Vietnamese Caramelized & Braised Catfish (Ca Kho To Recipe)
This is an Vietnamese traditional dish of caramelized, spicy and sweet braised fish served with an excellent moutwatering sauce to go with plenty of rice.
Ingredients
- 1 lb catfish filets bone and skin optional
- salt to clean the fish
AROMATICS
- 2 tbsp oil
- 5 cloves garlic minced
- 1/2 yellow onion sliced
SEASONING & COOKING LIQUID
- 1.5 tbsp fish sauce
- 1 tsp salt
- About 1/2 teaspoon thick soy sauce
- 1/2 c coconut juice or replace water & coconut juice with 1 cup coconut soda
- 1/2 c water
- 1 chile sliced (to taste, optional)
- freshly ground black pepper or add as a final topping when serving
GARNISH
- black pepper freshly ground
- 1 green onions roughly chopped
- 1 red chile sliced, optional
Instructions
- Generous salt fish and rinse it under water to wash it. Place it the fish aside and let it dry.
- In a saucepan, add oil and sauté garlic over medium-high heat until lightly brown.
- On top of that, layer onion and then add the fish equally spaced.
- Incorporate the seasonings and cooking liquid (and optionally chillies) and then turn the heat up to high until it is boiling. Test the sauce and alter the seasoning.
- Reduce the heat to a simmer for around 20 minutes. Make adjustments to the seasoning as needed.
- Flip the filets of fish and cook for 10 minutes while the lid is partially sealed.
- Be there to watch it during the last 10 minutes to stop it from burning! In this time, constantly spoon the sauce over the fish.
- Include green onions in the final 2 minutes of cooking time to soften and then finish with sliced chiles and freshly crushed black pepper.