Teochew cuisine, similarly recognised as Chaozhou cuisine, was created in the Chaoshan district of eastern Guangdong province in China. Teochew cuisine features heavily on healthy steaming, stir-frying and braised dishes. This Teochew styled steamed whole fish is one of the most distinguished Teochew cuisines, an alternative style of steaming fish as opposed to the regular simple Cantonese style.
A very popular dish in Southeast Asia and China, the fish most commonly used is pomfret, I am using red snapper instead for my gluten free version of this Teochew steamed whole fish. Other fish that can be used are bream, sea bass, threadfin, coral trout, cod or even barramundi. Sometimes, fish fillets like ling, cod and snapper are also used. The main ingredients that make this dish unique are the used of fermented mustard green, also called pickled/salted mustard green or ham choy, tomato, pork, tofu and salted plum. I have substituted salted plum with gluten free plum sauce as I have been to quite a few Asian groceries stores and found out that salted plum is not readily available in most stores in Sydney. Also plum sauce gives the dish a sweet and sour taste. This recipe is not only naturally gluten free, it is also dairy free, nut free and egg free.
The flavours of Teochew steamed fish are sweet, savoury, sour and spicy, and all these ingredients together make the dish delicious and mouth-watering. Similarly, it appears very impressive to serve your dinner guests, be it families or friends, in your own home especially during the festive seasons.
Teochew steamed whole fish is extremely easy to prepare and once the ingredients are prepared and ready in a steaming plate, all you need to do is to cook it by steaming for a short period of time when your guests have arrived at your dinner party.
Red snapper offers a source of lean protein that is abundant in selenium, potassium, vitamin A, vitamin B12, and omega-3 fatty acids. When buying a whole fish from the fishmonger, chose fish that has bright and clear eyes, this means that the fish is fresh and recently caught. Also it makes preparing the fish a lot easier to get your fishmonger to clean, gut and descale the whole fish. My favourite place to buy fresh seafood is at the Sydney fish market. I find the seafood there really fresh and much cheaper than the local fishmongers.
Teochew Steamed Whole Fish
Ingredients
- 1 medium red snapper 1.2kg, cleaned, gutted and descaled by your fishmonger
- 2 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil
- 500 g skinless and boneless pork leg or pork tenderloin trimmed and thinly sliced to about 3cm in length
- 500 g water-packed firm tofu drain and cut into 3cm pieces
- 150 g fermented mustard green or pickled/salted mustard green hum choy, thinly sliced
- 3 spring onions sliced into 4cm to 5cm lengthwise (white and green parts)
- 1 medium truss tomato cut into wedges
- 1 teaspoon of ground white pepper
- Steamed rice to serve
For the Sauce:
- 2 tablespoons gluten free light soy sauce
- 5 tablespoons gluten free plum sauce
- 2 tablespoons gluten free pure sesame oil
- 2 tablespoons pale or medium dry sherry
For the Marinade:
- 1 tablespoon of gluten free light soy sauce
- 1 tablespoon of pale or medium dry sherry
- 1 teaspoons gluten free corn maize starch
- ½ teaspoon of ground white pepper
For the Garlic and Ginger Oil:
- 3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- 3 cloves garlic minced
- 3 cm ginger peeled and cut into fine chopsticks
For the Garnish:
- 1-2 sprigs of coriander including stems roughly chopped
- 1 long fresh red chilli deseeded and finely sliced
Instructions
- Heat up 3 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil in a frying pan and stir-fry the garlic and ginger until lightly golden on low heat. Remove and set aside in a small bowl.
- Combine pork with marinade in a medium bowl and mix well.
- Heat up 2 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil in a frying pan and stir-fry and separating the pork pieces for about 2 minutes. Remove and set aside.
- Combine the sauce prepared in a small bowl and mix well.
- Make two diagonal cuts about 1 cm deep across the fleshy part of the fish on both sides.
Preparing the fish for steaming:
- Using a large deep porcelain plate, place and scatter â…” of the pork pieces, tofu and 100g of fermented mustard green or pickled/salted mustard green into the bottom of the plate. Then place the fish on top of the pork and tofu.
- Stuff the cut spring onions into the gut of the fish. Sprinkle white pepper on the fish. Scatter ginger and then 50g of fermented mustard green or pickled/salted mustard green on top of the fish. Then add the rest of the pork pieces, tofu and tomato wedges to the sides of the plate.
- Drizzle the sauce prepared over the fish.
Steaming the fish:
- Place a steaming rack in a large wok and fill the wok with one third full of water and bring to a boil.
- Place the fish into the wok and steam for 25 to 30 minutes or until fish is cooked through. Steaming time depends on the size of the fish.
- When fish is ready, drizzle the garlic and ginger oil on top of the fish and garnish with coriander and chilli.
- Serve immediately with steam rice.
Notes
Teochew Steamed Whole Fish
Ingredients
- 1 medium red snapper 1.2kg, cleaned, gutted and descaled by your fishmonger
- 2 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil
- 500 g skinless and boneless pork leg or pork tenderloin trimmed and thinly sliced to about 3cm in length
- 500 g water-packed firm tofu drain and cut into 3cm pieces
- 150 g fermented mustard green or pickled/salted mustard green hum choy, thinly sliced
- 3 spring onions sliced into 4cm to 5cm lengthwise (white and green parts)
- 1 medium truss tomato cut into wedges
- 1 teaspoon of ground white pepper
- Steamed rice to serve
For the Sauce:
- 2 tablespoons gluten free light soy sauce
- 5 tablespoons gluten free plum sauce
- 2 tablespoons gluten free pure sesame oil
- 2 tablespoons pale or medium dry sherry
For the Marinade:
- 1 tablespoon of gluten free light soy sauce
- 1 tablespoon of pale or medium dry sherry
- 1 teaspoons gluten free corn maize starch
- ½ teaspoon of ground white pepper
For the Garlic and Ginger Oil:
- 3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- 3 cloves garlic minced
- 3 cm ginger peeled and cut into fine chopsticks
For the Garnish:
- 1-2 sprigs of coriander including stems roughly chopped
- 1 long fresh red chilli deseeded and finely sliced
Instructions
- Heat up 3 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil in a frying pan and stir-fry the garlic and ginger until lightly golden on low heat. Remove and set aside in a small bowl.
- Combine pork with marinade in a medium bowl and mix well.
- Heat up 2 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil in a frying pan and stir-fry and separating the pork pieces for about 2 minutes. Remove and set aside.
- Combine the sauce prepared in a small bowl and mix well.
- Make two diagonal cuts about 1 cm deep across the fleshy part of the fish on both sides.
Preparing the fish for steaming:
- Using a large deep porcelain plate, place and scatter â…” of the pork pieces, tofu and 100g of fermented mustard green or pickled/salted mustard green into the bottom of the plate. Then place the fish on top of the pork and tofu.
- Stuff the cut spring onions into the gut of the fish. Sprinkle white pepper on the fish. Scatter ginger and then 50g of fermented mustard green or pickled/salted mustard green on top of the fish. Then add the rest of the pork pieces, tofu and tomato wedges to the sides of the plate.
- Drizzle the sauce prepared over the fish.
Steaming the fish:
- Place a steaming rack in a large wok and fill the wok with one third full of water and bring to a boil.
- Place the fish into the wok and steam for 25 to 30 minutes or until fish is cooked through. Steaming time depends on the size of the fish.
- When fish is ready, drizzle the garlic and ginger oil on top of the fish and garnish with coriander and chilli.
- Serve immediately with steam rice.
