Sweet & Sour Pan-Fried Tilapia with Peppers, Pineapple & Onions
United Noodles. Go there. Immediately. Well, actually, wait no. First think about what you want to make and then go, because otherwise it's just too overwhelming! In a good way, of course. After my trip, I stumbled upon this article from Tasting Table, 11 Chinese Kitchen Essentials. Maybe start there. It's half ingredients, half tools, plus a cookbook. I went in with a plan to pick up a few items but also to explore, possibly bring home a few new ingredients. I certainly wasn't prepared for all that was United Noodles! I could've spent the entire weekend there and not made it through all the products.
I can't believe United Noodles wasn't on my radar sooner. I mean, I'd heard of it, but I guess I just didn't realize how large it was and how many different ingredients, products, and well, noodles they had. We had a few Asian markets in Madison that I'd frequent, so I was happy to find not only a replacement, but the largest Asian market in the Midwest!
Originally I was going to make sweet and sour pork, but was in the mood for something lighter and already had tilapia on hand. The sauce is my own creation that came about after reading a multitude of recipes, but the basics for the dish came from Food Network and The Meatmen. My main goal was to use up some pineapple juice I'd bought for another recipe...'cause sometimes that's just how dinner comes together! Make a stop at United Noodles to pick up any ingredients you don't already have...and maybe a few others.
Sweet & Sour Pan-Fried Tilapia with Peppers, Pineapple & Onions
Serves: 2
Preparation Time: 30 minutes
For the tilapia:
2 tilapia filets
3 tbsp. light oil (I used a canola coconut blend), divided
1 tbsp. soy sauce
1 tbsp. sweet vermouth
1 garlic clove, minced
1 tsp. minced ginger
1/2 c. cornstarch (or however much you need to fully coat the fish filets)
dash of coarse salt
For the sweet and sour sauce:
1/4 c. ketchup
4 tbsp. plum sauce
1 tbsp. rice vinegar
1/2 tsp. Worcestershire sauce
1 tsp. oyster sauce
1/4 c. pineapple juice
1 tsp. Sriracha sauce
2 sp. soy sauce
1 tsp. ginger, minced
2 garlic cloves, minced
2 tbsp. corn starch
2 tbsp. water
For the dish & to serve:
1 red bell pepper, chopped
1 sweet onion, chopped
1 c. pineapple chunks
1 tsp. light oil
brown or white rice, cooked according to package instructions, to serve
Method:
1. Pat dry tilapia filets and place in a shallow dish with edges. Whisk together 1 tbsp. of the oil through ginger in a small bowl and pour over tilapia. Let marinate for no more than 30 minutes while you prepare other ingredients. If you're going to serve with brown rice, get this started now (it takes longer to cook than white rice).
2. While tilapia is marinating, put all sweet and sour sauce ingredients except corn starch and water into a small sauce pan and whisk. Turn heat to low and bring to just barely a simmer. Continue to heat and let the sauce reduce slightly while you cut peppers, onions and pineapple.
3. Once the sauce is simmering, rice is cooking and vegetables and pineapple are chopped, remove tilapia from marinade. Coat thoroughly with corn starch and sprinkle with salt. Heat 2 tbsp. oil in a frying pan over high heat until shimmering. Fry tilapia in pan, cooking about 2 minutes on each side, or until lightly browned/golden. Remove from pan and keep warm.
4. Check on the sweet and sour sauce. Adjust flavors as you see fit. I found the two ingredients I used to adjust most were the plum sauce and pineapple juice. The plum sauce is fantastically sour and obviously the pineapple juice is sweet. Create a slurry with the corn starch and water and then pour into the sweet and sour sauce while it's simmering to thicken. Whisk, making sure it's smooth (save for a few bits of ginger and garlic). Cover and let sit on the very lowest heat setting you have, or turn off if everything is close to ready.
5. In the frying pan you use to cook the tilapia, turn heat back up to high. Add another tsp. of oil. Once hot and shimmering again, add in peppers, onions and pineapple. Stir fry until they begin to very slightly soften and are brown in spots. You don't have to stir too much since you want a little bit of browning, but make sure that nothing burns. This will take about 7-10 minutes.
6. Now put it all together: Place tilapia filet upon a layer of rice if using, garnish with a hearty helping of peppers, onions and pineapple and then spoon sauce over everything. Save any leftover sauce for future sweet and sour cravings.
