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There comes a day in the life of every foodie when you crave a simply cooked dinner that still gives you a taste of something exotic or fancy. Instead of a biryani which is a labour of love, you want a dish that exudes deliciousness and yet, doesn’t tire you out with a cumbersome cooking process, that too in the middle of the work week. You want a pick-me-up on say, a Wednesday night, just so your spirit can move down to Friday night while still on a high. What you want is the easiest soy-ginger steamed fish dish.
I stumbled on to this dish during those early days of the pandemic, when work-from-home and lockdowns meant that not every restaurant is open and delivering your favourite weeknight meal. It’s inspired by any number of Southeast Asian versions of soy-honey glazed, ginger-flavoured steamed fish—but I sure had to tailor it to my needs. And instead of placing the fish fillet (I used Basa the first time around) in the steamer directly, I wondered, why don’t I just use the French en papillote or the Bengali paturi technique to lock the flavours in?
The result was so spectacular that this soy-ginger steamed fish recipe has since become a staple at home. The best bit is, depending on the number of people you’re feeding, you can also make individual parcels for every member of the family, with any special trimmings they want! Here’s the basic recipe for you, so feel free to build on it if you’re feeling creative.
Ingredients:
- 1 large fish Basa or Tilapia fillet
- 3 tbsp light soy sauce
- 2 tbsp ginger
- julienne ½ cup spring onion
- chopped 1 tsp black pepper powder (adjust according to taste)
- Salt, to taste
Method:
- Set up your steamer with adequate water and let it come to a gentle boil. If you don’t have a steamer, you can fill a wok with water, place a stand in the middle of it, and keep a small steel plate on top of the stand with the fish parcel later.
- Wash, clean and pat dry the fish fillet. This will help the fillet absorb the flavours of the other ingredients better.
- Take a large sheet of foil. Place the fillet in the middle of the sheet. Ensure that the foil is big enough for you to wrap and seal the fillet properly.
- Add the light soy sauce, ginger, black pepper powder and salt to taste. Gently rub these into the fillet.
- Sprinkle the spring onion on top and seal the fillet in the foil properly. Double fold the edges of the parcel to ensure no flavour escapes it.
- Place the fish parcel in the steamer. Steam the parcel for 10-15 minutes at a low heat depending on the size of your fillet.
- Remove the parcel from the steamer and open it. Insert a skewer to check the fish. Serve immediately with a fresh salad or steamed rice.