Vietnamese Caramelized Catfish | Ca Kho To
Cá kho tộ, a Vietnamese caramelized fish dish that offers a unique sweet and salty flavor, ideal with steamed rice and complemented by refreshing cucumber slices for balance.
Ingredients
Marinade:
- 3 lbs catfish, cut into filets, bone in
- 1 tsp kosher salt
- 2 tsp black pepper
- 1 Tbsp mushroom powder
- 2 Tbsp fish sauce
Caramel sauce :
- ⅓ cup avocado oil, or any neutral oil
- ⅓ cup sugar
Ingredients:
- ¼ cup shallots, finely chopped
- 4 garlic cloves, smashed
- 1 cup coconut water
- handful whole Thai chili peppers
- 4 green onions, cut into one inch pieces
Instructions
- Marinate the catfish by combining all marinade ingredients. Allow it to marinate for at least 30 minutes.
- In a medium to large pan, on medium high heat, make a caramelized sauce by adding oil with sugar. Occasionally stir with a rubber spatula until it starts caramelizing, around 3 minutes. Do not let it burn.
- Once it caramelizes, add shallots and garlic and cook for a couple of minutes.
- Then add the marinated catfish (with all its juices) and thoroughly coat the fish with the caramel sauce mix.
- Reduce heat to medium and let it cook untouched for 3 minutes on each side.
- Add coconut water and chili peppers (if using) and bring it to a boil.
- Then reduce heat to medium low and let it simmer for 25 minutes.
- Make sure to occasionally spoon the sauce of the fish to ensure even flavoring. Turn the fish over halfway through.
- Once fish is done cooking, add the green onions.
- Serve hot with steamed rice and cold refreshing slices of cucumber on the side. The cool crunch of the cucumber does wonders in balancing out the rich, savory flavors of the dish!
Nutrition
Serving: 1portion | Calories: 543kcal | Carbohydrates: 24g | Protein: 57g | Fat: 23g | Saturated Fat: 4g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 5g | Monounsaturated Fat: 12g | Cholesterol: 197mg | Sodium: 1502mg | Potassium: 1495mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 20g | Vitamin A: 294IU | Vitamin C: 8mg | Calcium: 88mg | Iron: 2mg