Cá Kho Tộ (Vietnamese Clay Pot Fish with Caramel Sauce)
Recipe by Chateau Saigon
Photograph by Kyle Ripley, Haigwood Studios
Yield: 2 servings
1 pound mild white fish fillets*
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
5 cloves garlic, peeled and minced
1/2 yellow onion, peeled and chopped
2 tablespoons fish sauce**
1 tablespoon mushroom flavored soy sauce (thicker than regular soy sauce)**
1 tablespoon white sugar
1/2 cup coconut juice (not coconut milk)**
1–2 Thai chile peppers, sliced (or more to taste)
freshly ground black pepper
1/4 cup chopped green onion
Since most home cooks will not have a clay pot on hand, this recipe works very well with a nonstick skillet.
Rinse fish well under cool water. Remove to a plate and pat dry with paper towel. Cut fish into single-portion-size pieces (making it easier to move around in the pan to cook more evenly).
Add oil to a medium skillet over medium heat. Stir in garlic and onion and wilt onion until aromatic without burning the garlic, about 5 minutes. Stir in fish sauce, soy sauce, sugar, coconut juice, and 1/2 cup water. Mix well and bring to a low simmer. Allow mixture to simmer for about 5 minutes, keeping an eye on it so it doesn’t burn. Stir often. (Look for mixture to thicken and begin to caramelize.) Stir in the chile peppers and some black pepper. Place fish pieces into the sauce and begin spooning sauce over fillets as they cook. After about 5 minutes, turn fish and continue bathing in the sauce. Cooking time will depend on the thickness of the fillets. Do not overcook and make sure sauce does not burn.
Remove fillets to serving platter, top with sauce and chopped green onions and additional chilies if desired. Enjoy!
*Chateau Saigon uses basa. Traditionally in Vietnam, catfish is used. Cod or monkfish will also work well.
** A note about Vietnamese ingredients: Fish sauce and coconut juice are readily available in the ethnic aisle at most large chain grocery stores, and certainly at specialty stores like Whole Foods. The thick-style soy sauce with mushroom flavoring and coconut juice (not to be confused with coconut milk) can be found at international markets like Buford Highway Farmers Market or Nam Dae Mun Farmers Market on Spring Road in Smyrna.
Flavors Pairing Suggestion: Pierre Sparr Riesling
Chateau Saigon
4300 Buford Highway N.E.,Suite 218
404/929-0034
chateausaigon.com
Photograph by Kyle Ripley, Haigwood Studios
Yield: 2 servings
1 pound mild white fish fillets*
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
5 cloves garlic, peeled and minced
1/2 yellow onion, peeled and chopped
2 tablespoons fish sauce**
1 tablespoon mushroom flavored soy sauce (thicker than regular soy sauce)**
1 tablespoon white sugar
1/2 cup coconut juice (not coconut milk)**
1–2 Thai chile peppers, sliced (or more to taste)
freshly ground black pepper
1/4 cup chopped green onion
Since most home cooks will not have a clay pot on hand, this recipe works very well with a nonstick skillet.
Rinse fish well under cool water. Remove to a plate and pat dry with paper towel. Cut fish into single-portion-size pieces (making it easier to move around in the pan to cook more evenly).
Add oil to a medium skillet over medium heat. Stir in garlic and onion and wilt onion until aromatic without burning the garlic, about 5 minutes. Stir in fish sauce, soy sauce, sugar, coconut juice, and 1/2 cup water. Mix well and bring to a low simmer. Allow mixture to simmer for about 5 minutes, keeping an eye on it so it doesn’t burn. Stir often. (Look for mixture to thicken and begin to caramelize.) Stir in the chile peppers and some black pepper. Place fish pieces into the sauce and begin spooning sauce over fillets as they cook. After about 5 minutes, turn fish and continue bathing in the sauce. Cooking time will depend on the thickness of the fillets. Do not overcook and make sure sauce does not burn.
Remove fillets to serving platter, top with sauce and chopped green onions and additional chilies if desired. Enjoy!
*Chateau Saigon uses basa. Traditionally in Vietnam, catfish is used. Cod or monkfish will also work well.
** A note about Vietnamese ingredients: Fish sauce and coconut juice are readily available in the ethnic aisle at most large chain grocery stores, and certainly at specialty stores like Whole Foods. The thick-style soy sauce with mushroom flavoring and coconut juice (not to be confused with coconut milk) can be found at international markets like Buford Highway Farmers Market or Nam Dae Mun Farmers Market on Spring Road in Smyrna.
Flavors Pairing Suggestion: Pierre Sparr Riesling
Chateau Saigon
4300 Buford Highway N.E.,Suite 218
404/929-0034
chateausaigon.com