Suan Cai）?
To ensure the best flavor for your Suan Cai Yu, it's crucial to select high-quality Suan Cai. The unique sour taste of Suan Cai comes from the lactic acid bacteria produced during fermentation, a process well-suited to the special geographical environment of Sichuan. For making Suan Cai Yu, it's best to use aged Suan Cai from Sichuan. Locally, some may also add pickled radish or pickled pepper to enhance the flavor further.
When purchasing Suan Cai, pay attention to the following:
Appearance: Sichuan Suan Cai typically has a greenish-blue hue with a hint of ginger-yellow, while Northeastern Suan Cai tends to be a lighter yellow.
Taste: Northeastern Suan Cai leans towards a more vegetable-like taste with a pronounced sourness, whereas Sichuan Suan Cai balances sourness with a hint of saltiness, offering a more crisp texture.
4.How to Make Creamy White Fish Broth?
Here's a little trick for making a creamy white fish broth that works not only for Suan Cai Yu but also for any other fish soup you make in the future. Firstly, lightly sear the fish over medium heat until it's partially cooked; avoid overcooking it. Secondly, when boiling the soup, use high heat with vigorously boiling water. This helps to break down the fish fat released during searing, turning it into fat globules that dissolve in the water, resulting in a creamy white liquid. With just these two steps, without the need for any coloring ingredients like milk, you can make a pure and delicious creamy white fish broth.
On a scorching summer day, preparing a nutritious and delicious dish like Suan Cai Yu will surely whet the appetites of you and your family!
INGREDIENTS
MAIN INGREDIENTS
- 2.2 lbs grass carp
ACCESSORIES
- 1.1 lbs pickled mustard greens（Suan Cai）
SEASONINGS
- 1 tablespoon cornstarch
- 2 tablespoons cooking wine
- 1 egg white
- 0.7 oz dried chili peppers
- 0.7 oz chopped green onions
- 0.7 oz ginger slices
- 0.7 oz garlic slices
- A little chicken bouillon
- Some white pepper powder
- Some cooking oil
- Some salt
- Some white vinegar
DIRECTIONS
STEP 1
Trim off the head and tail of the fish, then split the fish head open from the middle.
STEP 2
Using a knife, along the backbone of the fish, remove the two fillets from both sides of the fish.
STEP 3
Cut the fish bones into sections, then slice the two large fillets into fish slices.
Tips:
Slicing the fish: Place a large fillet skin-side down on the cutting board with the tail pointing left. Hold the tail end of the fish with your left hand and slice diagonally from the head towards the tail with a knife, making slices about 0.5 centimeters thick. (The tighter you hold the tail with your left hand, the easier it is to slice. If you're not confident in your knife skills, consider asking the fishmonger at the market to slice the fish for you.)
STEP 4
Once finished, separate the sliced fish from the fish head, tail, and bones, and arrange them separately.
STEP 5
For the fish slices, add an appropriate amount of salt, white pepper powder, 1 tablespoon of cornstarch, 2 tablespoons of cooking wine, and 1 egg white. Mix well with your hands until evenly coated. Marinate for just enough time until ready to cook.
STEP 6
While marinating, wash the Suan Cai, squeeze out excess water, and cut it into sections. Cut the dried chili peppers into sections, slice the ginger and garlic, and chop the green onions for later use.
STEP 7
Heat a small amount of oil in a pot, add the ginger slices and stir-fry briefly. Then add the fish head, tail, and bones, and fry over medium heat until the fish meat turns white.
STEP 8
Increase the heat to high, add about half a pot of water, and bring it to a boil. Then add a little cooking wine. Cook until the broth turns milky white, then remove from heat.
Tips:
It usually takes about 10 minutes to cook. If you only want to eat the fish slices, you can remove the fish head, tail, and bones and leave only the fish soup.
STEP 9
In the pot, add a small amount of oil and sauté the ginger slices and garlic slices until fragrant. Then add the Suan Cai and stir-fry until the sour flavor emerges, which takes approximately 3-5 minutes.
STEP 10
Next, pour in the fish broth. Once it boils, add a little chicken bouillon. If you enjoy a tangy flavor, you can also add some white vinegar.
Tips:
Since the Suan Cai itself tends to be salty, taste the broth first. If you feel it's not salty enough, you can add a bit more salt.
STEP 11
Place the marinated fish slices into the boiling fish broth. Use a spatula to gently separate the fish slices to prevent sticking. Let it cook for 3-5 minutes after the water comes to a boil until the fish is fully cooked, then remove from heat.
STEP 12
Sprinkle chopped green onions on top. Although green onions have been added, it's not the end yet.
STEP 13
Heat a large skillet over high heat and add an adequate amount of oil. Toss in the dried chili pepper pieces and stir-fry until fragrant. Then immediately drizzle the fragrant oil over the Suan Cai Yu.
STEP 14
With these steps, a super delicious and authentic Suan Cai Yu is now ready to be served.
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