Recipe: Steamed Fish with Ginger and Pea Shoots

The photo above shows L.'s version of what was supposed to be a simple dish. It was meant to be plain steamed fish in a subtle broth with wilted pea shoots but, since we had gone to the Japanese supermarket that day and L. couldn't wait to dig in to his favorite Japanese ingredients, he amped his dish up with tofu, shungiku (chrysanthemum leaves) and raw whitebait. I stuck with the original but forgot to photograph it.

Sometimes one wants a pacifying dish, something that is delicious yet plain and this fits the bill for me. It doesn't pack a wallop of flavor but is the sort of thing that you crave when you are recovering from an illness or after a weekend where you have dined and wined too often and too well.

Recipe

2 lbs firm white fish (I used turbot filets), trimmed into 4 equal portions

1 lb pea shoots

2 1/2 cups water

3 Tbsps soy sauce

2 Tbsps white wine

1 Tbsp rice wine vinegar

Thumb-sized piece of ginger, grated

Salt to taste

Add all the ingredients except the fish and the pea shoots to a large saucepan. Heat over very low heat, until the broth has boiled. I do this over low heat so that the ginger has time to infuse the broth with flavor.

Line a steamer basket with lettuce or cabbage leaves so that the fish will not stick and place the fish on top. Sprinkle with a little salt. Top the fish with the pea shoots. Place the steamer basket over the broth, making sure that its bottom is above the surface of the broth - not touching it.

Increase the heat to medium, and cover the steamer. My turbot filets took 4 minutes to cook through but, depending on the thickness of your fish, this process can take up to 10. as son as your fish is cooked through, remove the steamer from the heat.

Check the broth for seasoning; it may need a bit more salt or vinegar. Place a piece of fish and some of the pea shoots in each dish. Ladle over some broth.

#fish