Cold Fish In Black Bean Sauce With Cucumber Salad

• For fish:
• 1 teaspoon peanut oil
• 2 scallions
• 1 1/2 pounds scrod, haddock or hake fillet
• 2 tablespoons rice wine or Scotch
• 1 teaspoon salt
• For sauce:
• 3 tablespoons fermented black beans
• 1 tablespoon minced garlic
• 1 tablespoon minced gingerroot
• 2 tablespoons peanut oil
• 2 small dried hot red chilies
• 2 tablespoons rice wine or Scotch
• For cucumber salad:
• 2 tablespoons unseasoned rice vinegar
• 1 tablespoon soy sauce
• 2 teaspoons Asian sesame oil
• 1/2 teaspoon sugar
• 4 scallions
• 1 hothouse cucumber, sliced thin (about 3 cups)

1. Make fish:
2. Set a steamer rack in a wide deep kettle and add enough water to come just below the rack. Spread oil on heatproof plate that will fit onto steamer rack; layer with scallions, then fish. Sprinkle fish with rice wine and salt. Bring water in kettle to a boil, covered, and put plate on rack. Steam fish, covered, until it just flakes, about 8 minutes. Transfer fish to a plate and discard liquid and scallions. Flake fish with fork and let cool.
3. Make sauce:
4. In a sieve, rinse beans briefly and on a cutting board chop fine with garlic and gingerroot. In a small saucepan, heat oil over moderately high heat until hot but not smoking and stir fry chilies until darkened, about 30 seconds. Discard chilies with slotted spoon. Add bean mixture to oil and stir-fry 30 seconds. Stir in rice wine and sugar; remove pan from heat. Spoon sauce over cooling fish.
5. Make cucumber salad:
6. In a small bowl, whisk together vinegar, soy sauce, oil, and sugar. Cut scallions into 2-inch lengths and shred fine lengthwise. In a bowl toss scallions with cucumbers and dressing.
7. Mound fish on a platter and arrange cucumber salad around it.

peanut oil, scallions, scrod, rice wine, salt, fermented black beans, garlic, gingerroot, peanut oil, chilies, rice wine, rice vinegar, soy sauce, asian sesame oil, sugar, scallions, hothouse cucumber

Taken from www.epicurious.com/recipes/member/views/cold-fish-in-black-bean-sauce-with-cucumber-salad-52300931 (may not work)