Kirbie's Cravings

Steamed Fish with Ginger and Scallions

Steamed fish with ginger and scallions is an easy 30-minute dinner. This is a Chinese-style fish recipe that is a simple and healthy recipe – steaming produces very tender fish. It can also be dressed up to taste more like a restaurant version.

steamed fish with ginger and scallions on a white plateThis post is sponsored by and written in partnership with Noble Vines.

Steamed fish is a classic Chinese method for cooking fish. It’s often served at Chinese restaurants using a whole fish and also cooked at home with a more simplified preparation using white fish fillets.

Today, I’m sharing a variation on my mom’s recipe for steamed fish with ginger which I paired with Noble Vines 446 Chardonnay.

Noble Vines is made by Delicato Family Vineyards – a three-generation family-owned winery in California that was founded in 1924.

If you’ve ever seen Noble Vines bottles, you’ll notice that each one displays a distinct red number. Over centuries, vintners have carefully singled out the most admired vines, naming each vine with a unique number to identify its exceptional attributes.

Noble Vines has planted a selection of these vines exactly where they will flourish best. The numbers on the wine bottles correspond with the numbered vine varieties at the vineyards.

For this pairing, I wanted to share this beloved family recipe. I am very fortunate that my mom is a wonderful cook. Her mother didn’t cook at all but she learned from her grandmother and has passed down many recipes to me and my siblings.

This is a dish we ate often as kids. The fish comes out incredibly tender and flavorful and our parents never had to force or trick us into eating fish when it was prepared this way.

She still makes this Chinese steamed fish dish for us when we come home to visit, but now my siblings and I make it on our own, each with our own slightly different takes, which we will hopefully pass down to our families.

For my version, a soy sauce mixture is poured over the top of the fish before it’s steamed. I love all of the flavors, colors, and textures in this dish. It looks fancy but it isn’t hard to make.

six bottles of noble vines wine

Ingredients

  • White fish fillets – I prefer swai fish filets because they are large and meaty but you can also use cod, flounder or another firm white fish.
  • Ginger – I cut it into thin matchsticks
  • Thinly sliced scallions
  • Thinly sliced garlic
  • Low sodium soy sauce
  • Sesame oil
  • Chinese rice cooking wine
  • Cilantro for garnish

If you want a kick of heat you can also add a few thin slices of red pepper or red bell pepper if you want a pop of color without the spice.

a close-up photo of chopsticks holding a piece of fish

The preparation is very easy – just top the fish fillets with all of the ingredients and then steam it all until the fish is cooked through.

At restaurants, they will usually also finish the fish with some freshly stir-fried scallions and ginger in hot oil. The hot oil and toppings are poured onto the fish right before serving for an even more savory dish. However, the just steamed version makes for a healthier meal at home.

process photo collage showing prepped ginger and scallions steamed with the fish

After tasting some of the Noble Vines wines, I knew the fish would pair perfectly with Noble Vines 446 Chardonnay. The tasting notes for this wine are as follows:

This wine exhibits appealing aromas of Golden Delicious apples, pineapple and apricots. Medium bodied with a creamy mid-palate, this delightful wine offers flavors of peach and hints of toasty vanilla spice.

I found that the fruity sweetness and vanilla spice blended well with this steamed fish recipe. My husband and I enjoyed this for dinner, but eating the fish with the wine really made me miss my family as I know they’d really enjoy this pairing. I will have to bring them a few bottles next time I visit to recreate the experience.

a top-down photo of steamed fish with ginger and scallions

More Seafood and Fish Recipes to Try

As stated above, this post is sponsored by Noble Vines. All opinions expressed remain my own.

Steamed Fish with Ginger and Scallions

Servings: 4 servings
Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 12 minutes
Total Time: 27 minutes
Course: Main Dishes
Cuisine: Chinese
This easy and simple fish dish is tender and flavorful. It's also ready in less than 30 minutes!
5 from 1 vote

Ingredients

  • 1 lb Swai fish fillets
  • 3 oz ginger thinly sliced like matchsticks about 3 inches long
  • 4 scallions thinly sliced and about 3 inches long
  • 1 clove garlic thinly sliced
  • 2 tbsp low sodium soy sauce
  • 1 tbsp sesame oil
  • 1 tbsp Chinese rice cooking wine
  • Cilantro for garnish optional

Additional Restaurant-Style Finish

  • ½ oz ginger thinly sliced like matchsticks about 3 inches long
  • 2 scallions thinly sliced and about 3 inches long
  • ¼ of a red bell pepper thinly sliced and about 3 inches long
  • 2 tbsp sesame oil
  • 1/2 tbsp low sodium soy sauce

Instructions

  • Place fish fillets onto a large plate big enough to hold the fillets. Choose a plate that has some depth so that it can hold about a ½ inch of liquid because the fish will produce liquid when it is cooking. Place plate into a steamer. If you do not have a big enough steamer, you can also use a large pot and place a steam rack trivet at the bottom of the pot and place the plate on top. Pour in about 1 inch of water into the pot.
  • In a small bowl, whisk soy sauce, sesame oil, rice cooking wine. Pour over fish evenly. Spread garlic, ginger, and scallions over fish evenly. Close the lid on steamer/pot and bring water to a boil. Steam fish for about 10-12 minutes or until cooked.
  • Top fish with fresh scallions and cilantro. If you want to create the restaurant-style finish, in a small skillet add oil and bring to high heat. Once heated, add in remaining ingredients. Do a quick stir of the ingredients in the hot oil so that everything just barely gets cooked and coated in oil. Pour hot oil and ingredients immediately on top of fish right before serving.

Nutrition

Serving: 0.25of recipe, Calories: 233kcal, Carbohydrates: 7g, Protein: 20.2g, Fat: 13.7g, Saturated Fat: 2.3g, Sodium: 397.5mg, Fiber: 1.1g, Sugar: 1.5g, NET CARBS: 6

The nutrition information provided are only estimates based on an online nutritional calculator. I am not a certified nutritionist. Please consult a professional nutritionist or doctor for accurate information and any dietary restrictions and concerns you may have.

Did you make this recipe?I'd love to see it! Mention @KirbieCravings and tag #kirbiecravings!

As stated above, this post is sponsored by Noble Vines. All opinions expressed remain my own.

Chinese-style Steamed Fish with Ginger and Scallions

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Recipe Rating




4 comments on “Steamed Fish with Ginger and Scallions”

  1. Love this recipe it’s my go to steamed fish recipe, just as a little recommendation I let the fish marinate in the sauce for at least 30 minutes to get more of the flavor

  2. Hi, this looks so nice and fresh! Is there any substitute for the wine as don’t want to use any kind of alcohol in it .