Braised Fish in Chilli Bean Sauce

Make 3 or 4 shallow diagonal cuts into each side of the fish. Rub the fish inside and out with the salt, Shaoxing wine, and white pepper. Stuff the fish with ginger and green onion, and leave to marinate while you assemble the other ingredients. These will help the flavors to penetrate its flesh.

Dry the fish with kitchen paper or a clean towel.

Season the wok, then heat 3 cups of oil over a high flame until reaching 350°F / 180°C. Fry the fish briefly on each side, just long enough to crisp up the skin. Remove and set aside.

Return the wok to a medium heat with 4 tbsp of fresh oil, add the Pixian bean paste, and stir-fry for 20-30 seconds until the oil is red and smells delicious. Add the minced ginger, garlic, green onion, and stir-fry for another 20 seconds until you can smell their fragrance. Then pour in the chicken stock, add soy sauce, Shaoxing wine, fermented sweet rice, salt, and bring the liquid to the boil. Gently place the fish into the wok and spoon some sauce over it. Season to taste with the sugar.

Turn the heat down and simmer for 8-10 minutes until the fish is cooked and has absorbed some of the flavours of the sauce. Turn the fish once during the cooking time, spooning over some more sauce.

When the fish is done, add the cornstarch mixture to the sauce and stir briefly until it thickens. Throw in the sweet black rice vinegar, stir a couple of times and pour the sauce over the fish.

Enjoy!

Any whole fish is suitable for this dish; try sea bass, grouper or grey mullet, if you like. Also, if you can't find Chinese wine, use dry sherry instead.