Pan-fried Fish Fillet with fresh Orange Sauce

A lovely taste of Spring! The weather has become warmer and more pleasant since Monday.  Today it is a very beautiful day here. The sky is sparkly blue and clear; and the sun is shining all day.  There is nothing better than this.  I am lucky I have a wonderful morning walk with my cool neighbor.  We share cooking tips, funny travel stories and interesting adventures.  Both of us missed Japan very much, like bathing at onsen, seeing cherry blossoms and eating sea urchin sashimi at the street stalls. 

We also appreciate the beauty of nature in Spring. As we walk down to the pond, we see two beautiful swans and their babies are swimming leisurely.  When we stand silently watching them, we see two white-tailed deer coming down to get an early drink from the pond on the opposite side. We watch them for a little while, then we move on.    

I love Spring very much, it is the most beautiful time of the year. It is a rebirth of nature. Everywhere is clean and air is fresh.  I like the colorful wild flowers, the birds flitting around finding nesting places and the emerald green of the new leaves and grass. 

I feel relaxed and happy for the whole day after morning walk.  I want to have something fresh and healthy for dinner. I think orange is perfect for this season.  Then I make this wonderful dish in honour of Spring. 

Preparation time: 10 minutes

Cooking time: 15 minutes

Serve: 2

Ingredients:

-         220g fish fillet

-         ¼ tsp table salt

-         ½ tsp white wine

-         A pinch of white pepper

-         1 large orange (150ml orange juice)

-         ½ small orange

-         1 egg                                                          

-         2 tbsp plain flour

-         1½ tbsp corn flour

-         1 tbsp olive oil

-         1 tsp sugar

Thickening Sauce:

-         2 tsp corn flour

-         3 tsp water

Method:

1.	Rinse the fish fillet and pat dry with paper towels.  Thickly sliced the fish into 8 -10 pieces.
2.	Slice the large orange in half and remove the seeds. Use a plain juicer to coax all the juice out and keep the juice in a small mixing bowl.  Set aside.
3.	In a small mixing bowl, beat an egg together with a fork.  Set aside.
4.	Season the fish fillet with salt, wine and white pepper for 10 minutes. Put 1½ tbsp egg mixture and 1 tbsp corn flour into the fish and mix them well.
5.	In a medium mixing bowl, mix the plain flour and ½ tbsp corn flour well.  Dip each fillet into the flour mixture and completely coat each fillet with flour.
6.	Heat a large non-stick frying pan over medium heat.  Add olive oil and put the fillets on the frying pan.  Reduce to low-medium heat, Pan-fry each fillet for 3-4 minutes until lightly golden on the bottom and flip the fish to the other side.  Cook for another 3-4 minutes until lightly golden.  Remove from heat and put them on a plate.
7.	Cut half of the small orange into thin slices. Then cut each slice in half.  Arrange sliced oranges around the cooked fillets.
8.	Meanwhile, mix the corn flour and water in a small bowl.  Add them and sugar into the orange juice.  Stir thoroughly.
9.	Heat the juice mixture in a small saucepan over medium heat.  Stir constantly until thickened.  Remove from heat and toss the orange sauce on the fillets or serve it separately in a small plate, if you like.
10.	Ready to serve with rice.
	Tips:
i.	Be careful with the cooking time. It will vary depending on how thick the fish fillets are.  Allow extra time for cooking them through if they are thicker.
ii.	Keep a close eye on the heat of the frying pan.  It needs to be hot when the fish goes in.  Do not flip the fish many times
iii.	Add more oil in the pan if you like deep-frying the fillets. Remember to place the deep-fried fillets on a paper towel before serving.