Clear-Steamed Flounder with White Pepper from The Modern Art of Chinese Cooking: Techniques & Recipes by Barbara Tropp

Ingredients

• 1 tablespoon thin (regular) soy sauce
• ⅛–¼ teaspoon freshly ground white pepper, to taste
• 1 tablespoon Chinese or Japanese sesame oil
• ½ tablespoon fine julienne threads of fresh ginger, cut 1½ inches long and as thin as possible
• scallion chrysanthemums
• 1 whole, very fresh flounder, 1½ pounds before gutting—thoroughly scaled and gutted, head and tail left on
• 1 medium whole scallion, cut into shreds about 2 inches long and ⅛ inch wide
• 1 large whole scallion, cut into 2-inch lengths
• 2 tablespoons coarsely minced Smithfield or Westphalian ham
• 2 tablespoons coarsely minced fat from ham
• 1 tablespoon Chinese rice wine or quality, dry sherry
• coarse kosher salt, depending on saltiness of ham