Platter of Fried Tiny Fish
(click to enlarge)

Tiny Fish, Fried & Seasoned


China, Sichuan   -   Mala ziyu
Serves:
Effort:
Sched:
DoAhead:  		 8 app
***
Note-5
Yes		 These tiny fried fish are spicier than most recipes, so go well with a simple dip of good vinegar. I use my favorite Philippine Data Puti Native Cane Vinegar, but many others would work fine too.




12
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1/4
1
1-1/4
2
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1/3
ar
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2
1
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ar
oz
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t
t
in

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c

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t
t
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Tiny Fish (1)
-- Marinade
Salt
Rice Wine (2)
Ginger Root
Scallions
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Potato Starch
Oil, deep fry
-- Seasoning
Chili Powder (3)  
Sichuan Pepper (4)  
-- Serve With
Vinegar Dip
Prep   -   (10 min work + 25 min if you gut the fish (see Note-5) plus 30 min marindade
  1. Prepare TINY FISH as desired (see Note-1).
  2. Smash GINGER moderately with your kitchen mallet and slice about 1/4 inch. Similarly crush SCALLIONS and cut into 1 inch lengths. Mix all Marinade items and tumble well with Fish. Set aside for 30 minutes or so, tumbling now and then for even marinating.
  3. Grind Chilis (if needed) and Sichuan Peppercorns). Mix.
Run   (about 30 min)
  1. Drain fish well in a strainer. Pick out all the Ginger and Scallions and discard them.
  2. In a kadhai or wok, bring Oil to a frying temperature, about 370°F/190°C.
  3. Tumble the fish with Potato Starch to coat evenly. Add a little Sea Salt if you want.
  4. Working in batches so they aren't crowded, fry Fish until crisp. You will notice a sudden decrease in the amount of bubbling that indicates they are about cooked through, so now you need only be concerned with color and crispness. Drain on paper towels.
  5. Pour out the Oil and wipe the wok or kadhai clean with paper towels. Return 2 T of the Oil to the pan and heat over moderate flame until about 300°F/150°C.
  6. Stir in Chili mix until fragrant (just a few seconds - it must not burn). Stir in Fish and tumble well to coat with the seasonings. Serve immediately. They are best served warm, but they can be refreshed in a moderately hot oven.
NOTES:

  1. Tiny Fish:

      Various tiny fish can be used, preferably ones with scales so thin you needn't scale them. The photo example was made with Lady Carp from Vietnam, 4 inches or less nose to tip of tail, because that's what I had on hand. Fuchsia Dunlop calls for "Whitebait", which, in England, are about 3 inches long, thin, and definitely eaten "head, guts, and feathers". I gutted the Lady Carp in the photo, as they are river fish, a possibly more polluted environment, and they had quite a lot of stuff in them. In China, "Whitebait" would be the larger Silver Fish, about 4 inches long. For details, see our Whitebait page.
  2. Rice Wine:   Use a good, drinkable Chinese rice wine, not that horrid salted "cooking" version. If you don't have this, use a Dry Sherry. Sake is made from rice but is not considered a good substitute, it's beer, not wine. For details see our Chinese Rice Wine page.

  3. Chili Powder

      I take whole dried chilis, Japones, de Arbols, or Thai, and give them a spin in my whirling blade spice grinder, so they are not as fine as commercial powder. 2 teaspoons of de Arbol worked fine for me, but folks from the Frozen North might appreciate a little less.

  4. Sichuan Peppercorns

      Fruits of a prickly ash tree, now again legal in the US so long as they are lightly toasted. These are nothing at all like black pepper. 1 teaspoon of Sichuan Peppercorns gave the fish a pretty good tingle. For details see our Sichuan Pepper page.

  5. Timing:

      How long this recipe takes depends on the variety and condition of the fish when you buy them, and on their size. headless smelts are usually also gutted. If you have rather small whole fish, and want them gutted, it can take up to 30 minutes. 12 ounces (46 fish) of Lady Carp took 25 minutes to gut, leaving the heads on. It would take a bit less if the heads were removed, and fewer larger fish would take a fair amount less time.
  6. U.S. measure: t=teaspoon, T=Tablespoon, c=cup, qt=quart, oz=ounce, #=pound, cl=clove in=inch, ar=as required tt=to taste
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