Chinese · Lunch · Dinner
Cantonese Steamed Fish
清蒸魚 (Ching Jing Yu)
A whole sea bass gently steamed until silky and tender, then finished with fresh ginger, scallion and a sizzle of hot oil over a light soy dressing. A clean, delicate classic that is naturally low in fat and high in protein.
- Prep
- 15 min
- Cook
- 15 min
- Total
- 30 min
- Serves
- 3
Calories come from: Carbs 10% · Fat 36% · Protein 54%
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Ingredients
For 3 servings- 1 fish (about 700 g)whole sea bass, cleaned and scaled
- 5 cm piece30 gfresh ginger
- 3 stalks45 gscallions
- 1 tbsp15 gShaoxing rice wine (optional)
- 2 tbsp32 glight soy sauce
- 2 tbsp30 gwater
- 1 tspsugar
- 1 tbsp14 gneutral oil (canola or peanut)
- small handful10 gfresh cilantro (optional)
Steps
- 1
Rinse the fish inside and out and pat it dry with paper towels.
- 2
Cut 2-3 shallow diagonal slashes into the thickest part on each side.
- 3
Peel the ginger; slice two-thirds into thin coins and cut the rest into fine matchsticks.
- 4
Cut 1 scallion into long pieces; finely shred the other 2 scallions lengthwise.
- 5
Lay the ginger coins and long scallion pieces on a heatproof plate that fits your steamer, then place the fish on top and tuck a few ginger coins into the cavity.
- 6
Drizzle the rice wine over the fish, if using.
- 7
Bring water to a rolling boil in a wok or steamer, set the plate inside and cover.
- 8
Steam on high for 10-12 minutes, until the flesh is opaque, flakes easily at the backbone and reaches 63 °C / 145 °F.
- 9
Meanwhile, warm the soy sauce, water and sugar in a small pan, stirring until the sugar dissolves.
- 10
Carefully lift out the plate, pour off the steaming liquid and discard the cooked ginger and scallion.
- 11
Pile the ginger matchsticks, shredded scallions and cilantro, if using, on top of the fish.
- 12
Heat the oil in a small pan until just smoking, then carefully pour it over the scallions and ginger so they sizzle.
- 13
Spoon the warm soy dressing around the fish and serve straight away.
Swaps, storage and make-ahead
Swaps
- Use any mild white fish such as snapper, tilapia or cod fillets instead of whole sea bass, steaming fillets for about 6 to 8 minutes depending on thickness.
- For a gluten-free version, use tamari labelled gluten-free instead of light soy sauce and leave out the Shaoxing wine, since it usually contains wheat.
- Add a thinly sliced fresh red chili with the scallions if you like a little heat, as shown in the photo.
- Use dry sherry in place of Shaoxing rice wine if it is easier to find.
Storage
This dish is best eaten fresh, as steamed fish turns dry and firm when reheated. Refrigerate any leftovers within 2 hours in a covered container for up to 1 to 2 days, reheat gently until steaming hot, and do not freeze.
Make ahead
Cut the ginger and scallions and mix the soy dressing up to a day ahead, keeping them covered in the fridge. You can also clean and score the fish a few hours early and refrigerate it, but steam it just before serving.
Nutrition values are for the recipe as written.
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Allergens and nutrition
Contains: FishGlutenSoySulphitesPeanuts
Check the labels of packaged ingredients for allergens and suitability for your diet.
Full nutrition
| Per serving (285 g) | Per 100 g | |
|---|---|---|
| Calories | 189 kcal | 66 kcal |
| Protein | 24.9 g | 8.7 g |
| Carbohydrates | 4.7 g | 1.6 g |
| of which sugars | 1.9 g | 0.7 g |
| Fiber | 0.7 g | 0.2 g |
| Fat | 7.4 g | 2.6 g |
| of which saturated | 1 g | 0.4 g |
| Sodium | 677 mg | 238 mg |
Nutrition is calculated from USDA FoodData Central data and may differ from what you cook.
