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West Lake fish cooked in vinegar(西湖醋鱼)

West Lake Fish in Vinegar Gravy is a traditional dish of Hangzhou, China. When people come to this city, local guide have to introduce this dish, not only because of the fun name of it, but also the particular tastes. Fisherman will choose fresh carp from the most beautiful and famous lake in China, West Lake. They first use vinegar and sugar to cure the fish, than give it to chef. An excellent chef can make the fish taste refreshing and exceptional delicacies. This famous Chinese dish has originated from Song dynasty with an interesting story.

The history of the dish
Song and his younger brother are pretty knowledgeable, they lived a secluded life away from society. However, one day the villain Zhao met Song's wife and was attracted by her beauty. He killed Song by intrigues when he knew that the beauty was Song's wife. Song's wife and his younger brother were very indignant and they accused Zhao of committing crimes. But the local authorities were on the side of the villain, they were failed and swept out of the government. After getting home, Song's wife ordered the younger brother to escape from Hangzhou in case of reprisals. Before Song's brother gone, his sister in law made him a dish that is made of fish with sugar and vinegar. Song's brother was surprised and asked why the fish was cooked so strangely. His sister in law said: you will taste sweet and sour in this dish, I want you to remember how your brother died and remember to pay the revenge years later. The younger brother was deeply moved and he left home with his sister in law's request. Several years later, Song's younger brother became an authority and put the villain to law. However, his sister in law was hidden and he couldn't find her. One day, the younger brother attended a banquet and he ate a dish that has the same taste as the one his sister in law had made. He asked the host and found that it was his sister in law who had become a maid to escape from reprisal. The younger brother was very happy and he resigned his title and lived a secluded life again at the lakeside with his sister in law.

Area of origin
West Lake Fish in Vinegar Gravy originate from west lake, Hangzhou, China.

Hangzhou's West Lake Scenic Area, in the southwest of the city, covers 60 square kilometers (23 square miles), of which West Lake itself occupies 5.6 square kilometers (2.2 square miles).

It was originally the center of the city, but now the Qiantang River is becoming the central feature as the south bank is developed in similar fashion to Shanghai Pudong District. West Lake is a place of tranquility where urbanity becomes a silhouette on the northeast horizon and mountains near and far surround it on the other three sides. The occasional pagoda and Chinese-style arched bridge add atmosphere to the tree-lined walkways, verdant islands and hills.

The lake itself is fringed with temples, teahouses and ancient pavilions set in formal gardens. Needle-thin causeways connect the mainland with little islands in the middle of the lake-a scene straight from your grandmother’s willow pattern platter.

On the largest of these islands is Louwailou Restaurant(楼外楼), which began life in 1848, just two doors away from its present site, as a modest little but. The first owner was a fisherman who fished West Lake, and from the very beginning, West Lake Vinegar Fish was on the menu. The dish was ordered every day by Yu Yue, A famous man of letters and an equally celebrated drinker. Other famous customers included Sun Yet Sen and Chiang Kai Chek.

A decade of prosperity between 1927 and 1937 ended abruptly with the Japanese invasion, but the restaurant continued operating. Although nationalized after the communist revolution, Louwailou is now a shareholding enterprise, the shareholders mostly its managers and staff.

Louwailou was designated the first Chinese restaurant to receive foreign dignitaries in 1952. Later, Mao Tse Tung’s offsider, Zhou En Lai, took the restaurant under his wing, arranging for renovations of the building, which were carried out from 1978. The present restaurant, three times larger than the original, seats 1,000 people in six elaborate dining halls, including a white and gold Russian Hall, which looks like something from Czarist Russia.

In the lake oat the front door of the restaurant is a pen, consisting of some 20 wire cages, in which the live carp, caught by a contract fisherman, are kept for two days to purge any muddy odour. The restaurant sells about 1,000 of these carp a day, mostly in the form of West Lake Vinegar Fish.

Said to have been the creation of a Su Causeway resident in the Ming Dynasty, West Lake Vinegar Fish is today more of the classic recipes in China, listed in many Chinese cookbooks.

However, having consulted these books, I was interested to see how their authors have overcomplicated the dish. Forget spring onions, garlic, chilli sauce, pepper, sesame oil, peanut oil, MSG and all the other unnecessary frills. Here is the original, authentic recipe. I say this with confidence because I had the dish demonstrated to me twice in one day-first by chef Tao at Louwailou. Then by chef-tutor Li Yu Wei at the Zhejiang polytechnic when I joined in his class of students. In both cases, the list of ingredients and the method were identical.

Although the closest locally available fish to the original is the golden carp caught wild from Lake Taopo(and sold by Cook Strait Seafoods at Moore Wilson Fresh when available, usually on a Saturday), other fish can be substituted. I have successfully experimented with “kelpie”, for example, and even blue cod, a soft-flesh fish which requires minimal boiling if it is not to fall apart.

Ingredients
How to make the dish Ingredients

Whole fish, grass carp, snapper, seabass or other white fish -- 1 (2-pound) fish

Water -- 1 1/2 quarts

Ginger, sliced thinly -- 4 to 5 slices

Brown or white sugar -- 1/4 cup

Black (Chinkiang) vinegar or cider vinegar -- 1/3 cup

Soy sauce -- 2 tablespoons

Rice wine or water -- 2 tablespoons

Cornstarch -- 2 tablespoons

Salt -- to taste

Method
1. Rinse the whole, cleaned fish in cold water and pat dry. Using a sharp knive, slice two or three diagonal cuts into the flesh on each side of the fish.

2. Add the water and ginger slices to a wok or pot large enough to hold the fish and bring to a slow simmer over medium-low flame. Lower the fish into the water and poach gently for 8 to 10 minutes, or until cooked through. Using slotted spoons, carefully remove the fish from the water. Place on a warm serving platter, pat dry and set aside.

3. Pour off all but about 1/2 cup of water from the wok or pot and remove the ginger slices. Add the sugar, vinegar and soy sauce and bring to a boil over medium flame, stirring to dissolve the sugar. Stir the cornstarch and rice wine or water to form a slurry and whisk enough of the slurry into the simmering sauce to thicken it lightly. Remove the sauce from heat and adjust seasoning with salt.

4. Pour the sauce over the fish and serve immediately. Diners remove pieces of fish from the platter using chopsticks.

Variations
Marinate the fish in a little soy sauce and rice wine before poaching if you like.

For an easier preparation, you can use 1 1/2 to 2 pounds of fish filets. But true xi hu cu yu is served whole. And if you are serving it for Chinese New Year.

, it must be whole. Serving it otherwise would be bad luck.

Add a little minced garlic to the sauce if you like.

Grass carp from West Lake is used in authentic preparations in Hangzhou. The fish is starved for a couple days to remove any muddy taste from the flesh. Carp prepared with this recipe is said to resemble crab in flavor.