porgy with ginger and scallions ready to steam

Steamed fish part 2: Steamed porgies with ginger and scallions

Here is the link to steamed fish part 1.

So, on to steamed porgies with ginger and scallions.

I did my best to recreate a recipe that was given to me months ago by a friend as we sat in a Chinese restaurant. We had just dug our chopsticks into a plate of steamed whole fish with ginger and scallions, and I lamented that I’d always wanted to make this at home.

Simple, she said, and then she rattled off her family recipe.

Of course, I didn’t write it down or anything so practical as that.

And now it was months later, and I had a fish staring up at me. I did my best to recreate her recipe. I’m not sure if I got it exactly right, but the results were delicious and my kids especially like the sauce on their rice.

In the comments on part one, there were questions about the pan.
Here is the pan I use. You just need something big enough to fite the plate inside.
steaming pan for fish

steamed porgy with ginger and scallions

Here's the recipe.

Steamed whole fish with ginger and scallions

Note: You will need a big steamer for this. (Or a wok with a rack for steaming, but I've never done it that way.) The steamer should be wide enough to put a whole fish on a plate inside and still have room for the steam to come up around the plate. You can buy these at most Asian grocery stores. I bought mine at the Asian Market on Colvin Avenue in Albany.

(If you don't have a steamer, it might work to bake it covered in the oven, I haven't tried that, though.)

Ingredients
1 large porgy, or medium red snapper, or any other sweet-fleshed fish you like. The most important part is that it is as fresh as possible.

10 matchbook strips of fresh-cut ginger, peeled
½ cup scallions, cut into long thin strips, whites only
1/3 cup Chinese cooking wine
1/3 - 1/2 cup soy sauce
1/3 cup oil


Instructions
Was fish well in salt water. (I let it soak for 30 minutes if I have the time.) Rinse and pat dry.

Score the fish three times on each side. Stuff the slices with the ginger strips. Place the fish in a deep, heat-proof plate. Pour the Chinese cooking wine into the bottom of the plate. Sprinkle the scallions on top.

Boil a couple of inches of water in the steamer. Then put the plate in and cover. Cook about 10-12 minutes. (Until fish is white and starting to flake.)

While the fish is cooking, heat the oil to very hot, but not smoking.

Use a wide spatula to carefully remove the fish. Put it on a deep platter. Pour the cooking juices around it.

Then pour the oil over the fish. (It should crackle a little). Then pour the soy sauce over the fish. Top with fresh scallions if you like.

Serve with rice. The sauce is wonderful.

posted January 10, 2008 | link | comments (3)

filed under: Recipes

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Comments

I LOVE Chinese steamed fish! This looks absolutely delicious and I can't wait to try it. How much oil?

- by gabrielle on Jan 11, 2008 at 7:05 PM | link

I really enjoy your blog. The pictures and narratives are awesome, please keep writing!

- by kate on Jan 11, 2008 at 9:04 PM | link

Sorry about the missing oil. My computer crashed as I was writing that post, and I had to rewrite it in a hurry. I heated about 1/3 cup of oil. There was a bit left in the pan after I poured it over the fish. I just poured slowly and let it lightly coat the fish.

- by celinabean on Jan 11, 2008 at 9:25 PM | link

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