Canh Chua: Vietnamese Sour Catfish Soup with Tamarind and Pineapple
Inspired by techniques from Serious Eats and NYT Cooking.
A southern Vietnamese sour soup: catfish steaks poached in a tamarind broth with pineapple, tomato, okra and taro stems, finished with crunchy bean sprouts, fresh herbs and golden fried garlic.
Always check the labels of the products you use.
Method
- 1
Season the fish. Pat the catfish steaks dry, toss them with the 2 tsp fish sauce and the pepper and leave while you prepare everything else.
- 2
Soak the tamarind. Pour the 250 ml hot water over the tamarind pulp, leave 10 min, then squeeze and mash it with your fingers. Push it through the sieve into a bowl and throw away the fibres and seeds.
- 3
Fry the garlic. Warm the oil in the small pan over medium-low heat. Add the garlic and stir for 2-3 min until pale gold. Tip the garlic and its oil into a bowl straight away; it keeps darkening off the heat.
- 4
Make the broth. Bring the 1.2 litres water to the boil in the saucepan. Stir in the strained tamarind liquid, sugar and the 1.5 tbsp fish sauce, then lower to a steady simmer.
- 5
Poach the fish. Slide in the catfish steaks and simmer gently, skimming any foam, for 8-10 min until the flesh flakes and reaches 63 °C at the thickest part. Lift them into serving bowls with the slotted spoon.
- 6
Add the vegetables. Add the pineapple and okra to the pot and simmer 3 min. Add the tomatoes and taro stems and cook 1-2 min more, just until the tomatoes soften at the edges and the stems turn glossy.
- 7
Balance. Taste the broth: it should be sour first, then sweet and salty. Add a little more sugar or a squeeze of lime to adjust, but no more fish sauce.
- 8
Serve. Put a handful of bean sprouts in each bowl, ladle the hot broth and vegetables over the fish, then top with the herbs, a spoon of the fried garlic and its oil, and chilli if you like. Serve with rice and lime wedges.
Storage
Best eaten straight away. Leftover broth (without the sprouts and herbs) keeps 1 day in the fridge; bring it to the boil before serving. Not suitable for freezing. Cool leftovers in a shallow container and refrigerate within 2 hours (within 1 hour on a day above 32°C).
Equipment
- small bowl
- sieve
- large saucepan or wok (about 4 litres)
- small frying pan
- slotted spoon
- sharp knife and board
Nutrition per serving (estimated values)
| Per serving | Amount |
|---|---|
| Energy | 352 kcal |
| Protein | 22.6 g |
| Carbohydrate | 27.6 g |
| of which sugars | 19.3 g |
| of which free sugars | 4.8 g |
| Fat | 17.8 g |
| of which saturates | 2.5 g |
| Fibre | 3.2 g |
| Salt | 2.25 g |
Protein per 100 kcal
6.4 g High Protein needs ≥ 10 g
Calculated from USDA FoodData Central ingredient values
