Pan-Searing a Modern Chongqing Specialty

I first ate Chongqing 烤鱼 (kǎoyú) in the underbelly of a Chengdu mall (real ones know it’s all about those random mall basement restaurants). That was back in 2015, and Chongqing’s explosive grilled fish scene has lingered in the back of my mind ever since. Buried between colorful layers of crunch, spice, fermented douban umami, fresh vegetables and sour paojiao, charcoal-grilled kaoyu takes the fiery flavor bomb of Sichuan hotpot and combines it with street food favorite 烧烤 (shāokǎo), Chinese barbecue.

Naturally, Chongqing kaoyu is also known as 烧烤鱼 (shāokǎoyú). The birthplace of shaokaoyu is Wanzhou, a district of Chongqing (previously part of Sichuan) bisected by the 长江 (chángjiāng), Yangtze River. Its titular kaoyu dish is supported by the billion-yuan freshwater fish industry that has made it the “Hometown of Grilled Fish in China.”

I am neither from Wanzhou nor have much experience grilling fish, and my interest in the kaoyu industry mostly concerns eating it. After tasting the specialty Qingjiang fish kaoyu at Alhambra’s 香辣汇 Xiang La Hui—my first time having kaoyu outside of Sichuan—I returned from my first trip to LA (and the San Gabriel Valley) determined to make at-home kaoyu as good as the restaurant’s. With this recipe, I think I’m well on the way.

Lessons on Making Restaurant-Quality Kaoyu at Home

Kaoyu restaurants generally serve the grilled fish whole in big metal trays warmed over a flame. The tray forms the centerpiece of the table, and everyone picks from the dish. At home, any deep-set, wide platter will do—a 9×13 casserole pan or baking pan (not the shallow baking sheet) is perfect, and almost everyone has one. Simply cook the dish and transfer to the pan for serving.

Since this no-oven, at-home kaoyu relies only on the stove, however, a big stovetop-friendly wok and/or dutch oven (the one pictured above is a wide braiser, not a traditional tall-walled dutch oven) is even better suited for the job. That way, you can cook directly in the serving dish—and if you’re using cast iron, it’ll help keep things warmer while eating. Granted, if you’d like to grill a whole fish (this recipe is for pan-seared fillets, not kaoyu proper), a casserole pan presentation will help your kaoyu look even more impressive upon serving.

• Air-dry your fish a few hours beforehand for the best possible sear! Getting the fish as dry as possible will help get it super crispy without any grilling. Pat it down with paper towels, then set it on a wire rack in the fridge for maximum air circulation (or flip it every now and then).
• Choose a firm white fish (like sea bass, carp, red snapper, catfish, flounder); not tilapia, which falls apart easily. I used local tilefish in this recipe. The fillet size and portions are up to you. Since you’re pan-searing them separately, you’ll be able to easily control the cooking length and heat to suit the cut.
• Pan-frying your own peanuts makes such a savory garnish. One of the things restaurant kaoyu has going for it is the explosion of different textures and flavors. Since everything else in this dish is cooked, the crunchy textures (crispy fish skin, fresh seaweed, gelatinous cloud ear, lotus root if you’re using) have a saucy, hot give to them. The dry, fried peanuts belong. It’s hard to explain, but to me, kaoyu would feel like it was missing something without them. Fry them like the cashews in Taylor’s gongbao (“kungpao”) chicken recipe. Or use roasted peanuts, since this recipe is pretty involved already.

Selecting Add-ins for the Veggie Base

• You don’t need a lot of any one ingredient, but you will benefit from variety. As pictured, I used pretty easy-to-find stuff, minus the fresh seaweed knots and the cloud ear fungus, available with the other pantry ingredients used from The Mala Market.
• If you want to pull out all the stops for a special night, I would’ve loved to have found good quality fresh lotus root, tofu knots, mung bean sprouts, Chinese celery and Taishan cauliflower. Parboiled 魔芋 (móyù) konjac jelly and 折耳根 (zhé’ěrgēn) fish mint are local favorites for this dish in Chengdu.

Don’t forget to serve with non-spicy veggie sides and rice for the spicy dish! I used the extra cloud ear from soaking to make a quick liangban cloud ear salad with the pickled paojiao chilies, also a staple of this Chengdu-leaning kaoyu.

Pan-Searing the Fish

Note: You can sear the fish at the same time as making the kaoyu base, if you’re confident about not letting the fish overcook.

1. Heat a non-stick or cast iron pan over medium high heat. Add a small drizzle of the caiziyou (just enough to coat the bottom—it will spread) and heat until smoking to cook off the raw, grassy flavor of the uncooked oil. If not using caiziyou, heat to shimmering instead of smoking.
2. Add the fillets to the pan, skin-side down, and lower the heat to medium. Don’t overcrowd; it’s better to cook several batches than to crowd the pan and steam your fish. Sear for 15 seconds as the proteins seize up. Immediately press the fillets with a pan lid, wide spatula, panini press or whatever works to flatten them and prevent the skin from curling up. Keep it pressed and sizzle away until browned and crispy. Flip the fillets once the edges are caramelized, about 2-3 minutes. Use a spoon to baste the fish with the pan oil until cooked through (tilting the pan helps collect the oil), another 1-2 minutes, more if your cut is thicker.
3. Depan and set aside. Repeat as needed until all fillets are cooked. 

Cooking the Kaoyu Base

1. Heat a large wok (or wide dutch oven, if you have one) over high heat. Add the rest of the caiziyou and heat until smoking to cook off the raw, grassy flavor of the uncooked oil. (Again, if not using caiziyou, heat to shimmering instead.) Add the scallion whites, garlic, ginger and ginger. Bloom until fragrant, tossing constantly so it doesn’t burn. Add onion and stir-fry briefly, about 1 minute. Add dried chilies and paojiao. Stir-fry until fragrant and onions start taking on some color, another minute. Add the douban and stir-fry to combine until fragrant and oil turns red.
2. Next, add the potato and any hardier ingredients if using (like lotus root) and stir-fry about 2-3 minutes, letting edges sear. Add the mushrooms, any softer ingredients (like tofu skin), a splash of liaojiu (Shaoxing wine, or beer, as they often do in Chengdu) and hot stock. Bring to a boil, then simmer, covered, 3-4 minutes.
3. Add the cabbage by pushing it under the cooked ingredients. Add the jalapeño or serrano peppers and the scallion greens on top, along with any fresh greens (like Chinese celery, mung bean sprouts). Then scatter the pre-cooked wood ear, celtuce and seaweed knots. Simmer another 5-10 minutes to combine the flavors. The kaoyu base is very forgiving, so while it doesn’t need to simmer much, it can withstand it.
4. Transfer to a heatproof serving dish if desired. Top with the pan-seared fish fillets. Garnish with fresh cilantro and peanuts. Serve alongside rice and other veggies and dig in!

This recipe as made produces a great deal of food, enough to serve 4 people when eaten alongside other dishes (as Chinese people do when they eat at kaoyu restaurants). It really just depends on the size of the serving dish you have available to you, since it’s meant to be plated in a wide display (especially when using a whole fish, like restaurant kaoyu).