Red Cooked Salmon

Mise en Place
3-4 cloves garlic, large mince (I like lots of big chunks of garlic for this dish, it's up to you)
1.5-2 inch length chunk of ginger, thinly sliced 2-inch sticks
2 scallions, sliced into 2-inch pieces (white and green parts)
2 thai chilis, thinly sliced rounds

soy sauce
white vinegar
sugar
water

2 fillets of salmon (usually boneless, skin on), scaled, rinsed, patted dry with paper towels (gently)

Directions:

Drizzle enough canola/olive oil to cover bottom of large wok. Heat on high til drop of water dances when flicked onto oil. Carefully place salmon fillets skin-side down. Sear on high-med high heat for 3-4 minutes until browned. Do not move the salmon around in the pan while its browning. Gently flip. Turn down heat a little. Now add all of the aromatics into the oil (spreading them around/bt the salmon fillets evenly.) Drizzle soy sauce over the aromatics. Add some water so that it's not overwhelmingly salty and to create more sauce. Pour a little vinegar. Sprinkle a spoonful of sugar. Taste the sauce and adjust seasoning/flavor. You want a balance between the saltiness of the soy, sweetness of the sugar, and acidity from the vinegar. Stir to make sure vin/sugar are incorporated into the soy sauce. Adjust heat so the sauce is simmering but not boiling furiously. Cover wok with lid and allow to gently cook and steam for another 4-6 minutes until fish is cooked through.

I make the same dish with shell-on shrimp. If you have some leftover red wine or a bottle of whiskey on hand, add a bit of that as well to the sauce as you're making it.

It's one of my favorite Chinese things to cook.