Fresh and refreshing with a pleasant spicy kick, the ginger juice and soy sauce flavors blend perfectly, and the fish is wonderfully tender.
Mandarin fish, whose Chinese name sounds like "abundance and surplus," naturally carries an auspicious meaning in any dish that features it. Its flesh is tender, white, and nearly boneless, making it ideal for slicing into fillets, and its mild flavor is perfect for steaming or poaching—hence this ginger-infused mandarin fish. A spoonful of hot oil sizzles as it pours over the fish, seeping into every crevice and instantly releasing wisps of white steam; the green scallions, yellow ginger, and red chili become even more vibrant and enticing. The oil continues its journey, cascading over the snowy-white fish and into the sauce, forming shimmering rings of various sizes that bring the light, refreshing dressing to life. Watching those oil rings floating on the sauce is like seeing white clouds drifting across a pure blue sky, or like the perfect, rounded endings in life.
Ingredients
Main Ingredients
1000 g (about 2.2 lbs) mandarin fish
If possible, use freshly caught live mandarin fish for the best flavor.
Seasonings
Ginger, garlic, scallions, bird's eye chili peppers, salt, sugar, steamed fish soy sauce, and yellow wine — each to taste.
egg white, a small amount
The recommended ratio of ginger to garlic is 3:1, and two or three bird's eye chilies are enough—add more if you prefer extra heat, along with additional ginger; the other seasonings are relatively flexible, so no exact amounts are provided.
Instructions
Instructions
Preparation
Step 1: Finely mince the ginger, garlic, and bird's eye chilies (Image 2). Remove the bones from the mandarin fish and take the fillets (Image 3), then slice them into thin pieces. Marinate the fish slices with a pinch of salt and Shaoxing wine, tossing to coat. Finally, mix in the egg white until evenly combined and set aside (Image 4).
*The dorsal fin of the mandarin fish is very sharp and contains toxins, so be extremely careful not to get pricked. After removing the fillets, keep the head and tail for plating decoration of the finished dish.
Combine 2 tablespoons of finely grated ginger with 3 tablespoons of light soy sauce, 2 tablespoons of rice vinegar, 1 tablespoon of sugar, and 1 tablespoon of sesame oil, stirring until the sugar dissolves.
② Place all the minced ginger, garlic, and bird's eye chili in a bowl. Add some plain boiled water and steamed fish soy sauce, along with a pinch of salt and sugar. Stir well and let it steep for 2 hours (Fig. 5).
*The amount of water added should not be too large, just enough to dissolve the fine mixture. Do not add too much steamed fish soy sauce, as it will be poured over the fish slices at the end, and too much can cause the fish to darken. Adding a little salt and sugar can compensate for the lack of flavor from less steamed fish soy sauce, but be careful not to overdo it.
Blanch the fish fillets
③Bring water to a boil in a wok, blanch the fish head and tail until cooked, then arrange them on a serving plate (Image 6). Once the water returns to a boil, reduce to medium-low heat and scatter the fish slices one by one into the wok. Turn the heat back to medium-high and blanch until just cooked through (Image 7). Remove with a slotted spoon (Image 8), place on the plate, drizzle with the prepared ginger sauce, sprinkle with chopped scallions, and pour hot oil over the top to release the aroma before serving.
*Use plenty of water when blanching the fish fillets, so they cook quickly without becoming tough. If the water is too little, the temperature will drop rapidly when the fillets are added, causing them to heat too long and turn dry and chewy.
*Do not drop a large clump of fish slices into the pot and then stir to separate them, as this will easily break the slices and cause the egg white coating to fall off during stirring, making the fish tough. When adding the slices, pick up two or three pieces at a time and quickly scatter them into the pot—speed is crucial, otherwise the first slices in will end up overcooked by the time the last ones are added.
When blanching fish fillets, special attention must be paid to heat control. After the water comes to a boil, reduce to medium heat and keep the water at a gentle simmer, then quickly add the fish fillets. Do not blanch them in rapidly boiling water, or the fish will break apart into small pieces and become tough. Once all the fillets are added while the water is barely simmering, the water temperature will drop, so you must promptly adjust the heat by turning it up higher—this is essential to keep the fish tender and fresh.
After the fish fillets are cooked and plated, pour the ginger sauce over them and sprinkle with chopped scallions, then immediately drizzle with hot oil to release the aromas. Use enough oil—this not only awakens the flavors of the seasonings but also makes the entire dish more tender and silky in texture.
Take your cooking to the next level
Some friends want to use "steaming" instead of "blanching," which is also possible, but steamed fish fillets tend to stick together easily, and the timing is tricky to control, often resulting in overcooked fish that affects the overall texture of the dish. Therefore, steaming is the least desirable option. Blanching is a more convenient method and is a moderate choice. If conditions allow, gently cooking the fish in warm oil yields the best texture and is the superior approach.