Crispy Tilapia Tropicale

Back in doing Food Friday after a long hiatus!




My brother is now the main cook in the house, but acquiring myself a copy of the May 2010 Yummy Magazine did give me that chance to cook again. The magazine was packed with so many recipes, but the very first one that captured my interest was the Tilapia Tropicale. However, our fridge still had some foods in it that I wasn't able to cook this dish until the other day, when mom came home with some tilapia from the market.

One big problem I faced was that mom cooked some of the tilapia and took it with her to the office and we were left with four small sized tilapia. I could have just fried or steamed it, but I was still eager to cook the dish that I filleted the tilapia. The cut pieces gave me just enough to feed one hungry tummy.

Brother came to the rescue by going to the market. But then, instead of tilapia, he brought home pork. I did get his point - it was already very late in the afternoon, and if I still have to scale, clean and fillet the new batch of tilapia fishes, our dinner will might as well be "midnight snack." Hahaha...

I went on to proceed with the dish, with pork as the main protein. The tilapia pieces I prepared a while ago was fried, too, and I just plated it in a small platter, separated from the pork pieces. For dinner, we basically had two of the same dinner - same sauce, different meats. It was actually a sweet and sour dish, but comparing the pork to the tilapia, I prefered the tilapia more. I guess I already knew how sweet and sour pork would taste like and since tilapia gave a twist to the dish, my palate wanted it more.

If you want to try the recipe, here's how:

Crispy Tilapia Tropicale
{Serves 3 to 4}

Ingredients:

• 3 pieces tilapia (about 825 grams), filleted and sliced into strips
• salt and pepper
• oil for deep frying
• leeks, sliced into strips for garnish

For the pineapple sweet-sour sauce

• 1/2 cup crushed pineapple, syrup included
• 1/4 cup water
• 2 tablespoons sugar
• 1 tablespoon banana ketchup
• 1 teaspoon soy sauce
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 3 tablespoons vinegar
• 1 1/2 tablespoons julienned carrots
• 1 1/2 tablespoons julienned red bell pepper
• 1 1/2 teaspoons cornstarch, dissolved in 1 tablespoon water

Directions:

• Make the pineapple sweet-sour sauce: Combine crushed pineapple, water, sugar, banana ketchup, soy sauce, salt, and vinegar. Bring to a boil then simmer for 5 to 6 minutes. Add carrots and red bell pepper and cook until slightly soft, about 1 minute. Add dissolved cornstarch and continue to cook until sauce is thick. Set aside.
• Season tilapia strips with salt and pepper. Deep-fry a few pieces at a time until crispy and golden brown. Drain on paper towels.
• Arrange tilapia strips on a serving platter. Pour sauce on top and garnish with sliced leeks.

It was really fun to try out new dishes. Here at home we sometimes had difficult times thinking what to cook, and thank heavens for these new recipes for helping us ease up some of the burdens.

*** Jenn ***