Steaming a whole fish is fast and simple | The Honolulu Advertiser

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Steaming a whole fish is fast and simple | The Honolulu Advertiser | Hawaii's Newspaper

Posted on: Wednesday, February 7, 2007

TASTE
Steaming a whole fish is fast and simple

•	Romance your valentine with dinner at home

Los Angeles Times

Here's a quick recipe adapted from "My Grandmother's Chinese Kitchen" by Eileen Yin-Fei Lo. Light soy sauce does not refer to low-sodium sauce; rather, it's soy that's been taken from the tops of batches as they're prepared (dark soys are taken from the bottoms). Light soy, shao-hsing wine and Chinese white rice vinegar are available at most Asian markets.

STEAMED FISH (JING YUE)

2 tablespoons light soy sauce

2 tablespoons shao-hsing wine or dry sherry

3 tablespoons scallion oil (see recipe), divided

4 tablespoons finely grated fresh ginger

1 1/2 teaspoons sesame oil

1 1/2 teaspoons Chinese white rice vinegar or distilled white vinegar

1 (1 1/2 pounds) fresh whole striped bass (or other white-fleshed, delicate fish, such as moi), cleaned and scaled

To make the marinade, combine the soy sauce, shao-hsing wine or sherry, two tablespoons of scallion oil, ginger, sesame oil and vinegar in a medium bowl. Add salt and pepper to taste. Set aside.

Wash the fish well inside and out. Make 3 cuts with a sharp knife in the side of the fish, cutting to, but not through, the bone. Repeat on the other side. Dry the fish well with paper towels and place it in a steam-proof dish. Pour the marinade over the fish and rub it in with your hands on both sides, making sure to rub it well into the cuts. Set aside to rest for 10 to 15 minutes.

Place a rack in a wok, add boiling water, place the steam-proof dish with the fish on the rack and cover. Steam for 15 to 20 minutes. Turn off the heat and transfer the fish to a serving platter. Pour 1 tablespoon of the hot scallion oil and the accumulated marinade over the fish. Serve immediately.

Makes 4-6 servings.

Per serving (6 servings): 150 calories, 13 g protein, 2 g carbohydrate, no fiber, 10 g fat, 2 g saturated fat, 56 mg cholesterol, 482 mg sodium

SCALLION OIL (CHUNG YAU)

1 1/2 cups peanut oil

1 pound scallions (3 to 4 bunches), well-dried, trimmed and cut into 2-inch pieces, white portions lightly smashed

Heat a wok over high heat for 30 seconds. Add the oil and scallions, stir and mix well, making certain the scallions are immersed in the oil. Lower the heat and simmer the oil and scallions for 20 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the scallions brown.

Turn off the heat, strain the oil through a fine strainer into a bowl and cool to room temperature, about 30 minutes. Pour into a glass jar and refrigerate until needed.

Makes 1 1/2 cups.

Per serving (1 tablespoon): 119 calories, no protein, no carbohydrate, no fiber, 14 g fat, 2 g saturated fat, no cholesterol, no sodium

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