Dish of Fish with Mushrooms & Ginger
(click to enlarge)

Fish with Mushrooms & Ginger


Thailand
Serves:
Effort:
Sched:
DoAhead:  		 2 main
***
45 min
Most		 This recipe "in the Chinese style" is intensely flavorful but not "hot" because medium strength chilis are used and seeded before slicing. If you want you can hotten it up a bit with one or two Thai chilis.
The photo shows cut fish fillets, but you could also do a whole fish on a platter with sauce poured over, as is often done in Asia - impressive, but a lot more trouble for serving and eating.

12
3/4
1
2
1/2
3
2
-----
1
1/2
2/3
-----
1/2
1
ar
1/2
ar
ar
1
oz
oz
cl
oz
in
lrg

---
T
T
c
---
T
T

t


T
Fish Filet (1)
Black Mushrooms
Garlic
Shallots
Ginger root
Red Chili (2)
Scallions
-- Sauce
Fish Sauce (3)
Oyster Sauce (4)  
Stock
----------
Corn Starch
Water
Rice Flour
Salt
Rice Flour
Oil to fry Fish
Oil
Prep   -   (35 min - 20 min work)
  1. Cut FISH FILETS into pieces as desired - half serving size is good.
  2. Soak MUSHROOMS (3/4 ounce is about 6) in warm water for at least 1/2 hour, then wring out, discard stems and cut caps into narrow strips.
  3. Crush GARLIC and chop fine, peel SHALLOTS and slice thin. Mix both with Mushrooms.
  4. Slice GINGER thin and cut into fine slivers. Top and seed CHILIS and cut into slivers. Split white ends of SCALLIONS and cut into 1 inch lengths. Mix.
  5. Mix all Sauce Items.
  6. Mix Cornstarch with 1 T Water.
Run   -   (20 min)
  1. Grind Salt fine and mix with Rice Flour on a plate.
  2. In a well seasoned iron skillet heat Oil for frying - depth about 1/4 to 1/3 the thickness of the fish is fine. Dust the fish pieces lightly with the Rice Flour and fry on both sides until cooked through and lightly browned - keep in mind that with rice flour "browned" means "light blonde". Drain on paper toweling and keep warm.
  3. In a sauté pan heat Oil over medium heat and fry Mushroom mix stirring until aromatic and showing a touch of color.
  4. Stir in Ginger mix and fry stirring for a minute, then stir in the Sauce mix and bring to a simmer.
  5. Stir in the Cornstarch mix and simmer stirring until sauce is thickened. Adjust thickness with water if needed - it shouldn't be too thick if you're serving with rice.
  6. Serve Fish with the Sauce ladled over, along with plenty of jasmine rice.
NOTES:

  1. Fish:

      This works well with mild or medium flavor fish that cooks firm, like yellowtail, jacks, pompano, etc. I usually use Thai catfish (basa, swai) or talapia. If you go the whole fish route you'll want a fish that weighs about 1-1/2 pound and make diagonal slashes half way through the flesh spaced about 3/4 inch apart.

  2. Chilis:

      Around here we all use Red Fresnos, but Holland Red or similar chilis are fine. A red Anaheim would be good, and they are becoming more common here in Southern California. For details, see our Thai Chilis page.

  3. 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.

  4. 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.
  5. 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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