Whenever I think of Teochew cuisine, I would also get reminded of Granny’s cooking – the humble, homely fare that I used to eat when I was little. Nothing pretentious or over the top. It was simple food that wasn’t heavy-handed but it always tasted good because Granny was particular about the freshness of the ingredients used.
Especially for seafood and fish dishes, it is always important to buy fresh instead of frozen ones because the latter can never taste the same. The Teochew-style of steaming fish is one of the best ways to enjoy the sweetness of the fish as is so for this recipe, it’s definitely worth splurging every now and then – so go buy the freshest white pomfret you can find.
Recently, I have been buying my supply of fish direct from Jurong Fishery Port via this new seafood delivery service on Qoo10:
LIST.QOO10.SG
I don’t live in the West so going to the fishery port is out of the way for me. This service comes in pretty handy. I like that the fish is cleaned & gutted beforehand so I don’t even need to do it myself.
This same seller is also offering fruits & vegetables delivery from Pasir Panjang Wholesale Centre:
Convenient options for online fresh food shopping if you’re too busy to head to the wet market or supermarket. Worth trying. Don’t forget to make use of your coupons or Q-points if you’ve any to maximise savings.
Cooking tip: I would normally line the bottom of the steaming dish with ginger slices first before putting the fish on top. This way, the skin on the underside of the fish wouldn’t stick to the base so when you turn the fish over, it will still look presentable. 🙂
Enjoy this recipe!
Teochew Steamed Pomfret Recipe
Ingredients: (serves 3-4 as one of few side dishes)
1 medium-sized white pomfret, cleaned & gutted
3-4 slices peeled ginger
1 tsp light soy sauce
3 tbsp water
2 salted plums, bruised
1 tomato, cut into wedges
3 dried Shiitake mushrooms, soaked in hot water, stems removed & sliced
2 slices peeled ginger, cut into thin strips
1 stalk spring onion, cut to 1″ sections
coriander leaves & extra spring onions for garnish
Instructions:
1. Line the bottom of a steaming dish with the ginger slices and place the pomfret on top.
2. Drizzle the light soy sauce over the fish and spoon water along the sides.
3. Scatter the salted plums, tomato wedges, mushrooms, ginger strips and cut spring onions over the fish.
4. Steam at high heat for about 13-15 minutes till fish is cooked through.
5. Garnish with coriander & spring onions and serve while hot. Enjoy!