Szechuan Style Cod

If you have ever tried Szechuan style food, you know that it consists of flavor and spice that pack a big punch. Its seamless blend of spice, sweet, tang, and savory harmoniously make a bite of food explode in your mouth. Without a doubt, the most popular Szechuan style food is their braised fish dish, which can be approached in many different ways.

I first wanted to accomplish the tangy aspect of the dish, in which I quick pickled thinly sliced green beans and covered them with one part red wine vinegar, two parts white balsamic vinegar, and a handful of crushed black peppercorns.

While the beans were quick pickling, I cooked some white rice in a rice maker (of course you could also substitute by cooking them on your stove top or even choose a vegetable rice like cauliflower).

I then moved onto the fish, fresh is always best! I trimmed the cod down to about three to four inch pieces and battered them so I could get a nice texture on the outside. First, they went into a dish with a beaten up egg and then into a dish with corn starch, salt, and pepper. I lightly fried them in a pan until they were a light golden brown color. The cod was not cooked at this point, but I was going to braise it later anyway.

Now, it's time to work on the sauce (tailor this to whatever you like): I used soy sauce, oyster sauce, a touch of tomato paste, and chili paste. After frying that off for a few seconds, I added in thinly sliced green chili pepper (be careful these are very spicy) and scallion.

I then stir fried in thinly sliced yellow squash and garlic until everything had melded together and then added a little bit of chicken stock. Finally, I returned the fish back into the pan so that it could braise in the sauce and vegetables.

As for a side, I decided on marinating and charing some bok choy. I mixed together soy sauce, a little bit of white balsamic vinegar, oyster sauce, chili paste, and a touch of sesame oil (this stuff is potent) and slathered it onto washed and halved bok choy. Make sure to get between all the leaves! After letting this sit for five to ten minutes, get a pan smoking hot and place each bok choy half cut side down onto it. Flip it in about four minutes so that the other side can cook. After it's done, remove from the pan and sprinkle some sesame seeds on top for a layer of toasty flavor.

Plate everything up and enjoy! Although this recipe is not traditional, adding new and modern flavors and textures to an all time classic lets you into a timeless dish.