700g Eastern School Whiting fillets, skin off, bones removed, cut into
6cm strips
½ cup plain flour
Salt and cracked black pepper
Peanut oil, for shallow frying
Steamed rice, to serve
Vietnamese Salad
⅓ cup rice vinegar
¼ cup white sugar
2 tablespoons fish sauce
½ teaspoon freshly ground
white pepper
1 small red onion, halved and sliced into thin slivers
½ Chinese cabbage, finely shredded
1 large carrot, cut into fine strips
1 stick celery, cut into fine strips
1 bunch green asparagus, chopped into 5cm pieces, blanched (see notes)
⅓ cup roughly chopped peanuts, toasted (see notes)
1 tablespoon finely shredded Vietnamese mint leaves
2 tablespoons shredded mint leaves
1 large onion, thinly chopped
2 tablespoons peanut oil

Start the Vietnamese Salad: Combine rice vinegar, sugar, fish sauce and pepper. Add the onion and leave to marinate. Combine cabbage, carrot, celery, asparagus, peanuts and both mints in a large bowl and set aside.
Place flour, salt and pepper in a large freezer bag, add the fish strips and shake well to coat. Place fish in a colander and shake well to remove excess flour.
Heat a large heavy-based frying pan, BBQ or chargrill over a medium heat, add just enough oil to cover the base of the pan. Add fish pieces in a single layer (you may need to cook in batches), turn gently after 1 minute and cook for a further 30 seconds. Remove and drain on paper towel.
Finish the Vietnamese salad: add peanut oil, onion and their marinade to the vegetable mixture and gently toss to combine.
Place salad on a platter, top with fish and serve with steamed rice.