Chinese Steamed Fish is one of my go-to dishes when I want to impress a new group of people with my cooking. It has an amazing presentation from the whole fish to the layers of slivered scallions. And when hot oil is poured over top, it is like a table-side show for your guests. I am elevating this recipe by pre-infusing the hot oil with scallions and ginger to make it extra flavorful.
Can't get enough of steamed recipes? Try my Steamed Chicken Breast next!
๐ฅก About This Recipe
Chinese steamed fish is one of the most popular home-cooked meals in China. Just do a quick Google search and you will see hundreds of recipes for it. I have seen many Asian food blogs, and every blogger and their family has their own version of it.
I wanted my recipe to be different so I am showing a technique that I have been using lately. Instead of using plain hot oil for the fish, I am using a pre-infused ginger-scallion oil. The ginger-scallion oil is very easy to make and it doubles the aroma in the final dish.
๐ What Fish To Use?
You can use any type of fish, but I always use white-fleshed fish. However, growing up, my family loved trout fishing so we often ate this with rainbow trout. According to my grandma, Chinese people prefer white fish because the meat is softer than pink fish.
In the picture above, I am using a frozen tilapia. Some other fish I will typically use are barramundi, sea bass, rock cod, and ling cod. I have even made it with Pompano.
๐ง Ingredients
- Fish: You want to use a whole fish that is fully defrosted so that it cooks quickly. I typically look for smaller fish as they will have softer meat. If you can choose the fish at the store, ask the clerk to give you the smaller-sized ones.
- Marinade: You will need to marinade the entire fish (inside and outside) with Shaoxing wine and salt. Not only does this season the fish but the Shaoxing wine helps mask fishy and gamey odors.
- Ginger-scallion oil: As you can guess, we will need ginger, scallions, and oil. For the scallions, we only need the whites, the greens will be used for garnishing the fish.
- Sweetened soy sauce: This is drizzled on at the end. It has soy sauce, water, and a small amount of sugar. The water will need to be warm so that the sugar dissolves.
๐ช Instructions
STEP 1: First, we will make the ginger-scallion oil. Heat 5 tablespoons of oil in a small saucepan over medium-high heat until it reaches 350ยฐF. Reduce the heat to medium-low, then add the ginger and scallion whites. Cook for 5 minutes then turn off the heat and let the mixture sit for another 10 minutes. Strain the oil into a bowl, then pour it back into the saucepan (we will reheat at the end). Set aside.
STEP 2: Now it is time to prepare the fish. Use a sharp knife to make 3 or 4 parallel, diagonal cuts on each side of the fish. Rub the inside and outside of the fish with Shaoxing wine and salt. Place the fish on a steaming dish and let it rest for 10-15 minutes. In the meantime, you can make the sweetened soy sauce.
STEP 3: In a small bowl, combine the sugar and hot water. Stir to dissolve the sugar, then add the soy sauce. Set aside.
STEP 4: When the fish is done marinating, place it in the steamer and steam on high heat for 12-15 minutes until an instant-read thermometer inserted into the thickest part of the flesh reaches 145ยฐF. I did not have a large enough steamer so I built this steaming contraption with my wok, a pizza crisper, and a tin foil tent.
STEP 5: Transfer the fish to a serving dish and scatter the slivered scallion greens on top. Reheat the infused oil over medium-high heat until it reaches 350ยฐF, then pour it over the scallion greens. Pour the soy sauce mixture around the edges of the fish, and then serve!
This was one of the most common dishes my mom would make. Every time I eat it, it brings back so many happy memories of my childhood. If you make this recipe, please let me know what you think in the comments!
๐ Recipe
Chinese Steamed Fish
Ingredients
Ginger Scallion Oil
- 5 tablespoons neutral oil
- 5 slices ginger
- 5 scallion whites (chopped)
Fish
- 1 ยฝ pounds whole fish (scaled and cleaned)
- 1 tablespoon Shaoxing wine
- ยฝ teaspoon coarse kosher salt
For garnishing
- 5 scallion greens (cut into thin slivers)
Instructions
- First, we will make the ginger-scallion oil. Heat 5 tablespoons of oil in a small saucepan over medium-high heat until it reaches 350ยฐF. Reduce the heat to medium-low, then add the ginger and scallion whites. Cook for 5 minutes then turn off the heat and let the mixture sit for another 10 minutes. Strain the oil into a bowl, then pour it back into the saucepan (we will reheat at the end). Set aside.
- Now it is time to prepare the fish. Use a sharp knife to make 3 or 4 parallel, diagonal cuts on each side of the fish. Rub the inside and outside of the fish with Shaoxing wine and salt. Place the fish on a steaming dish and let it rest for 10-15 minutes. In the meantime, prepare the sweetened soy sauce.
- In a small bowl, combine the sugar and hot water. Stir to dissolve the sugar, then add the soy sauce. Set aside.
- When the fish is done marinating, place it in the steamer and steam on high heat for 12-15 minutes until an instant-read thermometer inserted into the thickest part of the flesh reaches 145ยฐF.
- Transfer the fish to a serving dish and scatter the slivered scallion greens on top. Reheat the infused oil over medium-high heat until it reaches 350ยฐF, then pour it over the scallion greens. Pour the soy sauce mixture around the edges of the fish, and then serve!
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