The Everything Rice Cooker Cookbook (16 page)

1. Season both sides of the fish with salt and white pepper, and then pat both sides with corn flour.
   

2. Add the oil to the rice cooker, cover, and set to Cook. When the base of the cooker pot gets warm, add the fish fillets and pan-fry each side for 2 to 3 minutes, with the rice cooker covered. When fish almost cooks through, dish out and set aside. Leave the remaining oil in the pot.
   

3. Add the garlic, ginger, and mashed Chinese black beans to the pot and fry for 1 minute. Add the green onions and water and fry for an additional 1 minute, covering the rice cooker occasionally in the process of frying. When the sauce slightly reduces, drizzle half of the cooking wine and sesame oil over the sauce mixture.
   

4. Return the fish fillets to the rice cooker. Cook for about 5 minutes, lifting the cover occasionally to spoon the Chinese black bean sauce over the fish. Do not turn the fish too frequently in the pot, to keep it from flaking into small pieces.
   

5. Drizzle remaining cooking wine and sesame oil in the pot to complete cooking. Dish out and serve. Best served with steamed rice.
   

Semi-Homemade “Ready-to-Go” Chinese Black Bean Sauce

Using the amounts given in this recipe, fry Chinese black beans, minced garlic, ginger, and chopped green onions in vegetable oil for about 2 to 3 minutes. Add water and simmer until sauce reduces slightly. Drizzle in the cooking wine and sesame oil to finish off cooking. For make-ahead sauce, the quantity can be scaled up accordingly, and then stored in the refrigerator for about 2 weeks for future use such as in stir-fries.

When pan-frying salmon fillet with the skin on, always fry skin-side down first.

1. Mix the oyster sauce, brown sugar, grated ginger, garlic, and water in a bowl. Set aside as sauce.
   

2. Season both sides of the fish with salt and white pepper, and pat both sides with corn flour.
   

3. Add the oil to the rice cooker, cover, and set to Cook. When the base of the cooker pot gets warm, add the salmon and pan-fry the fish on one side, for about 3 to 5 minutes, with the rice cooker covered until fish cooks through (turns pinkish-orange). Remove and set aside. Leave the remaining oil in the pot.
   

4. Add the green onions and mushroom slices. Stir in the prepared sauce, cover the rice cooker, and allow to simmer for 1 minute.
   

5. Return the fish to the pot, cover the rice cooker, and allow to simmer for another minute or until sauce slightly reduces (thickens) and fish completely cooks through.
   

There is a popular Chinese dish in which a whole fish is deep-fried in a wok of hot oil. This method of cooking provides more depth of flavor and texture but is not often seen as practical to do at home. This recipe introduces a fuss-free way of enjoying this simple fish dish without a huge splatter of oil.

1. Mix dark soy sauce, ginger, Chinese cooking wine, sesame oil, brown sugar, and water in a bowl. Set aside as sauce.
   

2. Season both sides of the fish with salt and white pepper, and pat both sides with corn flour.
   

3. Add the oil to the rice cooker, cover, and set to Cook. When the base of the cooker pot gets warm, add the fish fillets and pan-fry each side for 2 to 3 minutes, with the rice cooker covered. When fish cooks through (turns opaque), dish out and set aside.
   

4. Add the prepared sauce mixture to the pot, cover the rice cooker, and allow to simmer. When simmering, return the fish to the pot, cover the rice cooker, and simmer for 2 to 3 minutes for sauce to infuse with the fish.
   

5. Garnish with green onions. Best served with steamed rice.
   

Chinese Soy Sauces

One of the best-known Asian seasonings, soy sauce is brewed from soybeans, wheat, and salt. The most common types of Chinese soy sauces are light soy sauce and dark soy sauce. Light soy sauce appears thin (less viscous) and lighter in color compared to dark soy sauce. Dark soy sauce is richer in taste; it has more malt in the flavor but is less salty than light soy sauce. It usually is used if both color and flavor need to be added to a dish.

Halibut tends to have a naturally sweet flavor and no fishy smell. Therefore it should be minimally seasoned and paired with a light and refreshing sauce that does not overpower the fish.

1. Season the fish slices with the salt and black pepper and coat lightly with corn flour.
   

2. Mix mango, kiwi, cilantro, shallots, and lime juice in a bowl. Chill to use as dressing.
   

3. Add the oil to the rice cooker, cover, and set to Cook. When the base of the cooker pot gets warm, add the fish slices (in batches) in a single layer across the pot. Fry each side for about 2 to 3 minutes, with the rice cooker covered, until fish cooks through (turns opaque). Keep the first batches warm while the rest of the fish is frying.
   

4. Transfer fish slices to a serving plate, and spoon some mango salsa over the fish as dressing.
   

Fish that has a stronger fishy smell, such as tilapia, is usually seasoned with more aromatics and goes well with a “heavy” sauce, like this creamy pesto sauce.

1. Combine basil, pistachios, garlic, and cheese in handheld electronic chopper/blender and process until uniformly chopped. Gradually add 1 to 2 tablespoons of the olive oil while mixing until desired consistency (grainy texture, not puréed). Set aside.
   

2. Season both sides of the fish with the salt and black pepper. Set aside.
   

3. Add the butter and remaining olive oil to the rice cooker, cover, and set to Cook. When the base of the cooker pot gets warm, stir in the milk and flour gradually. Cover the rice cooker and allow to simmer, switching the cooker to Warm if the mixture boils vigorously.
   

4. Add the fish, switch back to the Cook setting if necessary, cover the pot, and allow the fish to simmer in the sauce for about 5 minutes, until cooked through (turns opaque, white, feels firm). If the sauce bubbles too vigorously, switch to Warm and continue to simmer for the remaining time until the fish cooks through and the sauce thickens.
   

5. Stir in 1 tablespoon of prepared pesto sauce.
   

6. Remove the fish to a serving plate and pour the creamy pesto sauce over fish. Serve immediately.
   

Pesto Presto!

Use pine nuts or cashew nuts as alternatives to pistachios. The pesto in this recipe may yield more than what is required for the sauce. Store the remaining pesto in the refrigerator for up to 2 weeks and use it as a pasta dressing or sauce. Pesto freezes nicely as well.

Adding egg white and corn flour in the seasoning helps to provide a protective coating that gives the cooked fish slices a velvety texture and also prevents them from drying out.

1. Season the fish slices with salt, white pepper, soy sauce, Chinese cooking wine, and corn flour.
   

2. Add the oil to the rice cooker, cover, and set to Cook. When the base of the cooker pot gets warm, add the fish slices (in batches) in single layer across the pot. Fry each side for about 2 to 3 minutes, with the rice cooker covered, until cooked through (turns opaque, white and feels firm). Dish out fish slices and set aside. Leave the remaining oil in the pot.
   

3. Add shallots to the pot and fry about 3 minutes until slightly soft. Add the ginger and stir-fry about 3 minutes until fragrant.
   

4. Return the fish slices to the pot and add the oyster sauce and water. Mix well, cover the rice cooker, and allow to cook for about 3 minutes, switching to Warm if mixture bubbles too vigorously.
   

5. Add the green onions and stir-fry for another minute. Dish out and serve.
   

Serving the fish with an assortment of blanched vegetables such as broccoli, carrots, and boiled potatoes will make this a perfectly balanced one-dish meal.

1. Season both sides of the fish with the salt and black pepper. Set aside.
   

2. Add the oil to the rice cooker, cover, and set to Cook. When the base of the cooker pot gets warm, add the ginger and curry powder. Stir for 1 minute or until fragrant.
   

3. Stir in the coconut milk and add the fish fillets. Cover the rice cooker and allow to simmer for 8 to 10 minutes, until fish cooks through, switching rice cooker to Warm if the sauce mixture boils too vigorously. Dish out and serve with blanched vegetables and potatoes.
   

Coconut Milk

The rich taste of coconut milk can be attributed to the high oil content and sugars. Fresh coconut milk is usually not produced in the United States. You can buy canned coconut milk from Asian groceries and markets or the ethnic and international section of many supermarkets. The canned version, however, typically contains water as filler.

This easy-to-follow recipe is mildly spiced, yet flavorful.

1. Add the oil to the rice cooker, cover, and set to Cook. When the base of the cooker pot gets warm, add the onions and fry for about 5 minutes until onions turn soft and tender.
   

2. Add the garlic and fry about 3 minutes until fragrant, covering the rice cooker occasionally in the process of frying.
   

3. Add the curry power, turmeric, and paprika and mix well. Stir in the water, followed by the coconut milk. Cover the rice cooker and allow it to come to a simmer.
   

4. Once simmering, add the fish fillets, cherry tomatoes, and salt and black pepper to taste. Cover the rice cooker and cook for about 10 to 12 minutes, until fish cooks through (turns opaque), switching the setting to Warm if the sauce mixture boils too vigorously.
   

A tandoor or tandoori actually is a cylindrical clay oven used in Indian slow-roasting or cooking. Due to the marinating spices used for slow-roasting chicken in the clay oven, tandoori has come to mean a specific flavor rather than a method of cooking.

1. Combine the salt, black pepper, garlic, ginger, turmeric, coriander, cumin, paprika, yogurt, and 1 tablespoon of the olive oil in a gallon-sized plastic zip-top bag. Add the fish fillets. Seal the bag and turn it a few times to make sure the fillets are coated with the marinade. Refrigerate and allow to marinate for 30 minutes.
   

2. When ready to cook, add the remaining olive oil to the rice cooker, cover, and set to Cook. When the base of the pot gets warm, add the fish fillets and fry each side for 5 to 8 minutes until fish completely cooks through, keeping the rice cooker covered while frying.