Water Poached Fish, or Shui Zhu Yu 水煮鱼 sounds like a pretty benign dish, doesn’t it? What can be more bland and uninteresting than boiling fish in water? Well, this cannot be further from the truth!
What is Shui Zhu Yu?
The truth is that Shui Zhu Yu 水煮鱼 is probably one of the most flavourful and fragrant dish in the Sichuan culinary repertoire. In deed the fish is poached in water, but the water in question is packed with spicy chillis, numbing Sichuan peppercorns, fermented broadband chilli paste (Pi Xian Dou Ban) and much much more! Poaching anything with this elixir will elevate the flavours tenfold!
And it doesn’t stop at the broth, the fish is also the star. For the most authentic version of Shui Zhu Yu, you must use a whole fish. You’ve GOT TO separate the fillet from the bones and cut it into thin wide slices and you’ve GOT TO use the fish head and bones to make the soup stock. But do we always have the time? What if your knife skills aren’t great or can’t get your hands on a whole white fleshed fish like a carp or a catfish?
Well, defrosted white fish fillets like tilapia are the next best thing. It’ll reduce the prep time by half and by treating the fish with proven tenderising techniques, you’ll be surprised at just how succulent this once frozen fish can be.
A great way to eat your veggies!
But believe it or not, my favourite part of the dish are the vegetables. They are use to bulk up the dish and to provide a contrasting texture to the fall-apart tender fish pieces. Some great options include soy bean sprouts, Chinese celery, enoki mushrooms and celtuce - a leafy veg commonly found in China that closely resembles lettuce.
You Will Need
Instructions
Slice fish fillet on the bias into thin and wide slices
Marinate fish with the marinade ingredients and message it with your hands to lock in moisture and tenderise the fish
Wash and cut all vegetables.
In a wok or pot, heat up 1-2 tbsp oil and add sliced ginger, garlic and green onions. Stir fry for 1 min.
Add in Sichuan peppercorns, bay leaves, fennel seeds and stir fry 30sec.
Add in Pi Xian Dou Ban and stir fry 1 min
If using, add in hot pot season paste and stir fry 1 min.
Add in water, soy sauce, sugar and bring soup to a boil.
Let soup boil for 5-10min over medium heat, and then remove all solids from the soup with a sieve.
Add vegetables to the soup and boil until tender crisp, then remove and place into a heat proof dish.
Then turn down the heat to medium low and add in fish slices one by one. Cook gently, stirring carefully.
Cook for 2-3min and once cooked through, remove and put fish on top of vegetables. Then pour soup over.
Top the dish with dried chillis, chopped garlic and green onions.
Heat up 1/4 cup of oil and pour it over the chillis and garlic.
Serve immediately.
Ingredients
Directions
Slice fish fillet on the bias into thin and wide slices
Marinate fish with the marinade ingredients and message it with your hands to lock in moisture and tenderise the fish
Wash and cut all vegetables.
In a wok or pot, heat up 1-2 tbsp oil and add sliced ginger, garlic and green onions. Stir fry for 1 min.
Add in Sichuan peppercorns, bay leaves, fennel seeds and stir fry 30sec.
Add in Pi Xian Dou Ban and stir fry 1 min
If using, add in hot pot season paste and stir fry 1 min.
Add in water, soy sauce, sugar and bring soup to a boil.
Let soup boil for 5-10min over medium heat, and then remove all solids from the soup with a sieve.
Add vegetables to the soup and boil until tender crisp, then remove and place into a heat proof dish.
Then turn down the heat to medium low and add in fish slices one by one. Cook gently, stirring carefully.
Cook for 2-3min and once cooked through, remove and put fish on top of vegetables. Then pour soup over.
Top the dish with dried chillis, chopped garlic and green onions.
Heat up 1/4 cup of oil and pour it over the chillis and garlic.
Serve immediately.