Ingredients
500 g (about 1 lb) live eel, 250 g (about 1 cup) broth.
Seasonings
20 Sichuan peppercorns, 800 g vegetable oil (about 80 g will be absorbed), 10 g white sugar, 25 g each of ginger, dried tangerine peel, soy sauce, Shaoxing wine, sesame oil, and dried chili peppers, 5 g each of salt and vinegar, 3 g MSG, and 40 g scallions.
Instructions
1. Rinse the dried tangerine peel and break it into pieces; cut the chili peppers into 3 cm (about 1.2-inch) sections; split the scallions lengthwise and cut into long segments; slice the ginger into large pieces.
2. Use a large nail to pin a live eel through the eye onto a wooden board, hold the tail straight with your left hand, then with a small knife in your right hand, cut straight down from the back of the gills to the bone, flatten the knife and slice along the body to the tail to remove the backbone, discard the intestines, rinse clean and drain, split the eel in half, and cut into 3–4 cm (about 1–1.5 inch) sections.
3. Marinate the cleaned eel with 25 g scallions, 10 g ginger, 5 g salt, and 10 g cooking wine for about 1 hour, then drain the liquid and discard the scallions and ginger.
4. Heat vegetable oil in a wok, deep-fry the eel until it loses its moisture, then remove and set aside; in another pot, heat 400 g (about 2 cups) of vegetable oil, and when hot, fry the Sichuan peppercorns until they darken, then discard them; add the dried tangerine peel and dried chilies, and when the chilies turn black, briefly stir-fry the remaining scallions and ginger; then add the remaining sugar, vinegar, soy sauce, MSG, cooking wine, broth, and the eel, reduce the sauce until it thickens, and drizzle with sesame oil before serving. This dish features the aromatic fragrance of dried tangerine peel and a bold, numbing-spicy flavor.