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Ginger Soy Fish - crispy pan seared halibut fish in a mouthwatering sauce. Topped with ginger and scallion and serve with steamed rice. This is the best way to cook halibut!
Chinese New Year Fish
In Chinese food, fish is a must-have ingredient for Chinese New Year because it’s auspicious.
Fish is “yu” (鱼) in Chinese; it means abundance and a symbol of great fortune and prosperity. Chinese New Year meals will not be complete without a fish as one of the main courses!
Traditional, Chinese people eat the whole, with its head and tail, just like my Chinese steamed fish recipe. Whole fish signifies wholeness, which is a lucky symbol. However, not everyone loves whole fish, so I developed this Ginger Soy Fish using halibut fish fillet.
For more ginger soy recipes, check out my Ginger Soy Chicken (Instant Pot) recipe!
Halibut
Halibut is a type of flat fish, with a delicate flavor. It’s a white fish and the flesh has a semi-firm texture. It’s a good fish to eat and perfect for pan searing, sautéing or grilling.
Try to buy Pacific halibut as it’s sustainable. Avoid buying Atlantic breed because it’s over fished. You can get live halibut at some seafood stores but it’s very expensive. A live fish is about $60.
You can get halibut fillet for cheaper price as it’s commonly available in many supermarkets. Frozen halibut tends to be rubbery and dry after cooking, so try not to buy frozen halibut fillets. You can also use cod fish fillets or cod loins, just like my baked cod recipe.
How To Make Ginger Soy Fish
Ginger is the secret ingredient in this pan seared halibut recipe. Ginger imparts an amazing nuance to halibut fish and rids it from potential fishy odor.
It’s important that when cooking halibut, you gently flip the fish over with a pair of chopsticks or wooden spatula. This will prevent the fish from breaking apart. To serve, top the fish with the ginger strips, chopped scallion and serve it with warm steamed rice.
This is one of the best halibut recipes. The fish is doused in a savory and utterly delicious soy sauce. Try my ginger soy fish recipe. Enjoy!
Frequently Asked Questions
This recipe is only 348 calories per serving.
What To Serve With Ginger Soy Fish
This meal is best served with steamed rice. For a wholesome meal and easy weeknight dinner, I recommend the following recipes.
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Other Recipes You Might Like
Ginger Soy Fish Recipe
Ingredients
- 12 oz (350g) halibut fish fillet , or other white fish (please see recipe notes)
- 1 tablespoon cornstarch
- 2- inch (5cm) ginger
- 2 tablespoons cooking oil
- 1 tablespoon chopped scallions
Sauce:
- 2 tablespoons soy sauce
- 2 tablespoons water
- 1 tablespoon sugar
- 1 teaspoon sesame oil
- 3 dashes ground white pepper
Instructions
- Cut the fish into thick, bite-sized pieces. Add cornstarch to the fish fillets and coat them evenly. Set aside.
- Peel the ginger, slice it, and cut it into thin strips.
- Mix all the ingredients for the sauce in a small bowl. Stir well to combine and ensure the sugar melts.
- Heat a non-stick skillet or well-seasoned wok with cooking oil over medium to high heat. Once the oil is fully heated, add the ginger and stir-fry until it turns light brown. Remove the ginger from the oil and set aside in a bowl.
- Using the ginger-infused oil, pan-fry the fish until both sides turn light to golden brown. Be sure to turn the fish gently with a spatula, tongs, or preferably a pair of long cooking chopsticks. Fish fillets are delicate, so handle them carefully to avoid breaking them while pan-frying.
- Add the sauce to the fish. Once the sauce starts to bubble, turn off the heat and dish out the fish. Top with the ginger strips and scallions. Serve immediately with steamed rice.
Video
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Absolutely delicious. Quick and easy and one of the best fish recipes I have ever tried!
Thank you for your comment!
This is now one of my husband’s FAVORITE dishes. I use more ginger than the recipe calls for, and I double the sauce ingredients. DELICIOUS!
You lost most of us with this comment: “try not to buy frozen.” Very few of us have any other choice. Even coastal cities here on the east coast have little opportunity to by non-frozen Atlantic fish, and those of us who live inland are probably totally out of luck. Ocean fish is almost always flash frozen on the boat before coming ashore to the fish markets. And as halibut is a cold water fish, I’m not sure it’s even caught south of the Canadian border, although I’m certain someone will correct me if that’s not true. All of the frozen halibut available in my markets sources from Alaskan waters.
Hi Janet. Yes, I understand it’s not easy to get fresh fish. My comment was not meant to offend anyone. The recipe will still work quite well with frozen fish, but I would encourage you to try it with fresh fish at least once if you are able to get it. The recipe is a Cantonese recipe from Guangdong, China, and traditionally made with fresh fish as the province is next to the sea. Happy cooking!
I made this Ginger soy dish for dinner last night. I used a whole pompano. It was delicious!!
In fact I will make it again tomorrow.
Thanks for sharing!
Thank you for your comment, Eden. So glad you liked the recipe.
This is one of the easiest and best fish recipes out there. I serve with rice and snow peas. You can’t have too much ginger either. Make more than it calls for.
Thank you. So glad you like this recipe.
Wow! How good is this recipe! It turned out so much nicer than the one we had in the restaurant. Plus it was so simple and quick to make and didn’t create a lot of cleanup. Thank you so much, we absolutely loved it!
Thank you!
For being so utterly simple, with easy-to-get ingredients, this was one of the best recipes I’ve ever used for halibut. It’s actually kind of hard to find Asian recipes for halibut specifically (I’ve used it when it was… really not the best choice). And the crispy ginger? OHHHHHH man. I made a LOT of REALLY good dishes for new years, but this one was stunning. Very much would recommend.
Awesome!??
I loved this recipe. I’ll be making this one again! :) I also served with the roasted bok choy and it was a great combo.
I made this dish for my family and it has become an instant favorite. Wonderful recipe.
Thanks! :)
Great dish enjoyed immensely thanks. Used coral trout
My wife was sooo impressed by this dish.