Title: WEST LAKE FISH
Categories: Chinese, Fish, Loo
Yield: 2 servings
1 Fresh-water bass *
1 tb Dry sherry or rice wine
4 Ginger slices
Lots of water, boiling
-in a kettle
4 tb Sugar
6 tb Chekiang vinegar **
1 tb Soy sauce
1/4 oz Knob ginger
Juice of 1 garlic,mashed
2 tb Cornstarch
(sweet-sour Hangchow dish, adapted from Joyce Chen's
restaurant)
* other fresh-water fish may be substituted; a small
striper may be substituted in a pinch; look for 15-18"
(1 1/2 to 2 lb) fish, preferably one you caught
yourself. You could also probably use 2 or 3 bluegills
** substitute cider vinegar, white wine vinegar, or
possibly balsamic
Clean, gut, scale, and rinse fish. Cut through skin
three diagonal cuts on each side like so /// .
Put fish, sherry, and ginger slices into kettle of
boiling water. Water should cover the fish. Cover
tightly and immediately turn off heat. Let stand 15
min.
Meanwhile, mix all the rest of the ingredients and
cook over medium-high heat until sauce thickens.
Remove garlic if used. Keep very hot.
Remove fish carefully from water. Drain and gently pat
dry. Pour boiling sauce over and serve immediately.
Variation: cut sugar to 1 T; cut vinegar to 2 T.
Increase soy sauce to 3 T; add 2 T dry sherry to sauce
ingredients; add 2 T chicken broth to sauce
ingredients. This obviously is no longer West Lake
fish but a more standard soy sauce fish.
