Green Sichuan Pepper Fish (Tengjiaoyu, 藤椒鱼)
Ingredients
Fish Prep
- 2 pound (or 2 1-pound) whole white fish, such as red snapper, bass, branzino, Spanish mackeral Have butcher clean and filet the fish but KEEP the head and bones
- 2 tablespoons lard
- 2 tablespoons caiziyou (roasted rapeseed oil) or other cooking oil
- thumb ginger, thickly sliced
- 2 cloves garlic, smashed
- 3 green onions, trimmed and smashed
- 8 cups boiling water
- 1½ teaspoons Diamond Crystal kosher salt
- ½ teaspoon msg or chicken essence (optional)
- ¼ teaspoon white pepper
- 1 tablespoon Shaoxing wine
- ½ teaspoon Diamond Crystal kosher salt
- 1 egg white
- 2 tablespoons cornstarch
Other Prep
- ¾ seedless English cucumber, cut vertically in thin, long slices a mandolin is perfect for this
- 2 stalks celery, cleaned and cut at an angle in very thin slices again, a mandolin makes quick work of this
- 1 cup mungbean sprouts
- 2 tablespoons tengjiao oil (green Sichuan pepper oil)
- 2 tablespoons neutral oil, such as grapeseed or avocado
- 1 tablespoon sliced ginger
- 1 tablespoon sliced garlic
- 2 to 3 thinly sliced green chilies, such as serrano or jalapeno according to their heat level and your desired spiciness
- 1 tablespoon green Sichuan peppercorns
Instructions
Fish Preparation
- Bring a pot of water to boil, add fish head and bones and cook at a low boil for about 2 minutes. Drain the water. Put the kettle on to boil the 8 cups water.
- Heat a wok over high heat until quite hot, then lower head and add lard and oil. When oil is hot, add the drained fish head and bones, sliced ginger, smashed garlic and green onions and cook over low to medium heat about 10 minutes, or until everything is lightly browned.
- Add the 8 cups boiling water to the wok, then lower heat and cook the stock at a medium boil for about 20-25 minutes, stirring occasionally. When the stock has reduced and the flavor concentrated, remove from heat and strain through a fine-mesh strainer to remove all loose bits. It will be milky yellow-white, which is correct for Chinese fish stock. Add the 1½ teaspoons salt, msg and white pepper. Taste and add more seasoning if needed.
- While stock is simmering, slice the fish filets on an angle into pieces ½-inch thick. Add Shaoxing wine, ½ teaspoon salt, egg white and 2 tablespoons cornstarch. Mix thoroughly.
Dish Completion
- When all other ingredients are sliced and prepped, heat clean wok over medium heat and add 1 tablespoon oil. Add cucumber, celery and bean sprouts and stir-fry briefly, just enough to break their rawness, not cook them through. Remove them to a deep serving bowl.
- Add the tengjiao oil and neutral oil to a very small sauce pan and slowly heat them up while you cook the fish.
- Add another 2 tablespoons oil to the wok and stir-fry the sliced ginger and sliced garlic briefly. Return the fish stock to the wok and bring to a boil.
- Reduce heat and add the fish slices to the simmering stock piece by piece to make sure they don't stick together (easiest done with your hands). Do not stir. Make sure the stock is not at a boil, as you want to gently poach the fish. Cook until fish is just cooked through, as you don't want to overcook it.
- Pour the full contents of the wok over the waiting vegetables in the large serving bowl. Top the fish with the fresh chili slices and green Sichuan pepper. When the tengjiao oil mixture is bordering on smoking (but NOT smoking), pour it over the top of the dish, where it will sizzle the chilies and Sichuan pepper and release their flavors.
- Serve with rice and remember not to eat the Sichuan pepper or drink the broth. Spoon morsels of fish and vegetable onto your rice.
Notes
This dish can also be served hotpot style. You will not need to pre-cook the vegetables, just layer them in the bottom of a hotpot. Follow all other steps above, just barely cooking the fish before pouring it into the hotpot. Use a portable burner to keep the pot simmering at table as you eat.
If you like, add homemade chicken stock to stretch the broth enough to add additional vegetables, tofu and noodles after you finish the fish.