Sweet & Sour Fish

Name: Sweet & Sour Fish
Yield: 2
Cuisine: Asian
Ingredients: 300g ling fillets, skin-off, pin-boned; 1 teaspoon bi-carb soda; 1/4 cup plain flour; 1/4 cup potato starch; 1/2 teaspoon salt flakes, crushed; 1/2 teaspoon castor sugar; Vegetable oil, for deep-frying; 1 red shallot, finely chopped; 2 cloves garlic, crushed; 2 tablespoons black vinegar; 3 teaspoons dark soy sauce; 3 teaspoons castor sugar; 2 teaspoons oyster sauce; 1 teaspoon potato starch, mixed with 1 teaspoon water

Marinating prawns in bicarbonate of soda is a common trick to ensure they’re plump and juicy when cooked. It’s called ‘velveting’ as it also gives them a lovely smooth texture – and it works just as well with meat and fish. Bicarb is alkaline, so lowers the pH of the protein which prevents the muscle fibres from contracting too much during cooking, therefore they retain more moisture and stay juicy. Use any firm white fish fillets, or even prawns, for this recipe. My sweet and sour sauce is inspired by a dish my friend Simon Goh served at Chinta Ria in Sydney’s Chinatown, so I often serve his roti with it (see video below); steamed rice works well too. I love this sweet & sour fish with a glass of Thomas Wines’ Six Degrees off-dry semillon from the Hunter Valley. Andrew Thomas stops the ferment before all the grape sugars have converted to alcohol, so it has just a hint of sweetness alongside a crisp finish (like an Alsatian or German riesling) that works beautifully with this complex dish.

Serves 2

Ingredients

300g ling fillets, skin-off, pin-boned
1 teaspoon bi-carb soda
¼ cup plain flour
¼ cup potato starch
Vegetable oil, for deep-frying
½ teaspoon salt flakes, crushed
½ teaspoon castor sugar
Roti (see video) or steamed rice, for serving

Black Vinegar Sauce

2 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 red shallot, finely chopped
2 cloves garlic, crushed
½ cup water
2 tablespoons black vinegar
3 teaspoons dark soy sauce
3 teaspoons castor sugar
2 teaspoons oyster sauce
1 teaspoon potato starch,
mixed with 1 teaspoon water

Method

Cut fish into about 12 pieces.
Mix bi-carb soda with 2 tablespoons of water in a small bowl.
Add fish, mix well and set aside for 30 minutes.
Meanwhile, make Black Vinegar Sauce: heat oil in a saucepan over medium heat, add shallot and garlic and cook for about 5 minutes, stirring occasionally, until just starting to colour. Add remaining ingredients, stir until boiling, remove from heat, cover and set aside.
Sift flour and potato starch into a bowl and set aside.
When ready to cook, heat oil in a wok or saucepan.
Meanwhile, rinse fish quickly under cold water and use paper towel to pat dry.
Mix with salt and sugar and set aside.
Whisk about 110ml water into the flour mixture, just enough to form a thin batter.
Add fish to the batter and toss to coat well.
Working in batches, drain off excess batter, lower fish into the oil and fry for 3–5 minutes, until golden brown. Transfer to a paper towel-lined rack over a plate.
Repeat with remaining fish.
Meanwhile, return Black Vinegar Sauce to a low heat.
Place about a third of the sauce in a serving bowl, add half the fish, drizzle with some more sauce, add remaining fish and drizzle remaining sauce over the top.
Serve sweet & sour fish immediately with roti or steamed rice.