Nyob Zoo!
I wanted to share with you my Mom’s Pompano fish with herbs recipe! She’s been making this dish ever since we were little and I wanted to share so you can make it at home as well. It’s really easy to make and super flavorful. You’ll probably find this dish being made a lot during Hmong New Years. It’s great cooked over charcoal/wood for extra flavor but the oven is also a great & easier way to do it. My mom like to make this fish all year round. It’s great with any white fish of your choice, but she prefers Pompano. Pompano is a very tender and buttery white fish. It’s great steamed, fried, and baked. My mom loves to load it up with LOTS of herbs. The herbs are what gives the fish flavor. It’s great with steamed rice but even better with sticky rice. So happy cooking and enjoy!
Main Ingredients
Pompano fish
Pompano fish is a great fish to use for this dish. It doesn’t have a lot of tiny bones, the meat is flaky, tender and buttery. Pompano is full of Omega 3 fatty acid. So it does well steamed, baked, grilled, fried… all the above.
Cleaning: My local Asian grocery store usually cleans the inside of the fish for me. I usually like to make sure they keep the tail and head on. My mom will usually take them, rinse them again at home, and cut off the fins. Keep the head and tail on though.
Mom’s way: She likes to cut a slit on the top of the fish so she can fill more herbs in this section. The more herbs the more flavorful the fish will be.
The herb mixture:
My mom loves a good combination of fresh lemongrass, dill, cilantro, green onion, kaffir lime leaves, peppers, and garlic. The herbs elevates this dish to a whole new level.
Lightly pound and mix everything in a mortar and pestle. Season with mushroom seasoning and fish sauce.
Place the fish on some foil and fresh banana leaves. Place the herb mixture on the bottom of the fish, stuff the top slip and also the cavity. Place a little bit more herbs on top of the fish. Wrap it well and add water to help the fish steam (refer to the video to see how my mom likes to wrap it)
Cook it in the oven or my favorite is on your bbq grill over wood or charcoal for extra flavor. 
Enjoy with fresh steamed rice or like how many Hmong and Lao people like it, with sticky rice. The liquid that releases as it cooks is amazing to dip sticky rice in. All the herbs used helps flavors the fish wonderfully. It’s full of robust herbaceousness.
-Cindy Her (C.HerCreations)
Pompano Fish w/ Herbs
Ingredients
For the fish
- 2 whole Pompano fish (Cleaned inside: Leave head and tail on. Trim off fins)
- Salt and chicken bouillon powder Enough to season the inside and outside of the fish
For the herb mixture
- 4 chili peppers (diced)
- 2 Tbsp kaffir lime leaves (chopped) (about 10 leaves)
- 2 lemongrass stalk (finely minced)
- 2 Tbsp garlic (rough minced)
- 1 1/2 cups green onion (chopped)
- 2 cups cilantro (chopped)
- 2 cups dill (chopped)
- 1/2 tsp mushroom seasoning
- 1 - 1 1/2 Tbsp fish sauce
- water **See directions
Instructions
For the fish
- Wash and trim off the fins of the fish. Leave head and tail on. Make a slit on the top of the fish to create a cavity to fill the herb mixture in. Season the fish with a little salt and chicken bouillon powder (enough to season inside the cavity and also all around fish) the amount of seasoning really varies on the size of the fish. Eye ball the best you can. Let it marinade overnight in the fridge so the fish can absorb all the seasoning. Once it has marinaded, time to make the herb mixture.
For the herb mixture
- Add all the chopped herbs and aromatics into a mortar and pestle. Pound lightly to just ever so slightly get the herbs wilted. Then add in the mushroom seasoning and fish sauce. Mix with a spoon and taste and adjust the seasoning. My mom doesn't like to make it too salty since the fish is already seasoned.
To finish
- Preheat oven to 350'F. Line the counter with a big sheet of foil and fresh banana leaves. Add 2 spoonfuls of the herbs mixture on. Then place the fish on top. Add a little of the herb mixture in the top slit, inside the cavity of the fish and also on top. Then wrap and seal well with the banana leaves and foil. Place the packet onto another foil and seal one end well, leaving one side open to fill the packet with about *3/4 cup of water. Seal the end and place it on a baking sheet tray. Add about *3/4 cup of water to the baking sheet to allow steam to cook the fish and prevent the fish from burning as it cooks. This herb mixture will make enough for 2 fish.
- Place it into the preheated oven and allow the fish to cook for 2 hrs. After 2 hrs, check the fish and taste the seasonings. Adjust if needed. Enjoy while it's hot with some fresh steamed rice or sticky rice. The juices of this fish is great with sticky rice. Dip the sticky rice right in the juices! The herbs is where it's at for me 🙂 Enjoy & Happy Cooking!
