Sweet and Sour Live Carp
A traditional Jiangsu specialty, this dish features freshly killed carp cooked so quickly that its mouth can still be seen opening and closing as the sweet-and-sour sauce is poured over. The flesh is tender, with a bright, balanced sweet-and-sour flavor.
Ingredients
Live carp (one fish, freshly killed)
1000 g
Large shrimp (coated)
15 g
Green peas
15 g
Pear slices
35 g
Refined salt
7.5 g
Garlic (minced)
25 g
Tomato paste
30 g
White vinegar
15 g
Starch (dry starch, for dusting fish and thickening)
25 g
White sugar
50 g
Shaoxing wine
25 g
Peanut oil (100 g actually used)
750 g
Instructions
1
Coat and oil-blanch the shrimp
Place the shrimp in a bowl, add seasonings and coat. Heat a wok over high heat, pour in peanut oil and heat to about 40% hot (approximately 100°C). Add the shrimp and pass through the oil, then remove and drain.
2
Make the sweet and sour sauce
Leave a little oil in the wok, add minced garlic and stir-fry briefly, then add green peas, tomato paste, white vinegar, refined salt, white sugar, and Shaoxing wine. Bring to a boil, thicken with starch, then add the pear slices.
3
Prepare the carp
Scale the live carp, split open the belly and remove the innards, wipe clean with a towel, score a peony-blade pattern on both sides of the fish with a knife, dust with dry starch, then tie the fish head tightly with a damp towel.
4
Deep-fry the fish and serve
Holding the fish head, lower the body into oil heated to about 70% hot (approximately 175°C) and fry for 1 minute. Remove and place on a plate, take off the towel, pour the sweet and sour sauce over it, sprinkle with the cooked shrimp, and serve immediately.
