Dish of Fried Fish with Ginger Vegies
(click to enlarge)

Fried Fish with Ginger Vegies


Thailand - Central
Serves:
Effort:
Sched:
DoAhead:  		 2 w/rice
***
50 min
Prep		 With the vegies and rice, a 4-1/2 ounce fish fillet should be enough for most people. The ginger vegies are so tasty you could almost skip the fish.
This is an elegant dish for two, but would be difficult to manage for more than four. Have everything ready and work quickly so the vegetables are minimally cooked.

9
3
3/4
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1
4
2
3
1
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3/4
3/4
3
1/3
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1/2
ar
ar
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oz
oz
in
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lrg
oz
oz


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T
T
T
T
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T
c

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Fish Filet (1)
Bean Sprouts (2)  
Ginger Root
-- Aromatics
Black Mushroom dry
Bell Pepper, red
Shallot
Scallions
Red Chili (3)
-- Sauce
Fish Sauce (4)
Soy Sauce
Stock (5)
Oyster Sauce (6)
--------
Oil
Rice Flour
Oil to fry Fish
-- Garnish
Cilantro
Prep   -   (35 min)
  1. Cut FISH FILETS into your preferred serving size and pat dry.
  2. Rinse BEAN SPROUTS. Remove thread-like roots if you want to be a perfectionist.
  3. Trim GINGER and peel if needed. Slice crosswise very thin, then slice into narrow slivers.
  4. Soak MUSHROOM in warm water for at least 1/2 hour. Stem, cut in half and slice halves thin at right angles.
  5. Blast the BELL PEPPER black with your propane torch and rub off the skin under running water. Cut SHALLOTS in half lengthwise and slice thin crosswise. Slice SCALLIONS into 1/4 inch lengths. Slice CHILI thin. Mix all Aromatics items, including Mushroom.
  6. Mix together all Sauce items.
  7. Chop CILANTRO medium small for Garnish.
Run   -   (15 min)
  1. In a well seasoned iron skillet, start heating about 1/16th inch of oil so it is nearly at frying temperature when the vegies are done (5 minutes).
  2. In a sauté pan or wok, heat Oil over medium heat and fry Ginger, stirring until aromatic but not browned, then stir in Aromatics mix. Fry stirring for just a couple minutes.
  3. Stir in Bean Sprouts, then Sauce mix. Bring quickly to a boil, stir, then set aside, covered to keep warm. Both Bean Sprouts and Bell Pepper should still have some crunch to them.
  4. Dust fish lightly with Rice Flour and fry both sides until very lightly browned.
  5. Spread Vegies on plates and top with Fish. Garnish with Cilantro and serve warm, with steamed Jasmine Rice on the side.
NOTES:

  1. Fish:

      My preferred fish for this recipe is Pompano, but many other light or medium fish that aren't too thick will work fine. The photo is with Black Pomfret, but I have also made it with Tilapia. For details, see our Varieties of Fish page (very large page).

  2. Bean Sprouts:

      Mung Bean Sprouts are almost always called for in Thai cooking, but I prefer Soybean Sprouts for this recipe (see photo), because they have more flavor and are more durable in cooking. Soybean Sprouts are most used in Korea, but do see significant use throughout Southeast Asia and southern China. Korean markets sometimes have them with the root ends conveniently cut off.

  3. Chili:

      Around here we all use Red Fresnos, but Holland Red or similar will be fine. For details see our Thai Chilis page.

  4. Fish Sauce:

      This clear liquid is as essential to Southeast Asian cuisine as it was to Imperial Rome. If you are unfamiliar with it, see our Fish Sauce - Introduction page.

  5. Stock:

      Asian practice does not require the stock to match the main ingredient, so Chicken or Pork stocks will work fine, with Chicken most commonly used.

  6. Oyster Sauce:

      A standard Chinese sauce also used in Southeast Asia for dishes in the Chinese style. My current favorite is Megachef, but Lee Kum Kee Premium brand is also very good - the bottle looks very Chinese, but it's made in Los Angeles. Yes, these are more expensive than some, but there's reasons for that (much higher oyster content, unleaded and no melamine). For details see our Oyster Sauce page.
  7. U.S. measure: t=teaspoon, T=Tablespoon, c=cup, qt=quart, oz=ounce, #=pound, cl=clove in=inch, ar=as required tt=to taste
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