Boiled Fish
Boiled fish is a moderately difficult main dish. Basa fish is rich in high-quality protein and low in fat, and paired with seasonal vegetables it is very nutritious and healthy. Beginners generally need 2 hours to complete it.
Ingredients and Tools
- Basa fish
- Vegetables (such as potato slices/bean sprouts/cauliflower/lettuce/…)
- Red chili bean paste
- Tengjiao oil
- Rapeseed oil
- White pepper powder
- Garlic cloves
- Salt
- Sugar
- Measuring cup
- Kitchen scale (optional)
- Large stainless steel bowl
Measurements
- Basa fish 500g
- Vegetables (such as potato slices/bean sprouts/cauliflower/lettuce/…) can be mixed in different combinations; recommended total weight 300g to 500g
- Red chili bean paste 40g (if you are not afraid of heat and want more red oil, add 10 to 20g)
- Fermented black beans 10g (optional)
- Tengjiao oil 10ml
- Rapeseed oil 25ml
- White pepper powder 3g
- Garlic 2 cloves
- Salt 5g
- Sugar 2g
Steps
- Prep: If the basa fish is taken from the freezer, let it thaw at room temperature for 5 hours before slicing.
- Slice: Cut the basa fish into thin slices, about 5cm long and 3cm wide.
- Marinate: Put the sliced basa fish into a large stainless steel bowl.
- Add 30g chili bean paste, 3g salt, 10ml tengjiao oil, and 3g white pepper powder.
- Mix evenly by hand, then add 5ml rapeseed oil to finish and seal in the flavors.
- Let it sit at room temperature for at least 30 minutes to absorb the flavors.
- Prep vegetables: Mince the garlic. Using 300g cauliflower and 200g lettuce as an example, wash the cauliflower and lettuce.
- Blanch and stir-fry: Blanch the cauliflower in boiling water and set aside; wash the lettuce, drain dry, and stir-fry until cooked (no oil needed).
- Stir-fry the chili bean paste: Heat the pan and add oil (rapeseed oil 20ml), add 10g chili bean paste and 10g fermented black beans (optional), add the minced garlic, and stir-fry over medium heat slowly.
- Poach the fish slices: Add 150ml hot water. When it boils quickly, add the marinated fish slices, gently stir to separate them in the water, add 2g salt and 2g sugar to season (adjust the salt to taste at this time). Once it boils again, plate it.
- Plate: Put the cooked vegetables into a large bowl first, then place the hot fish slices on top of the vegetables, and pour the remaining hot broth from the pan over it.
Notes
- You can freely choose the combination and amount of the vegetables on the bottom, but pay attention to the characteristics of each vegetable. For example, if you use potatoes, you need to cook the potato slices/cubes until done (you can poke with chopsticks to confirm).
- The amount of red chili bean paste (spice level) and salt can be adjusted to taste.
- When cutting the fish slices, you can cut perpendicular to the length of the fish into 5cm pieces, then rotate 90 degrees and slice thinly at an angle.
- When marinating, be careful not to mix too forcefully.
- How to Fillet a Fish Instructions for deboning a fish Reference material If you follow this guide and find any issues or improvements to the process, please submit an Issue or Pull request.