Homemade Classic Fish Flavors from Popular Chinese Fish Restaurants

Monday, November 25, 2024

In today's culinary trends, popular Chinese fish restaurants have attracted numerous diners with their unique flavors. The combination of Sichuan flavors and fish is especially outstanding. Among them, classic Sichuan flavors such as spicy fish and rattan pepper fish have charmed countless people. Just imagine being able to savor that spicy, fragrant, and irresistible fish dish at home. Doesn't it make your heart flutter? Next, this article will introduce several popular fish flavors to you. Let's make them at home together!

Sichuan classics are renowned for their rich and intense flavors. The distinct characteristics are numbness, spiciness, freshness, and fragrance. To incorporate this classic flavor into fish dishes, the selection of seasonings and cooking techniques are crucial. Chili peppers and Sichuan pepper play a vital role in Sichuan cuisine. The fiery stimulation brought by chili peppers and the numbing taste from Sichuan pepper interweave, forming an addictive and unique experience. Whether it's the bright red hot pot base or the fragrant Mapo Tofu, that spicy flavor can always ignite your appetite in an instant.

Classic Spicy Fish

Spicy fish, with its spicy and fragrant taste, has become the signature dish of many fish restaurants. Now, let's learn how to make this delicious classic spicy fish from the fish restaurant at home.

First, prepare a fresh fish, such as grass carp, snakehead, or sea bass. Clean the fish and make several cuts on both sides. Marinate it with salt, cooking wine, and ginger slices for 15 - 20 minutes. Also, prepare some side dishes like bean sprouts, tofu skin, and green vegetables, wash them and set aside.

After marinating, discard the excess water from the fish, evenly coat it with starch, and fry it in hot oil until both sides turn golden brown, then remove it.

Leave a little base oil in the pot, add ginger, garlic, dried chili peppers, and Sichuan pepper, stir-fry until fragrant. Add bean paste and stir-fry until the oil turns red. If you have hot pot base, add some and stir-fry until it melts. Then add the side dishes, stir-fry evenly, add an appropriate amount of water. After boiling, add the fried fish and an appropriate amount of light soy sauce. Simmer for 5 - 10 minutes on low heat to allow the fish to fully absorb the soup flavor.

Dish out and serve, sprinkle with scallions, cilantro, and minced garlic. Heat oil in another pan and pour it over to stimulate the fragrance. In this way, you have made the same spicy fish as in the fish restaurant. The spicy fish made is tender, spicy and flavorful, with rich side dishes. It's extremely delicious!

Rattan Pepper花椒(huā jiāo) Fish with Overflowing Aroma

花椒 (huā jiāo), noun, pepper

Examples:

  1. This dish needs some pepper.
    这道菜需要一些花椒。
    zhè dào cài xū yào yì xiē huā jiāo。
  2. The pepper makes the food spicy.
    花椒让食物变得麻辣。
    huā jiāo ràng shí wù biàn de má là。 

Rattan pepper fish is almost a star dish on the menu of every fish restaurant and is deeply loved by customers. Whether customers prefer a light taste or a heavy one, rattan pepper fish can meet their needs. It not only allows people to feel the tenderness of the fish but also brings a unique spicy experience through rattan pepper, becoming a signature dish that attracts repeat customers in the fish restaurant. Now let's learn how to make it!

First, prepare the ingredients, a fresh fish (such as snakehead with tender meat), rattan pepper, green and red chili peppers, ginger, garlic, egg white, starch, salt, cooking wine, edible oil, light soy sauce, chicken essence, etc. Clean the fish, cut the fish meat into thin slices, and cut the fish bones into sections.

Put the fish slices in a bowl, add egg white, starch, salt, and cooking wine, and mix well. Marinate for about 15 minutes. Cut a cross on the top of the ginger and garlic slices and chop the green and red chili peppers. Pour oil in the pot, add ginger and garlic slices and stir-fry until fragrant. Add the fish bones and fry until both sides are slightly yellow. Pour in an appropriate amount of clear water, bring to a boil over high heat, then turn to low heat and simmer into fish soup. Remove the fish bones and set aside.

Put the marinated fish slices into the pot one by one, cook until the color changes, then remove and put them in a bowl. Add an appropriate amount of salt, light soy sauce, and chicken essence to the fish soup to season, then pour it into the bowl with the fish slices. Then sprinkle rattan pepper and chopped green and red chili peppers on the fish.

Heat oil in another pan, pour it over the rattan pepper and chili peppers to stimulate the fragrance. A delicious rattan pepper fish is ready. The unique aroma of rattan pepper and the tender fish meat combine perfectly, leaving a memorable aftertaste.

Tomato Fish with Overflowing Fragrance

If you can't handle spicy food, tomato fish will definitely be your best choice. This is also a star dish that is very popular in fish restaurants! Let's make it together!

The classic tomato番茄(fān qié) fish from the fish restaurant is actually not difficult to make. First, prepare the ingredients, a fresh fish, several ripe tomatoes, scallions, ginger, garlic, and some common seasonings. Clean the fish, cut it into slices, mix well with salt, cooking wine, and starch, and marinate for a while. Make a cross on the top of the tomatoes, blanch them in boiling water, peel and cut them into small pieces.

番茄 (fān qié), noun, tomato

Examples:

  1. I need some tomatoes to make salad.
    我需要一些番茄来做沙拉。
    wǒ xū yào yì xiē fān qié lái zuò shā lā。
  2. The tomatoes in the garden are ripe.
    花园里的番茄熟了。
    huā yuán lǐ de fān qié shú le。 

Next, pour oil in the pot. When the oil is hot, add scallions, ginger, and garlic and stir-fry until fragrant. Then pour the tomato pieces in and stir-fry to get the juice. Try to stir-fry the tomatoes until they are soft and mushy so that the soup is rich. Then add a little tomato paste to make the tomato flavor more intense.

Then add an appropriate amount of water to the pot. After boiling, put the fish bones in and cook for a while, then put the fish slices in one by one and cook until the color of the fish slices changes and they are fully cooked.

Finally, add salt, sugar, and light soy sauce to season according to personal taste, and sprinkle with scallions. The tomato fish is ready to be served. The soup of this tomato fish is sweet and sour, the fish meat is tender, and it's especially delicious! 

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