Thai Style Steamed Fish

A Seafood Dish which serves 4

Submitted by Aurika

About This Dish

Steamed seafood ensures that the moisture of the flesh is retained and that the flavour of the herbs and spices permeate the meat. The fish is wrapped in tin foil and can either be placed on the side of a barbecue or baked in the oven. In Thailand it is steamed on a plate in a steaming basket. This dish is prefect with sticky rice and a green salad, served with a lemon, sugar, fish sauce and chilli dressing.

What You'll Need

1 whole fish (± 1kg), gutted and scaled, but left whole.
2 tablespoon rice wine
½ teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon white pepper
3 tablespoon fish sauce
¼ cup lemon juice
2 stalks lemon grass, crushed and julienned
1 onion (sliced)
2 garlic cloves (crushed)
2 spring onions sliced in halves and julienned
4 fresh or dried green chillies (crushed)
¼ cup sweet basil leaves
¼ cup ginger, julienned

How To Make It

Preheat the oven to 180°C. Wash the fish thoroughly and make 3 to 4 diagonal slashes to the bone on both sides
Prepare the marinating ingredients and combine
Cut a piece of tinfoil large enough to accommodate the fish. Over the tinfoil, rub the marinade, including the larger pieces into the slashes and belly of the fish
Place the fish onto the tinfoil, placing half of any large pieces of remaining marinade under the fish and the remainder on top. Seal the tinfoil, taking care not to pierce it (if you double the tinfoil, you need to increase the cooking time)
Place the fish on a baking sheet in the oven (180°C) and bake for ±25 minutes (or steam for 25 minutes over boiling water, or over a cool fire)