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Steamed Peacock Sea Bass - Tender & Non-Fishy

Name: Steamed Peacock Sea Bass - Tender & Non-Fishy
Prep time: 30 min
Cook time: 12 min
Total time: 42 min
Yield: 3 servings
Cuisine: chinese
Ingredients: sea bass; scallion; ginger; red bell pepper; red onion; cilantro; water; Salt; Cooking oil; light soy sauce; steamed fish soy sauce; oyster sauce

groups3 servingsspeedMediumcountertopsPrep: 30 minsskilletCook: 12 minsscheduleTotal: 42 minsoutdoor_grillSteamed

Allergens:warningFishwarningSoywarningGluten

Allergen labels are AI-generated and may be incomplete or wrong. If you have a food allergy, always verify every ingredient yourself.

Recipe details are AI-generated from the video and may contain errors — for reference only.

skilletInstruction

7 Steps Total

Preparation

00:00:27

warningStay safe

Wash hands thoroughly with soap after handling raw fish. Keep a firm grip when filleting bones with a cleaver to prevent slips.

Use a spoon to scale 1 sea bass (approx. 600g), then trim fins with scissors. Cut along both sides of the backbone from the back down to the belly, leaving belly intact. Remove tail fin, cut open the head along the bone, and snip off the main spine with scissors. Thoroughly wash under running water to remove black membrane, blood clots, and gills.

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Watch out

The black membrane inside the fish belly and the gills are the main sources of fishiness. They must be cleaned thoroughly, otherwise the steamed fish will taste fishy.

Ingredients:sea bass

Tools:kitchen scissorscutting boardcleaver

Preparation

00:03:00

Lay the fish flat and cut 2cm slits along the spine down toward the belly using scissors, keeping the belly attached. In a large bowl, combine 2 sliced scallion stalks, 10g ginger shreds, and 100ml warm water. Squeeze forcefully by hand to extract ginger-scallion juice. Add 500ml clear water, submerge the fish, and soak for 20 minutes.

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Watch out

Do not use cooking wine or salt to marinate the fish. Uncooked wine introduces sour flavors, while salt prematurely coagulates proteins, making the fish tough.

Ingredients:sea bassscallion (2 piece)ginger (10 g)water (600 ml)

Tools:mixing bowl

Preparation

00:04:24

Deseed and cut 0.5 red bell pepper into fine threads. Cut 2 scallion stalks into sections; remove core from white stems and shred finely, then shred the green leaves finely. Slice 0.5 red onion into thin strips, cut 20g cilantro into short sections, and slice 15g ginger thinly into another plate.

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Watch out

Shred the scallion, ginger, and bell pepper as finely as possible so hot oil can release maximum aroma and curl them decoratively.

Ingredients:red bell pepper (0.5 piece)scallion (2 piece)red onion (0.5 piece)cilantro (20 g)ginger (15 g)

Tools:platecleaver

Preparation

00:05:42

Remove the fish from葱姜水 and drain well, discarding soaked aromatics. Lay the fish flat in a large round plate in a peacock fan shape. Just 1 minute before steaming, sprinkle 3g salt evenly over the fish, brush with 10ml cooking oil, and place a few ginger slices and scallion sections on top.

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Watch out

Salt must be sprinkled just 1 minute before steaming. Salting too early causes protein coagulation and toughens the fish. Brushing oil seals in moisture for a silky texture.

Ingredients:sea bass (1 piece)Salt (3 g)Cooking oil (10 ml)gingerscallion

Tools:serving platepastry brush

Active Cooking

00:06:40

warningStay safe

Be cautious of hot steam when opening the steamer lid to prevent burns to face and hands.

Pour 1000ml water into a steamer and bring to a rolling boil over high heat. Once steam rises heavily, place the fish plate inside the steamer rack, cover tight, and steam on high heat for 10 minutes.

local_fire_departmentHigh heat, steam for 10 mins

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Watch out

Must steam over boiling water on high heat! Cold water steaming causes fish meat to darken and become tough. Fresh sea bass needs exactly 10 minutes

over-steaming destroys elasticity

Ingredients:water (1000 ml)

Tools:steamer pot

Active Cooking

00:07:08

While fish is steaming, heat 15ml cooking oil in a wok on high. Add prepared red onion, ginger slices, and cilantro sections, stir-frying on medium-high until aromatic. Pour in 15ml light soy sauce, 15ml steamed fish soy sauce, and 5g oyster sauce, stirring quickly until fragrant. Add 100ml water, bring to a boil, cook for 2 minutes, then turn off heat.

local_fire_departmentMedium-high heat to saute, high heat boil 2 mins

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Watch out

Sauteying soy sauces in oil unleashes rich umami, while diluting with water tempers harsh saltiness for a well-balanced sauce.

Ingredients:Cooking oil (15 ml)red oniongingercilantrolight soy sauce (15 ml)steamed fish soy sauce (15 ml)oyster sauce (5 g)water (100 ml)

Tools:spatulawok

Active Cooking

00:08:15

warningStay safe

Use plate tongs or oven mitts when removing the hot steamer plate. Stand back slightly when pouring hot sizzling oil to avoid oil splatters.

Remove steamed fish plate from steamer and discard the cooked ginger slices and scallion. Pile shredded scallion whites, scallion greens, and red bell pepper threads on the center of the fish. Heat 15ml cooking oil until smoking hot, then sizzle it over the fresh aromatics. Finally, pour the warm simmered sauce around the edge of the plate.

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Watch out

Oil must be sizzling hot to draw out scallion-ginger fragrance. Always pour sauce around the edge of the plate rather than directly onto the fish to preserve presentation.

Ingredients:Cooking oil (15 ml)red bell pepperscallion

Tools:plate gripperladle