Asian Sea Bass in Spicy Lime Sauce
Thai sea bass is easy to prepare. The fish should be marinated in a hot sauce for 35 minutes. The sauce should be a mixture of coconut milk, agave and lime juice. It should be slightly spicy but not hot. Then, pour the sauce over the fish and serve. It should be a thin, creamy sauce. The sea bass is delicious with the mango salsa. Once you've made it, the fish is ready to serve.
Ingredients
- 1 whole Sea bass
- 4 tbsp Lime
- 1 bulb Garlic chopped
- 2 tbsp Palm sugar syrup (or 2 tsp of raw sugar)
- 2 tsp Seafood sauce (optional but preferred)
- 3 pcs Bird’s eye chili chopped
- 2 stalks Lemongrass cut at desired lengths
- 1 cup Cilantro
- 1 cup Chinese celery
*Syrup is made by dissolving ½ cup of grated palm sugar to 3 tbsp water. Store the remaining syrup.
Instructions
- Insert the lemongrass inside the sea bass.
- Place the fish on a deep plate or an aluminium foil (if no dish available). Steam for 12-18 minutes, depending on the size of the fish. You’ll know that the fish is cooked when it’s eyes have slightly popped from its face. (See the first photo above.) Also, another indication that it’s cooked is when the flesh on its head becomes flaky.
- Prepare the spicy lime sauce by mixing the following in a bowl – lime, garlic, syrup or sugar, seafood sauce and the chili.
- When the fish is cooked, add the juice of the fish from the dish or aluminium foil into the spicy lime sauce in Step 4 for a stronger flavour.
- Put the fish in a dish big enough for it to sit.
- Pour the sauce unto the fish.
- Place cilantro and celery on top of the fish.
- Eat with steamed rice.
Video
Notes
If you plan to make this dish at home, it is important to use fresh ingredients and prepare the fish before cooking it. It is advisable to use a steamer with a small capacity. For a larger steamer, you can steam a whole fish. Otherwise, you can opt for fillets. The fish should be cleaned thoroughly before cooking. If it is frozen, it cannot be seared.