Sweet and Sour Fish Recipe
There must be a fish dish on the New Year's Eve dinner table. It is sour, sweet, crispy on the outside and tender on the inside. It is extremely delicious. Today, I will share with you a family-style recipe for sweet and sour fish.
About sweet and sour fish
Sweet and sour fish is a classic Chinese dish. It originated in Jinan, Shandong Province and is a classic representative name of Shandong cuisine.
Sweet and sour fish is cooked with carp as the main raw material and sweet and sour sauce. The soul of this dish is the sweet and sour sauce. The sweet and sour sauce is mainly made by boiling vinegar, sugar, tomato sauce, soy sauce and water. It has a sweet and sour taste and a rich sauce.
This dish is a classic dish that almost every Chinese family has made. It has a particularly good taste and is deeply loved by the public. This dish is also an unforgettable memory of my childhood.
Ingredients Needed and Substitutions
Main ingredients
Carp: It is one of the main ingredients for making sweet and sour fish, providing a delicate and tender meat texture.
Tomato sauce, aged vinegar, white sugar: The main ingredients for making sweet and sour sauce provide a sweet and sour taste for the dish and help increase the color and flavor of the dish.
Condiments
Liquor: The main function is to remove fishy smell and at the same time help increase the aroma of the dish.
Starch: The main function is to thicken the sauce and make the sweet and sour sauce smooth in texture.
Salt: Used for seasoning to make the dish more delicious.
Oil: Used to fry the outer layer of the fish to form a crispy skin.
Substitutions
Tomato sauce: Can be replaced by fresh tomatoes.
Salt: Can be replaced by light soy sauce, dark soy sauce, etc.
Starch: Can be replaced by corn starch, sweet potato starch.
aged vinegar: Can be replaced by white vinegar, apple vinegar, fruit vinegar, etc.
Liquor: Can be replaced by cooking wine, yellow rice wine or wine.
White sugar: Can be replaced by honey, brown sugar, yellow sugar.
What kind of fish to use?
For making sweet and sour fish, carp is definitely the first choice. Carp is the most classic fish for making sweet and sour fish. The flesh of carp is thick and the taste is tender. It is extremely delicious. Secondly, in terms of appearance, the surface of carp will turn golden yellow after being fried. It looks very delicious.
If you can't find carp, then you can choose grass carp. Grass carp is also very suitable for making sweet and sour fish because the flesh of grass carp is thick and tender. It is also very fresh when eaten. Secondly, like carp, it will also show a beautiful golden yellow color after being fried, which looks very attractive.
In addition, fish such as mandarin fish, crucian carp and tilapia are also very suitable for making sweet and sour fish. These fish all have one thing in common: tender flesh and relatively few fish bones.
Tips for Success
Carp processing
Choosing fresh carp is the key to making sweet and sour fish successfully. Live carp has a fresh and tender taste. When processing carp, pay attention to removing the scales, gills, internal organs and black membranes of carp to ensure that the carp is clean. Only in this way can the made carp have no fishy smell.
Carp marinating
If you want sweet and sour fish to be successful, then the marinating of carp is very important. You need to evenly apply salt and liquor on the surface of carp and marinate for about 10 minutes to achieve the effect of removing fishy smell and enhancing fragrance.
Cutting of flower knife
If you want sweet and sour fish to be flavorful, then it is very important to cut flower knife on carp. The correct way is to cut flower knife with a spacing of 2-3 centimeters and a depth close to the fish bone, but do not cut off the fish bone. When frying carp, pay attention to keeping the carp heated evenly and not turning the carp over and breaking it.
Control of oil temperature
Controlling the oil temperature is very important when frying carp. It is recommended to quickly put the carp into the oil when the oil temperature reaches 70%. Fry until the shape is fixed. When the carp is fried until the skin is crispy, it is fine. Note that the oil temperature should not be too low. Otherwise, the carp meat will absorb too much oil and become greasy, affecting the taste.
Preparation of sweet and sour sauce
The sweet and sour sauce is the key to making sweet and sour fish. Tomato sauce, white sugar, aged vinegar and salt need to be proportionally prepared and stirred evenly. When mixing starch, pay attention to controlling the amount of starch. During the cooking process, keep stirring to prevent scorching.
INGREDIENTS
Main Ingredients
-
·1 carp (about 750g)
Accessories
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·50g tomato sauce
-
·15g starch
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·10ml aged vinegar
-
·20g white sugar
-
·5ml liquor
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·5g salt
-
·1000ml oil
COOKING STEP
Step 1
Carp processing:
Clean the 750g carp thoroughly. Cut flower knife evenly on both sides with an oblique knife. The spacing is 2 - 3 centimeters and the depth is close to the fish bone for easy flavoring.
Step 2
Marinating to remove fishy smell:
Mix 5 grams of salt and 5 milliliters of liquor. Apply it evenly all over the carp and marinate for 10 minutes to remove fishy smell.
Step 3
Heat oil for frying:
Pour 1000 milliliters of oil into the pot and heat it over high heat until it is 70% hot. The oil surface is densely covered with small bubbles rolling.
Step 4
Fry the carp:
Hold the fish tail and slowly slide the fish into the pot along the edge of the pot. Keep medium heat throughout. While frying, use a spoon to scoop hot oil and pour it on the fish body until the skin is golden and crispy and then take it out.
Step 5
Boil the sweet and sour sauce:
Add a spoonful of about 15 milliliters of water to the pot. Heat it until it is 70% hot and steaming. Pour in 50 grams of tomato sauce and stir and boil.
Put in 1 gram of salt and 20 grams of white sugar and stir evenly. Pour in 10 milliliters of aged vinegar and boil. Then thicken with 15 grams of starch to make the sauce thick. Add 5 milliliters of oil and cook for a while to thicken the sauce.
Step 6
Pour the sauce to finish the dish:
Pour the sweet and sour sauce evenly on the fried fish while it is hot. The sweet and sour and crispy sweet and sour fish is completed.
More delicious recipes to try
Aromatic Creation: Dry Pot Cauliflower Delight
Sweet and Sour Pork with Juicy Pineapple Recipe
Chinese Century Egg Salad (Pidan Salad)
Serving Suggestions
Recommended pairings
Rice: Sweet and sour fish goes well with white rice. The rich sauce of sweet and sour fish is poured on the rice. With one bite, it is really full of happiness.
Steamed buns: For residents in northern China, sweet and sour fish can also be eaten with steamed buns and steamed stuffed buns. It can enrich the taste of steamed buns and steamed stuffed buns and enhance the feeling of fullness.
Stir-fried vegetables: Sweet and sour fish has a relatively strong taste. It can be eaten with some stir-fried seasonal vegetables, such as stir-fried broccoli and stir-fried pakchoi. It can help neutralize the greasy taste of sweet and sour fish.
Cold dishes: Sweet and sour fish can also be eaten with cold dishes such as cold cucumbers and cold fungus. It can have a very good effect.
Serving suggestions
Eat while it is hot: The freshly cooked sweet and sour fish has the best taste. It is recommended to eat sweet and sour fish while it is hot to obtain the best taste.
Eat in moderation: Although sweet and sour fish is delicious, sweet and sour fish has relatively high sugar and salt content. It is recommended to eat in moderation to facilitate the body to control the intake of calories and salt.
Pay attention to fish bones: Carp has certain fish bones. Therefore, when eating, pay attention to fish bones to avoid getting stuck in the throat. Especially the elderly and children need to pay special attention.
FAQs:
Therefore, before frying the fish, it is necessary to ensure that the fish meat is marinated in place and the flower knife is cut evenly. When frying the fish, pay attention to pouring hot oil on the fish with a spoon while frying to help shape the fish meat.
Therefore, when making sweet and sour sauce, it is necessary to ensure that starch and water are mixed in the correct proportion. It is recommended to mix 15 grams of starch with 30 milliliters of water. When thickening, stir slowly over low heat to avoid scorching.
It is recommended that when frying carp, ensure that the oil temperature reaches 70% hot (about 170°C). You can test the oil temperature with a small piece of fish skin. When frying the fish, ensure that the fish meat is completely immersed in the oil. The frying time is sufficient. It takes about 5-7 minutes until the fish skin is golden and crispy.
When making sweet and sour sauce, you can adjust the dosage according to your own taste preference. Keeping it in a ratio of 2:3 is fine.
