Steamed fish is a popular New Year dish among Chinese people because it symbolizes wealth and prosperity throughout the new year. In Vietnam, depending on the beliefs of each region and family, some people abstain from eating fish or not. If your family does not abstain from fish and you have beer on hand, try making this delicious beer-steamed fish dish!
1. How to make beer and lemongrass steamed fish – Beer steamed grass carp
Grass carp is not only delicious, nutritious, good for pregnant women and children, but also used as medicine. However, grass carp is quite fishy, so if not prepared carefully, it can be difficult to eat for some people. Meanwhile, beer is a drink that can remove the fishy smell of grass carp. In particular, beer also helps steamed grass carp meat to be sweeter and more fragrant, so when mentioning this dish, Steamed fish with beer is the dish that people immediately think of Steamed Grass Carp with Beer but not another dish.
1.1. How to choose delicious grass carp to steam with beer for an attractive finished product
To make delicious steamed grass carp with beer, we need to know how to choose grass carp. Accordingly, in Vietnam there are 2 types of grass carp: grass carp and black carp. In which:
Grass carp, also known as white carp: identification features are light yellow body, dark back. Long, cylindrical body, round belly and constricted at the tail. Wide arched mouth and no whiskers. Weight is about 1-3kg.
Black carp: identification features are black body with dark black back and milky white belly. Touching the meat feels firm, large bones, less bones than white carp. Weight is about 3 – 5kg.
In terms of quality, black carp tastes better. With white carp, you should choose fish weighing 2kg or more, which will taste better. Especially for those who eat Steamed fish with beer On the first day of the new year, if you abstain from eating the tail to have a prosperous new year, you should choose a large carp to eat mainly the middle part.
1.2. Ingredients for steamed grass carp with beer and lemongrass
With dish Steamed fish with beer You need to prepare the following ingredients:
1 – 2kg of good grass carp
2 cans of beer
1 ginger root
3-5 lemongrass stalks (depending on your preference for more or less lemongrass)
3 tomatoes
Spices, onions, garlic, seasoning powder, delicious powder, lemon and chili… Some people like to marinate with oyster sauce, fish sauce and some other sauces for richness according to taste.
Ingredients for steamed fish with beer and lemongrass – Steamed grass carp with beer (Youtube screenshot).
1.3. How to make steamed grass carp with beer and lemongrass
Step 1: Scale, cut open the fish to remove the organs, cut off the fins, remove the gills, wash the fish and rub with coarse salt and white wine to remove the slime and fishy smell of the grass carp.
Step 2: If you eat the whole fish, use a knife to make a few cuts on the fish body so that the seasoning can penetrate more evenly. If you avoid the tail, cut off the head and tail and store in the refrigerator for later consumption. Only cut the middle part of the fish into 2-3 small pieces to marinate with seasoning and steam with beer.
Step 3: Wash tomatoes and cut into wedges. Cut off the roots of dill and green onions, wash and cut into 3cm long pieces. Peel ginger, garlic, and lemongrass, crush and chop finely. Remove the stems of chili peppers, remove seeds to reduce spiciness (if you like spicy food, leave seeds), and slice.
Step 4: Add all the spices prepared in step 3 to the fish, add a little more spices, seasoning powder, MSG, oyster sauce, and marinade sauce depending on taste and preference. Marinate the fish for 30 minutes to let the spices soak in. You can flip the fish while marinating or wear gloves and rub the spices directly into each cut so that the fish meat absorbs the spices better.
Step 5: There are also 2 ways to steam fish. Some people steam it in a steamer using a water bath, while others steam it directly. Each method will give a different flavor, but steaming in a steamer is still the most popular. Because when steaming directly with beer without a steamer, you need to pay attention to the amount of beer poured in, not too little or too much, and not too much to cover the fish, so it is difficult to cook evenly like steaming with a steamer.
Many people wonder Steamed fish with beer How many minutes is cooked? The answer is steam for about 10-15 minutes. To add more flavor to the beer-steamed fish, when marinating, you should reduce the amount of green onions and dill. After it is cooked, sprinkle it on top and steam for another 3-5 minutes for better taste.
How to make beer and lemongrass steamed fish – Steamed grass carp with beer (Photo: Anhtp).
2. How to make steamed fish with beer and mugwort – Steamed carp with beer and mugwort
In case you cannot buy grass carp, you can use steamed carp with beer, which is also very delicious and nutritious, no less than grass carp. Especially when combined with mugwort – a vegetable and a medicinal herb in oriental medicine with a bitter taste, warm properties that help reduce inflammation, anti-oxidation, lower blood pressure, dilate the bronchi, protect the liver, … will be very good for health.
2.1. How to choose delicious carp to steam with beer and mugwort
With the steamed carp with beer and mugwort dish, if you choose fatty fish, it will not be delicious and not worth the money because it is a female carp, has a lot of fat and many organs, is very greasy to eat and has little meat. Instead, you should choose male carp with the identifying characteristics of a slim and slender body, these fish will have a lot of meat, firm meat, less organs, less fat so it is less greasy to eat. Besides, when buying, you should also choose live fish, clear eyes, bright color, even scales, not slimy to the touch, no strange smell and good elasticity to process it deliciously.
2.2. Ingredients for steamed carp with beer and mugwort
1 carp from 1 – 2kg.
Mugwort (according to need, if you can eat a lot then add more, if you can eat a little then add less)
1 ginger root
3 chili peppers
5 teaspoons fish sauce
2 cans of beer
Basic spices include sugar, salt, pepper, seasoning powder, MSG…
Ingredients for steamed fish with beer and mugwort – Steamed carp with beer and mugwort (Photo: Anhtp).
2.3. How to make steamed carp with beer and mugwort
Step 1: Gut the fish, remove the organs, gallbladder, gills and wash it. Use salt, vinegar or rice water to remove the slime and reduce the fishy smell, then rinse with clean water. If using the whole fish, make a few cuts so that the marinade can absorb the spices easily. Otherwise, you can cut it into pieces.
Step 2: Pick and wash the mugwort. Peel the ginger, crush it, and chop it finely. Remove the stem and seeds from the chili, and cut it in half.
Step 3: Marinate the fish with spices, seasoning powder, MSG, pepper, etc. 1 teaspoon each and mix well to let the fish absorb. Marinate for about 20 minutes then add minced ginger, stuff mugwort into the belly and head of the fish.
Step 4: If you have a lot of mugwort, you can spread it on the bottom of the pot first, then put the fish on top, add chili and 2 cans of beer, cover and steam over high heat for 10-15 minutes. After the fish is soft, open the lid and add fish sauce to taste to bring out the aroma, then turn off the stove. Remove to a decorative plate and you have the finished product.
How to make steamed fish with beer and mugwort – Steamed carp with beer and mugwort (Anhtp).
With 2 formulas How to make steamed fish with beer and lemongrass and How to make steamed fish with beer and mugwort Above, you can switch back and forth between grass carp and common carp ingredients or apply the same to other types of fish you have available to enjoy the delicious dish right away. With this dish beer steamed fish You can eat this with rice or roll it with vermicelli and rice paper, it will be very delicious. Good luck!
