When it comes to food, oftentimes you will hear the common refrain of “letting the ingredients shine” and “highlighting the quality of the food” - sure, these can sound like tired cliches, or to the truly cynical, things to say when you think the chef is just being lazy by not spending 24 hours and a portion of their sanity creating a dish, but they're so often said for a reason.
(A quick aside below - skip ahead if you’re just want the technique and recipe, kthxbye)
Being a third-culture cook who appreciates both preparing as well as enjoying food from a distinctly Western and East Asian perspective, I oftentimes see the more derogatory view of "letting the ingredients shine" coming from those who believe the pinnacle of cuisine is classical French cooking. While I have nothing against classic French cuisine, I actually quite love it, but when fine dining is built upon labor intensive techniques and mother sauces that can take hours to prepare, you can understand why I appreciate simple dishes that require fewer ingredients while still delivering peak flavor and nuance.
One of my favorite dishes to prepare is an homage to my Chinese heritage - both Shanghai and Hong Kong - but also my upbringing and training (or lack thereof) in Western culinary tradition. This dish - Cantonese Style Chilean Sea Bass - is made with my own tweaks and changes based on this blended culinary upbringing. Classically this dish is a whole steamed fish delicately flavored with soy, ginger, green onion, and cilantro and finished with hot oil. It’s a simple yet luxurious and delicious dish, yet it only has 5 ingredients - sometimes, less is truly more.
Let’s dive in.
(A quick aside below - skip ahead if you’re just want the technique and recipe, kthxbye)
Being a third-culture cook who appreciates both preparing as well as enjoying food from a distinctly Western and East Asian perspective, I oftentimes see the more derogatory view of "letting the ingredients shine" coming from those who believe the pinnacle of cuisine is classical French cooking. While I have nothing against classic French cuisine, I actually quite love it, but when fine dining is built upon labor intensive techniques and mother sauces that can take hours to prepare, you can understand why I appreciate simple dishes that require fewer ingredients while still delivering peak flavor and nuance.
One of my favorite dishes to prepare is an homage to my Chinese heritage - both Shanghai and Hong Kong - but also my upbringing and training (or lack thereof) in Western culinary tradition. This dish - Cantonese Style Chilean Sea Bass - is made with my own tweaks and changes based on this blended culinary upbringing. Classically this dish is a whole steamed fish delicately flavored with soy, ginger, green onion, and cilantro and finished with hot oil. It’s a simple yet luxurious and delicious dish, yet it only has 5 ingredients - sometimes, less is truly more.
Let’s dive in.
The Fish:
I’ll be honest - preparing whole fish is not something I’m especially keen on or interested in. Yes I understand how it can be more flavorful, blah blah blah, but for me, I prefer my fish already fileted with the skin on. So for this dish, you will need Chilean Sea Bass as the name implies. With that said, I know it is a luxury fish. If you can afford it, I highly recommend getting it from your supermarket in thick cut pieces, approximately 6-8 ounces each.
Can you use something other than Chilean Sea Bass? Yes of course - choose a more delicate white fish with larger flakes - halibut or cod would work well. I would avoid oily fish or overly “steaky” fish like salmon or swordfish.
The Technique:
The second thing I do that breaks from tradition is that I am not going to steam the fish. Instead, I’m going to take a page out of the steak playbook and do the first part of the reverse sear technique - i.e. slowly cooking the fish in an oven at low heat until the inside is just done but still exceptionally moist and tender. I set my oven to 275 degrees fahrenheit, and since I have a probe thermometer, I set it to alert me once the center of the largest piece of fish hits 140 degrees and then promptly remove.
This technique helps make sure your fish stays exceptionally tender and moist while also retaining more flavor by allowing some of the moisture to evaporate vs steaming, which I find can sometimes dull otherwise great things, like a passionate speech delivered in a monotone.
The Sauce:
Traditionally the fish is very delicately seasoned with a mix of fresh herbs and aromatics, soy sauce, and hot oil. I am not going to play around with this simple combination much because it works so damn well, but I am going to take a page from The Woks of Life and cook my sauce in a pan to help combine flavors and also create some contrasting texture between the cooked and fresh herbs.
Personally, I like to also add a touch of sugar to my sauce which can be divisive in Chinese households, but with the warm ginger, soy sauce, and herbs, the suggestion of sweetness I find adds more depth. Notice that the sauce is very simple, and if you’re familiar with Cantonese cuisine, features the classic combo of soy, ginger, green onion, and cilantro. Reinventing the wheel it’s not.
I’ll be honest - preparing whole fish is not something I’m especially keen on or interested in. Yes I understand how it can be more flavorful, blah blah blah, but for me, I prefer my fish already fileted with the skin on. So for this dish, you will need Chilean Sea Bass as the name implies. With that said, I know it is a luxury fish. If you can afford it, I highly recommend getting it from your supermarket in thick cut pieces, approximately 6-8 ounces each.
Can you use something other than Chilean Sea Bass? Yes of course - choose a more delicate white fish with larger flakes - halibut or cod would work well. I would avoid oily fish or overly “steaky” fish like salmon or swordfish.
The Technique:
The second thing I do that breaks from tradition is that I am not going to steam the fish. Instead, I’m going to take a page out of the steak playbook and do the first part of the reverse sear technique - i.e. slowly cooking the fish in an oven at low heat until the inside is just done but still exceptionally moist and tender. I set my oven to 275 degrees fahrenheit, and since I have a probe thermometer, I set it to alert me once the center of the largest piece of fish hits 140 degrees and then promptly remove.
This technique helps make sure your fish stays exceptionally tender and moist while also retaining more flavor by allowing some of the moisture to evaporate vs steaming, which I find can sometimes dull otherwise great things, like a passionate speech delivered in a monotone.
The Sauce:
Traditionally the fish is very delicately seasoned with a mix of fresh herbs and aromatics, soy sauce, and hot oil. I am not going to play around with this simple combination much because it works so damn well, but I am going to take a page from The Woks of Life and cook my sauce in a pan to help combine flavors and also create some contrasting texture between the cooked and fresh herbs.
Personally, I like to also add a touch of sugar to my sauce which can be divisive in Chinese households, but with the warm ginger, soy sauce, and herbs, the suggestion of sweetness I find adds more depth. Notice that the sauce is very simple, and if you’re familiar with Cantonese cuisine, features the classic combo of soy, ginger, green onion, and cilantro. Reinventing the wheel it’s not.
The Finishing Touch:
The finishing touch to this Cantonese Style Sea Bass is the hot oil finish. If you are not familiar with this technique, it consists of plating your nearly completed dish, topping with fresh herbs and aromatics, and then pouring very hot oil over it - this flash cooks things and intensifies the aromas of the dish.
This is sometimes done tableside, but for me, I’d rather do this in the kitchen because, you know, safety.
For this part, take your cooked fish (you can remove the skin if you’d like) - plate it on a large plate or platter, scoop the warm sauce over the filets, and then top with a handful of your fresh herbs and ginger.
While you’re plating, heat in a small pan approximately 1-2 tablespoons of oil per filet of a neutral oil - vegetable or canola work great - until very hot. I test usually by placing a small piece of ginger in the oil - if it sizzles instantly, it’s about ready.
Once your fish is plated, your sauce is spooned over, and your fresh herbs piled high, drizzle the hot oil over the herbs. It will sizzle, pop, and your herbs will wilt just slightly. Voila, you brought the drama and just did something your friends will talk about for the next week.
So what are you left with? This dish should leave you questioning the meaning of life and all the decisions that have led you to where you are today. Ok fine, maybe not that far, but it should leave you wanting to go back for another bite of luxuriously flaky wish, savoring the another scoop of sauce, ane enjoying the aromas of all the herbs, while soaking it up of course with plenty of fresh rice. This is a celebratory dish - and you deserve to enjoy it too.
Recipe: Cantonese Style Chilean Sea Bass
Serves: 4
Ingredients:
Directions:
Serves: 4
Ingredients:
- 4 Chilean Sea Bass Portions (Skin on, boneless), ~6oz each
- 8-10 sprigs Cilantro
- 1 2-inch knob of ginger
- 1 bunch green onions (~6 green onions)
- 1/4 cup Soy Sauce
- 1 tsp sugar (optional)
- ~1/4 Cup Canola Oil
- Salt
Directions:
- Pre-heat your oven to 275 degrees fahrenheit and line a sheet tray with parchment paper
- Dry your sea bass portions with a paper towel - season with kosher salt on all sides, and evenly space on your sheet tray. Place into the preheated oven - if you have a probe thermometer, place it in the middle of the largest piece of bass and set the alarm to 140.
- Prep your herbs and aromatics:
- Peel your ginger and cut into very thin matchstick like strips - the thinner the better
- Wash and very roughly chop your cilantro stems and tear your cilantro leaves
- Wash and split your green onions lengthwise, and cut into thin very strips
- Prep your sauce: In a medium sized pan, heat 1 tablespoon oil over medium low heat and add half your ginger - stir until fragrant and add half your green onion and cilantro.
- Stir and cook for 15-30 seconds and add in your sugar and soy sauce - add 1-2 tablespoons of water and heat until just simmering. Taste for salt and set aside.
- Once your fish hits 140 degrees with an instant-read or probe thermometer, remove from the oven - approximately 20 minutes
- Plate your fish individually or on a platter (remove the meat from the skin if you’d like) and spoon on sauce with all the herbs. Top with the remaining green onion, cilantro, and place thinly sliced ginger on top
- Heat 1/4 cup of canola oil in a pan until very hot - test by placing a small piece of green onion or ginger - if it sizzles aggressively, it’s ready. About 3 minutes over medium heat
- Pour the hot oil over the fresh herbs to sizzle - serve immediately with rice
