Sweet and Sour Fish is a very popular dish in China, and it’s almost always served as a whole fish. The dish tends to be quite expensive, as it’s usually straight out of a live fish tank and served with a pretty fancy presentation.
While I’m working on the recipe for the banquet-style whole sweet and sour fish, today I’m sharing this easier version: Sweet and Sour Fish Fillets, using readily available fish fillets fried in a crispy batter.
This Chinese Sweet and Sour Fish dish is similar to another classic Americanized dish, Sweet and Sour Pork. (Head over to that recipe if you’re not a fan of fish). Is there anything better than the texture combination of crispy fried stuff coated in thick sweet and sour sauce?
A Couple Ways to Tackle This Recipe
Another alternative to cutting the fish fillet into pieces is to fry up the whole fillet (if you’re looking for cooking times, you can check out our beer batter fish fry recipe that we blogged on a camping trip a couple years ago).
There are fewer steps, and it makes for a nice presentation, though less surface area for that fried batter! The decision is yours…
However you choose to prepare it, I am certain you will thoroughly enjoy this dish. So head for the kitchen and make this Sweet and Sour Fish Fillet a reality!
Sweet and Sour Fish Fillets: Recipe Instructions
Make sure your fish fillet is clean and pat dry to ensure your fried fish gets really crispy. Heat 3 cups of oil in a small pot (to conserve oil) to 380 degrees F. You can use a thermometer or check the temperature by putting a drop of batter into the oil. The batter should not turn brown right away. Instead, it should rise immediately to the surface and turn a very light golden brown.
To make the batter, mix together all the dry ingredients––the flour, baking powder, cornstarch, salt, turmeric powder, and white pepper. When you’re ready to fry, mix in the sesame oil and cold seltzer water until the batter is smooth.
Next, drop the fish fillets into the batter. Ensure they are evenly coated, but allow the excess to drip off (if there’s too much batter on the fish, you’ll end up with dough balls!). Carefully place the fish into the oil one piece at a time, ensuring that they don’t stick to each other. Fry in batches so that the fish pieces aren’t overcrowded, frying for 3-4 minutes or until golden brown.
Scoop the fried fish out and transfer to a cooling rack placed over a baking sheet to drain. Repeat until all the fish has been fried.
Next, put two teaspoons of the frying oil in a separate wok or skillet over high heat, and toss in the onions, and peppers.
Stir-fry for 30 seconds, and then stir in the ketchup. Fry for another 20 seconds––frying the ketchup brings out the color and makes for a better depth of flavor in the sweet and sour sauce.
Mix in the pineapple, pineapple juice, red wine vinegar, water, salt, and sugar, and bring the liquid to a low simmer for 2 minutes.
With the sweet and sour sauce still simmering, slowly stir in the cornstarch slurry until the sauce is thick enough to coat a spoon.
For more detailed information on the many ways to use cornstarch to get authentic results at home with our recipes, see our post on How to Use Cornstarch in Chinese Cooking.
At this point, if the fried fish fillets have softened, you can refry them in the oil heated to 400F for 30 seconds in larger batches. The higher heat is needed because the oil will cool immediately after putting in a larger batch of fish in the oil.
Once the fish is ready, toss it into the wok, and fold into the sauce with 3 or 4 scooping motions until the pieces are lightly coated. Plate and serve immediately!
For the best results, this Chinese Sweet and Sour Fish Fillet stir-fry should be cooked and finished right before ringing the dinner bell! Chefs all over Chinatown restaurant kitchens are screaming to the waiters to get this dish onto guest’s tables just as soon as it’s out of the wok. Do yourself a favor and do the same at home!
Enjoy every bite of tender and tangy sweet and sour fish fish fillet!
Chinese Sweet and Sour Fish Fillet Stir-fry
Ingredients
For the fish:
- 12 ounces cod fillet (340g, rinsed clean, pat dry and cut into 1-inch cubes)
- 3 cups canola oil (for frying)
- ¾ cup all-purpose flour
- ¼ teaspoon baking powder
- 1 tablespoon cornstarch
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ⅛ teaspoon turmeric powder
- ⅛ teaspoon white pepper
- ¼ teaspoon sesame oil
- ⅔ cup cold seltzer or club soda
For the Sweet and Sour sauce:
- ¼ cup red onion (cut into a 1-inch dice)
- ¼ cup red bell peppers (cut into a 1-inch dice)
- ¼ cup green bell peppers (cut into a 1-inch dice)
- 1 tablespoon ketchup
- 3/4 cup canned pineapple chunks
- ¾ cup pineapple juice from the can
- 2 ½ tablespoons red wine vinegar
- ⅓ cup water
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 2 tablespoons sugar
- 1 1/2 tablespoons cornstarch (mixed into a slurry with 2 tablespoons water)
Instructions
- Make sure your fish fillet is clean and pat dry to ensure your fried fish gets really crispy. Heat 3 cups of oil in a small pot (to conserve oil) to 380 degrees F. You can use a thermometer or check the temperature by putting a drop of batter into the oil. The batter should not turn brown right away. Instead, it should rise immediately to the surface and turn a very light golden brown.
- To make the batter, mix together all the dry ingredients––the flour, baking powder, cornstarch, salt, turmeric, and white pepper. When you’re ready to fry, mix in the sesame oil and cold seltzer water until the batter is smooth.
- Next, drop the fish fillets into the batter. Ensure they are evenly coated, but allow the excess to drip off (if there’s too much batter on the fish, you’ll end up with dough balls!). Carefully place the fish into the oil one piece at a time, ensuring that they don’t stick to each other. Fry in batches so that the fish pieces aren’t overcrowded, frying for 3-4 minutes or until golden brown.
- Scoop the fried fish out and transfer to a cooling rack placed over a baking sheet to drain. Repeat until all the fish has been fried.
- Next, put two teaspoons of the frying oil in a separate wok or skillet over high heat, and toss in the onions, and peppers. Stir-fry for 30 seconds, and then stir in the ketchup. Fry for another 20 seconds––frying the ketchup brings out the color and makes for a better depth of flavor in the sweet and sour sauce.
- Mix in the pineapple, pineapple juice, red wine vinegar, water, salt, and sugar, and bring the liquid to a low simmer for 2 minutes. With the sweet and sour sauce still simmering, slowly stir in the cornstarch slurry until the sauce is thick enough to coat a spoon.
- At this point, if the fried fish fillets have softened, you can refry them in the oil heated to 400F for 30 seconds in larger batches. The higher heat is needed because the oil will cool immediately after putting in a larger batch of fish in the oil.
- Once the fish is ready, toss it into the wok, and fold into the sauce with 3 or 4 scooping motions until the pieces are lightly coated. Plate and serve immediately!
nutrition facts
Hi, Bill. Do you think this batter would be good for fried oysters? Looking forward to making this recipes with the pile of fish I have in the fridge.
Hi Bad Kitty, yes it would. We do have a recipe for fried oysters that you can check out.
Oh, baby. This was wunnerful! I followed the recipe closely, deviating only to add more catsup–about 1/4 cup total. Best S&S sauce ever–tart and not too cloying.
A question: I notice the sauces recipe for your S&S fish, pork, and chicken are all different. Do you consider them interchangeable or are they “necessary” changes that are tailored to each specific meat?
Thanks for all you do!
Hi Bill, good question! They all have their characteristics – for example, the sweet and sour pork was a sweet and pungent pork, so there is a lot more vinegar used. Perhaps my memories of how they were cooked, but you are right, if you like the S&S sauce for this recipe, you can most definitely use it for the other recipes.
Thanks!
This is the best batter for fish i’ve ever made, thanks a-lot!
Love the site, especially how there is step by step pictures so i can make sure i am making it correctly. (:
Glad that our readers are enjoying our recipes. Thank you for your lovely comment :-)
The recipe matches my liking, love it! the batter has just the right crispiness!
Glad you enjoyed it Berlin!
Dear Bill (and Judy, Sarah, and Kaitlin) thanks for the inspiration and “hi” from Australia.
Your sweet and sour fish recipe is lovely. We added additional veggies (snow peas at the end with the fish) and used a brown onion, which we cooked off a bit longer. We also reduced the sugar – because we’re more “sour” than sweet – and it was great. Just what we wanted for a late Sunday lunch. Some of our family are vegetarian so it’s easy to use vegetarian “fish” for some and just divide up the sauce and toss in the different proteins.
Stay safe and thanks.
Pam and Trevor
Hi Pam and Trevor, glad you enjoyed our sweet and sour fish recipe, and thanks for the shout-out from Australia!
Thank you for this fabulous recipe. I added a few more vegies, and soya sauce, less salt and just battered my fish pieces using a tried and true crispy batter taught to me by my elderly sister!
Hi Sally, you’re welcome and happy to hear you enjoyed it!
What kind of ketchup? Is red vinegar ok to use?
Hi Kaye, any tomato ketchup will work and yes, red vinegar is ok. Just add enough to your liking.
Great recipe, batter is perfect.
Glad you enjoyed it Jane!
Perfect. Better than any restaurant. I used cold water in place of seltzer – no problem. Re-frying before the final mix is needed to get (at least for a few minutes) crisp fish in the sauce.
Glad you enjoyed our sweet and sour fish Richard!