As the title states, smoked fish is not smoked fish in the true sense, and modern smoked fish does not have a "smoking" process.

The cookery book "Tiao Ding Ji" in the mid-Qing Dynasty of my country records two methods of smoking fish: "Smoked crucian carp: cut it open and dry it without water, add soy sauce overnight, remove the soy sauce and cook, cool slightly , wine (sprinkle) minced fennel and ginger, burn cypress branches and smoke. ""Smoked white fish: remove the scales and intestines of the large white fish, marinate for two or three days and hang it to dry slightly, cut into sections and steam, place on the iron grid, and burn. Slightly smoke the cypress branches, mix a bowl with wine, vinegar, and ground Sichuan peppercorns. Dip and brush the chicken feathers from time to time. If the skin is fragrant and fragrant, dip it in sesame oil and apply it all over the body. "Finally, use the two kinds of smoked fish. It is smoked with "cypress branches". It can be seen that these two types of smoked fish have two distinct cooking characteristics. The first is marinating in soy sauce, and the second is smoking with burning cypress branches. Obviously, although the modern version of smoked fish does not have a smoking process, people generally follow the name of the Qing Dynasty because of the similar appearance and color.

There are many ways to make smoked fish in modern times, but they can be roughly divided into two types. The difference is that it is marinated before frying, and finally the soaked soy sauce is marinated to reduce the juice and the fried fish pieces are turned upside down and soaked; The other method is not pickled, but is fried directly in the pot, and then poured into the seasoned and cooked marinade to soak it, and then it is ready to be plated. This method is widely used among the people, while the former method is used in various restaurants and hotels in Shanghai. Used more. "Tiao Ding Ji" also records the local practice in Suzhou during the Qing Dynasty, which is relatively close to the modern practice of smoking fish: "Preserved herring: cut into pieces and lightly salted, add soy sauce, wine, and fat to dry cook, best for traveling far away. Also, live Remove the head and tail of herring, cut into small cubes, salt and air-dry, fry in a pan, add seasonings to marinate and stir-fry, stir in sesame seeds and stir in the pan, Suzhou method." Let's look at the modern Suzhou method of smoking fish, and we can roughly understand it. Its heritage.

Su-style smoked fish is made from the middle section of grass carp (or carp). The marinade includes onion, ginger, soy sauce, rice wine, salt, sugar, allspice, and sesame oil. Wash and drain the fish, and cut it from the back. Cut it in half into two large pieces, then cut it into eight diagonal slices. Crush the green onions and ginger and put them in a large bowl. Add soy sauce, wine, and salt and mix well. Then marinate the fish fillets for about 4 hours. ?, after the peanut oil is heated, fry the fish fillets in two batches (fry each batch for about 3 minutes), take them out, drain them, and immediately soak them in sugar water while they are still hot for about 4 minutes. When the second batch of fish is fried, take out the first batch of fish fillets soaked in sugar water and put them on a plate, and continue to soak the second batch of fish fillets. Pour out the oil for frying the fish, pour the soy sauce in which the fish was soaked into the pot, add a little sesame oil and bring to a boil, then turn off the heat. Place the fish fillets soaked in sugar water into the pot and turn over to dip both sides before serving. Set aside. Serve after cooling. The development and evolution of Su-style smoked fish from the food that was considered “best when traveling far away” in the Qing Dynasty to the delicacy on the table today is very clear.