Steamed Monk Fish Recipe

I’m starting to document the different variations of our steamed monk fish. The monk fish I bought the other day at Lotte Supermarket in Orlando, Florida was fresh. This random Vietnamese guy waiting for his fish told me that the monk fish is very fresh today and it tastes like lobster. He told me to season with whatever I want and then steam it on medium high heat for 30 minutes. I bought the smallest piece and steamed for 20 minutes though. It’s good with a dipping sauce though such as Vietnamese sweet and sour fish sauce.

To celebrate my little man’s 2YO birthday for lunch, I decided to let him take partial control in cooking an experimental fish dish – steamed monk fish because he loves eating fish.

Anyway, the first version of this steamed monk fish is prepared by two-years-old chef Ethan Gia Bao as a birthday lunch special since he loves eating fish. This time, I allowed him to take control over the amount of certain ingredients he puts in.

Ingredient: 06/06/2020 version

1 headless monk fish (1.5 lb)
1/4 cup sliced ginger
1 bunch scallion chopped
1 Tbsp Korean vinegar chili sauce
2 Tbsp Lee Kum Kee Soy Sauce for Seafood
1 Tbsp Pantai fermented yellow bean sauce
some black pepper
some onion powder
some garlic powder
some honey (added last unplanned moment)

Direction:

1. Lined the steam tray with some fresh banana leaves. This is so the fish won’t stick to the tray and it’s easier to transfer onto a plate.

2. Brush or rub the monk fish with all the ingredients listed above.

3. Steam the monk fish for about 20 to 30 minutes on medium high heat. I steamed it for 20 minutes this time because it was a small fish.

4. Serve with a dipping sauce if it’s not flavorful enough. I hope you enjoy steamed monk fish! Chef Ethan sure did. I do not like the texture of monk fish and my husband thinks it tastes similar to old aged catfish just without the catfish fishy smell. The meat texture can be chewy and hard if it’s overcooked so never over cook monk fish for sure.