Mala Fish

Here is another dish I made recently. This one was inspired by Szechuan cuisine. I was initially exposed to "mala" on my first trip to China, and I absolutely fell in love with it. In Chinese, "la" means "spicy" and "ma"  means "numbing." Mala is the numbing, spicy flavor that is frequently found in Szechuan style cuisine. Before my first trip to China, I had never been exposed to it, but it is quite possible to find and buy the ingredients at Asian markets here in the U.S.

The numbing sensation is derived from Sichuan peppercorns, which look pretty similar to regular black peppercorns. I love these things. The numbing is the perfect compliment for spicy food. Indeed, one is more able to tolerate extreme spice when the mouth is made numb from the peppercorns.

There are several different varieties; they come in black, red, brown, even greenish in hue. They can be found in the whole peppercorn form, or they can be ground into a spice you can sprinkle on food like any other. The problem with the latter is, that the potency is lost if not used right away after grinding. Before using in any form, the whole peppercorns should be lightly roasted to enhance their flavor. This can be done easily in a pan right before you use them.

It's important to note that within the peppercorns are tiny black seeds. These are bitter and unappetizing. They can also lend an unwanted, gritty texture to the food you use them with. In China, they often ignore them, or eat around them, but I like to remove them before roasting. It takes a little more effort, but I feel it's worth it in the end. This step is especially important if you plan on grinding the peppercorns. My brother's fiance is from Hunan, and there, they don't grind them. Since the dinner was in her honor, I used the whole peppercorns.

Once the "ma" is prepped and ready to go, we need to concern ourselves with the "la." Dried chilies are commonly used in this style of cooking. Again, they can readily be found in your local Asian produce store. I've seen them in Chinese, Korean, and Thai markets both back in Michigan and here in Southern California.

Most mala dishes I had while I was in China used these same chilies in their whole form. No need to slice them up. It's fine to use these bad boys just how they are. Importantly, these are not to be eaten themselves. They simply add flavor and heat to the dish they are cooked with. Certainly, they're edible, but I can't imagine they are easy on the GI tract. That said, I have eaten them, and I was just fine afterwards.

Unfortunately, I neglected to take pictures of the cooking process of this dish. Thankfully, Anita Leung had the presence of mind to snap a few pics with her phone before we ate it all. Photography credit goes to her from here on out.

After you've toasted the peppercorns, you'll want to get them and the chilies into some hot oil. I prefer peanut oil for this, and I believe it is pretty popular in China as well. You could use whatever oil you prefer, but if you choose olive oil, go with something light. No extra virgin olive oil for this. This is also a good time to add a bit of ginger and garlic to enhance the flavor.

For my take on this dish, I sauteed green onion and shallots in the oil until they were nice and soft.

You can be creative with your choice of fish for this recipe. If you're feeling fancy, go for some halibut. On a budget? Try some carp. You wouldn't want to use trout or salmon, but many other fish would suffice. Because my brother was footing the bill for this one, I left the final decision up to him, and was pleased when he brought over not only some fresh talapia, but a few beautiful fillets of mahi-mahi as well.

Dry off your fish and slice it into nice sized cubes. Season with salt and fresh ground pepper. Keep in mind you'll be adding soy sauce to the dish so it's safe to season sparingly as you'll be getting more salt from that.

The mahi-mahi had the skin still on it, and there was no need to remove it. It is completely edible and actually adds quite a bit of flavor. The rich fat from the fish is most prominent just under the skin. It's different eating in China. Skin and bones are left on the animal. One simply places a morsel into one's mouth and after the tender meat falls off, spits out the bone. This goes along with how you will have dried chilies and peppercorns on your plate when you're done. If you've ever eaten tiny Chinese style spare ribs, or chicken feet, you'll know what I'm talking about. Don't be shy; this is family style eating, and you're surrounded by friends and family! Our fish had no bones on it, so that wasn't a concern, but if you decide to leave the skin on the fish, place that skin side down when you first add the fish to the pan. It will crisp up nicely.

The fish will not take a long time to cook. It's important to keep a close eye on your pan and add the fish only when you're ready to give it full attention.A few minutes on high heat will be all it takes to make the fish fork tender. Too long, and you'll dry it out and it will begin to fall apart in the pan. Add a bit of soy sauce to enhance the whole thing before finishing.

Here is what the finished product looks like:

 To go along with the fish, I made some simple Chinese style spinach. To do this, start by heating up some oil in a pan (again, I used peanut oil, but vegetable oil is just fine.) Add salt to the oil as it heats up. It is easier to season the oil that will coat the spinach than to add seasoning after sauteing. Once hot, add some garlic to the oil. With the garlic sizzling you can add the spinach to the pan and saute. It will not take very long at all, even less time than the fish. When you're about ready to take it out, add a small amount of sesame seed oil and a touch of sugar. Mix it around one final time and serve.

Do it like they do in China and serve it family style. Everyone gets their own plate, but the dishes themselves are served on big plates all in the middle. This is the way it's supposed to be done. Eat as much or as little of individual dishes as you want! My company were kind enough to bring a few other Chinese style dishes, and we had a nice batch of white rice to bring everything together.

An excellent meal, great company, and a wonderful time!