Dried anchovies braised with garlic and chili are hard to stop eating, with the fish shatteringly crisp, the garlic fried fragrant and a deep salty heat over it all. The difficulty is that dried fish is very salty, and a careless hand leaves it harsh.
A 15 minute soak swells the fish and draws out some salt, then a thorough rinse and a full drain before frying. Fish of 3 to 5cm come out of the pan without drying too far. This is a salty side eaten sparingly with hot rice rather than a main dish.
This batch weighs about 742g, at roughly 112 calories per 100g.
Method
Soak the dried anchovies in water for 15 minutes so they swell and lose some salt, rinse them thoroughly and drain. Anyone who dislikes the heads can pinch them off, rinse again and drain completely.
Set a pan on the heat, add 2 tablespoons of white sesame seeds and toast over low heat, stirring steadily until golden, then take the pan off and tip them into a bowl.
Put 2 tablespoons of cooking oil in the pan and, once hot, add 200g of minced garlic and fry to a deep gold, then lift it out to drain.
Move 1 tablespoon of the garlic oil into another pan, add 300g of dried anchovies and fry over medium heat, stirring steadily until the fish are crisp and glossy gold, then take the pan off the heat.
Add 2 tablespoons of fish sauce, 1/2 tablespoon of Korean chili paste and 1 tablespoon of malt syrup to the pan, set it over medium heat and stir until the seasonings come together.
Once the mixture is at a gentle simmer, add 1 tablespoon of glutinous rice wine, stir through, then cook another 5 minutes over high heat so the fish takes up the flavour.
Add the toasted sesame and the 200g of fried garlic, toss very quickly and take the pan off the heat.
With the pan still hot, scatter in 100g of minced chili and squeeze in the juice of half a lime, toss through and it is done.
Tips
Anchovies of 3 to 5cm are the size to pick, as they do not dry out too far in the pan.
A 15 minute soak before cooking swells the fish and draws out some of the salt.
Frying the garlic separately and draining it, then folding it in at the very end, is what keeps it crisp.
Scattering the minced chili and squeezing the lime while the pan is still hot lifts the aroma.
This one uses malt syrup, which is still sugar, so it is not for eating much of at once.
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