Steamed Yangtze Catfish

Literary praise for the long-snouted catfish reaches back to the Northern Song dynasty. While traveling through Shishou in Hubei, Su Shi composed 'Playful Verse on Catfish': 'Pink-fleshed yet boneless; white as pufferfish, yet harmless — pray tell the river gods, why not share such silver-scaled treasure?' — lauding the fish for combining the qualities of rival Yangtze delicacies without their drawbacks. In Sichuan, the fish acquired its own identity: local records from the Jiazhou region (present-day Leshan) described it as found only in the Min River gorges from Xiagou down to Qianwei, tasting finest when the peach-blossom floods drove it up from the deep. Leshan fishing families passed down a tradition of steaming the whole fish with ham and clear broth, a practice recognised in 2018 as one of Sichuan's Ten Classic Chinese Dishes.

The fish arrives whole, skin taut and lightly golden from the broth. Press a chopstick gently against the back and the flesh parts from the spine without resistance, releasing a puff of fragrant steam. The dominant sensation is richness: intramuscular fat has dissolved into the broth during steaming and coats every bite with a silky, almost creamy depth rare in freshwater fish. Ham tucked into the cuts delivers concentrated salt and smoke; mushrooms swollen with chicken broth add a round earthiness behind the clean fish flavor. Dip a flake in the bowl of black vinegar and ginger alongside — one sharp note and the whole dish snaps into focus.

Blanching before scraping removes the surface mucus layer that would produce fishy off-aromas during steaming. Caul fat draped over the fish serves a dual purpose: as it renders slowly in steam, the pork fat seeps into the fish's outer surface locking in moisture; simultaneously it shields the skin from the direct impact of steam that would cause it to split or tighten. Ham and shiitake inserted into the score cuts release glutamate and inosinate as they heat — these umami compounds diffuse into the fish along each incision, building a 'clear outside, layered inside' flavour structure. Using proper chicken broth matters: collagen in the broth continues hydrolyzing at 100°C, building body in the steaming liquid that the fish's own fat enriches into a round, silky finishing sauce; plain water gives a flat result.