How to make Chinese steamed snapper with black beans, lemon and chilli, a recipe from SBS Food Safari TV show.
Ingredients
50ml veg oil
50g finely chopped garlic
100g Chinese preserved black beans (see Note)
700g whole snapper, cleaned and scaled
Sea salt
1 lemon, sliced
1 large red chilli, sliced into strips
3 green shallots, thinly sliced on the diagonal
1 small handful of coriander leaves
1 tbsp mushroom soy sauce (A type of dark soy flavoured with straw mushrooms)
1 tbsp peanut oil
Directions
Firstly prepare the black bean paste. Rinse the black beans briefly under cold running water to remove any grit. Drain thoroughly. Heat the oil in a pan and fry the garlic for 2-3 mins until it just begins to brown. Add the black beans and stir fry another 2 mins. Remove from heat and allow to cool.
Rinse fish and pat dry with paper towel. Lay on a chopping board and using a sharp knife, slash flesh where it is thickest about 3cm apart as well as lengthways. Turn and do the same on the other side. Season inside and out with sea salt.
Place onto a large plate. Spread with 1 heaped tbsp of the black bean paste and arrange lemon slices over paste. Place plate into a large bamboo steamer over a wok of simmering water. Cover with lid and steam for about 12 minutes.
Remove from steamer and top with chilli, shallots and coriander leaves. Finish with soy sauce and a squeeze of lemon. Heat peanut oil in a small pan until smoking. Pour over fish. This will frazzle the herbs, releasing their aroma. Serve with steamed jasmine rice.
Note: Preserved black beans or black bean paste can be bought at Asian grocery stores or large supermarkets.
If you make your own black bean paste then make extra. It will keep in the fridge in a sterilized jar for 2-3 months. You can also use it for stir-fries, marinades and braises.