Steamed Fish with Lime and Garlic
Pla gapong nueng manao is a classic Thai dish of steamed fish with lime and garlic. Traditionally, a whole barramundi fish is used in this recipe, but trout, tilapia, or snapper are all suitable replacements. This dish is very simple to prepare and only takes 15 minutes to cook. Make 2-3 cuts on each side of the fish, depending on its size. Stuff each cut and the inside cavity with pieces of lemongrass. Place the fish on a plate inside of a 12” bamboo steamer. A 1lb fish will take 12 minutes to steam; 1 1/2lbs will take 15 minutes. While the fish is steaming, fill a small bowl with garlic, chilies, cilantro, and palm sugar. Bring a 1/2 cup of chicken stock to boil, pouring over the ingredients in the bowl. Let it steep for 30 seconds. Mix in the lime juice and fish sauce. Pour the sauce over the whole fish. Serve the fish with steamed rice.
Servings: 2
Equipment
- bamboo steamer basket
Ingredients
- 1-1.5 lbs whole fish trout, tilapia, barramundi, snapper
- 1 stalk lemongrass pounded and cut into 1” pieces
- 1/2 cup chicken stock
- 1 tbsp palm sugar chopped
- 6 garlic cloves minced
- 3 bird’s eye chilies finely chopped
- 2 tbsp cilantro chopped
- 4 tbsp lime juice
- 3 tbsp fish sauce
Instructions
- Make 2 cuts on each side of the fish. Stuff each cut with a piece of lemongrass. Stuff the cavity with the rest of the lemongrass. Place the fish on a plate inside a steamer basket.
- Steam the fish for 12-15 minutes.
- While the fish is steaming, bring 1/2 cup of chicken stock to a boil. Fill a bowl with the garlic, chilies, cilantro, and palm sugar. Pour over the chicken stock. Mix in the lime juice and fish sauce.
- Pour the sauce over the steamed fish.
