Steamed ling with asparagus and beurre blanc

Nothing beats the combined simplicity and sophistication of a French beurre blanc, a classic sauce made from reduced white wine and eschallots that thickens to a smooth sauce with the addition of chilled butter. This sauce pairs perfectly with seafood and delicate vegetables - so crack out that bamboo steamer and let the sauce do the talking.

• serves

  3

• prep

  5 minutes

• cook

  8 minutes

• difficulty

  Easy

Series. Cooking. Rated PG.

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The Cook Up with Adam Liaw

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Ingredients

• 3 ling fillets, skin removed (around 160 g each)
• 6 asparagus spears, lightly peeled along the woody stem

For the beurre blanc

• ½ cup white wine
• ¼ cup white wine vinegar
• 1 eschallot, finely chopped
• 250 g butter, cubed, chilled
• Salt

Instructions

1. Prepare a steamer by bringing a medium saucepan (that snugly fits a bamboo steamer atop) of water to a simmer.
2. To make the beurre blanc, combine the white wine, vinegar and eschallot in a small saucepan and bring to a simmer. Cook until the liquid reduces to around ¼ cup. Whisk in the butter gradually until the mixture forms a thick sauce, then season to taste with salt.
3. While the wine reduces, place the fish onto a plate, skin-side down, then steam in the bamboo steamer for about 8 minutes, or until just cooked. 3 minutes before the cook time finishes, add the asparagus to the steamer and steam until tender, then remove from the heat.
4. Transfer the steamed ling and asparagus to a serving plate, sprinkle with salt and use a fine mesh strainer to strain over the beurre blanc. Serve immediately.

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Cook's Notes

Oven temperatures are for conventional; if using fan-forced (convection), reduce the temperature by 20˚C. | We use Australian tablespoons and cups: 1 teaspoon equals 5 ml; 1 tablespoon equals 20 ml; 1 cup equals 250 ml. | All herbs are fresh (unless specified) and cups are lightly packed. | All vegetables are medium size and peeled, unless specified. | All eggs are 55-60 g, unless specified.