A local Yangshuo China specialty dish – beer fish. Easy to make yet bursting with flavors and textures. A must try mouthwatering recipe!
For my first cooking school of all time I chose Yangshuo Cooking School in Yanghsuo China, where D and I had been volunteering at an English school for a few days. As my first cooking school experience and my first opportunity in over a month to prepare my own meal I was both giddy and nervous. What if I couldn’t keep up? What if my food didn’t come out right? What if I couldn’t properly mimic all the techniques used? After all sure I love to cook and have a food blog but I have no formal culinary training and had never taken a single cooking class.
How would it go?
Without D to accompany me this was my first independent activity since we started traveling together in September. A whole 5 hours apart from D – how strange to think this would be the longest we had been apart in a month and a half.
And so into the unknown I went alone. I was greeted by Amy – our chef and instructor for the day (all the Chinese take on English friendly names by the way). Our little cooking group consisted of an older Norwegian couple, two older Dutch gentlemen, a younger Israeli couple, and two college students studying abroad in Hong Kong, one girl from Sweden and one from the US.
After a slightly traumatizing market tour (yes, I saw dead dogs and cats scalded, torched and dismembered) we were shuttled to the countryside cooking school.
On the menu were 5 Chinese dishes – the highlight of which was a local Yangshuo specialty – beer fish and my favorite dish of them all.
After a quick cooking demonstration by Amy we set off to work, chopping, dicing, and mincing. Working quickly we had all the raw ingredients prepared and were ready to start cooking.
With the fish caught locally in the Li River, the ingredients grown in nearby farms, and the beer from Guilin, the aromas of the fresh produce instantly filled the room. A generous amount of both ginger and garlic – I knew this beer fish dish would be a hit.
Carefully following Amy’s instructions, we worked quickly to get the fish cooked properly, making sure to add all the ingredients at the right time. Within minutes the dish was ready.
The smell of beer fish was incredible.
The tomato alone was almost overwhelming in how strong and delicious it smelled. It looked almost too good to eat. Impatiently snapping a few quick photos, I took my first bite.
Perfection.
The fish was lightly crispy yet soft, the tomatoes lightly cooked yet still juicy and with the ginger still crunchy. The blend of flavors and textures was magnificent. I was incredibly pleased both with myself and the finished dish.
Best of all, the ingredients and preparation are simple enough that this beer fish recipe can easily be prepared back home in the US!
How to make Beer Fish:
The most important step in this recipe is to heat the wok until smoking and only then turn down the heat and add the oil. In the cooking class we learned that this is the way the Chinese always cook and the wok is a staple in every kitchen.
Add the fish, skin side down, turning the heat up to medium high once the fish has been added. A sprinkle of salt is added to the fish.
Allow the fish to cook untouched until browned about 4 minutes. Add ginger and garlic to the wok and flip the fish over.
Without breaking up the fish into smaller pieces add peppers and tomatoes to the wok.
Cover and let cook for a few minutes, allowing the tomatoes to break down and release their juices.
Add the oyster sauce, soy sauce and beer and cover to let cook until the fish is cooked through, a few more minutes.
Serve the fish garnished with greens with a side of steamed rice.
Why this beer fish is the best:
- ready in 25 minutes with only 10 minutes of prep
- bold aromatic flavors
- easily accessible ingredients
- easy recipe that will impress
- crispy soft fish paired with juicy tomatoes, crunchy ginger and fragrant sauce
Recipe Tips:
- In Chinese style cooking the wok always need to be heated over high heat until smoking, then reduce the heat to low and add the oil. Hot wok, cold oil.
Alternatives:
- This recipe will work with any firm white fish – cod, mahi mahi, etc
- This recipe will work well with chicken too, adjusting for the longer cooking time.
- Ideal to use a wok in this recipe and in all Chinese recipes, as that is the main cooking vessel.
Is this recipe low carb or Paleo?
- Yes this recipe is low carb. Serve over cauliflower rice instead of regular rice to keep it low carb.
- Unfortunately this recipe will be tricky to make paleo since the key sauce ingredients, beer, soy sauce and oyster sauce are not paleo.
Stay tuned for more recipes from the Yangshuo cooking school as well as other cooking school throughout China and beyond!
For other Chinese recipes me sure to try my tomato eggs stir fry, garlic and chili Chinese eggplant, Chinese shredded chicken recipe, Chinese chicken with cashew nuts,
Recipe Adapted from Yangshuo Cooking School
- 1 tablespoon peanut oil
- 100 grams white fish firm fish with skin on
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1-2 cloves garlic crushed
- 2 inch piece of ginger cut into matchsticks
- 1 small tomato cut into 8 sections cut in half, then each half in half and each quarter in half
- 1/2 green pepper thinly sliced
- 1/2 red pepper thinly sliced
- 1-2 green onions cut into 1 inch long sections
- 1 tablespoon soy sauce use tamari for gluten free
- 1 teaspoon oyster sauce
- 4 ounces light beer
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Heat wok over high heat until smoking. Reduce heat to low and add oil.
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Add fish skin side down and increase heat to medium-high. Add salt on top of fish,
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Cook until skin side is browned and crispy. Add garlic and ginger and flip fish over. Use the lid as a cover to prevent oil from splattering.
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Add peppers and tomatoes and lightly mix, without breaking up the fish into smaller pieces. Cover and let cook for a couple minutes.
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Add oyster sauce, soy sauce, and beer. Cover and cook 5 minutes or until fish is cooked through.
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Sprinkle with green onions and serve.
Maureen says
what an amazing experience! That dish looks so fresh and inviting.
Vicky says
Thanks! This recipe is definitely a keeper and I’ll be re-creating it many times in my own kitchen!
Julia {The Roasted Root} says
I didn’t realize you went to cooking school in China! This is fantastic! Everything about your recipe looks awesome. I’m a big fish lover and have never made fish using beer. I bet the combo of beer, ginger and soy really set off magical flavors and I can’t wait to give it a try! Great find!
Vicky says
It was only a one day cooking class but it was a lot of fun! I highly recommend trying this fish recipe. Make sure to use the freshest tomatoes around – they add a ton of flavor to the recipe and yes the combo of beer, ginger and soy is amazing!
dona@ideal protein diet says
your cooked fish looks still fresh 🙂
I also like chinese cooking style, they always cooking with smoking and fire on pan.
Vicky says
Thanks! It was delicious! I fully enjoyed the cooking class and am definitely interested in taking another one before we leave China!
Bree says
Sounds great and looks easy too!
Ailsa says
This recipe looks great but does not beer have gluten in it?
Ailsa
Vicky says
I know in the US in specialty stores there are gluten free beers sold (http://www.pastemagazine.com/blogs/lists/2012/03/the-best-and-worst-gluten-free-beers.html). I’m not sure about Australia though (which is where I’m guessing you’re from). I will make a note of this in the recipe though!
Ailsa says
There are here in Australia too but if someone is looking for a recipe to cook for a gluten free friend they may not realise that beer has gluten in.
Vicky says
You definitely make a very good point. I’ll add that into the instructions. Thanks for picking up on that!
Naomi says
Thanks for the beer fish recipe – we clearly took the same class in Yangshuo, but I can’t find my recipe. I am delighted to have yours!
Vicky says
Glad to help you out with that! Definitely a great recipe!
Maureen Kelly says
I just made it for dinner. I didn’t have quite enough fish so I added some cooked prawns from the freezer. It smells and tastes divine! Thanks.
Vicky says
Great idea to add prawns too! Thanks for taking the time to comment and let me know what you thought of my recipe : ))
Ken says
This recipe has been heavily adjusted to suit American tastes. Half a green pepper and half a red one? What kind of pepper. Certainly not bell pepper and increase the quantity by a factoof five t oten.
Fish skin side down? In Guilin/Yangshuo it is made with whole fish – carp from the river, not filets – so there are only skin sides.
The cepie is also very light on the tomato. Local cooks would use mor ethan one small tomato.
Vicky says
This is the way this recipe was taught to me.