Passport & Plate - Asian Simmered Fish
Philippines | Friday, March 14, 2014 | 2 photos
Ingredients
¼ kg fish fillet (I’ve used both cream dory and pangasius with good results)
Poaching liquid:
1 small piece ginger
2 teaspoons (tsp) oyster sauce
1 tsp sesame oil
1 tsp vinegar
1 tsp rice wine
1 tsp brown sugar
2 tablespoons soy sauce
1 pinch black pepper
Juice of 2 calamondin/Philippine limes (locally, calamansi). For a more “western” taste, you can use lime, lemon or even orange juice. Or be eclectic and mix all four, or any combination of the four!
1 bell pepper (any combination of red, green, yellow or orange, depending on how sweet you want the sauce to be), sliced
(optional) 1 tsp honey
How to prepare this recipeI usually buy frozen fish fillets, so for preparation all I need to do is defrost it overnight in a bowl of milk. I use milk because it supposedly keeps the fish fresh. The fillets are very thin, less than 1/4 of an inch thick.
Before cooking, make some shallow diagonal cuts on the fish (not all the way through!). This should help prevent the fish from curling while it's being poached.
To prepare the poaching liquid, chop the bell pepper and ginger into small pieces. Mix all the other ingredients thoroughly in a separate bowl. Add the sliced bell pepper and ginger.
Heat the poaching liquid in a saucepan. Make sure it is large enough for the fish to fit in without being folded. Once the liquid is at 160 to 180 degrees Fahrenheit (about 71 to 82 degrees Celsius), gently place the fish in the pan. Keep the temperature at that level and don't let the sauce boil.
Cook for about five minutes, or until the fish is just about done. Monitor it closely to prevent overcooking - you want fish, not rubber. Once done, transfer the fish gently to your serving platter.
If you want to use the poaching liquid as a sauce, you can boil it through and sweeten with extra brown sugar or oyster sauce, or thicken with flour. Feel free to experiment! I just pour the sauce over the fish as it is; everyone says it goes great with rice.
The story behind this recipeMy chest heaved as I ran back to the house we were renting. The sound of fireworks had long since died down. I gave thanks for the dry air; back home in humid Manila I would have been sweating buckets. As soon as I entered, my housemates and co-workers knew. "Didn't make it, huh?" I shook my head, trying to hide my disappointment. I was in Los Angeles on the 4th of July, and I'd missed the festivities because I had spent the night working with my Manila-based teammates. "You'll get used to it," my teammate said as he signed out of Skype. "A couple more months and you'll just wish you were back home." I bit my tongue; I was hoping I'd get to use up the 6 months I'd been granted at immigration. When would I next get the chance to explore a different country for that long? Their wistful glances at their gadgets made me decide against saying that out loud. It takes a certain personality to embrace long-term trips abroad.
Still, I could sympathize. I loved the authentic Mexican food, the multicultural neighborhoods and wide open spaces of southern California, but I also things from home like cheap beer and warm sunny beaches. Maybe there was something I could do to cheer them up, and take my mind off the awesome Independence Day celebrations I had just missed. I rummaged through our groceries; I'd chosen foods that were difficult to find back home, like limes and yellow peppers. They had picked up familiar Asian choices like soy sauce. As my tummy growled, a light bulb went off in my head. "Who wants fish?" I grinned.
Less than an hour later, I was pouring sweet sauce on a piping hot cup of rice. Tender fish fillets mixed with bits of bell pepper, as did the tastes of home and the Western world. My friend licked his lips. "Some food should only be eaten with rice." I didn't answer; I was busy contemplating what other "local" ingredients I could try out next time. Maybe some gumbo powder or pumpkin? I couldn't help but smile. The night hadn't been such a waste after all.
