Stir-Fried Fish with Spring Bamboo Shoots
A traditional dish from Hangzhou, Zhejiang, made with river pond fish stir-fried together with spring bamboo shoots. In 1956, it was recognized as one of 36 signature Hangzhou dishes of Zhejiang Province.
Ingredients
live fish (scaled, gills and innards removed, washed, mouth and pectoral fins trimmed, tail evened, filleted into two sides)
6400g
clean spring bamboo shoots (cut into chunks slightly smaller than fish pieces)
100g
scallion segments
10g
soy sauce
20g
fine salt (for marinating fish)
1g
monosodium glutamate
2.5g
white pepper
1g
wet starch (35g for coating, 15g for thickening)
50g
sugar
5g
sesame oil
10g
Shaoxing wine
10g
cooked pork lard (approximately 50g used)
500g
vinegar
1g
Instructions
1
Prepare Fish and Bamboo Shoots
Scale the fish, remove gills and innards, wash thoroughly, trim off the mouth and pectoral fins, even the tail, and fillet into two sides. Cut the bone-in side diagonally into two sections. Rub the fish with fine salt until sticky, then coat evenly with 35g wet starch. Cut the bamboo shoots into chunks slightly smaller than the fish pieces.
2
Prepare the Sauce
Combine soy sauce, sugar, Shaoxing wine, monosodium glutamate, vinegar, 15g wet starch with 25g of water to prepare the bowl sauce.
3
Fry the Bamboo Shoots
Place the wok over medium heat, add cooked pork lard, and heat to about 30% hot. Add the bamboo shoots and fry for about 15 seconds, then remove.
4
Fry the Fish
When the oil returns to about 50% hot, add the fish pieces and stir to separate them. Return the bamboo shoots to the wok and fry until the fish is cooked through. Pour the contents into a strainer to remove excess oil.
5
Stir-Fry to Finish
Reserve 25g of oil in the wok and return to the heat. Add scallion segments and stir-fry until fragrant, then add the fish and bamboo shoots. Pour in the prepared sauce and toss the wok. When the sauce coats the fish, drizzle with sesame oil, sprinkle with white pepper, and serve.
