Fried Tilapia inThai Sauce

 

Tilapia can be served as plain fried, which I also love and shared to you a while ago click here for the recipe and are also best when served with various sauces. These are sold in the market affordable and are one of the best Filipino dishes to enjoy together with your family in a meal. This time, I am going to share you this dish with a touch of Thai sauce garnished in it. I have known that when we say Thai dishes, the main ingredient are seafood’s cooked with various sauces that taste sweet, sour and spicy; some are also served in a delicious curry sauce too and all mixed up with different spices and herb that result into a nice aroma! I love those…yummmm….

 

Since my family love to dine out in our favorite Thai restaurant, I got curious how this delicious food were prepared, which ideally meant not just to satisfy our eyes and nose, but really touches our appetite behind each dish! One thing that would always invite us to come back in the place is our favorite main dish which is the Fried Lapu-Lapu or Fried Tilapia served in a delicious sauces. Out of my curiosity I search online what made Thai dishes famous and delicious…and for me, I would agree that the sweet and spicy combinations made it unique!

I cooked this for dinner and it was such a fulfilling meal though! The verrrrry nice aroma of fried chopped chili’s mixes in a garlic while preparing really boost my appetite! I love the spiciness blended in a delectable sweet and sour sauce!! I also added a little cornstarch on it to thicken since I find the mixture a bit runny upon mixing everything of the ingredients. I love cooking this again using tamarind or lime juice which mostly Thai sauce recipe calls for. Since I don’t have any of these available from the kitchen, I’m thankful I’ve found this helpful substitutes which are orange juice and a squeeze of fresh lemon; while the other is lemon juice and a touch of sugar mixed with it. I just wanted to try and experiment on the latter for now; and the result?? soooo great!

 

Ingredients:

• 1 large or 2 medium size fresh Tilapia

• 6 pcs fresh lemon, squeezed (you can also use 1/4 cup tamarind or lime juice)

• 2 tablespoons garlic, chopped

• 4 ripe medium size native chili, chopped

• 3 tablespoons brown sugar

• 2 tablespoons fish sauce

• 1 teaspoon cornstarch, dissolved in 1 tablespoon of water

• 3 tablespoons water

• 2 tablespoons minced garlic (optional)

• 1/2 cup vegetable oil, for frying + 2 tbsps for the sauce

• red bell pepper and scallions, for garnishing

Procedure:

Prepare the fish

Properly coat the fish with salt. Fry and cook in a non-stick pan until golden brown. Set aside. (Tips: You can also dip the fish coated with salt into tablespoons of milk before frying to avoid this fishy smell or lansa. This brings the fish more tasty too).

Prepare the Sauce

1. Place a clean pan over medium heat. Heat 2 tablespoons of vegetable or olive oil.
2. Add-in chopped garlic and stir fry until nicely brown. Add-in chopped chili. Stir until very nice smell.
3. Add-in fish sauce, sugar, minced garlic, and cornstarch. Stir until sugar has melted and mixture is smooth.
4. Add-in water while continue stirring. Gradually add more water if sauce is still sticky. Continue stirring for about 2 mins.
5. Turn off heat and pour the sauce over the fish. Garnish.
6. Serve and enjoy!