Creamy Chinese fish soup with tofu and white radish. It is a very popular Chinese soup for children and older general. We love the creamy white color. It is a light soup with a faint umami flavor. Usually, we use crucian carp. With very simple and common ingredients, the soup tastes excellent.
A Soup from Childhood
When I was still a child, crucian carp was really common and most of the time, my father could find some in our rice field. Crucian crap relatively speaking bones in the meat, however, it is a great source of high-quality protein. So the common methods of cooking those small fish with lots of fishbones were deep-frying or making soup. For smaller ones, coat with starch and egg first and then fry until even the bones become crispy, which is my grandfather’s favorite snack. For bigger ones, soup was the best choice. After around 20 minutes of simmering, the creamy soup absorbs most of the flavor and the meat is always discarded. However, I still eat fillet.
Variations
There are lots of varieties of this fish soup with different side ingredients. For example, you might know tofu fish soup. And since it is in cooler winter, white radish will be an excellent side ingredient.
You can also make this soup with fish heads, or even use the bones to create a similar creamy soup.
The white color of the soup comes from the high fire long time cooking and the fat content dissolved in the soup but not from tofu or white radish.
What to serve with Chinese fish soup
It is a soup with fat content and a light umami flavor. For me, the best match for this soup is steamed buns, all kinds of steamed buns, and pancakes including scallion pancakes. A more healthy match can be blanched vegetables or smashed cucumber salad.
Instructions
Brush some oil on a pan. Carefully slide the drained fish in. Let it stay for around 30 seconds over medium fire until one side becomes slightly brown. Turn the fish over and continue frying the second side. Pour around 2 Liters of hot water or enough water to almost cover the fish’s body.
Add ginger , and green onion and then turn up the fire and bring it to boil. Let it simmer for 15 minutes.
Remove the ginger, scallion, and the foam on top.
Then add white radish and tofu. Continue heating for 2 minutes. Add salt to taste.
Chinese Fish Soup
Ingredients
- 1 fresh fish around
- Half of a middle size white radish , finely shredded
- 1/4 block tofu , cut into strips
- 4 slices of ginger
- 1 green onion
- 1/2 teaspoon salt or as needed
- 2 L hot water
- 1 tbsp. cooking oil
- Coriander for decorating and garnishing
Instructions
Preparation
- Scale the fish and remove the black membrane in the inner side. Drain thoroughly with paper. Set aside.
- Peel the tough skin of white radish and then cut into shreds. And then cut tofu into strips.
Pan-fry the fish
- Brush some oil on a pan. Carefully slide the drained fish in. Let it stay for around 30 seconds over medium fire until one side becomes slightly brown. Turn the fish over and continue frying the second side.
Cook the soup
- Pour around 2 L of hot boiling water to almost cover the fish body.
- Add green onion and ginger. Turn up the fire and bring it to boil. Let it simmer for 15 minutes.
- Remove the ginger, scallion and the foams on top.
- Then add white radish and tofu. Continue heating for 2 minutes. Add salt to taste.
- Decorate with fresh coriander leaves before serving.
Nutrition
What would be a good substitute for carp? Would you recommend red snapper? I notice that the fish does not break up even after boiling. Is this particular to carp or would other fish also retain their shape after boiling?
Hi Nerimaro,
Theoretically, you can use any fresh water fish with enough fat. As long as the fat content is guaranteed, you can get the creamy soup. Do not stir the soup when boiling and you can keep the fish almost as a whole piece.
Thank you for the recipe. In the step by step guide you mention adding cooking wine and green onion, but am sure you meant to put “ginger and green onion”. I will be trying this soup again, for sure and I plan to serve the fish aside, with some kind of sauce, because the fish here is good, firm and inexpensive!
Yes, I made a mistake. You read it carefully. The method you mentioned is feasible, and it should taste very good. thank you so much !