The
Urban Cook Book: 50 Recipes, 25 Urban Talents, 5 Cities, King Adz 2008 New York
Berlin: Sweet and sour fish
“In most cities of the world, Chinese dishes are a popular
street food. Berlin has a mental section of Chinese restaurants and takeaways,
and this recipe adapted from a dish I ate in one of them, will keep you away
from the MSG for a while . . . This dish can also be made using chicken or
prawns.” King Adz
Feeds 4-6
1 kg/2 ¼ lb cod, haddock or salmon; plain flour; salt and
black pepper; vegetable oil, for deep-frying
Batter mix: 1.15g/4oz plain flour; 55g/2oz cornflour; a
pinch of saly; 200ml/7fl oz fizzy soda water
Sweet and sour sauce: 500ml/18fl oz water; 4 tblsp sugar; 2
carrots, finely sliced; 1 medium onion, roughly chopped; 3 peppers (any colour)
chopped; 125g/4oz pineapple chunks, drained and chopped; red colouring; 1 tblsp
cornflour mixed with a little water; 4 tspn clear vinegar (distilled malt
vinegar)
Make the sweet and sauce first. Put the water and sugar in
a medium pan and heat until dissolved. In another pan, lightly cook the carrots
in boiling water. Add the remaining vegetables, pineapple and red colouring to
the sauce.
Use the cornflour mixture to thicken the sauce. At this
point it should be thicker than you want it to be at the end. Remove the pan
from the heat and stir well as you add the vinegar. Leave to one side, and warm
through briefly when serving.
Whisk all the batter ingredients together until light and
fluffy. The mixture should be fairly thick and leave a trail when the whisk is
lifted out of the batter.
Cut the fish into bite-sized pieces and toss in seasoned
flour. Dip the fish into the batter and fry in hot oil in a deep frying pan
until golden brown and crisp, about 5 minutes. Drain on a paper towel.
Serve the battered fish on top of boiled rice, covered with
sweet sour sauce.
King Adz writes “This is for everyone. Urban cookery
(street food) is the most accessible form of cooking there is. Just as street
art has brought the beauty of art into the lives of the masses, street food is
all about making diverse and tasty food available to all, using quick and
simple recipes that are quick and easy to follow. There is no mystery, no
special secret.”
