"pine cones" from freshwater fish

1 serving


clear the fish of scales, cut the fins, remove the gills, make a deep incision on the flesh at the edges of the gill covers, cut the vertebral bone and separate the head, and then remove the insides. cut the fish in half along the spine, remove the vertebral and thoracic bones, remove the skin. on the resulting strips of fillet, on one side, with an sharply honed knife, make cuts at a distance of 1 cm from the other (to make a kind of "fringe"). grease the prepared fillet with beaten eggs, sprinkle with starch and spiral to make a "bump, " while gently spreading the glued "scales. " if necessary, chop the "bump" with a wooden match so that it does not unwind. heat the vegetable oil in a wok or deep frying pan and fry the "cones" in it for 12-15 minutes until golden. remove the fish from the pan, let the oil drain. finely chop the garlic. in another pan, heat 2 dessert spoons of vegetable oil. put the garlic, pour in the wine vinegar, soy sauce, chicken stock, add the sugar and the cornstarch diluted with a little water. bring the gravy to a boil and pour it over the fish. fish "pine cones" are considered a delicatessen dish in China.