Steamed Fish w/ peppered Sesame Oil

I decided to head to Chinatown on Sunday to start my grocery shopping. I needed some basics that I had long run out of and some nice cheap fresh fruit. I usually frequent the food stalls on Mott Street, mostly because the quality of fruits and veggies is pretty decent, plus the fact that there are quite a few seafood purveyors on the block. What this means is that there is always some nice fresh fish waiting to be taken home.

I'll admit that most of the time I don't know what I am buying. I just point at whatever is swimming and looking healthy. My recipe more or less stays the same. Its pretty much the way my mom preps almost any white fish.



1 whole fish. The fresher the better. Descaled, head on!
2tbpn minced garlic
2tspn minced ginger
sesame oil

Clean the fish. They'll descale it at the market, but I usually make sure that they didn't miss any. There's nothing worse that a bite of fish with scales.

Cut a few slits on both side of the fish. Set the fish on a heat proof plate. Rub the ginger and garlic around the fish.

Add water to a large pan or wok. Place the plate onto a trivet. Steam the fish for 8-10 minutes.

As the fish is about to finish cooking, heat up some sesame oil. Make it hot. When ready, take the plate of fish out of the pan and pour the hot oil over the fish. Serve immediately. You can actually add chopped green onions over the fish before you pour the oil. This time I decided to add some dried pepperish flakes to my oil.

I don't think this recipe has ever failed me. It definitely didn't Sunday night.