Steaming Food. Catering at events
Today I’d like to share a recipe that uses steam as a cooking method ‘Asian-Style steamed Snapper’.
I have had this dish many times when I was working in Sydney many moons ago & it is a favourite of mine 
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Here are some fun facts & history of Steaming,did you know that some of worlds earliest examples of steam cooking can be traced back to the Stone Age in ‘Gunma Province,Japan’ & later evidence shows that steam cooking was used by the Italians & Sardinians during the Bronze Age & steaming pots dating back 10,000 years ago have been found in Cochise County Arizona(USA), in China’s Yellow River Valley steam cookers made from stoneware have been found dating back to 5000 BC.
Steaming basically works by boiling water continuously causing it to vaporize into steam, the steam then carries heat to the food & cooking it, the food is kept separate from the water but has direct contact with the steam giving the food a moist texture. Most steamers today are circular in shape & are made of metal wood or bamboo.
Some of the benefits of steaming are
1 no oil needed
2 no cross flavours
3 steam cooking retains vitamins and minerals
4 steamed food maintains its cancer-fighting properties
5 steamed vegetables are more nutritious & preserve their colour
6 steaming doesn’t change the appearance of the food
7 WOW
So now to the recipe for ‘Asian-Style Steamed Snapper’ which serves 4
Ingredients
4 green shallots end trimmed & thinly sliced diagonally
4cm piece fresh ginger peeled & cut into matchsticks
1 clove garlic peeled & thinly sliced
1 long fresh red chilli halved deseeded & thinly sliced
2 tablespoons soy sauce
1 tablespoon rice vinegar
1 teaspoon sesame oil
1/4 teaspoon brown sugar
1 large fresh whole snapper(800g/1kg)scaled gutted & trimmed of all fins & tail
1 tablespoon peanut oil
Steamed Jasmine rice to serve
Mixed salad leaves to serve
Method
1 combine green shallots ginger garlic & chilli in a small bowl & combine soy sauce vinegar sesame oil & sugar in a separate bowl
2 wash fish under cold running water then pat dry with paper towel inside & out.using a sharp knife cut 3 slashes about 5cm long & 1cm deep into the thickest part of the fish on both sides.
3 sprinkle a heatproof plate with a third of the shallot mixture place the fish on top & spread another third of the shallot mixture inside the cavity & the remaining shallot mixture on the top, then drizzle the soy sauce mixture over the top of the fish & place the plate into a bamboo steamer.
4 using a pot(to which the bamboo steamer can sit on) or a wok if you prefer to add enough water to a depth of 5cm & bring to the boil over high heat then reduce heat to medium & place the bamboo steamer over the pot of simmering water & steamed covered for 12-15 minutes or until fish flakes when touched by a fork in the thickest part.
5 heat peanut oil in a small saucepan over high heat until just smoking & carefully drizzle the hot oil over the fish, again carefully remove the plate from the bamboo steamer & serve with the steamed rice & mixed salad leaves.
As I said before this dish is a personal favourite of mine flavourful nutritious healthy & delicious,
Give it go
BON APPETIT
At A Class Catering we cook in many ways, as Steve has just informed us when looking for your next Caterer
feel free to give us a call we are happy to give you an up to date quote for your upcoming function