Appetising Steamed Fish Fillets with Lime
It’s sour with a hint of spiciness and very appetising; this Thai-style Simple and Appetising Steamed Fish Fillet with Lime is perfect to spruce up the tastebuds at dinnertime. Everything – from the aroma and presentation to the taste, and the tender, fluffy bite of the fish is enticing, yet very simple to make.
In total, I’ve spent no more than 20 minutes from start to finish for an easy family meal. This steamed fish is something that can be whipped up even while waiting for the rice to cook!
This recipe serves 5 adults.
Ingredients
Fish fillet, for steamed fish, the fresher the fish, the better the dish will take. I used seabass fillet this time, but any white-fleshed fish will do as well. Fillets are so easy to prepare and eat, especially for kids and the elderly in the house. If you have a whole fish to steam, try this recipe. Although the steps are similar, the method to prepare the fish is slightly different.
Salt, to season the fish and enhance its sweetness.
Lemongrass and cilantro roots are traditional Thai herbs that are used to absorb the fishiness while steaming; releasing their herbal, citrusy fragrance. Crush the lemongrass slightly to increase its potency, but don’t consume it as it is too fibrous.
Water, fish sauce and sugar are mixed together to make the seasoning gravy. It gives the sauce a little umami taste and an appetising fragrance too. The saltiness and sweetness of this mixture balance out the sourness and spiciness of the lime and chillis.
Minced garlic gives a lovely, earthy and sweet burst of flavour to each bite. Adding lots of it contrasts the appetising tangy gravy.
Chopped chillies add a hint of spicy kick to the tangy sauce, and make the dish super colourful. Use a mix of red and green bird’s eye chillies to vary the spicy levels. Just a little of the spiciness will go into the dish, compared to stir-frying, or
Chopped cilantro leaves give an additional herbal fragrance and luscious green to the dish. It also doubles up as vegetables for this Steamed Fish with Lime dish.
Lime juice for the sourness and tangy flavour. Make sure to switch off the heat and add it in last as cooked lime juice tends to turn bitter.
Sliced lime is optional. I used it to decorate the serving plate (and visually stimulate the eyes!) but it can be omitted completely.
Steps
Here are the brief steps to make Steamed Fish Fillets with Lime:
- Boil the water to steam the fish.
- Marinate the fish with salt.
- Arrange the steaming plate with lemongrass, cilantro roots and fish fillets.
- Steam the fillets for 3 minutes after the water is boiling.
- Mix water, fish sauce and sugar together.
- Drain the released fishy water.
- Distribute the minced garlic, chopped chillies, and chopped cilantro and evenly over the fish fillets.
- Pour the fish sauce mixture all over the fish fillets.
- Steam for another 5 minutes.
- Pour lime juice evenly throughout the plate.
- Garnish with some cut lime slices.
- Serve.
Tips
- I used seabass fillets for this recipe, but any white fish fillets will do.
- Adding smashed lemongrass and cilantro roots helps to absorb the fishy smell and introduces a lovely citrusy fragrance to the dish.
- Removing the released water when the fillets are half-cooked reduces the fishy smell and taste from the gravy.
- Nutritional information does not include the servings of rice.
- Watch the video to see how I did it exactly!
Storage Instructions
Steamed Fish is always best enjoyed immediately after cooking.
The fish fillets are tender and melts-in-the-mouth, the gravy is citrusy without being overwhelmingly sharp, and the fragrance of the herbs, fish sauce and slight spiciness of the chillies all together makes it super enjoyable.
It is not recommended to keep leftovers of this dish as the fish’s freshness deteriorates very fast even while refrigerated or frozen.
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Steamed Fish Fillets with Lime
Equipment
- Steamer
- Steam Clamp
Ingredients
- 1.5 L water
- 500 g fish fillets, seabass, thawed and deboned
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 2 stalk lemongrass, smashed
- 2 cilantro roots
- 1 tbsp fish sauce
- 150 ml water
- 1/2 tbsp sugar
- 7 cloves garlic, minced finely
- 8 pieces bird's eye chillies, chopped, mixed red and green
- 2 stalks cilantro leaves, chopped
- 2 tbsp lime juice, squeezed and strained
- 2 pieces lime, optional, sliced thinly
Instructions
- Pour 1.5L of water into a steamer over high heat. Cover the pan and let it come to a rolling boil for about 5 to 8 minutes.
- Sprinkle the salt over the fish fillets and rub to marinate evenly.
- Place the crushed lemongrass and cilantro roots on the steaming plate. Arrange the fish fillets on the plate.
- When the water has come to a rolling boil, place the steaming plate into the steamer. Let it steam for 3 minutes.
- Mix 150ml of water, fish sauce and sugar until even in colour and most of the sugar has dissolved. Set aside.
- After 3 minutes, carefully remove the plate from the pot with a steam clamp. Supporting the fish fillets with a spatula, pour out the fishy water and discard it.
- Carefully place the steaming plate back into the pot.
- Sprinkle the minced garlic and chopped chillies evenly around the plate. Pour the fish sauce mixture over the fish fillets, and spread the chopped cilantro leaves throughout the plate.
- Cover the steaming pot and steam for another 5 minutes.
- Switch off the heat. Pour 2 tbsp of lime juice evenly and carefully remove the plate from the pot with a steam clamp.
- Optionally, garnish with some lime slices and serve with white rice.
Notes
- I used seabass fillets for this recipe, but any white fish fillets will do.
- Adding smashed lemongrass and cilantro roots helps to absorb the fishy smell and introduces a lovely citrusy fragrance to the dish.
- Removing the released water when the fillets are half-cooked reduces the fishy smell and taste from the gravy.
- Not recommended to keep refrigerated or frozen after cooking as steamed fish lose their freshness rapidly, becoming stale easily overnight.
- Nutritional information does not include the servings of rice.
- Watch the video to see how I did it exactly!