Covid definitely put a HUGE block in Vrghr's "Cooking for friends" creations. But during the latter part of the pandemic, as restrictions were loosening, wuffy was able to once again get out and create new dishes for a few friends.

One such friend requested something light and tasty. So wuffy created this entrée to go with a light, Asian-fusion inspired meal.

This dish is Cod fillets, steamed in a bath of Asian-seasoned broth, enhanced with ginger & garlic infused scalding oil, with crispy ginger & scallions. (The scallions were added during the plating and aren't pictured here)

First time wuffy tried a dish with these techniques, and it was a roaring success!

The various herbs and spices in the steaming liquid infused the mild cod fillets with subtle but complex flavors. The scorching hot ginger and garlic infused oil poured over the top just before plating brought some desperately needed color to the pale, steamed fish, while also adding some texture to the topmost layer of flesh, along with a strong initial burst of flavors that quickly gave way to the gentler elements of the steamed fish.

Not pictured here, but the fish was plated in a small swoop of the reduced and thickened poaching liquid, to complement the subtle nuances infused while steaming.

The fish itself was butter-tender, flaky, and juicy.

This recipe makes 2 portions each of the fish, and wuff's friend polished theirs off in moments.

Give this one a try if you're looking for something a bit unusual, but light and lively.

Wuffy paired this with some chicken broth-infused pearled barley, and an "experimental" veggie dish Vrghr called "Moo Goo Boc Choy". The recipes for those two will follow soon.

INGREDIENTS:
~1.5 lb cod fish fillets (Frozen is okay. Thaw it first!)
1 large bunch Scallions (green onions)
2-3 inches fresh Ginger Root
1 TBS minced Garlic
~ ½ C Olive Oil - separated
½ C Chicken Stock
2 TBS Seasoned Rice Wine
1 TBS Oyster Sauce
1 TBS Soy Sauce
½ tsp Sesame Oil
White Pepper & Salt (to taste)

3 TBS cold water and 2-3 TBS Corn Starch, whisked together to make a slurry

DIRECTIONS:
Cut the white part from the green scallions. Cut the white into large chunks and place in steamer. Slice the greens on the bias into long strips and put in ice water to stay fresh

Cut about 1 inch of ginger root into segments and put into steamer (no need to peel those)
Peel another 1.5 inch of ginger root and cut into match sticks. Reserve

Season the fish with a drizzle of olive oil and salt and white pepper
Note: Wuff was hoping for some nice fillets, about an inch or so thick. But all that was available were very thin, wide "fish patty" style. So Vrghr rolled up his fillets to make something that would stand the heat of the steamer and the hot oil without "flash frying" into tough leather. You'll want to do the same if you can't get nice thick cuts of at least 1 to 1.5 inches or so.

NOTE: Vrghr's friend didn't have an actual steamer, so wuff used an Instant Pot for the steamer here, putting the liquid in and adding a trivet to hold the fish above the liquid level. The pot was set to "Steam" mode instead of pressure cooking. When the liquid was up to a boil, wuff added the fish in a perforated steaming basket lined with Parchment paper (to keep the fish from sticking).

You can use a traditional steaming setup for this, but you'll have to modify the process a bit to suit your model.

Add the oyster sauce, sesame oil, seasoned rice wine and chicken stock to the steamer/pot and stir. Set a trivet in the pot or use a steamer basket above the liquid and put the fish on a piece of parchment paper on top of the trivet, or in a steamer basket. The fish should NOT contact the liquid! When the liquid just begins to boil, add the fish in. (If you put the fish in and cover it while the liquid is still cold, your timing will be "off" as the liquid takes time to boil and create steam.)

Add lid and steam fish 6-8 minutes until flaky and tender.

Carefully remove the fish from the steamer and hold on warmed plate in a warm oven

Strain steaming broth/ juices into a small sauce pan and bring to boil until reduced by at least 30 percent. Gradually add cornstarch slurry to just thicken enough to coat the back of a spoon when glossy. Reduce heat to keep warm

While sauce is almost ready, so that oil in this step will still be piping hot when ready to serve, bring 3 TBS of oil to high heat in a small sauce pan or skillet. When it just starts to smoke, remove from heat and add the minced garlic & ginger matchsticks. Stir occasionally and fry until crispy, but be careful not to burn your garlic! If necessary, return to heat to finish crisping the ginger (but should not be necessary if you sliced your ginger matchsticks thin)

PLATING:
Spread a bit of the thickened sauce on a plate. Gently plate the fish on top of the sauce, and pour the hot ginger oil over the fish, spreading the crispy strands of ginger on top. Drizzle a bit more of the sauce over the fish. Garnish with the green sliced scallions

Serve Immediately!

!DEVOUR!