Photograph of the finished Squirrel fish

China · Cá chiên khía hình sóc xốt chua ngọt

Squirrel fish

1 hr Hands-on time + 20 min waiting
HardDifficulty
6 stepsSteps
Serves 4 Amounts follow along 4

What to get ready

  • Photograph of Barramundi Barramundi 4.4 lb
  • Photograph of Cornstarch Cornstarch 14.1 oz
  • Photograph of Rice vinegar Rice vinegar ¾ cup
  • Photograph of Sugar Sugar 8.5 oz
  • Photograph of Tomato ketchup Tomato ketchup 6.3 oz
  • Photograph of Pine nuts Pine nuts 5.6 oz
  • Photograph of Pineapple Pineapple 11.3 oz
  • Photograph of Oil Oil 7 ⅔ cups
  • Photograph of Peas Peas 8.5 oz
  • Photograph of Ginger Ginger 3.5 oz
  • Photograph of Steamed rice Steamed rice 1.8 lb

Method

  1. 1 Cut off the head and remove the backbone, keeping the two sides of the meat attached to the tail.
  2. 2 Make diamond-shaped incisions deep into the skin on the meat surface in two diagonal directions.
  3. 3 The two-way incisions are so that when the meat comes into contact with hot oil, the chunks of meat spread out like a squirrel's tail.
  4. 4 Sprinkle cornstarch into each notch and shake off any excess.
  5. 5 Hold the fish by the tail and gradually dip it into 190-degree oil until the flesh spreads out, then let it sit for a full 6 minutes.
  6. 6 Simmer vinegar with sugar, ketchup, and cornstarch to make a sauce, then sprinkle with roasted pine nuts and drizzle over the dish.

With an appliance

  • Air fryer 58 min

    Replace step 5: thoroughly spray oil into each crevice of the floured fish, place skin-side down and air fry at 200 degrees for 15 minutes, rotating the tray at the 8th minute to make the fish pieces crispy; step 6 remains unchanged.

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