Steamed yellow croaker with pickled mustard greens on rice
Delicate yellow croaker steamed for eight minutes under fried pickled mustard greens and ginger — savoury, appetising and a Shanghainese home favourite.
- 25 min
- Serves 2
- Steam
- Easy
Why it suits you: Qi-stagnant people often feel low, with a tight chest and sides, and the hot, close Summer Solstice weather makes them irritable and off their food. Pungent mustard greens move qi and whet the appetite, yellow croaker strengthens the spleen and calms the spirit, and a little tangerine peel regulates qi. Steamed and not greasy, its savoury flavour wakes up a jaded appetite.
Method
Prep 15 min · Cook 10 min- 1Soak the mustard greens for 10 minutes, squeeze dry and chop. Fry them briefly in a little of the oil with the tangerine peel and sugar until fragrant; set aside.
- 2Rinse and pat the fish dry, make two cuts on each side, rub with the salt and wine, lay the ginger on top and spread the mustard greens over.
- 3Steam over high heat for 8 minutes, then turn off the heat and leave covered for 1 minute. Pour away excess liquid from the plate.
- 4Top with the spring onion, pour over the rest of the oil heated until smoking, then the soy sauce, and serve with rice.
Cautions
- Pickled mustard greens are salty, so soak them well; if you have high blood pressure, use less soy sauce.
Chef's tips
- Adjust the steaming time to the thickness of the fish: it's done when a chopstick slides easily into the thickest part.
The TCM view
Yellow croaker is sweet and neutral, strengthening the spleen, whetting the appetite, boosting qi and calming the spirit. Pickled mustard greens are pungent and warm, dispersing phlegm, warming the middle and moving qi. Tangerine peel is pungent, bitter and warm, regulating qi and strengthening the spleen, and ginger settles the stomach. Fragrant, qi-moving flavours with a spleen-strengthening fish move qi without depleting it.
