Cá kho tộ (Vietnamese caramel-braised catfish)
60 min · 33 g protein · 439 cals / serving
Catfish braised in a dark caramel, fish sauce and coconut water until the sauce turns sticky, glossy and deeply savoury-sweet, with lots of black pepper, a little chilli and green onion. A Vietnamese home classic that tastes best spooned over plain rice, with a plate of steamed greens to cut through it.
Ingredients
Fish
- 1 3/4 lb raw pangasius, basa or swai (Mekong catfish) fillets, or channel catfish steaks, in 5 cm (2-inch) pieces, patted dry
- 3 tbsp fish sauce, divided
- 2 shallots, finely chopped, divided
- 4 cloves garlic, minced, divided
- 1 tsp black pepper, freshly ground
- 1 tbsp canola oil
- 3 1/2 tbsp granulated sugar
- 1 1/4 cups coconut water, unsweetened
- 2 bird's eye chillies red chili peppers, sliced, optional heat
- 3 green onions, in 3 cm (1-inch) lengths
To serve
- 4 baby bok choy Chinese cabbage, halved
- 1 cup jasmine rice, steamed
Steps
- Toss the fish with 1 tbsp of the fish sauce, half the shallots and garlic and the pepper, and leave to marinate 20 minutes while you cook the rice.
- Put the oil and sugar in a clay pot or a heavy, small saucepan just big enough to hold the fish in one layer. Cook over medium-low heat, without stirring, swirling the pan now and then, until the sugar melts and turns a deep amber, like dark tea, 4–6 minutes. Watch it closely: a few seconds past mahogany it turns bitter.
- Take the pan off the heat and add the rest of the shallots and garlic (it will spit), stir 20 seconds, then pour in the coconut water and the remaining fish sauce. Return to the heat and stir until any hardened caramel dissolves.
- Lay in the fish with its marinade, turn each piece once to coat, and add the chilli. Bring to a boil, then braise on medium-low with the lid ajar for 30–35 minutes, spooning the sauce over the fish every 10 minutes, until the sauce has reduced to a sticky glaze and the fish flakes easily (145°F).
- Scatter the green onion on top for the last 2 minutes and finish with more black pepper.
- Steam the bok choy for 3–4 minutes until just tender. Serve the fish in its pot with the rice and greens, spooning the caramel sauce over the rice.
Good to know
My caramel went bitter or the sauce is too thin. What happened?
Bitter means the sugar went past deep amber; start again, it costs little. Thin sauce just needs longer: uncover and let it bubble a few minutes more, basting, until it coats a spoon.
Which fish works?
Basa and swai fillets are Mekong catfish, the fish this dish is made with across southern Vietnam and in many Vietnamese-American kitchens. Channel catfish steaks are richer, at about 44 instead of 58; mackerel or salmon also work.
Do I need a clay pot?
No. The clay pot (tộ) holds heat evenly and goes straight to the table, but any small, heavy saucepan or skillet that fits the fish snugly in one layer works the same.
Per
- Calories
- 98
- Protein
- (31%)
- 7 g
- Fat
- (14%)
- 2 g
- Carbohydrates
- (55%)
- 14 g
- of which sugar
- 4 g
- Fiber
- 1 g
- Sodium
- 450 mg
More meals
Computed from the ingredients with our published formula, not yet kitchen-tested. General guidance, not medical advice. Talk to your prescriber. How
As written, 1757 kcal goes into the pot and 1902 g of ingredients comes out as about 1800 g of food: 98 kcal per 100 g. Cooking moves water and energy density is the score's biggest lever, so the dish is scored as cooked, not as an average of its parts. Every ingredient links to its food page, with the same data and score. The label's percentages are each macronutrient's share of the calories. The full formula.