Chapter 1491 - 578: The Divine Artifact of Both Beauty and Flavor—Douban Fish! Brother-in-law’s Request!

Chapter 1491: Chapter 578: The Divine Artifact of Both Beauty and Flavor—Douban Fish! Brother-in-law’s Request!

Shen Jiayue dug out an air fryer from the cupboard, haha, with this tool in hand, just wait for the relatives at home to tremble!

She placed the pot on the workbench and saw Lin Xu putting the prepared sea bass into the sink. She curiously asked,

"What kind of fish are you planning to make?"

"Today, I’m making Douban Fish, a type of fish dish that’s quite suitable for eating with rice."

Douban Fish?

Shen Jiayue recalled the dry-burned fish she had eaten at a restaurant before and curiously asked,

"Is Douban Fish the same as dry-burned fish?"

Lin Xu shook his head,

"Not quite, dry-burned fish is fragrant, spicy, salty, and fresh, while Douban Fish is salty and fresh with a bit of sweet and sour. Besides doubanjiang, no other peppers are added to it. Dry-burned fish, on the other hand, must have pickled peppers."

The different ingredients and methods lead to a dish that, while similar, tastes quite different.

The dry-burned fish tastes fresh, tender, and juicy, with a top-notch texture.

Because the Douban Fish is fried in oil, the fish skin has a crispy sensation when eaten.

After hearing Lin Xu’s explanation, Shen Jiayue was quite looking forward to this dish,

"You’re making my mouth water. I’ll have to eat a lot when it’s done."

"No problem!"

There was still time, so Lin Xu didn’t start making Douban Fish directly but first processed the other ingredients he brought.

For instance, peeling and de-rooting scallions, cleaning and mincing ginger, peeling garlic, and depending on the dish, slicing, dicing or mincing it.

As for the green vegetables, they were washed and pre-treated.

Shi Wenshan rolled up his sleeves, put on an apron, and helped on the side. He was one of the few in the family who could cook. As for the aunties and other relatives, their culinary skills were inversely proportional to their medical skills.

Fortunately, they all had good incomes, and there were maids at home, so they didn’t need to waste time on pots and pans.

Moreover, for these family doctors, spending time saving lives was more meaningful, and cooking was something money could solve.

Before long, the relatives at home had all arrived.

Lin Xu came out to greet everyone, refused offers from aunties to help in the kitchen, and returned to the kitchen to continue cooking.

He sliced the braised flavors and arranged them on a plate, then prepared other dishes.

Only then did he start preparing to make Douban Fish.

The sea bass was cleaned and scored diagonally, marinated with scallion, ginger, and salt.

Shi Wenshan was quite interested in this dish and curiously asked,

"Is this challenging? Can I learn it?"

Lin Xu said,

"Not difficult, as long as you get some details right, the fish won’t taste bad."

As he rubbed scallion and ginger on the fish, he said,

"The sea bass has thick flesh, so score it deeper. If you’re using gu fish, first rub it with salt and rinse it with cold water to remove the surface mucus, making the fish tastier."

Different fish require different preliminary processing methods.

Fish with scales are generally descaled, while those without need to be rubbed with saline to remove surface mucus.

Wash and rub the fish inside and out, then let it marinate in a basin.

While doing this, Lin Xu started preparing the ingredients for the dish.

Chop a large amount of scallion into scallion flowers, about half a bowl, as the dish requires scallion to be added twice, once during cooking and once before serving, so the amount of scallion flowers needs to be sufficient.

Mince ginger and garlic and place them separately on plates.

Then Lin Xu scooped up a ladle of doubanjiang onto the cutting board and began chopping it with a knife.

Shi Wenshan curiously asked,

"Does this need chopping too?"

"Yes, many Sichuan dishes require chopping the doubanjiang finely, so you taste the sauce without seeing it... If you really want to learn this dish, I’ll give you a formula, follow it, and you won’t go wrong."

Upon hearing this, not only did Shi Wenshan become interested, but even Shen Jiayue, who was making honey chicken wings with the air fryer, curiously turned her face.

Wow, there’s even a formula.

I knew it, just like martial arts novels have martial arts secrets, cooking, as part of traditional culture like martial arts, should naturally have its own secrets.

She perked up her ears and listened attentively.

Lin Xu said,

"Soy sauce, cooking wine, vinegar, salty, flavoring essence, sweet and spicy scallion, ginger, and garlic, thicken a bit before serving!"

After saying that, he pointed to the chopped doubanjiang on the board and explained,

"The ’spicy’ refers to the chopped doubanjiang, ’sweet’ means sugar, and ’flavoring essence’ is the flavoring. This dish is not difficult, those are the only tricks, and as long as you practice well, the fish you make won’t taste bad."

With the doubanjiang finely chopped, he scooped it up with a knife and placed it in a bowl.

Ten minutes later, the fish was almost marinated, and Lin Xu started heating oil in the frying pan.

At six-tenths heat, he lifted the marinated sea bass, removed the scallion and ginger, patted the surface dry, and immediately put it into the oil pan to begin frying.

Frying the sea bass in oil not only enhances its flavor but also removes the fishy taste, and improves the texture of the fish skin.

The fish shouldn’t be over-fried; usually, when the surface is slightly crispy, it’s ready to be taken out to drain the oil.

If it’s over-fried, the fish loses its fresh, tender texture and tastes dry and woody.

Once the fish is fried, remove it and set it aside, then pour out the oil in the pan, leaving just a bit, heat it up, and pour in the chopped doubanjiang to simmer on low heat.

The reason for switching to low heat is to better bring out the aroma and red oil of the doubanjiang.

This dish is delicious because it uses cooked doubanjiang as a base; if the doubanjiang isn’t fried enough, the aroma won’t come through, and the fish will lack that certain something.