Simple, Healthy & Delicious Teochew Steamed White Pomfret (潮州蒸白鲳)

“Check out what’s good for eating more FISHES! See fresh White Pomfret, the perfect fish for steaming style. Loved by whole family, healthy and delicious dish which never fails to impress your loved ones! Prosperity Pomfret （年年有余）”

I steamed Teochew-style with Sea Bass, but Sea Bass is not the most popular fish type to make an authentic Teochew steam fish. So, I used the genuine fish type this time, the white Pomfret! Teow chew style steamed fish will be cooked together with other sides such as bean curd aka tofu, salted vegetables and tomato, sometimes.

Got the fresh Pomfret from my favourite fish store in the wet market early this morning. Fishes and other sea creatures from this store are always fresh, with reasonable price. I had this medium-sized Pomfret which good for 2-3 person from the fish monger at S$8 after discount rate (Was initially priced $9).

White Pomfret is a scaleless fish. So, it’s easy to handle. Its flesh is fresh and sweet naturally. White or Golden Pomfret is more suitable for steaming while black Pomfret is better as fried fish.

[Ingredients Value] Eat fish for EFA:
It’s always good to have more fish than red meat. Low-fat, and low-calorie. Fish contains Essential Fatty Acids (EFAs) i.e. Omega-3 and Omega-6, which claimed to help in preventing cardiovascular diseases such as heart attack and fatty heart, lowering cholesterol level, improving skin and complexion, developing brain for children, and also, lowering risk of having depression.


Ingredients
1 medium white Pomfret
1 leaf of salted vegetable, washed, steeped (for about 1 hour), and thinly sliced
1 cube of bean curd aka tofu, cut into smaller pieces
1 – 2 small red tomatoes, cut into wedges
1 preserved whole plum (咸水梅), lightly mashed
2 slice of ginger, cut into strips

3 – 5 tablespoons of water (if more soup in the dish is preferred)

1 tablespoon of Hua Diao Rice Wine (Chinese translation: 花雕酒)
1 tablespoon of white sesame oil
1 tablespoon of grounded white pepper
Sprinkle of salt

Optional
1 fresh red chili, thinly sliced

Method
1) Wash and clean fish, place in a large metal or porcelain dish.

2) Season with sesame oil, (very little) salt, white pepper and Hua Diao Rice Wine.

3) Put in some water from the side. Then, place ginger strips, tofu cubes, salted vegetable strips, tomatoes, preserved plum, and lastly, cut chili, on top and the side of the fish.

4) Place whole platter in the top portion of electric steamer, or in a wok half filled with water (place platter on a steamer rack in the wok). Steam fish for 25 – 30 minutes, or until fish meat turns white and tender. Serves hot with rice.

A serving of my Pomfret with some vegetables counts less than 100kcal. Of course, it’s low fat.

Tips: To test if the fish is cooked, use a fork to poke through the fish meat, if the fork is able to poke through easily, it means cooked.
* Try NOT to place the side ingredients too much and right at the center and on top of the fish while steaming to prevent uncooked fish meat. The side ingredients on top might be too cooked, but the fish meat covered underneath might be difficult to get cooked. So, spread the ingredients slightly at the side.
* You may also like to skip the salt if the salted vegetable is salty enough to taste. Sprinkle a little bit of sugar instead.