First, prepare the tilapia (1.5 lb) (ours was already gutted and de-scaled when we bought it; if yours wasn't, make sure to do that!):

• Cut away the belly fat. It's softer and spongier in texture than the rest of the flesh. Removing it will greatly reduce the fishiness.
• Scrape away the dried blood from the bones, particularly from the spine.
• Rinse the whole fish with clean water, paying attention to rinse the inside to get that bloody residue off.
• Pat dry with paper towels.
• Cut off the side fins from both sides.
• Make a long cut along the back of the fish. This will help the fish cook more evenly because the back of the fish is thicker than the belly; the cut will allow steam and heat to penetrate that thicker side better.

Place the fish in a dish that'll fit into your steamer set-up.

We'll be cutting ginger (1 oz) into two different shapes to use in two different places.

With half the ginger, cut thin slices, then julienne those slices into very fine strips. Put them aside; we'll come back to them at the end.

Cut the green onions (5 stalk) into 3 segments (so we end up with medium-length batons) and put aside the green tops.

With the other half of the ginger, cut into thin slices, and then cut thsoe slices in half. Place those slices along the top of the fish, in a line from head to tail.

The bottom/middle parts of the green onion (that we didn't set aside), we'll carefully shop them lengthwise into fine strips. It's easier to cut them in half first, so they'll lay flatter, and then cut the strips.

Lay the green parts that we set aside under the fish. This way, as they heat up and steam, they'll impart their flavor up into the fish.

Make sure to wash your cilantro (5 piece) now, to make sure it's clean of sand and dirt.

In a small bow, mix together light soy sauce (2 tbsp), dark soy sauce (0.50 tsp), cooking wine (0.50 tbsp), white pepper (0.25 tsp), water (1 tbsp), sugar (0.50 tsp), and salt (0.50 tsp).

Get your steaming set-up ready; ours is a steamer rack in a wok. Boil water in (or add boiling water to) the wok, enough water to nearly reach where the dish will sit, although it doesn't need to touch the dish.

When the water is fully boiling, place the dish with the fish (the fish dish, if we may) onto the steamer rack. Cover with a lid and let it cook for 12 minutes on high heat.

If your fish is smaller, it may finish cooking in 10 minutes.

A good indicator of when the fish is ready is the eyes turning white!

When it's finished, turn off the heat and carefully remove the fish dish from the steamer. Pour out the fish juices into a bowl (some people like to drink this) and remove the ginger.

Place your finely sliced strips of ginger and green onions on top of the fish.

Heat oil (2 tbsp) on high heat for about 1 minute, or until shimmering. Then, carefully pour the oil over the fish. Enjoy the sizzle! You can aim for the ginger and green onions to help them bloom; they'll be super aromatic.

Daddy Lau's pro-tip: wipe the oil from the edge of your wok or pot right after you finish pouring, to keep it from dripping down the underside of the wok. This will make clean-up way easier later.

Garnish with cilantro, sesame oil (1 tbsp), and that delicious sauce we mixed up!