Haruan fish (common snakehead) is often “prescribed” to those who are recovering from external wounds. Since Haze is recovering from her ankle fracture and subsequent surgery, her mom brought us a haruan fish and some herbs for the exact purpose.

We had initially been told to boil the fish with herbs (and maybe add some salt) and be done with, but that would be boring and not terribly palatable. I remember having a dish of awesome steamed haruan at Yap Yin at Seri Kembangan, so I thought perhaps we could prepare it in a similar way. This is my version of steamed haruan with chickene essence.

preparation - cleaning and cutting the haruan
preparation – cleaning and cutting the haruan

Ingredients:

  • haruan fish (duh)
  • garlic and ginger
  • salt to taste
  • some chinese herbs (optional)
  • a bottle of chicken essence
  • parsley for garnishing

and a bottle of chicken essence for extra goodness
and a bottle of chicken essence for extra goodness

Instructions:

  • clean the fish throughly, haruan can be very slimy
  • slice the fish deeply as shown in the photo so that it is faster to cook and much easier to eat
  • cut ginger into strips and garlic in slices
  • rub some salt onto the fish
  • place everything on the plate and steam the fish together with a bottle of chicken essence (open it first or risk explosion, *gasp*)
  • steam in medium heat for about 15 minutes, then stop the fire and rest for 4-5 minutes
  • add garnish as you please, I find a little bit of parsley does the trick
  • pour the chicken essence on fish before serving

KY & Haze
Haze and KY enjoying yet another home cooked dinner

The result turns out to be quite lovely, the chicken essence does add quite a different dimension to the fish, providing a bit of savory taste to counter the fishiness of haruan. Try it.

Happy cooking!

KY cooks – Steamed Haruan with Chicken Essence
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18 thoughts on “KY cooks – Steamed Haruan with Chicken Essence

  • July 25, 2011 at 1:18 am
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    thanks so much! it seems pretty straight forward. gonna try it out soon hopefully.

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    • July 25, 2011 at 8:37 am
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      BY: yea pretty straight forward, good luck!

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  • July 25, 2011 at 3:55 am
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    Sigh. Wish that a haruan can teleport into my kitchen now. 🙁

    Your recipe is such a classic btw!

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    • July 25, 2011 at 8:38 am
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      Michelle: I guess you can substitute with other types of white fish too. 🙂

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  • July 25, 2011 at 7:17 am
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    Nice! You made the dish at home.

    You’ve got the presentation down pat too. Heh.

    Good one, looks really interesting.

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    • July 25, 2011 at 8:39 am
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      Huai Bin: haha presentation is what makes an ordinary dish looks good.

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  • July 25, 2011 at 9:39 am
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    looks intresting gonna try it soon. BTW hope the fish will KY cooked with love will speed up your recovery Haze.

    Take Care~
    David

    Reply
  • July 25, 2011 at 10:11 am
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    i always frequent fook hin at seri kembangan, equally good haruan fish with chicken essence and tonnes of fresh seafood at reasonable price… i love the frog leg in chicken essence as well… yummy…

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    • July 25, 2011 at 1:06 pm
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      connie: frog legs, now that’s an idea 😀

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  • July 26, 2011 at 2:31 am
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    lovely dish!!! don’t feed haze too much haruan though, known to make wounds develop keloid…..let the body heal naturally

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    • July 26, 2011 at 8:35 am
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      kimberlycun: ooo, we only had 2 in total, guess that should be fine. 🙂

      Reply
  • July 26, 2011 at 7:44 am
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    not bad.. starting with recipe now.. the haruan looks super nice.. im still considering to become your neighbor 😛

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    • July 26, 2011 at 8:35 am
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      Tikkoss: properties near my area too cheap for u la. hehehe

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  • July 26, 2011 at 12:45 pm
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    thanx for the steps. i’ve always just thrown everything into the double boiler. now i can try the haruan either steamed as per your recipe or just include the chicken essence into my haruan soup.

    you can get the plasters to prevent keloids from most guardian. they helped on dennis’ face when we had the surgery near his eye.

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    • July 26, 2011 at 1:23 pm
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      missyblurkit: ah, thanks for the tips. 🙂

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  • July 26, 2011 at 3:25 pm
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    wah… when is chef KY going to invite me for dinner at your house?!!

    Reply
    • July 26, 2011 at 3:48 pm
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      eiling: haha you like experimental food ka?

      Reply

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