Despite the fancy name, Albedo’s dish isn’t a specific recipe with a name. It’s simply pan-fried fish with common European cooking techniques. Sprat, as referenced in the dish name “Sunshine Sprat” are also very small fish similar to sardines. Which is to say they aren’t suitable as steaks or fillets. The Chinese name in-game, 黄油煎鱼, means “butter sautéd fish”, which is further evidence that no fish is specified.
I’m using black cod because it looks closest to the in-game picture, but any white fish can work here.
But before we cook that, let’s make the brownish sauce we see.
Mondstadt is said to be based on Germany, but it really is more like a mish-mash of Western Europe considering that the residents drink wine instead of beer, the windmills seem to reference more of Netherlands, and that Mondstadt looks very similar to the capital city of Switzerland, Bern. This could also be a case of anime-logic since in anime things referred to as German will often become ambiguously European.
So… let’s use an Italian ingredient; balsamic vinegar. Hey, at least we’re not using soy sauce…
Put balsamic vinegar in a pot, boil until it reduces to about a third of the volume.
Add honey to taste.
Wait for the reduction to cool. When this cools, it will thicken up and have the consistency of chocolate syrup. Honey will also thicken it.
Balsamic reductions go with almost anything from chicken to salads, so you can make a bigger batch and keep this in a squeeze bottle.
In the video and thumbnail it’s clear that I failed to draw the patterns on the fish, but that’s really more on me than the sauce not being thick enough.
VEGETABLE “FOREST”
In the description of Woodland Dream, it is mentioned that “fruits and vegetables” are laid out like grass. But, as far as I can tell, the picture shows french beans, carrots, broccoli, cherry tomatoes, pearl onions, and an unknown herb (possibly lamp grass?)
Well, botanically speaking, tomatoes are fruits. So even if tomatoes are vegetables nutritionally and culinarily-speaking, this gives me a convenient excuse to ignore the “fruits” part.
4White button mushroomsdestemmed and halved (substitute for pearl onions)
1/2carrothalved lengthwise then quartered into sticks
FewpiecesFrench beanshalved
4Cherry tomatoeskept whole with leaves
15gbutterto taste
Mint leavesgarnish
Saltto taste
Wateras needed
Instructions
Cut carrot and mushrooms into in game shape and toss into a pot. Fill it with water until about half to ¾ of the height of the vegetables. Add salt, and a small knob of butter. Boil for 5 minutes.
Cut the rest of the vegetables. After 5 minutes of boiling, add the broccoli and french beans into the pot.
Boil for another 5 minutes, or until desired texture of vegetables is reached. (This is a good time to saute the fish.)
1 minute before desired time is up, add in cherry tomatoes. (Timing adjustable depending on how cooked you like your tomatoes.)
The white button mushrooms are a substitute for pearl onions since they are a pain to buy and also expensive in my country.
An alternative to the cooking method above, you can also simply boil them in a pot of salted water. But doing that requires more time waiting for the water to boil and you’ll also be left with a huge pot of salted water. The above method leaves you with either no liquid left or some concentrated vegetable stock. It is also a bit more versatile since you can add in flavourings or herbs.
Heat up a pan on medium-low heat, and add olive oil and butter.
Lightly salt the fish on both sides.
When the butter has melted, swirl it to mix the oil and butter. Lay the fish steak in the pan, along with the sprigs of rosemary. (You can lay the fish on top of the rosemary.)
After 3-5 minutes depending on the thickness of your fish, check if the side touching the pan is browned. If it is, flip the fish.
Cook the fish for the same amount of time. While cooking, place one of the rosemary sprigs on top of the fish. Then use a spoon to scoop the oil and butter and baste it on the top side of the fish.
Serve.
After this, all you need is to follow the in-game picture and plate! If you tried doing that, you’ll also understand that Mondstadt has huge ass plates and fish steaks… or very small vegetables.
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