Steamed Carp

"Govern a great nation as you would cook a small fish. Do not overdo it."

Lao Tzu quotes (Chinese taoist Philosopher, founder of Taoism, wrote "Tao Te Ching" (also "The Book of the Way"). 600 BC-531 BC)

Most people, myself included, love eating fish because it is healthy, packed with nutrients like Omega 3, and is a great source of protein. However, many people are at loss on how to handle fish, either putting too much spices or overcooking it, thus reducing its quality. Hopefully, these easy tips that have helped me will come in handy for you as well ...

1) Buy Fresh.
Always buy fresh if possible. The fresher the fish, the better the taste and the firmer the flesh is. From personal experience, the longest you should store fresh fish in the freezer is about two days before the flesh starts to toughen.

2) Look at the eyes.
If you're not getting your fish fresh from the tank, make sure the eyes are clear and not red or dull. I've also read somewhere that the fins should also be pointing up and not down or flat. And of course, the head should be FIRMLY attached.

3) Touch and feel.
When touching the fish, the flesh should be springy like a sponge cake. If the flesh does not return to its original shape when lightly pressed, then it won't be tender after cooking. The blood around the gills area should also be red and not brown.

4) Thawing.
If you have stored your fish in the freezer, thaw it in the fridge. Thawing fish by placing it in water or leaving it out at room temperature will make it lose its valuable flavor and also make the flesh dry.

5) Cooking.
Like any other seafood, the longer you cook fish, the drier and tougher the flesh gets. If pan-frying or deep-frying, I always like to start off with really high heat and turn to low when it is lightly brown on the outside.

However, steaming fish is IMHO the best method of cooking fish (eg. Steamed Black Cod recipe). It is healthier and retains the natural flavors better. Bear in mind that the water should be boiling hot and be kept at a high temperature. Making slits on the sides of the fish will help reduce cooking time. Here's a simple steamed fish recipe I recently tried ...

Steamed Carp Recipe

Ingredients :
2 lbs Silver Carp Fish (or other fish)
2 tbsp Yeos fermented soybeans (unsalted), mashed
2 tsp minced garlic
1 tsp minced ginger
4 tbsp cooking oil
2 tbsp chopped green onions
2 tbsp chopped serrano chilies
2 tbsp chopped red bell peppers
chopped cilantro
shaoxing cooking wine
white pepper and sugar to taste
6 oz water

Method :

1) Clean fish well. Slit the fish along the underbelly and also make inch-and-a-half-apart slits across the body of the fish.
2) Pan-fry minced garlic in cooking oil on low heat until golden brown. Spoon out 2 tbsp of the oil and and set aside.
3) Add minced ginger, chopped green onions, serrano chilies, and red bell peppers and stir-fry until fragrant and set aside.

4) Pan-fry the mashed fermented soy beans on low heat until fragrant, and rub the bean paste all over the fish. Place fish in steaming pan with 6oz of water.
5) Sprinkle ingredients from step 3) all over fish. Add a splash of cooking wine over fish and white pepper and sugar to taste. Steam on high heat for 15 minutes or until fish flakes with fork.
6) Heat fragrant garlic oil from step 1) and splash over fish. Sprinkle chopped cilantros and let fish stand in steamer for an additional 1 minute with heat off.