Skip to main content

Sweet and Sour Tilapia

Can you spot the purple rice?

I've been cooking my way through the excellent blog Pinch of Yum, and yet again, it's led us to a super delicious and healthy dinner. I might need to turn my blog into a Pinch of Yum fan site.

This sweet and sour sauce tastes just like I wanted it to... a fresher version of the sweet and sour sauce you'd get at a Chinese restaurant. And who needs fried fish? I mean, I guess now that I think about it, fried fish here would have been kind of amazing. But I'll stop thinking about it, because this pan-seared version was great too.

I'm excited to keep making this with vegetables from the garden throughout the summer. All I grew in tonight's version was the kale, but my zucchini and bell peppers will be here soon enough.

Update:
Sometimes you cook for people and they do unintended things with the leftovers. My dad put his leftover fish on a pumpernickel bagel.

He claimed this was a good idea.



The Recipe:
2 lb tilapia, cut into bite-size pieces
1 tsp cumin
1 tsp cayenne pepper
salt and pepper, to taste
1/2 c cider vinegar
1/3 c ketchup
1/4 c sugar, or more to taste
1/2 tsp salt
juice and pulp from half of an orange
1/4 c chili-garlic sauce
3 tb cornstarch
1 can pineapple chunks, juice reserved
vegetables (I used 2 yellow onions, 2 bell peppers, 1 zucchini, and a bunch of kale; all cut into bite-sized pieces)
rice (I used a mixture of brown and black rice), for serving
sesame seeds, for serving
  • In a sauce pan, combine the vinegar, ketchup, sugar, salt, orange juice and pulp, pineapple juice, and chili-garlic sauce. Simmer for 10 minutes. 
  • Dissolve corn starch in 2 tb water and mix into the sauce. Bring to a low boil while stirring, then simmer until sauce is thickened.
  • Mix tilapia with cumin, cayenne pepper, and salt and pepper. Pan-sear in a few tablespoons of canola oil over high heat, turning occasionally for about 10 minutes or until fish is cooked through. Set fish aside.
  • Add vegetables to the hot pan and saute until slightly softened.
  • Add pineapple, fish, and sauce to the sauteed vegetables. Mix to combine.
  • Serve over rice, topped with sesame seeds.


The Verdict:
Overall grade: A-
Overall reason: A tasty way to eat healthy ingredients. The sugar content prevents it from getting a straight A.
Time to prepare: 40 minutes
Husband quote: Me: "Look at your dinner! It's beautiful." Husband: "Look at my wife! She's beautiful."

Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Kitchen renovation!

BEFORE: AFTER: Still to come: a beautiful new induction range and some wood shelving on the left side, above the backsplash. And maybe the shelving unit on the wall facing the cabinets should be green, but we're going to live with a while before making that decision.
2 comments
Read more

Red lentil dal

Cucumber salad is key. This dal is perfect. Most of us took seconds, and I'm really excited to eat the last portion that's sitting in the fridge right now. The accompanying salad is really great for adding texture, crunch, and acidity to the meal. I wouldn't skip it. I got it from  Tea for Turmeric  and prepared it pretty much as written, but doubled and with none of the optional ingredients. This recipe doesn't mention any seasoning/dressing on the salad, but adding lemon and salt to it really brightened things up. The Recipe: (from Tea for Turmeric) 2 c red lentils splash of avocado oil 2 tsp cumin seeds 2 small onions, finely chopped 1 inch ginger, grated 4 small tomatoes, chopped 2 thai chilies, minced 2 tsp cumin powder 2 tsp coriander powder 1 tsp cayenne 1 tsp turmeric 2+ tsp kosher salt 2 tsp lemon juice 1/2 c cilantro, chopped For serving: basmati rice and plain yogurt Salad ingredients: 1/2 english cucumber, sliced 10 cherry tomatoes, quartered 1/4 onion, slic...
Post a Comment
Read more

Vietnamese Curry Stir-Fry

  When I get the recipe just right, I'll go to the effort of adding fried shallots on top. I'm back to my on-and-off mission of trying to make a stir-fry as delicious as the shrimp I used to get at  Pho Grand  in St. Louis during college. It was called "cari tom" but it definitely wasn't a coconut milk type of curry, and they ALSO have a separate listing on their menu for "cari tom dac biet" which includes "coconut milk sauce" in their description. So I'm pretty sure it was just a stir-fry that had curry flavors in it? I got myself a big container of Vietnamese curry powder and I'm going to keep experimenting. This is the closest I've come so far. Changes for the future: - More oil and sugar, restaurant style - A blend of fish sauce and soy sauce, instead of just soy sauce - Fried shallots on top The Recipe (adapted from  Veggie Anh ): 3 tb fresh lemongrass, chopped 4 cloves garlic, minced 1 Thai chili, minced 1 pinch salt 2 tb avoc...
Post a Comment
Read more