China · Home-style
Yellow Catfish and Tofu Soup
A milky white soup made by pan-frying yellow catfish until the bones colour, then boiling hard with tofu until the broth turns opaque.
The white colour comes from the fish rather than from milk, and getting it takes patience: the fish is fried first to colour the bones, then the water is brought to a rolling boil, which emulsifies the fat into the liquid. Black pepper is the only hot element, and it goes in late so it does not interfere with that whitening. Yellow catfish is freshwater and cheap, and its bones are small, which matters for a soup drunk straight from the bowl.
Ingredients
- tofu100 g
- ground pepper5 g
- cooking oil15 ml
- salt5 g
Directions
- 1
Once the fish is prepared, rinse it well, paying particular attention to the blood line inside the belly, which will taste muddy if left, and put it into a large bowl with the Shaoxing wine, 10 g of sliced ginger and 5 g of salt. Marinate for fifteen minutes.
- 2
Cut the tofu into blocks, soak them in cold water for five minutes and set aside.
- 3
Before frying the fish, rub the wok with a slice of ginger to keep it from sticking. Add oil, using 15 ml per fish, heat it and fry the fish for two to three minutes, shaking the pan now and then so it does not catch, and turning it once.
- 4
Once all the fish is fried, pour in boiling water with 5 ml of Shaoxing wine and the ginger slices, turn up to high heat, cover and boil for ten minutes. Use a little more water than you need, as some will evaporate.
- 5
When the broth turns white, add the tofu, turn down to medium and cook for another five minutes, then season with 10 g of salt and 3 g of ground pepper and finish with chopped scallion.
Source: HowToCook · WorldBite adaptation · Unlicense source text; bilingual recipe adapted by WorldBite.