This recipe for Chilled Fish in Chili Sauce is a Chinese cold appetizer, featuring crisp and crunchy sliced fish marinated in a savory chili sauce.

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Why you'll love this recipe
This recipe for Chilled Fish in Chili Sauce is a refreshing and delicious appetizer.
It's inspired by a dish I had at Yunshang Rice Noodle recently.
Easy to make: using pre-packaged frozen sliced fish is super convenient and saves time from having to slice it yourself.
Simple: with a few pantry ingredients, you can make this delicious appetizer at home.
Delicious: the spicy soy sauce and slight tingle from the Sichuan peppercorns adds depth of flavor and the crisp texture of the fish keeps you coming back for more.
Ingredients you'll need
- frozen sliced white fish: thawed; you can use grass carp, basa, or tilapia
- whole Sichuan peppercorns (about 1 teaspoon ground); freshly ground is preferred for the best flavor
- sesame oil: for sautéing, as well as the sauce
- garlic: minced
- soy sauce: light soy sauce
- rice vinegar: adds a little tanginess; you can use a little white vinegar or Chinese black vinegar as a substitute
- granulated sugar: adds a little sweetness
- chili oil: optional; omit if you don't like spicy
- sesame seeds
- green onion: chopped
- cilantro: chopped, optional
- Thai red chili: finely sliced, optional; omit if you don't like spicy
Where to find?
You can find these ingredients at your local Asian supermarket or grocery store.
For the fish, you can use any sliced white fish, including grass carp, tilapia or basa.
How to make chilled fish in chili sauce
Prepare the fish:
Bring a large pot of water up to a boil.
Add sliced fish into the pot and cook for 2-3 minutes.
Drain the sliced fish and rinse under cold water.
Transfer the cooked sliced fish to a basin or bowl filled with ice water and chill in the fridge for 1 hour.
Make the sauce:
In a small saucepan, heat up a pan over medium heat and toast Sichuan peppercorn seeds, about 1-2 minutes, or until just fragrant.
Remove Sichuan peppercorns from heat. Let cool, transfer to a spice grinder and grind into a powder. Set aside.
Using the same pan, add in 1 teaspoon of sesame oil and add in minced garlic, sauteing until slightly brown, about 1 minute.
Transfer the sauteed garlic to a small bowl and stir in soy sauce, rice vinegar, sesame oil, sugar, ground Sichuan peppercorn, chili oil (if using), cilantro, green onion, sesame seeds and red chili (if using). Mix well.
Assemble:
Remove the fish from the fridge, drain well and pat dry with paper towel.
Add the fish to the sauce and coat thoroughly with the sauce.
Chill until ready to serve.

Optional additions
Some other delicious additions include wood ear mushrooms, sweet potato vermicelli noodles, tofu, thinly sliced potato, or jellyfish.
If adding in these ingredients, you may need to increase the sauce accordingly.
How to serve
Serve the chilled fish as an appetizer with other cold dishes such as cucumber salad, seaweed salad, marinated jellyfish, Hainanese chicken, or sliced beef shank.
Pair the dish as a side dish along scallion oil noodles, biang biang noodles, rice noodles, or rice.
How to store
Store the cold fish salad in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 2 days.
Do not freeze the dish, as the texture will change.

Other delicious cold appetizer recipes you may like
Did you make this recipe?
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Chinese Chilled Fish in Chili Sauce
For accuracy and precision in baking recipes, use weight (metric) measurements when available.
Ingredients
Main:
- 250 g frozen sliced white fish thawed
Sauce:
- 1.5 teaspoon whole Sichuan peppercorns about 1 teaspoon ground
- 1 teaspoon sesame oil for sautéing
- 1 tablespoon minced garlic
- 4 teaspoon soy sauce
- 2 teaspoon rice vinegar
- 2 tablespoon sesame oil
- 1 teaspoon granulated sugar
- 1 teaspoon chili oil optional
- 1 tablespoon sesame seeds
- 2 tablespoon chopped green onion
- 2 tablespoon chopped cilantro
- 1 Thai red chili finely sliced, optional
Instructions
Prepare the fish:
- Bring a large pot of water up to a boil.
- Add sliced fish into the pot and cook for 2-3 minutes.
- Drain the sliced fish and rinse under cold water.
- Transfer the cooked sliced fish to a basin or bowl filled with ice water and chill in the fridge for 1 hour.
Make the sauce:
- In a small saucepan, heat up a pan over medium heat and toast Sichuan peppercorn seeds, about 1-2 minutes, or until just fragrant.
- Remove Sichuan peppercorns from heat. Let cool, transfer to a spice grinder and grind into a powder. Set aside.
- Using the same pan, add in 1 teaspoon of sesame oil and add in minced garlic, sauteing until slightly brown, about 1 minute.
- Transfer the sauteed garlic to a small bowl and stir in soy sauce, rice vinegar, sesame oil, sugar, ground Sichuan peppercorn, chili oil (if using), cilantro, green onion, sesame seeds and red chili (if using). Mix well.
Assemble:
- Remove the fish from the fridge, drain well and pat dry with paper towel.
- Add the fish to the sauce and coat thoroughly with the sauce.
- Chill until ready to serve.
Nutrition
The nutritional information provided should be considered as approximate and is not guaranteed. Please use your best judgment to ensure food is safely prepared and/or a good fit for your diet.
Raymund | angsarap.net
Your Chilled Fish in Chili Sauce recipe sounds incredibly refreshing and flavorful! The combination of spicy soy sauce and the crisp texture of the fish is absolutely mouthwatering. I appreciate the convenience of using pre-packaged sliced fish and the flexibility with optional additions. This is definitely a must-try for a delicious appetizer.
Michelle
Thanks Raymund, this cold fish appetizer is indeed so flavorful! Our new favorite side dish! 🙂
Ben | Havocinthekitchen
I think I've had something similar for a takeout once (only the sauce was on a sweeter side), and I loved that dish. But this version looks 100 times better and more delicious!
Michelle
Ooh, I've never had fish with sweet sauce... but that's so interesting! Will have to look into it, thanks Ben! 🙂
David @ Spiced
This really does sound like an easy recipe. Most of the ingredients are things we already have around, too. This sounds like a fun party appetizer because it would be a bit unexpected - I might have to do that soon!
Michelle
Yes, it's so unexpectedly delicious especially since most people don't associate fish with appies! 😀 Thanks David!
Healthy World Cuisine
Now this would be a great idea for our CNY gathering tomorrow. Chilled Fish in Chili Sauce is something we can make in advance so it's an easy entertaining recipe.
Michelle
Thanks Bobbi! And if you make it in advance, the flavors will permeate the fish even more -- so good! 😀