Photograph of the finished Clay Pot Braised Iridescent Shark Catfish

Vietnam · Cá hú kho tộ

Clay Pot Braised Iridescent Shark Catfish

50 min Hands-on time + 20 min waiting
EasyDifficulty
6 stepsSteps
Serves 4 Amounts follow along 4

What to get ready

  • Photograph of Basa catfish Basa catfish 3.5 lb
  • Photograph of Fish sauce Fish sauce ½ cup
  • Photograph of Sugar Sugar 3.5 oz
  • Photograph of Black pepper Black pepper 0.8 oz
  • Photograph of Shallots Shallots 2
  • Photograph of Garlic Garlic 20 cloves
  • Photograph of Chilli Chilli 16
  • Photograph of Oil Oil ½ cup
  • Photograph of Spring onion Spring onion 3.5 oz
  • Photograph of Fresh coconut water Fresh coconut water 2 ½ cups
  • Photograph of Steamed rice Steamed rice 1.8 lb

Method

  1. 1 Toss the fish with salt and ginger, then rinse and cut into 3 cm thick pieces.
  2. 2 Caramelize the sugar in an earthenware pot until it turns a deep amber color, then pour in the fish sauce while it's still hot.
  3. 3 Cooking in an earthenware pot is key; the earthenware pot retains heat evenly, so the sauce thickens without the fish burning.
  4. 4 Arrange the fish in the pot, then pour in enough coconut water to cover them and sprinkle with chopped shallots and garlic.
  5. 5 Simmer over the lowest heat for 25 minutes, tilting the pot to pour the broth over the surface.
  6. 6 Simmer for 8 minutes until the sauce thickens to a glossy brown, then sprinkle with plenty of pepper, chili, and green onions.

With an appliance

  • Oven 50 min

    Replace step 5: cover the pot and braise the fish with coconut milk on the middle rack of the oven at 160 degrees for 25 minutes; step 6: keep the lid open and simmer for 8 minutes until the sauce thickens, without stirring the fish.

Start cooking