1076. TILAPIA with RHUBARB, BACON and SCALLIONS

yields 4 servings


1 tablespoon white miso paste
1 tablespoon soy sauce
1 teaspoon Thai fish sauce
1 cup fish stock
1 1/2 pounds tilapia (3 to 4 fillets)
2 teaspoons cornstarch
Freshly ground black pepper
1/2 cup peanut oil
2 ounces slab bacon, finely diced
1 tablespoon minced fresh ginger
1 cup rhubarb, in 1/2-inch dice
5 scallions, trimmed, in 1-inch slant-cut pieces
1 teaspoon toasted sesame oil
1 tablespoon minced chives.

Dissolve miso in soy sauce. Add fish sauce and stock. Set aside. Cut each fillet in half along seam, then slice each piece on the bias in strips 1 inch wide. Place in a bowl, dust with cornstarch and pepper and turn to coat.

Heat oil to very hot in a wok or skillet, add fish and stir-fry, turning gently, until just starting to brown, 3 to 4 minutes. Remove fish to a plate, draining well. Discard oil.

Lower heat to medium, add bacon and ginger and sauté until bacon starts to color. Add rhubarb and scallions. Stir-fry a couple of minutes, until rhubarb starts to soften.

Return fish to pan, add miso mixture and cook a minute or two, stirring gently, until ingredients are well mixed and sauce thickens. Add sesame oil, sprinkle with chives and serve.


courtesy of: "Dining and Wine," The New York Times, April 18, 2007