Hot and Sour Salmon with Greens

Description

Since salmon is a slightly oily fish, it plays beautifully against the clean flavors of ginger, scallion and bok choy. There's nothing more soothing than tender, cooked cabbage; it is often prescribed in China for relieving stomach pain.

Ingredients

6 wild salmon steaks, about 6 ounces each

2 1/2 pounds baby bok choy or bok choy, stem ends and leaf tips trimmed

8 to 9 whole scallions, ends trimmed, cut into thin julienne slices on the diagonal

3 heaping tablespoons fresh ginger cut into very thin julienne shreds

Dressing

6 tablespoons soy sauce

3 1/2 tablespoons Chinese black vinegar or Worcestershire sauce

1/4 cup sugar, or to taste

2 tablespoons minced garlic

Instructions

1. Trim the tough outer leaves from the bok choy and discard. Rinse the stalks and leaves and drain. Cut the stalks in half lengthwise. Cut the halves diagonally into 2-inch sections. In a bowl, toss the scallions and ginger with the bok choy sections. Arrange on a heat-proof platter.

2. Mix the ingredients of the Dressing, and pour into a serving bowl.

3. Preheat the oven to 450º F. Place the salmon steaks on top of the greens. Pour into a roasting pan several inches of water and heat until boiling. Carefully place the platter of salmon and vegetables on top of a rack or steamer tray in the roasting pan. Cover the top of the pan tightly with aluminum foil. Bake 7 to 9 minutes, or until the fish is cooked.

4. Serve the salmon from the heatproof platter or arrange the steamed vegetables and salmon on serving plates. Spoon some of the dressing on top and serve with steamed rice.

Serves 6

Recipe from "A Spoonful of Ginger" by Nina Simonds (Alfred A. Knopf, 1999)