Vietnamese turmeric fish, Cha ca La Vong
This marinated fish and greens dish is easy to make and packed with flavor.
Servings: 2 approx
Calories: 567kcal
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Ingredients
To marinate fish
- ¾ lb catfish or other firm white fish eg cod, haddock, hake, monkfish
- 1 teaspoon galangal minced/grated, or ginger as substitute
- 1 clove garlic
- 2 tablespoon shallot finely chopped volume (2tbsp is around ½ medium shallot)
- 1 teaspoon dried turmeric or a little more grated fresh
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon sugar
- 1 teaspoon fish sauce
- 1 teaspoon vegetable oil or other neutral oil
For rest of dish
- 1 ½ tablespoon vegetable oil for frying, or a little more as needed
- 4 spring onions scallions, or more if small
- 6 stems dill or more if small
To serve
- 3 oz rice vermicelli noodles approximately
- 2 tablespoon unsalted roasted peanuts approximately
For nuoc cham (optional, to serve - can omit or use mam tom shrimp paste)
- ½ red chili eg Thai, or more/less to taste, finely chopped
- ½ clove garlic minced
- 2 tablespoon water
- 1 ½ tablespoon lime juice
- 1 tablespoon fish sauce
- ½ tablespoon sugar
- ⅛ teaspoon salt
Instructions
Ahead of time
- Cut the fish into strips, around 1 ½ - 2 inches deep (3 ½ - 5cm) and either the width of the fillet or half the width if it's thicker. I'd generally recommend leaving the skin on to help the pieces hold together better but remove scales. The exact size of the pieces is not too important, but you're looking for good bite-sized pieces once cooked. Grate or mince the galangal (or ginger, if substituting) and the garlic. Finely chop the shallot (or mince - you want pretty fine).
- Place the pieces of fish in a bowl and add the galangal, ginger, shallot, turmeric, salt, sugar, fish sauce and oil in the marinade. Mix everything together so the pieces of fish are evenly coated with the mixture but take care not to break up the fish pieces. Cover and refrigerate to let the fish marinate for around 30 minutes. You can prepare some of the rest of the dish in the meantime.
When ready to cook
- Trim the ends from the spring onions/scallions then cut into lengths, roughly 2 - 3 inches (5 - 7 ½cm) in length, both the white and green parts. Cut thicker parts in half length-wise as well. Remove the thicker stems from the dill then cut the top part into lengths, also around 2 - 3 inches (5 - 7 ½cm).
- Prepare the rice vermicelli noodles for serving according to packet instructions - typically you simply soak in boiling water to hydrate and soften, then drain and set aside (ideally drain as the fish cooks to be still warm). Combine the nuoc cham ingredients, if using, in a small dish.
- Warm the oil in a small-medium skillet/frying pan over a medium heat - add a little more oil if needed so you have a thin layer all over. Add the pieces of fish and fry for a few minutes either side until a lightly golden crust forms on each side and the fish is almost cooked through.
- Once the fish is seared on all sides and largely cooked, push the fish to the sides of the skillet/pan and if needed, add a little more oil in the middle. Add the spring onions/scallions and dill in the middle and wilt them down, turning over as needed so all pieces can wilt in the heat. It should only take a minute or two.
- Remove the fish and greens from the heat and serve over the rice noodles, topped with some sauce and peanuts. You may want to serve just some of the fish and greens at a time over the noodles, then take more from the shared skillet as needed (or divide the fish and greens onto separate individual dishes). To eat, pick up some of each of the ingredients then dip in sauce before eating.
Video
Notes
You can optionally add a little mam tom shrimp paste to the marinade as well (around up to 1tsp/5ml for 1 recipe quantity).
More traditionally, you either shallow-fry the fish in a larger amount of oil or grill the fish first then add to a tabletop/charcoal burner with the greens. However the method above works well and is both more realistic at home and uses less dishes.
Feel free to increase the quantity of spring onions and dill, to taste - remember it reduces down a lot when it cooks. You can also add additional fresh herbs to serve.
Nutrition
Calories: 567kcal | Carbohydrates: 50g | Protein: 35g | Fat: 25g | Saturated Fat: 4g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 10g | Monounsaturated Fat: 8g | Trans Fat: 0.1g | Cholesterol: 99mg | Sodium: 1559mg | Potassium: 959mg | Fiber: 3g | Sugar: 7g | Vitamin A: 671IU | Vitamin C: 30mg | Calcium: 83mg | Iron: 2mg
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