Steamed Fish with Rice Flour

Steamed Fish with Rice Flour

　　Shiti Town in Daxian County is located by the Ba River, which is abundant in catfish. Locals typically cut the fish into chunks and steam them mixed with mung bean flour, soybean paste, sesame flour, rice flour, pea flour, chili powder, Sichuan pepper powder, and minced ginger. Shiti Steamed Fish is tender and flavorful, with an exceptionally pleasant texture.

　　Shiti Steamed Fish is a famous local specialty dish from Shiti Town in Daxian County. It uses catfish and silver carp, which are abundant in the Ba River, as its main ingredients. The fish is first cleaned, drained, and cut into chunks, then mixed with mung bean flour, sesame flour, rice flour, pea flour, chili powder, Sichuan pepper powder, minced ginger, and rapeseed oil before being steamed in a bamboo steamer until cooked. This dish is characterized by its dark red, moist appearance, rich and aromatic fragrance, spicy and delicate flavor upon eating, and a long-lasting aftertaste. When served, the restaurant also provides a soup made from fish head and boiled noodle pieces. It is one of the “Top Ten Local Specialty Dishes of Dazhou City.”

　　Ingredients: 1 Ba River catfish (about 1000g), 30g soybean flour, 30g pea flour, 30g mung bean flour, 30g sesame flour, 50g rice flour, 10g solid soy sauce, appropriate amounts of minced ginger, salt, cooking wine, sugar, MSG, and rapeseed oil

　　Preparation Method:

　　1. Clean and prepare the catfish, then cut it into 10cm-long and 3cm-thick pieces. Mix the fish pieces with solid soy sauce, MSG, cooking wine, soybean flour, pea flour, mung bean flour, sesame flour, rice flour, salt, sugar, minced ginger, and rapeseed oil until well combined.

　　2. Place the mixed fish pieces evenly in a 30cm-diameter bamboo steamer basket. Steam over high heat for 6 minutes until the fish is cooked, then serve.

　　Note: The soybean flour, pea flour, mung bean flour, sesame flour, and rice flour are all made by first roasting the raw materials to bring out their aroma, then grinding them into powder. While steaming the fish, brush the fish pieces with rapeseed oil every 2 minutes using a brush to enhance the moisture and aroma of the fish.