Ingredients
1 lb grouper fillets or any other firm flesh white fish
1 egg white beaten
1 tsp cornstarch
dash of ground white pepper
1/2 tsp sesame oil
oil for deep frying
Sauce
1 tbsp Fermented black beans
4 cloves garlic
1 tsp Fresh ginger, minced fine
1 tsp sugar
use mortar and pestle to pound the black bean with the garlic, add sugar and mix well
2 tbsp oil
2 tbsp dry sherry or rice wine
2 scallions, chopped
Preparation
Add the beaten egg white, cornstarch, pepper and sesame oil to the grouper
mix well and set aside
Pre-cooking the fish*
In a hot mild steel wok, heat oil for deep frying
quickly deep fry the fish in very hot oil, remove the fish with skimmer just when it begins to firm up and change color
drain excess oil
leave two tablespoons of oil in the wok
have the empty serving plate ready nearby
add the black bean paste
fry for a few seconds in low heat to release the aroma, take care not to burn the paste
turn up the heat and add the pre-cooked fish
toss very briskly with the spatula, or if you are a pro, toss the wok instead, being careful not to break the fish
sizzle the ingredients with the wine
toss again very quickly
the fish is done when it begins to flake
you must not leave the fish to cook for any longer than required
you may ladle in half a tablespoon of hot oil to give it a sheen and to keep the dish hot
empty the contents onto the serving plate
decoarate with the chopped scallion
Serve immediately
*pre cooking
this is a very chinese way of pre-cooking and should be done very quickly, less than a minute for fish in very hight heat and a couple of minutes for meat in high heat
all the fish has to be removed in one swoop with a a large skimmer (a very large 6 - 8 inch diam "slotted spoon"), if you pick them up a piece at a time, some will be overcooked. Overcooked fish flakes easily and the whole dish will be a flop. Remember you are only pre cooking. For meat, the oil temperature can be medium hot and can be pre-cooked for a bit longer. You are dealing with very hot oil, so be extremely careful. In real chinese cooking there is an oil basin, the strainer or skimmer rests on the oil basin. The entire contents in the pre-fry are emptied into the oil basin with the ingredients strande on the stainer