Sweet and Sour Fish
This classic Beijing sweet and sour fish has a vibrant golden hue, perfectly balanced sweet and savory flavor, and a delightfully crispy exterior with a tender, juicy interior.
Ingredients
Yellow croaker (about 750g, grass carp or common carp may also be used)
1
Hawthorn cake (cut into small dice)
5 g
Green plum (cut into small dice)
5 g
Scallion (finely chopped)
10 g
Ginger (finely chopped)
10 g
White sugar
125 g
Vinegar
50 g
Salt
3 g
Cooking wine
15 g
Soy sauce
10 g
Oil
to taste
Starch
to taste
Ginger juice
to taste
Instructions
1
Step 1
Scale the fish, remove the fins, gills, and innards, and wash clean. On each side of the fish, make a cut every 2 cm down to the bone, then cut 1.5 cm along the bone so the flesh flips outward. Cut the hawthorn cake and green plum into small dice and briefly blanch in boiling water.
2
Step 2
Heat oil in a wok to 70–80% hot, add the fish coated in starch and fry over low heat until cooked through; remove to a serving plate.
3
Step 3
Leave a little oil in the wok and heat it, then add the chopped scallion and ginger to bloom the aroma. Remove the scallion and ginger, then add the soy sauce, white sugar, salt, cooking wine, vinegar, and ginger juice. Bring to a boil, thicken with a starch slurry to make the sweet-and-sour sauce, and pour it over the fried fish. Sprinkle the green plum and hawthorn cake dice on top and serve.
