SWEET AND SOUR CROAKER...


I would like to apologise for posting this late, i had a couple of fish recipe requests for Ash Wednesday and actually put this together last Wednesday but my internet started acting up, i had to go away on a work trip, stuff kept coming up and here i am posting it almost a week late. Apologies.

As much as i love fish, its one thing i don't find myself eating much and i do love fish - steamed, fried, in stews, soups and peppersoup and recently in sweet and sour sauce.

Croaker fillets
Flour
Eggs
Breadcrumbs
Green and red bell pepper
Onions
Tomatoes
Spring onions
Soy sauce
Garlic
Sunflower oil
Salt and pepper
1/4 cup Sugar
1/2 cup Vinegar
1/4 cup Tomato ketchup
1/2 cup Pineapple juice
Pineapple chunks (optional, i didn't use them here)

Cut your croaker into pieces and pat dry. Season with salt, pepper and garlic and coat completely with flour.

Set your oil to heat (you can deep fry or pan fry your fish) and dip the fish pieces first into your beaten egg and then into breadcrumbs and transfer to the oil to fry till golden brown. Try not to move the fish around much while its frying so you don't break it up.

While the fish is frying mix your sweet and sour ingredients - vinegar, ketchup, pineapple juice, sugar. Add 2 tablespoons of flour and set aside.

Gently turn your fish over (if you are pan frying it like i did) and when it is evenly golden brown about 2 tablespoons of dark soy sauce, half a cup of water and your roughly chopped bell peppers, onions, tomatoes, spring onions and onions. Leave the heat up and do not cover the pot/pan/wok. Use a wooden spoon to gently move the contents of the pot around gently to have everything mixed properly.

If you deep fried your fish, start with stir frying your vegetables in about 2 tablespoons of sunflower oil for 2 minutes, add your chopped vegetable and soy sauce and then return the fish to the pot.

After 5 minutes add your sweet and sour mix and turn down the heat. The flour mixed into it will act as a thickener really quick. This only needs to cook for another 5 minutes and you may cover your pan now.

Take it off and serve on a bed of basmati rice.

PS. I must say that this was so good that it made a friend of mine (name withheld) forget her enraging situation and then knocked her out for 4 hours...
:p

Cheers to good food!

:)