Fish Concubine

Name: Fish Concubine
Prep time: 30 min
Cook time: 30 min
Total time: 1 h
Ingredients: 1 live mandarin fish; 20 g winter bamboo shoots; 25 g cooked chicken breast; 5 g black moss (fa cai); 15 g cooked ham; 100 g spinach; 100 g pork caul fat; 100 g carrot; 25 g rehydrated shiitake mushrooms; 25 g Shaoxing wine; 50 g lard; 2.5 g scallion segments; 200 g chicken broth; 2.5 g ginger julienne; 10 g sugar; 25 g starch; 2 g MSG; 2.5 g white pepper; 5 g fine salt

A traditional dish from Wuhan, also known as Five-Colored Mandarin Fish. It features vibrant colors, a savory and well-balanced flavor, and tender, silky fish flesh.

1h 0m

Easy

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Ingredients

live mandarin fish 1

winter bamboo shoots 20 g

cooked chicken breast 25 g

black moss (fa cai) 5 g

cooked ham 15 g

spinach 100 g

pork caul fat 100 g

carrot 100 g

rehydrated shiitake mushrooms 25 g

Shaoxing wine 25 g

lard 50 g

scallion segments 2.5 g

chicken broth 200 g

ginger julienne 2.5 g

sugar 10 g

starch 25 g

MSG 2 g

white pepper 2.5 g

fine salt 5 g

Instructions

Prepare the Ingredients

Scale the fish and remove the gills and innards. Briefly blanch in boiling water, peel off the skin, and rinse clean. Trim the stems from the shiitake mushrooms and rinse.

Marinate and Arrange Toppings

Score a herringbone ("人") pattern on both sides of the fish. Place on a plate, sprinkle with fine salt, and marinate for 3 minutes. Cut the chicken breast, ham, shiitake mushrooms, and winter bamboo shoots into thin strips. Arrange them in 5 horizontal rows together with the black moss on top of the fish. Add MSG, scallion segments, and ginger slices, then cover everything with the pork caul fat.

Steam the Fish

Steam the fish on its plate for 20 minutes, then remove the caul fat. Stir-fry the spinach briefly until just wilted and arrange it around the fish. Carve 8 small balls from the carrot and place each one on a spinach leaf.

Thicken and Pour the Sauce

Place a wok over high heat, add the chicken broth, fine salt, MSG, sugar, and Shaoxing wine, and bring to a boil. Thicken with wet starch, drizzle in the lard, remove from the heat, pour the sauce over the fish, and sprinkle with white pepper to finish.