Pangasius is a rather unusual freshwater fish that naturally lives in only one place. This is the Mekong River flowing in East Asia. It is known for being one of the most polluted water bodies in the world, which is why the pangasius living in it won fame for “dirty” fish. However, this reputation is completely untrue. In industrial quantities, this fish is grown in artificial reservoirs that are constantly cleaned, and therefore is no less “clean” than other fish grown under similar conditions. It is such a safe fish and goes on sale. It is not only harmful, but even useful. However, Pangasius has its own characteristics that make it difficult to cook dishes from it. Therefore, if you still decide to try this fish, which has an excellent taste, then you need to learn how to cook pangasius correctly.
Cooking Features
In domestic stores can be found on sale only frozen Pangasius, and this creates difficulties in its preparation. The fact is that the meat of this fish is already very gentle, and after freezing and thawing it becomes even more fragile and watery, which often leads to the fact that the pangasius is spreading, and not having time to get to the pan. To cook this fish so that it looks appetizing, you need to know a few secrets.
- When choosing a pangasius in the store, pay attention to its appearance, carefully study the information on the packaging. If the fish was subjected to shock freezing, covered with a very thin layer of ice glaze (no more than 10%), looks solid, the packaging is not broken and the shelf life has not expired, then the fish can be taken. If there are signs of improper storage of the product (broken pieces, a large layer of glaze, water in the package), then it is better to refuse to purchase.
- The slower the pangasius is thawed, the less its structure will be damaged. For this reason, he needs to be allowed to completely thaw in the refrigerator, and after some time, hold it at room temperature. Any attempt to speed up the process with warm water or a microwave will lead to a disastrous result.
- Pangasius prepares very quickly, so you should not subject it to long-term heat treatment. If this fish is overexposed on a stove or in the oven, it can fall apart into small pieces and lose its aesthetic appearance.
- A good idea would be to use a batter for cooking pangasius in a pan, and when baking it in the oven - cheese. In the first case, when frying fish over sufficiently high heat in a large amount of butter, the batter will help to preserve the integrity of the pieces. In the second case, the cheese, having melted, will cover the fish with a thin layer and will not let it spread. So in any case the dish will look appetizing.
- Pangasius does not have a pronounced and repulsive odor, but if you want to make the scent even more tender, you can sprinkle the fish with lemon juice. The use of herbs will not be superfluous either
There are many ways to make Pangasius. It can be fried, baked, boiled for a couple, and all this can be done with both fillets and steaks. Therefore, the technology of cooking this fish can not be the same, it often depends on the chosen recipe.
Pangasius steak in the oven
Composition:
- Pangasius steak - 1 kg;
- chicken egg - 4 pcs .;
- Parmesan cheese - 0, 2 kg;
- wheat flour - 80 g;
- fresh dill - 100 g;
- salt, pepper - to taste;
- vegetable oil - 20 ml.
Method of preparation:
- Thawed pangasius steak gently wash and blot with kitchen napkins. Rub with salt and pepper.
- Whisk the eggs.
- Chop the dill with a knife, mix it with the sifted flour.
- Finely rub the cheese and mix it with flour.
- Breast the pangasius steak in a mixture of flour, cheese and dill.
- Dip the steak in the eggs.
- Roll in flour and cheese again.
- Lubricate the form and place the steak in it.
- Place the form in an oven preheated to 200 degrees. Bake the fish for 40 minutes. To prevent the fish from starting to burn during this time, you can bake the pangasius for the first 20 minutes, covering the form with food foil.
Cheese dough makes it possible to preserve the integrity of the steak. It turns out covered with an appetizing crust. If you manage to get smaller pangasius steaks, it will be even better. If the steaks weigh 0, 2-0, 3 kg, then it’s enough to cook them for 20 minutes, for a steak weighing about half a kilogram it will take about 30 minutes. Since medium-sized pangasius steaks are rarely sold, it is more common to prepare pangasius fillets. It’s easy to cut a large steak fillet, as there are almost no bones in this fish.
Pangasius fillet in beer batter
Composition:
- pangasius fillets - 0, 7 kg;
- wheat flour - 160 g;
- dried garlic (granulated) - 5 g;
- ground paprika - 5 g;
- beer - 0, 3 l;
- salt - to taste;
- vegetable oil - how much will leave.
Method of preparation:
- Wash, dry, and cut the pangasius fillets into portions.
- Mix the paprika with the granulated garlic, add a little salt and rub the pieces with this mixture.
- Sift flour. Cool beer.
- Gradually pouring ice-cold beer into the flour and stirring the contents of the bowl intensively, make a dough resembling sour cream in consistency. Pepper and salt it to taste. It is important that the consistency is uniform.
- Heat the butter in the pan. It should be enough for it to reach the middle of the pieces of fish.
- When the oil warms up, dip the fish pieces in the batter and fry them from both sides over medium heat. It is enough to fry on each side for 4-5 minutes.
Serve hot pangasius fried in batter with a salad of fresh vegetables - it will turn out very tasty.
How to Steam Pangasius Fillets
Composition:
- pangasius fillets - 0.5 kg;
- soy sauce - 40 ml;
- black ground pepper - 5 g;
- coriander - 5 g;
- vegetable oil - 20 ml.
Method of preparation:
- Thawed pangasius fillet cut into medium-sized pieces.
- Mix soy sauce with pepper and coriander.
- Marinate the fish in the resulting sauce for half an hour.
- Lubricate the grill of the double boiler.
- Put the pieces of fish on the rack.
- Turn on the steamer and cook the pangasius for a couple of 10-15 minutes, depending on the size of the pieces.
Pangasius, steamed, ideally combined with mashed potatoes and steamed vegetables.
Pangasius Baked in Onion Foil
Composition:
- pangasius fillet - 1 kg;
- hard cheese - 0, 3 kg;
- onions - 0, 5 kg;
- seasoning for fish - to taste;
- vegetable oil - how much will leave.
Method of preparation:
- Defrost pangasius fillets, gently rinse and dry with paper napkins. Sprinkle with seasoning for fish.
- Finely rub the cheese.
- Peel the onions and cut them into rings or half rings (this depends on the size of the onions).
- Prepare foil pieces according to the number of fillet pieces. Each fold in half and oil.
- Divide the onion into two unequal parts. Approximately 2/3 of the entire onion, place on the foil.
- Place the pangasius fillet on the onion pillow.
- Sprinkle the cheese with cheese, using about half.
- Place the remaining onions on top.
- Sprinkle with the remaining cheese.
- Lift the ends of the foil and fasten on top so that the foil does not touch the cheese.
- Place the foiled fish on a baking tray.
- Heat the oven to 180 degrees, place a baking sheet in it.
- 10 minutes after the start of cooking, unfold the foil and continue cooking the same amount.
Pangasius fillet cooked according to this recipe looks very appetizing, so this dish is not ashamed to be served even for the festive table.
Pangasius fillet baked with vegetables
Composition:
- pangasius fillets - 0.5 kg;
- Adygei cheese - 100 g;
- hard cheese - 100 g;
- quail eggs - 5 pcs .;
- chicken eggs - 2 pcs .;
- sour cream - 50 ml;
- Chinese cabbage - 100 g;
- Bulgarian pepper - 0, 25 kg;
- onions - 100 g;
- tomatoes - 0, 2 kg;
- carrots - 150 g;
- celery stalk - 50 g;
- vegetable oil - 50 ml;
- salt, seasonings, greens - to taste.
Method of preparation:
- Pangasius fillet cut into portions.
- Chop the Peking cabbage.
- Cut celery stalk into thin slices.
- Wash the Bulgarian pepper by removing the seeds and stem from it, cut them into quarters of rings.
- Onions, freeing from the husk, cut into thin half-rings.
- Cut the tomatoes into a semi-circle with a sharp knife.
- Peel and chop the carrots.
- Grind hard cheese on a fine grater, Adygei - on a large one.
- Mix all vegetables except tomatoes.
- Fry them for 10 minutes in vegetable oil in a pan, put them in a baking sheet.
- Place the pangasius fillet on the vegetables. Salt, season. Sprinkle it with hard cheese.
- Place tomato slices on top.
- Mix sour cream with whipped chicken eggs. Cover this mixture with tomatoes.
- Sprinkle the dish with a layer of Adyghe cheese.
- Break the quail eggs from above, placing the eggs in the corners and one in the center.
- Place the form in an oven preheated to 180 degrees. Cook the dish for 30 minutes.
The dish, which is obtained according to this recipe, can be called dietary. Its caloric content is low, it contains a lot of useful products, rich in all sorts of vitamins and trace elements. At the same time it is quite satisfying and does not require additional preparation of a side dish.
Pangasius fried in breading
Composition:
- pangasius fillets - 0.5 kg;
- lemon juice - 20 ml;
- chicken egg - 2 pcs .;
- corn and wheat flour - how much will go;
- salt, herbs, pepper - to taste;
- vegetable oil - how much will leave.
Method of preparation:
- Prepare the pangasius fillet by defrosting and cutting into approximately the same size.
- Sprinkle with lemon juice. Leave for half an hour.
- Sift wheat flour and mix it with herbs, salt, pepper.
- Whisk in an egg bowl.
- Heat the oil in a frying pan.
- Breast the fish pieces first in wheat flour with spices, then dip them in the egg, then breaded in corn flour. Put in boiling oil and fry for 3-4 minutes on each side over medium heat.
Potatoes or rice may be served as a garnish to the pangasius fried in breading.
It is not necessary to bypass the pangasius side in the store. Do not listen to those who say that this fish is not tasty, not healthy and looks unappetizing. It is not true. Just not everyone can cook Pangasius. In fact, it makes delicious dishes that look very tempting. In addition, nutritionists say about the undoubted benefits of this unusual fish, 80% consisting of protein.
