Last Updated on November 27, 2020 by Simon Fan
Steaming is one of the best ways to cook delicate and lean fish, such as halibut, sea bass, and hake. Better still if you steam the fish in a wrapper, which protects the fish from direct heat, giving you better control to keep the fish moist and tender.
There’re many ways to wrap and steam fish. For example, cooking fish in a parchment paper parcel, called en papillote in French or al cartoccio in Italian, seals the moisture and aroma inside. When the parcel is heated in the oven and the moisture turns into vapor, it essentially steams the fish. Salt crust works the same way in trapping the moisture inside to steam the fish.
You can use aromatic leaves such as lotus leaves or banana leaves as wrappers. The leaves impart their wonderful fragrance to the fish steamed inside. Edible leaves such as lettuce or cabbage leaves are great options as well. They function not only as wrappers but also as accompanying vegetables when the dish is done.
For this halibut dish, I first marinate the fish with Shaoxing wine and grated ginger. It’s then wrapped and steamed in savoy cabbage leaves. Savoy cabbage is one of my favorite cabbages. I love their crinkly leaves, which have a great texture when cooked.
To give the dish a finishing touch, I’m applying a great technique in Chinese cooking: pouring very hot oil over scallions and ginger to instantly create a richly infused oil to flavor the fish.
This recipe also works well with other white-fleshed fish, such as striped bass, black sea bass, cod, hake, or haddock.
Steamed halibut in savoy cabbage with ginger-scallion oil
Serves 2
Ingredients
2-inch (5 cm) piece of ginger
Two halibut fillets, about 5 oz (140 g) each
1 teaspoon Shaoxing wine
4 savoy cabbage leaves (tender inner leaves)
Salt and freshly ground white pepper
2 scallions, thinly sliced diagonally
1 Thai chili, thinly sliced
Sauce
1 tablespoon soy sauce
½ teaspoon Zhenjiang (aka Chinkiang) vinegar
Pinch of sugar
1 tablespoon water
1½ tablespoons vegetable oil
Directions
- Make 1 teaspoon of grated ginger and cut the rest of the ginger into thin matchsticks.
- Mix the fish fillets with the wine and grated ginger. Let marinate for 15 minutes.
- Cut out the lower thick part of the central rib of each cabbage leaf, taking care not to tear the leaf. Blanch the leaves in boiling water until crisp-tender, about 3 minutes. Transfer the leaves to a colander, rinse under cold water to cool, and drain well. Pat dry with paper towels.
- Season the fish fillets with salt and pepper, and wrap each piece tightly in 2 cabbage leaves. Place the parcels in a steamer, seam side down, and steam over high heat until the fish is just cooked through, 4 to 5 minutes. To test whether the fish is done, insert a fine knife tip or cake tester; it should penetrate easily.
- Remove the parcels from the steamer. Cut each in half and arrange on a serving plate. Scatter the scallions, chili, and ginger matchsticks on top of the parcels.
- In a saucepan, add all the ingredients for the sauce. Bring to a gentle boil and adjust the seasoning as needed. Pour the sauce around the parcels. Heat the oil in a pan until very hot, then carefully pour it over the scallions and ginger to create an instant infused oil. Serve right away.
