Tag: East Asian
Sweet and Sour Fish
Sweet and Sour Fish
If you want to impress people at a dinner party, I highly recommend serving sweet and sour fish. It is a very popular dish for Chinese New Years, festivals, and family gatherings. Traditionally served as a whole fish, this recipe will use fish fillets, since frying a whole fish is difficult in home kitchens. With that being said, it is nothing short of flavor and presentation. The fish fillets get cross hatch cuts slit into them. When breaded and fried, it has a “blossoming” look to the fillets. Then a simple sweet and sour sauce with bell peppers and onions is poured over the fish. Garnish with toasted sesame seeds.
Servings: 2
Ingredients
- 1 lb fish fillets tilapia, swai, snapper, catfish, sea bass
- 1/2 cup cornstarch
- 1 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp white pepper
- vegetable oil for frying
Sauce
- 1/4 cup rice vinegar vinegar
- 1 tbsp shaoxing cooking wine
- 1 tbsp light soy sauce
- 2 tbsp sugar
- 3 tbsp chili garlic sauce
- 3 tbsp water
- 1 tbsp cornstarch
Stir Fry
- 3 garlic cloves sliced
- 1” ginger peeled and julienned
- 1/4 large green bell pepper sliced
- 1/4 large red bell pepper sliced
- 1/2 small white onion sliced
- 2 tbsp vegetable oil
Garnish
- toasted sesame seeds
Instructions
- Make cross hatch cuts 1/4” deep into the flesh of the fish fillets.
- Coat the fish fillets in cornstarch seasoned with salt and white pepper.
- Heat up 1” of cooking oil in a sauté pan over medium high heat. Gently place the fish into the oil. Fry for 5 minutes a side until golden brown.
- Drain the grease on a rack. Place the fish on a serving plate.
- Mix all of the sauce ingredients together. Set aside.
- Sauté the onions in a sauté pan over medium high heat for 3 minutes.
- Add in the garlic and ginger. Sauté for 1 minute.
- Pour in the sauce ingredients. Bring to a boil.
- As the sauce starts to thicken, add in the bell peppers. Cook for 1 more minute.
House Special Fried Rice
House Special Fried Rice
On a Chinese American menu, house special fried rice is the king of all fried rice. It has all the proteins: eggs, beef, pork, chicken, and shrimp; with an assortment of vegetables. It happens to be very simple to make and a great way to use up leftover rice. Other options you can use for red meats are char siu bbq pork, ham, spam, and Chinese dried sausage.
Ingredients
- vegetable oil
- 3 large eggs beaten
- 1/4 lb beef or pork thinly sliced
- 1 leftover roast chicken thinly sliced
- 1/4 lb small shrimp peeled and deveined
- 1 small onion diced
- 3 garlic cloves minced
- 1 cup frozen peas and carrots thawed
- 1 cup bean sprouts
- 3 cups day old white rice clumps broken up
- 2 tbsp soy sauce
- 1 tsp sugar
- 1/2 tsp sesame oil
- 1/2 tsp white pepper
- 4 green onions chopped
Instructions
- Mix together the soy sauce, sugar, sesame oil, and white pepper. Set aside.
- Heat up 1 tbsp of cooking oil in a large sauté pan or wok over medium high heat. Pour in the eggs. Let set for 30 seconds.
- Scramble up the eggs and place in a large bowl.
- Place the beef or pork in the sauté pan. Cook for a minute. Place in the bowl.
- Sauté the shrimp for 1 minute. Place in the bowl.
- Add 2 tbsp of cooking oil in the sauté pan. Sauté the onion and garlic for 2 minutes.
- Add in the peas and carrots and the leftover roast chicken. Cook for 1 minute.
- Add in the bean sprouts. Cook for a minute. Place everything in the bowl.
- Add a 2 tbsp of cooking oil to the sauté pan. Fry the rice in a single layer for 2 minutes. Flip over and fry for another minute.
- Pour in the sauce, making sure that all of the rice is evenly coated. Cook for a minute.
- Add all the ingredients from the bowl back into the rice. Cook for 2 minutes. Turn off the heat and stir in the green onions.
Beef and Broccoli
Beef and Broccoli
Beef and broccoli is one of the most popular Chinese American takeout menu items. It is also one of the easiest dishes to prepare; ready in 5 minutes. The broccoli gets steamed for a minute. Then beef gets sautéed for a couple minutes. The broccoli gets tossed back in with the sauce and cooked for another minutes. Serve with steamed rice.
Ingredients
- 1 lb top sirloin, flank, or skirt steak thinly sliced
- 1 tbsp light soy sauce
- 1 tbsp vegetable oil
- 1 tbsp cornstarch
Sauce
- 1 cup beef stock
- 2 tbsp shaoxing cooking wine
- 2 tbsp light soy sauce
- 1 tsp dark soy sauce
- 2 tsp sugar
- 1 tbsp cornstarch
Stir Fry
- 1/4 cup water
- 1 head broccoli cut into florets
- 1 tbsp vegetable oil
- 4 garlic cloves minced
- 1 tsp ginger minced
Instructions
- Marinate the beef in the soy sauce, oil, and cornstarch for 10 minutes.
- Mix together the sauce ingredients. Set aside.
- Bring a 1/4 cup of water to a boil in a sauté pan over medium high heat. Add in the broccoli. Cover and steam for 1 minute. Remove from the pan and wipe clean.
- Heat up cooking oil in the same pan. Add in the beef in a single layer. Cook for 30 seconds a side.
- Add in the garlic and ginger. Cook for 30 seconds.
- Add in the broccoli and sauté for 30 seconds.
- Pour in the sauce. It will thicken quickly in less than a minute.
