Fukien Crispy Sweet and Sour Fish (Paleo, Gluten Free)

EDIT: I had a laugh when a reader remarked that “Fukien” may come out sounding rude so in case you are interested and didn’t know, it’s pronounced “Foo-Key-Anne” 🙂

My Sweet and Sour Chicken is always a hit with the family from my husband down to the pickiest of kids. The main components of that sauce are ketchup, white vinegar and honey. It is typical of what you would find in a Cantonese restaurant or home kitchen.

The Cantonese were not the only people to make sweet and sour sauce in China and the following recipe takes a foundation from the Fukien province. It does not require ketchup but instead uses a combination of honey, vinegar and coconut aminos to get that sweet and tangy winning combo.

We start slices of white fish and sprinkle with a bit of salt. I used tilapia but this will work just as well with something like snapper.

Prepare the fish batter with an egg, a bit of water and some tapioca flour.

Coat your fish in the batter.

Then in olive oil or expeller-pressed coconut oil, fry the fish for 2 minutes, turning once.

Drain your fish pieces over paper towels. You will then want to return them to the pan to fry again quickly for 1 minute.

While the fish is frying, you can mix together the sweet and sour sauce in a separate bowl.

Drain all the oil from the pan except for 2 TBSP and fry up some ginger and garlic.

Add the sauce and stir until it is nice and thick.

Return the fish to the pan and stir until all the pieces are coated in sauce. Serve and enjoy!

You’ll Need:

• 1 lb of white fish meat like tilapia or snapper – cut into slices
• 1/2 TBSP garlic, minced
• 1/2 TBSP ginger, minced
• enough oil to cover bottom of pan (olive oil or expeller-pressed coconut oil)
• Batter: 3 TBSP cold water, 1 egg, 8 TBSP tapioca flour

Sauce:

• 1/4 cup honey
• 3 TBSP vinegar
• 5 TBSP water
• 1 TBSP coconut aminos
• 1 TBSP sherry
• 1 tsp tapioca flour
• 1 tsp sesame oil
• 1/2 tsp salt

1. Sprinkle a bit of salt on the fish pieces and set aside
2. Combine sauce ingredients and set aside
3. Whisk together batter ingredients until it is a thin paste like pancake batter
4. Mix fish pieces into the batter until well coated
5. Heat oil in a large pan and fry fish pieces in the pan for 2 minutes, turning once
6. Drain fish over paper towels and return them to the pan to fry again for 1 minute
7. Remove fish from pan and drain oil except for 2 TBSP
8. Fry ginger and garlic quickly. Add the sauce and heat until it is thick and bubbly
9. Return fish to the pan and stir until all the pieces are coated in sauce

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