There is something so pure about steaming — such a light and soothing way to cook. You can virtually see the steam relaxing your baby potatoes, reducing the tension in your carrots and alleviating the stress of your cauliflower before your eyes. Steaming is also beneficial for the consumer, there being no water to leach out nutrients and carry them down the sink.

You can find triple-decker Chinese steamers in your nearest Chinatown, pay £99 for a whiz-bang two-tier steamer, or turn a wok into an efficient steamer with just two wooden chopsticks or a circular cake rack. By laying the chopsticks in a V of about 30 degrees across the wok, or installing the cake rack so it is at least 7cm from the bottom, you can create a ledge for your dish and fill the space below with water. Cover the wok with a tight-fitting lid or with kitchen foil, and steam away. Check the water level if steaming for more than a few minutes, however, as it will evaporate quickly.

This gentle steamed fish is one of the highlights of the Cantonese kitchen repertoire, and teaming it with broccoli rather than Chinese cabbage is surprisingly successful.

I like to think that a gentle steam treatment, rather like a sauna, will create feelings of wellbeing and euphoria within my fish and broccoli, but that might be pushing things a bit far. Enough, then, that it makes me feel good.

Ingredients
Serves 4

Prep: 15min
Cook: 15min

Use hake, gurnard or line-caught cod, and serve with steamed rice or noodles

4 thick fish fillets with skin, around 180g each
4tbsp soy sauce
1tbsp sesame oil
2tbsp Chinese rice wine/dry sherry
2tsp sugar 1tbsp finely shredded ginger
1 small red chilli, finely sliced
3 spring onions, finely sliced
3tbsp fresh coriander leaves

For the broccoli:

600g broccoli
2tbsp boiling water
2tbsp oyster sauce
1tsp sesame oil

METHOD

Pat the fish dry and arrange it on a lightly oiled heatproof plate or bowl that will fit into your steamer.

Mix the soy, sesame oil, rice wine and sugar, and pour over the fish. Scatter the ginger, chilli and half the spring onions on top and steam for around 10 minutes, or until the flesh parts easily when pierced with a knife.

Steam the broccoli or cook in simmering salted water for 10 minutes or until just tender. Drain well. Transfer the fish to four warmed pasta plates and spoon the cooking juices on top. Scatter with the remaining spring onions and coriander.

Mix the boiling water, oyster sauce and sesame oil until smooth. Pour over the broccoli and serve with the fish.

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