Chinese cuisine

Professional

Crispy Sweet and Sour Fish | Chef John’s Cooking Class

Crispy Sweet and Sour Fish, if made well, is a dish that has a beautiful color, an enticing aroma, and a delicious flavor. The golden-brown fried fish, soaked in a rich sauce, is crispy on the outside and tender on the inside, with a full-bodied umami.

Chef John Zhang

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Crispy Sweet and Sour Fish | Chef John’s Cooking Class

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Recipe

PRE TIME: 10 min

COOKING TIME: 15 min

TOTAL TIME: 25 min

4 SERVING

Ingredients:

2 lb Striped Bass
8 oz Shrimp
1 lb Flour
7 oz Starch
4 oz Water
1 count Egg
1 tbsp Salt
2 oz Onion
3 stalk Green Onion
1 tsp Salt
1 tbsp Sugar
1 tbsp Honey
1 oz Haw Flakes
1 cup Ketchup
0.25 cup Apple cider vinegar

Directions:

Step 1

Prepare fish: remove scales, innards and dorsal fin. Put clean fish on flat cutting board, starting from head, 1 inch apart, cut straight vertically down to back bone then turn your knife horizontally toward head cut about ½ inch, working all way to tail. Do the same on another side.

Step 2

In a large bowl, combine flour, starch, salt, egg and water, mixing well till a batter is formed.

Step 3

Hold on to fishtail, deep whole fish into batter. Make sure entire fish is coated with batter.

Step 4

Deep fry fish at low temperature. Carefully holding on to fishtail and flip at beginning to form a nice shape. Tip: you may use a strainer on bottom of wok to prevent over cook. Take out fish.

Step 5

Re-fry at high temperature for a few minutes till golden.

Step 6

Prepare sweet and sour sauce: leave about a tablespoon oil in wok, add onion, green onion, ketchup, cooking wine, water, sugar, honey, and hawthorn flakes, stir and cook for a well.

Step 7

Strain out solid pieces, add shrimps and apple cider vinegar, simmer for a few minutes, add starch and water mixture to thickening.

Step 8

Pour sweet and sour sauce over fried fish.

Step 9

Garnish and serve.

Final Notes

We can use a variety of fish for this dish -- carp, silver carp, or perch are all good choices. We want to cross-hatch both sides of the fish so that it cooks faster, and the grooves will also help it absorb more flavor as it cooks.