We got hooked on shui zhu yu, or Sichuan boiled fish, at Bamboo Garden in Midland, Michigan. We had moved there in the fall and as the weather got colder, we would crave hot soups. One fateful day, the server recommended boiled fish, we enjoyed it, and for a few months, had that dish for lunch every Friday.
Last year, we found premixes for shui zhu yu and started making the dish at home. But when we moved to Minneapolis, the premixes we found were either too spicy or too salty. The only way to enjoy it, short of heading out to the Sichuan Restaurant in town, was to cook it from scratch.
There are several recipes and videos online on how to cook shui zhu yu. I took inspiration from a few sources and this is my interpretation of the dish. We've not been to Sichuan so I'm not sure if this is authentic - but we love it and it tastes similar to what we've had in Midland AND in Shanghai.
Ingredients (serves 2)
3 pieces of swai fillets (easily available in the frozen seafood section of most supermarkets)
1 tbsp corn starch
1/2 tsp white pepper powder
1 tbsp Chinese cooking wine
1.5 tbsp Sichuan peppercorn
4 cloves garlic, diced
2 green onions, chopped roughly
6 dried red chillis, each broken in half (do not use the Thai dried chilli as those are incredibly spicy. Try the Mexican dried herbs section)
4 star anise
3 x 1 inch pieces of cassia bark (optional - it's like Chinese cinnamon)
1 inch old ginger, sliced thinly
1 tbsp spicy broad bean paste (dou ban jiang) - important ingredient; Google for pictures
1 tbsp black beans in chilli oil (dou chi) - important ingredient; Google for pictures
6 napa cabbage leaves, julienned (or any type of vegetables that go well in soup)
700 mil water or unsalted stock
6 tbsp of cooking oil (canola is good)
Cilantro
Directions
1. Defrost, wash and pat dry swai fillets.
2. Slice thinly and marinate with corn starch, pepper and Chinese cooking wine for about 10 mins.
3. Heat pan and toast Sichuan peppercorns until crispy. This is the stuff that gives you that numbing feeling. If you don't want it to be too numbing, tune it down to 1.5 tbsp. If you've a pestle, pound to powder form. If not, use a bowl and a spoon to try and break it down. This doesn't make a difference to the taste but it's just more irritating during eating to have the peppercorns floating in your soup in little pieces. Set aside.
4. Heat some oil in the pan and stir fry napa cabbage until cooked. Distribute into two bowls.
5. Clean pan and heat 4 tbsp oil in the pan and add dried chilli, star anise, cassia bark, and ginger and fry until fragrant.
5. Remove cassia bark and add in garlic and green onions. Fry a little.
6. Add in dou ban jiang (this stuff is salty so don't overdo it) and dou chi. Stir fry for a minute or so.
7. Add 700 ml of water or stock to the pan and bring to boil.
8. Add sliced fish into the pan and let it cook, and come to a boil.
9. When done, ladle and distribute fish slices between the two bowls, laying the fish slices on the napa.
10. Ladle soup over the fish and garnish with cilantro.
11. Serve with hot steamed white jasmine rice.
Last year, we found premixes for shui zhu yu and started making the dish at home. But when we moved to Minneapolis, the premixes we found were either too spicy or too salty. The only way to enjoy it, short of heading out to the Sichuan Restaurant in town, was to cook it from scratch.
There are several recipes and videos online on how to cook shui zhu yu. I took inspiration from a few sources and this is my interpretation of the dish. We've not been to Sichuan so I'm not sure if this is authentic - but we love it and it tastes similar to what we've had in Midland AND in Shanghai.
Ingredients (serves 2)
3 pieces of swai fillets (easily available in the frozen seafood section of most supermarkets)
1 tbsp corn starch
1/2 tsp white pepper powder
1 tbsp Chinese cooking wine
1.5 tbsp Sichuan peppercorn
4 cloves garlic, diced
2 green onions, chopped roughly
6 dried red chillis, each broken in half (do not use the Thai dried chilli as those are incredibly spicy. Try the Mexican dried herbs section)
4 star anise
3 x 1 inch pieces of cassia bark (optional - it's like Chinese cinnamon)
1 inch old ginger, sliced thinly
1 tbsp spicy broad bean paste (dou ban jiang) - important ingredient; Google for pictures
1 tbsp black beans in chilli oil (dou chi) - important ingredient; Google for pictures
6 napa cabbage leaves, julienned (or any type of vegetables that go well in soup)
700 mil water or unsalted stock
6 tbsp of cooking oil (canola is good)
Cilantro
Directions
1. Defrost, wash and pat dry swai fillets.
2. Slice thinly and marinate with corn starch, pepper and Chinese cooking wine for about 10 mins.
3. Heat pan and toast Sichuan peppercorns until crispy. This is the stuff that gives you that numbing feeling. If you don't want it to be too numbing, tune it down to 1.5 tbsp. If you've a pestle, pound to powder form. If not, use a bowl and a spoon to try and break it down. This doesn't make a difference to the taste but it's just more irritating during eating to have the peppercorns floating in your soup in little pieces. Set aside.
4. Heat some oil in the pan and stir fry napa cabbage until cooked. Distribute into two bowls.
5. Clean pan and heat 4 tbsp oil in the pan and add dried chilli, star anise, cassia bark, and ginger and fry until fragrant.
5. Remove cassia bark and add in garlic and green onions. Fry a little.
6. Add in dou ban jiang (this stuff is salty so don't overdo it) and dou chi. Stir fry for a minute or so.
7. Add 700 ml of water or stock to the pan and bring to boil.
8. Add sliced fish into the pan and let it cook, and come to a boil.
9. When done, ladle and distribute fish slices between the two bowls, laying the fish slices on the napa.
10. Ladle soup over the fish and garnish with cilantro.
11. Serve with hot steamed white jasmine rice.
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