Steamed Fish

Steamed Fish is the ultimate expression of the Cantonese philosophy: the best food lets the ingredients speak for themselves. A whole fresh fish — typically grouper, sea bass, or grass carp — is steamed with slivers of ginger and scallions. The timing is critical: one extra minute and the fish is overdone. When it emerges, it's drizzled with a mixture of heated soy sauce and oil that sizzles on contact. The flesh should be buttery, flaky, and sweet, lifted by the ginger and soy.

📖 History

Steaming has been the preferred cooking method in Guangdong for millennia, valued for preserving the natural flavors and textures of fresh ingredients. The whole-fish presentation symbolizes abundance in Chinese culture.