Squirrel Fish with Tomato Sauce
Sweet and sour, crispy fish cut like a squirrel. A classic banquet dish that delights both the eyes and the palate.
Ingredients
15 items- Grass Carp 1 (about 600g)
- Tomato Ketchup 3 tbsp
- White Sugar 2 tbsp
- White Vinegar 1.5 tbsp
- Cooking Wine 2 tbsp
- Ginger 10g
- Scallions 2
- Cornstarch 100g
- Salt 1 tsp
- Light Soy Sauce 1 tbsp
- Water 150ml
- Water Starch 2 tbsp
- Cooking Oil 500ml
- Green Peas 30g
- Pine Nuts 20g
Nutrition
Steps （8 steps）
Scale, gut and clean the fish. Cut off the head. Fillet two pieces attached at the tail. Score the flesh in a diamond pattern without cutting through the skin. Marinate with salt, wine and ginger for 10 minutes.
Pat the fish dry. Coat evenly with cornstarch, ensuring starch fills the slits. Shake off excess.
Heat oil to 180°C. Hold the tail and lower fish skin-side down into oil. Fry until set, then reduce to medium heat and fry until golden and crispy, about 3 minutes. Fry the head as well.
Arrange the fish on a plate with the head upright and body curled to resemble a squirrel.
In a bowl, mix tomato ketchup, sugar, vinegar, soy sauce, water and water starch to make the sauce.
Sauté minced ginger in a little oil. Pour in the sauce and cook over high heat until bubbling and thickened. Add a spoonful of hot oil for shine.
Immediately pour the hot sauce over the fried fish, sizzling.
Garnish with blanched green peas, toasted pine nuts and chopped scallions. Serve at once.
Tips
The key is uniform scoring depth without breaking the skin. Ensure oil is very hot before frying to get a crisp texture. Adding hot oil to the sauce makes it glossy.
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