Steamed crucian carp with amomum and brown rice
Crucian carp stuffed with amomum, tangerine peel and ginger and steamed — gently aromatic, damp-resolving and appetising, with sweet, tender flesh and filling brown rice.
- 27 min
- Serves 2
- Steam
- Medium
Why it suits you: Phlegm-damp types feel heavy and sluggish with poor appetites, and Hong Kong's humid Liqiu heat leaves them with a heavy head and bloating. Crucian carp strengthens the spleen and drains damp, amomum resolves damp and stirs the appetite, and tangerine peel dries damp and resolves phlegm. Steamed rather than fried, with fibre-rich brown rice, it fills you up without adding damp.
Method
Prep 15 min · Cook 12 min- 1Scale the fish and scrape out the black membrane inside the belly. Rinse, pat dry and make three slashes on each side, then rub with the salt and wine and leave for 10 minutes.
- 2Crush the amomum; soak the tangerine peel, scrape off the pith and shred. Stuff half the ginger, the peel and the amomum into the belly and slashes.
- 3Lay spring onion lengths on a plate, put the fish on top and scatter over the remaining ginger. Steam over a high heat for 10–12 minutes until the eyes bulge and the flesh is cooked through.
- 4Pour off the liquid, top with shredded spring onion, pour over smoking-hot oil, then the soy sauce. Serve with the brown rice.
Cautions
- Crucian carp has many fine bones, so eat slowly — it's not ideal for young children or older people; halve the amomum if you run hot with a dry mouth.
Chef's tips
- Scrape the black membrane from the belly thoroughly to avoid a muddy taste; amomum is sold at herbal shops and is most fragrant freshly crushed.
The TCM view
Crucian carp is sweet and neutral, strengthening the spleen, settling the stomach and draining water — a fish long used in damp-clearing food therapy. Amomum is pungent and warm, resolving damp, warming the spleen and moving qi; tangerine peel is pungent, bitter and warm, drying damp and resolving phlegm; ginger warms the middle and transforms fluids. Steamed with little oil, it strengthens the spleen and resolves damp.
