China · Shanghainese

Sizzling Garlic Eel Shreds

Name: Sizzling Garlic Eel Shreds
Prep time: 8 min
Cook time: 25 min
Total time: 33 min
Yield: 4 servings
Cuisine: Shanghainese
Ingredients: shredded eel 400 g; garlic 40 g; finely chopped ginger 20 g; Shaoxing wine 13 g; light soy sauce 3 g; oyster sauce 2 g; dark soy sauce 2 g; salt 2 g; sugar 5 g; ground white pepper 8 g; cornstarch 10 g; water 50 g; chopped garlic 40 g; chopped scallion 15 g; lard 20 g

A classic Jiangnan home dish of finely shredded eel, garlicky and lightly sweet, finished with a ladle of smoking-hot lard that crackles when it hits the plate.

33 minutes · 4 servings · Moderate

The name refers to the noise the dish makes when hot lard is poured over the eel at the table, and that final sizzle is the whole point of the recipe. Eel is sold already filleted in most Jiangnan and Shanghai markets, which is what makes the knife work at home manageable. The shredding is the skill to practise: even, thread-thin strips cook in seconds and stay slippery, while thick ones turn rubbery.

Ingredients

shredded eel400 g
garlic40 g
finely chopped ginger20 g
Shaoxing wine13 g
light soy sauce3 g
oyster sauce2 g
dark soy sauce2 g
salt2 g
sugar5 g
ground white pepper8 g
cornstarch10 g
water50 g
chopped garlic40 g
chopped scallion15 g
lard20 g

Directions

1
Cut the eel into three sections, then slice it into fine shreds.
2
Add 0.5 g of white pepper and 3 g of Shaoxing wine and mix well, then add 5 g of sesame oil and marinate.
3
Heat the oil and swirl it around the wok to season the surface.
4
Add the vegetable oil and bring it up to about sixty percent hot.
5
Add half the chopped garlic and all the chopped ginger and toss a few times.
6
Add the eel shreds and stir-fry over medium-high heat for thirty seconds.
7
Pour 10 g of Shaoxing wine around the edge of the wok and toss.
8
Add the light soy sauce and stir to combine.
9
Add the oyster sauce and dark soy sauce and toss a few times.
10
Add the salt, sugar and 3 g of white pepper and stir to combine.
11
Mix the cornstarch with the water into a slurry, pour it into the wok and reduce the sauce until thick.
12
Turn out onto a plate and scatter over the remaining chopped garlic and the chopped scallion.
13
In a separate small pan heat the lard until it is about seventy percent hot and pour it over the eel.

Source: HowToCook · WorldBite adaptation · Unlicense source text; bilingual recipe adapted by WorldBite.