Steam Whole Tilapia with Ginger and Scallion In 5 Minutes

One of my favourite steam fish is tilapia. I like to steam the fish if it's fresh coz I can enjoy tasting the freshness of the fish with simple soy sauce and all the herbs like ginger,garlic,cilantro and scallion. Years ago I learned this simple steam technique from a good friend of mine who told me to use microwave instead of wok and it's cover over direct fire on a stove.It's really a hassle to steam a fish using all those equipments,right? Microwave is the greatest creation and investment that god send to us! Believe me! I can steam a 2 pound fresh whole tilapia in 5 minutes not 30 minutes or more.We all know steaming foods in wok takes times like waiting for the water in the wok to heat up or boil before the food can be cooked .Believe me it's really easy ,clean and simple to steam fish in microwaves! Furthermore steaming fish is more healthier than deep fry !

Ingredients:

1 whole tilapia,about 2 lbs,clean ,remove scales and entrails

1 stalk scallion ,clean and cut

1 stalk cilantro,clean and cut

3 cloves garlic,peel and sliced

2 inch ginger,peel and sliced

2-3 tbsp soy sauce

1 tbsp oil

1 tbsp sesame oil* optional*

Method:

1: Clean and wash tilapia .Remove scales by scraping the fish and make a cut from the gills to the vent. Remove the entrails with your fingers and check the cavity carefully to make sure everything been removed ( I request fish seller to clean for me ).

2:Prepare and cut all herbs ,set aside.Lay the clean whole fish on a large plate and top with all the cut herbs.Cover the whole fish with a cling wrapping film tightly and use tip knife to poke 2 holes on it as the vents.

3:Cook the whole fish in microwaves at high for 3 minutes first.Again it's depend on the weight of your fish,how long the fish should cook.Check the fish with a chopstick or bamboo stick.If you can pierce with chopstick or bamboo stick all the way through in the fish center ,that mean it's cooked,if it's not cook ,microwave for another 1 minute or more. If you have higher watts power microwave,3-5 minutes will do for 2 pound fish.

4:In the meantime heat skillet at high heat,add oil and soy sauce into it.Removed cooked fish from microwaves.Quickly removed the cling wrapping film and pour the hot oil and soy sauce over the cooked fish.Drizzling sesame oil on the top.Serve hot or warm with rice.

Note:

You can use boneless fish fillets instead of whole fish if you're not use to eat fish in bone .The reason I heat up oil and soy sauce in hot skillet first before pour over the fish it to make the steam fish texture look good and it's flavour taste better!