If you don’t mind slivering a few vegetables, this “steamed” fish dish is a classic Chinese preparation and exceedingly easy too. (Just don’t mind the perfume of fish that may permeate your house.)
Serve this simple fish alongside make ahead gailan spears, stir fried bok choy, or some Chinese black vinegared smashed cucumbers.
The problem with steamed fish
The problem with actually steaming fish may be the actual steaming part.
Do you have a steamer?
Wait, you don’t have a steaming vessel?
You don’t have a bamboo steamer large enough to fit your fish? And you don’t have the toddler-sized wok to boil the water in for the steamer?
I don’t blame you.
When I worked in restaurants, we had massive $15K combi ovens that could bake, steam, and clean up after themselves too.
At home, on the other hand, you’ve barely got a pot large enough to fit a whole fillet of fish.
The easy “cheaters” solution
Two simple solutions:
- Use a naturally oily fish such as black cod, aka sablefish, that is very, very hard to overcook.
- Use the oven.
If you do plan to use a less oily fish such as tilapia, snapper, rockfish, or seabass, you may want to reconsider your steaming options.
The moist heat of steaming will keep the fish moist. Most of the latter fish varietals mentioned may dry out in the oven.
You could wrap the fish in parchment paper and create a steaming environment there, but that is one more step I’m not willing to take for this recipe. (And neither are you.)
Whole fish or fillet?
This recipe is classically made with a whole fish with bones, eyes, and cheeks intact.
For those who prefer not to peck around bones, you can use a boneless fillet as I have done here.
Key Ingredients
- Fish – Black cod, aka sablefish, fillet
- Soy Sauce – for saltiness
- Cooking oil that can withstand high heat – for extra fat and to sear the skin
- Ginger slivers – for spicy heat
- Green onion – for savory earthiness
- Red bell pepper or fresh red chili – for color and spice if using a chili
The Process
Step #1 – Sliver your vegetables
This part is slightly maddening.
Julienning all the vegetables as if you have nothing else to do.
Oh wait, you may be under quarantine due to Covid-19, in which case you have to stay home.
Julienning green onion is made much easier with this cheap tool.
As for the ginger and bell pepper/chili, this would be a good time to practice your knife skills to make the skinniest slivers possible.
Step #2 – Prep your fish
If you’re using a whole fish or skin-on fillets, you will need to put it on an oiled baking tray and slash it.
Put a 3-4, half in deep slashes through the skin to keep it from curling in th oven.
Step #3 – Bake
If you did have a steamer, you would put this in the steamer for 10-15 minutes.
Otherwise, try the oven at 350 degrees F for 10-15 minutes.
Once the fish is fully cooked, put onto a plate.
Drizzle over the soy sauce.
This will give it all the FLAVOR. Use a good quality soy sauce if you can.
Step #4 – Dress with vegetables and hot oil
Top the fish with the green onion, ginger, chile or bell pepper that you have worked os hard to slice so thinly.
Drizzle on searing hot oil.
Hot oil is essential, so it sears the skin (because who wants to eat soggy fish skin?)
Step #5 – Serve hot
Fish cooks quickly, so hopefully you have your rice ready to go.
Serve with rice, cauliflower rice, or just some vegetables. It’s not very salty, so you could just eat it plain too. 🙂
Tips to make it better @home
- If you can’t find black cod, you can use another white fish such as snapper, ling cod, or rockfish.
- If you have a steamer large enough for your fish, you can steam this instead of baking in the oven.
- Use a high quality soy sauce if you can. Soy sauce is the only source of saltiness for the naked fish.
- This dish typically uses skin on fish. Hence, the reason for the hot oil that is drizzled on at the end to sear the skin as well as the raw ginger and green onion slivers.
- If the bones haven’t been removed from your fish fillet, watch out for them while eating!
- If using whole fish, you will need to cook the fish much longer. The fish should reach an internal temperature of 145 degrees F.
Chinese "Steamed" Fish in the Oven with Ginger and Scallions
Ingredients
- 1 lb black cod fillet skin on, pin bones removed, preferrably
- 2 Tb oil
- 2 Tb soy sauce
- 1 ea green onion julienne
- 1 oz ginger julienne, or about 1 Tb minced ginger
- 1/8 ea red bell pepper or fresh red chili julienne
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Place fish on an oiled baking sheet. Make 3-4 half inch deep slashes in the fish.
- While oven is preheating, you can julienne the vegetables.
- Cook fish in the oven for 10-15 minutes. The fillet will start to curl and the slashes will start to open up when it is fully cooked. The internal temperature should reach 145 degrees F.
- Remove fish from the oven. Put on serving plate. Drizzle over soy sauce.
- Bring oil to almost smoking point in a small sauce pan.
- Layer on ginger, green onion, red bell pepper/chile onto fish. Drizzle over the hot oil. The oil should be hot enough that it sizzles when it touches the fish.
Notes
- If you can't find black cod, you can use another white fish such as snapper, ling cod, or rockfish.
- If you have a steamer large enough for your fish, you can steam this instead of baking in the oven.
- Use a high quality soy sauce if you can. Soy sauce is the only source of saltiness for the naked fish.
- This dish typically uses skin on fish. Hence, the reason for the hot oil that is drizzled on at the end to sear the skin as well as the raw ginger and green onion slivers.
- If the bones haven't been removed from your fish fillet, watch out for them while eating!
- If using whole fish, you will need to cook the fish much longer. The fish should reach an internal temperature of 145 degrees F.
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