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Ma's One-Pot Weeknight Suancaiyu (酸菜鱼)

Author: Kathy Yuan | The Mala Market | Inspiration & Ingredients for Sichuan Cooking

Ingredients

  • 1 package suancai (pickled mustard greens), washed and drained approx. 7 ounces drained
  • 2 pounds swai fillet (or any flaky white fish) sliced in 2.5-inch sections
  • 1 teaspoon salt add more to taste at end
  • 1 teaspoon ground white pepper
  • 1 teaspoon Shaoxing wine
  • 1 egg white
  • 2 tablespoons corn starch
  • 4 scallions, divided
  • ½ tablespoon whole red or green huajiao (Sichuan pepper) more or less to taste
  • ½ tablespoon Chinese roasted rapeseed oil (caiziyou)
  • 1 thumb fresh ginger, washed and sliced into matchsticks
  • 4-5 cloves garlic, sliced
  • 4-5 dried chilies, chopped (zidantou preferred)
  • 3-4 cups boiling water, as needed
  • 1 pound leafy vegetables of choice, washed and chopped into small sections
  • ½ teaspoon white vinegar more or less to taste
  • drizzle Yaomazi tengjiaoyou (green Sichuan pepper oil) to taste, for finishing

Instructions

Prep

  • Roughly chop the drained suancai and set aside. In a separate bowl, add the sliced swai fillet and scrub with salt for one minute, then rinse under cold water and drain. Add ground white pepper, Shaoxing wine and egg white and massage into fish while mixing continuously in one direction for one minute, or until visibly sticky. Add starch and combine well, still mixing.
  • Chop scallion in half to divide the white/light green stems and dark green tops. Slice the lighter stem into 2-inch long sections. Finely chop the dark green end. Set aside in separate bowls.

Cook

  • Stirfry the suancai first until dry and depan. Add caiziyou to pan and heat whole huajiao until fragrant. Add garlic, ginger and chilies and stir-fry briefly, then add scallion whites and suancai again.
  • Pour in boiling water and add chopped fish fillets along with leafy greens and scallion greens, then cover and steam on high for 3 minutes. Uncover, lower heat to simmer and season to taste with salt and white vinegar. 
  • Depan and serve in a large, wide serving bowl. Drizzle with a touch of Yaomazi tengjiaoyou (green Sichuan pepper oil) to finish.