This GORGEOUS sizzling oil steamed fish is the easiest way to elevate a simple piece of fish. Steam your fish for a few minutes, then pour hot oil over Asian-style aromatics and a simple sesame soy dressing. Serve with steamed rice for a super easy meal, fab for weeknights or dinner parties.
I know what you’re thinking. There is no way steamed fish can be a super flavor-packed, super delicious and genuinely fun meal to make. But this recipe is here to change your mind!
This is based on the classic Cantonese dish, where a whole fish is steamed and hot oil is poured over a big pile of aromatics on top to serve. It’s wonderfully dramatic, and perfect for sharing, but this version simplifies things and makes it more accessible for everyday cooking. It’s got all the same lovely flavors, but it’s much quicker and easier to make, thanks to using fish fillets instead of a whole fish.
It’s one of those brilliant recipes that delivers SO much for so little effort and time. The most time-consuming part is chopping your aromatics, and even that doesn’t take long.
Pouring hot oil over the scallions, ginger and chili on top of perfectly steamed fish serves three purposes:
- It instantly releases all their wonderful aromas and flavor.
- It’s a very fun and dramatic way to serve fish, so it’s fab for easy entertaining.
- The aromatic oil mingles with the sesame soy dressing in the bowl to make the most delicious sauce to serve with the fish.
Ingredients
- White fish fillets. Any firm white fish fillet will do here – I’ve used cod, but hake, snapper, sea bass or tarakihi would be great too.
- Aromatics. You’ll need scallions (spring onions), fresh ginger and red chili here. You could skip the chili if you’re worried about the spice level.
- Soy sauce. This forms the base of the sesame soy dressing you’ll pour over the fish after steaming – make sure you use light soy sauce and definitely not dark soy sauce (it’s too strong).
- Oil. Use a neutral-tasting oil like rapeseed, sunflower, avocado or another vegetable oil. Olive oil is too strong for this recipe.
How to make it
Chop your aromatics into thin strips, then place the white pieces of the scallions on the base of a heatproof bowl. Place your fish on top, then sprinkle with salt.
There are a couple of different ways you can steam the fish, depending on your equipment. I like to use my bamboo steamer inside a larger pan that has a lid, but you can use a regular steamer pot or DIY your own.
All you need is to prop up your heatproof bowl inside the large pan so it’s not sitting in the water. You can use a small upturned bowl, or measuring cup, or even make a ring using aluminum foil and then place your bowl on top.
While the fish steams, mix your sesame soy dressing. Remove the lid from your steamer, then remove the plate. Pour the dressing all over the fish, then divide the prepared aromatics on top of each fillet.
Heat your neutral oil in a small pan for a couple of minutes, then carefully pour it all over the aromatics on the fish. You should hear a super satisfying sizzling as you do, and smell the aromatics releasing their lovely flavor. Top with sesame seeds and cilantro (if you like), then serve with steamed rice (or just by itself!)
Got a question?
You want the fish to easily flake off when you press against it gently with a regular knife – if you feel any resistance, steam it for another couple of minutes.
Steamed rice is a fab option because it soaks up the lovely dressing so well. You could also pair it with a crunchy Asian-style slaw, gochujang potato salad or crispy potato wedges for a twist on fish and chips.
Like this recipe? Try these easy ideas next
If you make this recipe, I’d love to hear from you! You can leave a recipe rating and a comment below. And remember to tag @DishedByKate on Instagram, Facebook and TikTok if you’ve made one of my recipes. Seeing your recreations really makes my day ๐.
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Easy Sizzling Oil Steamed Fish
- Total Time: 20 minutes
- Yield: 2 servings
- Diet: Low Fat
Description
This GORGEOUS sizzling oil steamed fish is the easiest way to elevate a simple piece of fish. Steam your fish for a few minutes, then pour hot oil over Asian-style aromatics and a simple sesame soy dressing. Serve with steamed rice for a super easy meal, fab for weeknights or dinner parties.
Ingredients
For the sizzling oil steamed fish –
- 3 scallions (spring onions)
- A thumb-sized piece of ginger
- 1 red chili
- 2 white fish fillets (cod, hake, sea bass or snapper are great options)
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 2 tablespoons light soy sauce
- 1/2 tablespoon sesame oil
- 2 teaspoons fish sauce
- 2 tablespoons hot water
- 2 tablespoons neutral oil (sunflower, rapeseed or another vegetable oil – not olive oil)
To serve –ย
- 1 cup white rice
- 1 tablespoon toasted sesame seeds
- Handful of cilantro (coriander) leaves
Instructions
- Cook your rice (optional). If you’d like to serve your fish with rice, place 1 cup of white rice into a small saucepan you have a lid for. Add 1 1/2 cups of cold water, then place over medium-high heat. When the water starts to look a little foamy on top, pop the lid on and turn the heat right down. Leave it for 12 minutes, remove the pot from the heat (still with the lid on) and let it sit until you’re ready to serve.
- Prepare your aromatics.ย Slice your scallions into long strips, then separate the white parts from the green. Peel your ginger (the easiest way is to use a teaspoon to scrape off the skin), then slice it into thin batons. Deseed your chili, then chop that into thin strips too.
- Prepare your steamer.ย There are multiple ways you can do this. You can use a bamboo steamer (this is what I do) or regular steamer pot, or create a makeshift solution. To do that, you’ll just need a large pan you have a lid for, and something to prop up your heatproof plate or bowl. You can use a small upturned bowl, or measuring cup, or even make a ring using aluminum foil. Essentially, you just want something that will keep your bowl with the fish out of the water.
- Prepare your fish.ย Place the white parts of the scallions on the base of a heatproof plate or bowl that will fit inside whatever you’re steaming the fish in, then place the fish on top. Sprinkle the salt over both fillets. Pour enough water into your pan so that it comes a couple of inches up the sides of the pan, then bring to a boil. Once boiling, place your plate with your fish inside your steamer, and place the steamer into or on top of the pot. Place the lid on top then steam the fish for five minutes. PRO TIP: If you’re using a bamboo steamer or regular steamer pot, you can even use a layer of parchment paper to place the fish in, then carefully transfer the cooked fish to a plate or bowl to finish the recipe.
- Mix the sesame soy dressing. While the fish cooks, mix 2 tablespoons of soy sauce with ยฝ a tablespoon of sesame oil, 2 teaspoons of fish sauce and 2 tablespoons of hot water.
- Pour the dressing over the fish. After five minutes, remove the lid from your pan and CAREFULLY remove the plate (it will be hot). Pour the sesame soy dressing all over the fish and then arrange the ginger, scallions and red chili on top of each fillet. PRO TIP: If you’ve steamed your fish on a plate or parchment paper, you’ll want to transfer it into a shallow bowl before pouring the dressing on top.
- Pour over the sizzling oil. Heat 2 tablespoons of neutral oil in a small pot. You’ll know it’s hot enough if you stand a chopstick or the handle of a wooden spoon in the oil and you see lots of bubbles appearing around it. At this point, CAREFULLY pour the hot oil all over the aromatics on top of the fish. Scatter with sesame seeds and cilantro, then serve with the steamed rice if you like.
Notes
HOW TO TELL IF YOUR FISH IS COOKED: I find five minutes to be the perfect amount of time for regular white fish fillets you buy at the store, but if yours are a little thicker, you might need to steam your fish for a couple of minutes longer. To check, remove the lid from your pan after five minutes, then press a regular knife gently into the middle of the fillet. If it presses through the fish without resistance, you’re good to go. If not, pop the lid back on and let it steam for another couple of minutes.
INGREDIENT NOTES:ย Skip the chili if you’re worried about spice or if you’re cooking for kids.ย
SERVING SUGGESTIONS:ย I love to serve this with steamed rice, and maybe a little drizzle of chili oil, but you could pair it with a crunchy Asian-style slaw, spicy gochujang potato salad or crispy potato wedges.
- Prep Time: 10
- Cook Time: 10
- Category: fakeaways
- Method: stove top
- Cuisine: chinese
Thanks for the oil heating tip! Delicious meal