In restaurants, Sichuan boiled fish is usually made with a whole freshwater fish – often carp or catfish. But you can avoid the struggle of dealing with a whole fish by just using the fish fillets at home. It doesn’t make this dish any less authentic. I would also make good use of the hot-spicy seasoning for fish packet available at most of the Asian supermarkets. The cooking method would be similar to Sichuan Boiled Beef or Shui Zhu Niu. You boil everything, and then hot oil sizzles over the dish in a heatproof bowl.

Serves 4

• 650g                              Fish fillets. You can choose from tilapia, flounder or catfish. The fresh fish fillets are better. But frozen ones will work too.
• 2 tablespoons             Chinese cooking wine
• 2 tablespoons              all-purpose flour
• 1/3 teaspoon                 salt
• 150g                                soy Bean Sprouts黄豆芽
• 150g                                any type of mushroom
• 150g                                celery西芹
• 150g                                napa cabbage大白菜
• 2 tablespoons + ¼ cup cooking oil
• 1 packet (about 200g)    hot-spicy seasoning for Fish水煮鱼调料
• 750ml                               water or chicken stock
• 3 to 4 tablespoons           dried chili pepper干辣椒, adjust the volume based on your tolerance level of the spiciness
• 2 to 3 tablespoons                      Sichuan Peppercorns花椒, adjust the volume based on your tolerance level of the spiciness
• A few sprigs                                   cilantro 香菜

 Method

1. Pat dry the fish fillets with kitchen towel. Cut the fish into 1/2-inch thick slices at a 45-degree angle. The goal is to get pieces of fish with a lot of surface area, as they’ll shrink once cooked.
2. Next, marinate the fish. Add 1/3 teaspoon salt, 1tablespoon Chinese cooking wine and 2 tablespoons of all-purpose flour. Mix everything well.
3. The active cooking time takes less than 15 minutes, so make sure the rest of the ingredients are prepped while the fish is marinating, and that you’re ready to eat right afterwards, because this dish is best served immediately.
4. Make sure you now have a big, deep and heatproof bowl ready as the serving dish.
5. Bring a big pot water to a boil. Blanch the pre-cut vegetables. Drain and place them in the big serving bowl.
   

   
6. In a wok set over high heat, add 2 tablespoons of cooking oil. Add into the hot-spicy packet and cook for about 2 minutes till fragrant. Pour into the water or chick stock and bring it to a boil. Add half of the fish and cook for about 3 minutes till fillets turn white or cooked.
   

   

   
7. Use a slotted spoon to move the cooked fish onto the vegetables. Do the same with the half of the fillets. Once done, pour the rest of the sauce into the bowl.
   

   
8. Place your desirable amount of dried chili pepper and Sichuan peppercorns on top of the fish. Place a separate frying pan on the stove over high heat. Add into ¼ cup of the cooking oil. Once the oil becomes piping hot (very hot), pour the oil onto the dried chili pepper and Sichuan peppercorns. Garnish with cilantro.
   

   

   9. Serve immediately.

The recipe was inspired by a delightful Spanish Tapas meal we had in Japan years ago.  The chef cooked those flavorful and beautifully-charred ribs over a barbeque grill. I tried using a home oven instead and was able to achieve the same results.

Serves 2-4

• 11/2 pounds             750g  spareribs, cut to the bite size 猪肋排，切成小块
• ¼ cup (30g) all-purpose flour
• ½ cup (120ml)        Sherry cooking wine or Mirin (sweet Japanese cooking wine)
• 1 tablespoon tomato paste (concentrate)
• 1 tablespoon             light soy sauce生抽
• 1 tablespoon            brown sugar
• 1/3 teaspoon sea salt
• Tabasco sauce, optional

Method

1. Cut the pork ribs into small bite size. Preheat oven to 380F° (190C°). Line a baking tray with double layers of aluminum foil – this helps cleaning work much easier!
2. Place the ribs in a large plastic bag with the flour and shake well.
3. Combine the cooking wine, tomato paste, soy sauce, brown sugar and salt in a bowl. Place the ribs in the sauce. Mix well to ensure the ribs are evenly coated. Place the ribs on the tray and grill for about 30 minutes. Save any leftover sauce in the bowl.
   

   
4. If you wish your ribs softer, you can cook it in a longer time for a total of 60 minutes or so. But you need to cover the ribs with aluminium foil so the ribs will not dry out because of the extended cooking time in the oven.
5. (Remove the aluminum foil), turn up the oven to 420F° (210C°). Cook for another 15 minutes till ribs are nicely charred. During the time, brush the ribs from  time to time with any leftover sauce.
6. Serve with Tabasco sauce for a spicy kick.

I never missed this dish whenever visiting my favorite Yunnan restaurant in Beijing. This recipe is about as simple as it gets, in fact: the tofu skin is softened in the water, then quickly stir-fried with large pieces of bell pepper and tomato until it is tender and almost meaty.

 Serve 2-4

• 100g                       2 to 3 big dried tofu sheets  (tofu skin) , cut into 4-inch long pieces， 豆腐衣
• 2 tablespoons     cooking oil
• 2 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
• ½ large green bell pepper, cut into 2-inch cubes
• 1 or 2 medium size firm tomatoes, cut into 2-inch cubes
• 2 to 2.5 tablespoons, light soy sauce 生抽, adjust the quantity based on the sodium level of your soy sauce
• 2 spring onions, white and light green parts only, cut in half lengthwise and then into small pieces
• 1 tablespoon, Chinese cooking wine, (optional), click here for homemade Chinese cooking wine

Method

1. Rehydrate the tofu skin by submerging it into the warm water for about 20 to 30 minutes. Then drain.
2. Place cooking oil in a frying pan over medium heat. Add into thinly sliced garlic. Fry till fragrant. About 2 minutes. Add into tomato and green pepper cubes. Fry for 2 minutes.
   

   
3. Add tofu sheets into the pan. Mix well. Cook for another 2 minutes. Add into light soy sauce. Mix well. Lastly, place spring onion pieces into the pan and fry for another 1 minute.
   

   

   
4. If you have high-quality Chinese cooking wine, add 1 tablespoon. Cook for another 1 minute. The wine will help add a nice touch of natural sweetness to balance the light acidity coming from the tomato and mild bitterness of the green bell pepper. This is optional. Unless you have high quality of rice wine, otherwise, just skip this step.
5. Serve hot with a bowl of rice.

These pork cutlets are juicy on the inside and are crispy on the outside. This is my favorite way to have pork chops. An important tip for oven-baked tonkatsu is that you can’t use thick pieces of pork loin.  It will take too long for the pork to cook through so keep in mind that the thickness of pork should be no more than 1/2 inch (1.2 cm).

Serves 4

• 1 and half cup panko (Japanese breadcrumbs)
• 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
• 4 ½ inch-thick (1/2 inch = 1.2cm) boneless pork chops
• 1 teaspoon                   kosher sea salt
• Freshly ground black pepper
• ¼ cup                      all-purpose flour
• 1 large egg
• 1 spring onion (minced) and a few cherry tomatoes (cut into half), for garnishing, optional

For Tonkatsu sauce

• 1 tablespoon             ketchup
• 1 tablespoon              Worcestershire sauce
• A half tablespoon oyster sauce
• 1 teaspoon             sugar

Method

1. Adjust an oven rack to the middle position and preheat the oven to 400F°(200C°).
2. Combine the panko and oil in a frying pan and toast over medium heat until golden brown. Transfer panko into a shallow dish and allow to cool.
   

   
3. Tenderize the pork chops by bashing with a meat mallet or rolling pin – this is optional. Sprinkle salt and freshly ground black pepper on the pork chops.
   

   
4. Dredge each pork piece in the flour to coat completely and pat off the excess flour. Then dip into the beaten egg and finally coat with the toasted panko. Press on the panko flakes to make sure they adhere to the pork. Place the pork on the prepared baking pan or even better if you have an oven-safe wire rack (as air goes through on the bottom so panko won’t get crushed). Bake until the pork is no longer pink inside, about 20 minutes.
   

   

   

   
5. Cut Tonkatsu into 1-inch pieces (so you can eat with chopsticks or fork) by pressing the knife directly down instead of moving back and forth. This way the panko will not come off. Transfer to a plate and serve immediately.
6. To make Tonkatsu sauce, combine 1 tablespoon of ketchup, 1 tablespoon of Worcestershire sauce, a half tablespoon of oyster sauce and 1 teaspoon of sugar and whisk together. Adjust the sauce according to your liking. You can store in an airtight container and keep in the refrigerator for up to 2-3 weeks.