Chinese-Style Whole Fish with Ginger & Chili Crisp
Williams Sonoma Test Kitchen chef Lena Wu could often find her father—also a chef—in the kitchen making this traditional Chinese-style whole fish, a Chinese favorite for Lunar New Year. It’s simple, flavorful, and packed with nostalgia, which, if you ask us, is the recipe for success. Lena puts her own twist on it by adding a generous quantity of her homemade chili crisp. We like to use branzino, but you could also use red snapper, mahi-mahi or grouper. This dish is great paired with Lena's Smashed Cucumbers with Mustard Vinaigrette.
Ingredients:
- 1 whole branzino, about 1 lb. (500 g), cleaned, with head and tail intact
- 3/4 tsp. kosher salt
- 2 tsp. peeled and grated fresh ginger, plus 5 thin slices
- 2 green onions, 1 halved lengthwise and 1 thinly sliced on the diagonal
- 7 Tbs. (3 fl. oz./105 ml) avocado oil
- 2 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
- 1 Tbs. tamari
- Fresh cilantro leaves, for garnish (optional)
- 2 cups (11 oz./310 g) cooked brown or white rice
- Lena’s Chili Crisp
Directions:
Preheat an oven to 450°F (230°C). Pat the fish dry with paper towels. Using a large, sharp knife, make three diagonal cuts on each side of the fish, running vertically from fin to belly and slicing deep enough to hit the bones. Season the skin and cavity with the salt.
Stuff the cavity with the sliced ginger and halved green onion. In a large, nonstick ovenproof fry pan just big enough for the fish, heat 2 Tbs. of the avocado oil over medium-high heat until it shimmers. Add the fish and sear until browned and crisp, 3 to 4 minutes on each side. Turn the fish so the belly (cut side) is down and the fish is upright; you may need to press down gently to flatten the belly. Wipe out any excess oil from the pan.
Transfer the pan to the oven and roast the fish until just cooked through, about 5 minutes. Transfer the fish to a serving platter on its side and return the pan to the stovetop. Scatter the grated ginger and half of the sliced green onion over the top of the fish. Set the platter near the stove.
Wipe out the pan and turn the heat to medium-high. Add the remaining 5 Tbs. (2 1/2 fl. oz./75 ml) oil and the garlic to the pan. Cook until the edges of the garlic have turned golden brown, about 45 seconds. Remove from the heat and immediately pour the hot garlic oil over the fish. (This will help cook the raw ginger and green onion, and you should hear a nice sizzle.) Drizzle with the tamari and top with the rest of the sliced green onion and the cilantro, if using.
Serve immediately with the rice and chili crisp alongside. Serves 2.
Reprinted from Williams Sonoma At Home Favorites by the Williams Sonoma Test Kitchen (Weldon Owen, 2023)
Recommended Products:
-
Sugg. Price $135 Our Price $108
-
$39.95
-
$12.95
-
$35
(24)
-
$199.95
(89)
-
$99.95
