Oolong Chilean Sea Bass

The best Sea Bass ever

If you like fish, then you’re going to love this Oolong Chilean Sea Bass recipe. It’s one of my all time favorite seafood entree’s, on the menu at P.F. Chang’s China Bistro, and it’s quite popular for obvious reasons. Sea Bass is a white fish that comes from the southern ocean waters near Antarctica. For this recipe, small portioned fillets, 6 to 8 ounces, are cut and marinated in an Oolong Tea marinade that sets this dish off, when it’s prepared. The fish can be broiled or pan seared and it’s usually served with fresh spinach and a caramelized glaze of the marinade sauce.

Sea Bass Marinade

The secret to the deep flavor in this Oolong Chilean Sea Bass recipe is in the name, which is in the marinade. A concentrated level of Oolong Tea penetrates the fish, with several other Asian ingredients, and marinates or Brine’s the fish to it’s full flavor and potential. If cooked right, Sea Bass is a very moist, tender and flaky fish and once it’s absorbed all of the ingredients, it turns a rich golden brown that brightens when it’s broiled or pan fried, like I show you in the video tutorial down below. The left over marinade can then be used and reduced in a pan to create steam to cook the fish, spinach and a sauce to top the bass, once it’s been plated.

Oolong Chilean Sea Bass video tutorial by Poor Man’s Gourmet Kitchen.

Oolong Chilean Sea Bass Ingredients:

2-4 6 oz Sea Bass Fillets
2 bags Oolong Tea
1 cup Boiling water
2 oz Soy Sauce
2 oz White Vinegar
2 oz Granulated Sugar
1 tsp Black Bean Garlic Sauce
1/8 tsp Ginger Powder
1/2 tsp Sesame Oil
2 tbsp oil for cooking

8 oz Fresh Spinach, optional

This recipe can marinate and sauce up to 2 lbs of Sea Bass. Just following the directions in the video tutorial and I’ll show you just how easy this Oolong Chilean Sea Bass is to make.

Yakitori Chicken

Easy Yakitori Chicken

One thing I’ve learned about Yakitori Chicken, it isn’t just Shish Kebabs you find at your local Chinese buffet. In fact, it isn’t Chinese at all, it’s Japanese. Much like Sushi, American Chinese restaurants are just adapting adding to their menu’s because of the popularity they’ve gained over the years. Truthfully, both the Sushi and Yakitori aren’t prepared very well and, are generally, “okay” at best. If you’ve decided you like or even hate these recipes from a buffet, understand that your opinion is most likely skewed and based on your lack of experience. The food hasn’t been prepared right. Therefore, most folks wouldn’t know an authentic recipe if it hit them in the face and wiggled. So, since that’s what you’re probably used to, I’m going to help you stomp out a buffet style recipe but with some more pep.

Raw Yakitori Chicken ingredients: liver, hearts and chicken thigh meat.

Traditional Yakitori Chicken

There truly is an art to Yakitori Chicken. One of my favorite things about the Japanese culture is their dedication to perfection. Even famous chefs like Gordon Ramsey are intimidated by sushi and noodle chefs and, I’d be willing to bet, Yakitori chefs are no different. Yakitori Chicken is barbecue that uses the entire bird and doesn’t leave anything to waste. Though I don’t use a whole chicken in this recipe, I’ve picked out a few things that are commonly used for it. Boneless chicken thigh meat, chicken liver and hearts. Each are prepared just a little differently.

Skewed Yakitori Chicken thighs, liver and hearts, ready for the oven.

Yakitori Chicken Skewers

I like to use disposable wooden skewers for the Yakitori Chicken, instead of metal, because they stay cool and make it easier to flip back and forth. The Chicken thighs are cut into bite size pieces and marinated. I like to use my Teriyaki Sauce recipe because it’s practically the same thing as basic Yakitori sauce. The main difference is just the quantities of each ingredient vary but this is a really great and simple alternative to make this recipes easy. I brush olive oil on the hearts and liver portions to keep them moist. There’s also a splash of liquid smoke but if you’re going to grill, you won’t need it but you should salt and pepper to taste.

Yakitori Chicken Ingredients:

4 Boneless Chicken Thighs
1 lbs Chicken Liver
1 lbs Chicken Hearts
1/3 cup Teriyaki Sauce
2 tbsp Olive Oil
1/2 tsp Liquid Smoke
Salt and Pepper to taste

I use Himalayan Salt and White Pepper. You’ll also need about a dozen Skewers to make this Yakitori Chicken on the Grill or baked in the oven at 375 degrees Fahrenheit for 30 minutes.

Top 5 Dim Sum

What is Dim Sum?

Dim Sum is small portions of cooked foods served hot and always with a cup of tea. They are made to take small bites as snacks not a full meal. The reason you don’t want to just pop a whole piece in your mouth all at once is because they can be very hot and you’ll miss all the savory flavor that these snacks have to offer.

One of my favorite tea cups that I bought on a trip to China Town in L.A.

Where Did Dim Sum Come From?

Dim Sum originally began in China as “yum cha” which in English translates to drinking tea. Tired Travelers would stop in for a cup of tea and as the tradition grew in popularity tea houses started popping up all over the roadsides. Later when people started to learn that tea helps with digestion the owners of the tea houses started offering snacks to go with their tea. The reason they started calling it Dim sum is because the words mean ‘Touch the Heart’ and that’s exactly what these little snacks are meant to do .

Why is Dim Sum served for brunch?

When I first tried Dim Sum, in a ridiculously big restaurant in San Francisco, I had so many questions. I couldn’t believe how many people were there for Sunday Brunch! I’ve had many different Asian type snacks in many restaurants over the years but never served in the morning and it was all a very strange experience for me at first. What I soon found out was that many people in the food industry believe that tea time or as they would call it “Yum Cha” inspired brunch. To me that makes perfect sense because growing up in my home, we always started the morning off with a hot cup of tea. So, why not add some yummy snacks to it too, right?

What kind of snacks are considered Dim Sum?

To help you understand what kind of snacks are considered Dim Sum we’ve put together a video playlist of our Top 5 Favorites! All of which we have individually filmed for you as well! I hope you enjoy watching them and learning how to cook them for yourselves. Potstickers, Shrimp Dumplings, Red Sauce Wontons, Wasabi Chicken Feet, Crab Wontons(Rangoons).

PMGK’s Top 5 Dim Sum Recipes – PoorMansGourmet