Hunan Chopped Pepper Fish

Step 1

Place a bamboo steamer basket on top of a 12-inch skillet or wok filled with 1 inch of water, ensuring the basket sits above the water line without touching it.

Step 2

Turn the heat to high and wait until you see steam rising steadily from underneath the basket, about 3 minutes, so the fish will cook evenly.

Step 3

Remove the stem and seeds from each red and green chili by holding it stem-end up and making a circular cut around the stem to pop it out, then shake out the seeds into the trash.

Step 4

Lay one chili flat on the cutting board and slice it lengthwise into very thin strips about the thickness of a toothpick, working from stem to tip, then stack those strips and chop them crosswise into tiny pea-sized pieces.

Step 5

Repeat step 4 with the remaining chili peppers until all are chopped into small pieces.

Step 6

Peel the garlic cloves by laying one on the cutting board and pressing the flat side of a knife down on it with the heel of your hand until the skin cracks, then remove the papery skin and discard.

Step 7

Mince the peeled garlic by rocking a knife blade back and forth over the cloves until the pieces are smaller than a grain of rice — about the size of pencil-tip dots.

Step 8

Rinse the fermented black beans in a small bowl under cool running water for 10 seconds, then drain them in a fine-mesh strainer, pressing gently with your fingers to remove excess water.

Step 9

Pat the fish fillets dry on both sides with paper towels, removing as much moisture as you can so they steam properly without sticking.

Step 10

Slice the scallions by cutting off and discarding the root end, then slicing the white and light-green portions crosswise into 1/4-inch-thick rings; set aside the dark green tops separately.

Step 11

Arrange the fish fillets skin-side down in a single layer on a piece of parchment paper slightly smaller than the steamer basket.

Step 12

Slide the parchment paper with the fish onto the hot steamer basket, being careful not to touch the steam rising from below.

Step 13

Cover the steamer with its lid and steam over high heat until the thickest part of the fish is opaque white throughout and flakes apart easily when you press a fork into it, about 8 minutes.

Step 14

While the fish steams, combine the chopped red and green chilies, minced garlic, drained fermented black beans, soy sauce, and 1 tablespoon of water in a small bowl, stirring until everything is evenly mixed.

Step 15

Carefully lift the parchment paper with the cooked fish out of the steamer basket using tongs and slide it onto a serving plate.

Step 16

Spoon the chili-garlic-pepper mixture evenly over the top of each fish fillet, making sure to distribute the chopped peppers, garlic, and black beans across the entire surface.

Step 17

Drizzle the sesame oil in a thin stream over the top of the peppered fish, using about 1 teaspoon per fillet.

Step 18

Scatter the reserved dark green scallion tops and the sliced white scallion rings in a small mound over the center of each fillet.