Escabeche includes a fried fish topped off with a sweet and sour sauce.😋
Ingredients:
- 1 Pompano fish
- Salt and pepper
- Oil
- ¼ cup brown sugar
- ½ cup apple cider vinegar
- 1 tbsp soy sauce
- ¼ cup ketchup (banana is better!)
- ¼ cold water
- 1 tbsp corn starch
- 3 sliced garlic cloves
- ½ onion, sliced
- ¼ cup ginger, sliced (~4 inches of 1 knob of ginger)
- ½ cup thinly-sliced carrots
- ½ green bell pepper, sliced thinly into strips
- ½ red bell pepper, sliced thinly into strips
- Salt and pepper
Directions:
- Take the fish and season it with salt and pepper on both sides. Set aside.
- Take a cast-iron pan and pour in enough oil to cover the surface of the pan. Turn on the stove to medium heat.
- When the oil has heated up, place the fish very carefully in the pan. If you have one, place a splash guard over the pan. Let it cook over the medium heat for about 4-5 minutes.
- Flip the fish and cook on the other side for 4-5 minutes. Remove from heat.
- Over low heat, heat up a medium saucepan and add in the brown sugar, apple cider vinegar, soy sauce, and ketchup. Whisk it all and undo any clumps.
- Take a small, separate mixing bowl and mix the cold water and corn starch together. Set aside.
- Return to the saucepan and add in the garlic, onion, and ginger. Simmer on very, very low heat for 5 minutes, stirring halfway through.
- Take the cornstarch mixture and whisk it up again. Pour into the saucepan and whisk, whisk, whisk. (This thickens really fast!)
- Throw in the sliced carrots, green bell pepper, and red bell pepper. Stir the pot very well, and add a splash of water if you think the sauce is too thick. Add a dash of salt and pepper to taste. Cover the pot with a lid and let simmer for another 3-5 minutes.
- Make sure the sauce has thickened up, and remove the pot from the heat. Serve the fried fish and spread the vegetable, sweet-and-sour sauce over it.
Now you have your escabeche, with your fancy sweet and sour sauce.😋