Glass catfish is considered a delicious specialty in the Mekong Delta. Today, TasteVN will share with you 2 recipes for cooking glass catfish steamed with lemongrass and steamed with young bottle gourd that are extremely delicious. Let’s get cooking right away with this steamed dish!
1. Steamed glass catfish with lemongrass
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Preparation
30 minutes
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Cooking
20 minutes
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Difficulty
Easy
Ingredients for Steamed Glass Catfish with Lemongrass Serves 4
Glass catfish 5 kg (about 10 fish) Lemongrass 500 gr Chili 6 pieces Garlic 5 cloves Calamondin 1 piece Cooking oil 2 tablespoons Common seasoning a little (salt/ sugar/ monosodium glutamate)
Ingredient Image
How to Cook Steamed Glass Catfish with Lemongrass
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Prepare the fish
After purchasing, the glass catfish should be cleaned thoroughly, removing the internal organs, cutting off the tail and scales, then wash several times with water and let it drain.
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Prepare the other ingredients
Wash the lemongrass clean, tie the lemongrass leaves together, and crush the stalks before cutting them into pieces about 2 finger lengths long.
Peel the garlic and then mince it. Cut the 3 chili peppers into small pieces.
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Make the dipping salt
Put 1 tablespoon of salt, 1 teaspoon of monosodium glutamate, 2 teaspoons of sugar, and 3 chili peppers into a mortar. Next, pound the mixture until smooth.
Transfer the salt mixture to a bowl, add the juice of 1 calamondin lime, and stir well.
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Completion
Put a pot on the stove, heat the pot, and add 2 tablespoons of cooking oil, then add the minced lemongrass and garlic to sauté until fragrant.
Next, add about 1 liter of water to the pot, then add the glass fish, lemongrass leaves, the 3 cut chili peppers, 1 tablespoon of salt, 1 teaspoon of monosodium glutamate, and 2 teaspoons of sugar. Stir the seasonings, cook over medium heat for about 15 – 20 minutes, when you see the fish skin cracking, the fish is done.
Note: Depending on whether your pot is large or small, adjust the amount of water accordingly. The water level should cover 2/3 of the fish!
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Final Product
Place the grilled catfish with lemongrass on a plate and enjoy. The dish has a strong lemongrass aroma; when eating, remember to remove the outer skin! The fish is chewy and sweet, served with a sour and spicy chili salt. You should eat the grilled catfish with lemongrass while it’s hot for better taste and to avoid any fishy smell!
2. Grilled Catfish with Young Bottle Gourd
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Preparation
30 minutes
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Cooking
20 minutes
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Difficulty Level
Easy
Ingredients for Grilled Catfish with Young Bottle Gourd Serves 3 people
Catfish 3 kg (about 5 fish) Young bottle gourd 1 kg Lemongrass 6 stalks Shallots 8 bulbs Garlic 14 cloves Chili 10 peppers Cooking oil 2 tablespoons Fish sauce 1 tablespoon Common seasonings a little (salt/ sugar/ monosodium glutamate)
How to choose fresh and delicious young gourds
- You should choose small young gourds with green skin and small veins on the fruit.
- When you hold it, it should feel heavy, with fresh stems and few black spots.
- You should avoid large gourds as they tend to be older and fibrous, and avoid those that have been stung by insects or have damaged skin.
How to prepare steamed young gourd with glass fish
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Prepare the vegetables
For the young gourd, after buying, use a knife to scrape off the outer skin, then wash it several times with water.
Smash the lemongrass and cut it into 3 pieces about 2 finger lengths long, and finely chop the remaining 3 pieces. Finely chop the chili, 3 cloves of garlic, and finely chop 3 shallots after peeling.
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Preparation and marinating fish
Clean the glass fish you bought by removing the intestines, scales, tail, and fins, then rinse thoroughly several times with water.
Insert 2 cloves of garlic and 1 onion into the fish’s cavity, and do the same for the rest of the glass fish.
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Steaming the dish
Heat a pot and add 2 tablespoons of cooking oil; when the oil is hot, add minced garlic, shallots, and lemongrass and sauté until fragrant. Then add the glass fish, cooking for about 2 – 3 minutes until the fish firms up, then add water until it covers 2/3 of the fish.
Next, add minced chili and cut lemongrass into pieces, cover the pot, and cook on high heat for about 10 – 15 minutes until the fish is cooked through.
Finally, season with 1 tablespoon of fish sauce, 1 tablespoon of salt, 1 teaspoon of monosodium glutamate, 1 teaspoon of sugar, then add the young loofah and cook for another 5 minutes; taste and adjust seasoning before turning off the heat!
Tip: Depending on how much your family wants to eat the loofah cooked or not, adjust the timing for adding the loofah to the fish!
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Finished Product
Serve the steamed glass fish with young loofah on a plate and enjoy. The dish is fragrant with the aroma of lemongrass blended with the scent of purple onion, the sweet and clear fish broth, the chewy and aromatic fish meat, and the crispy sweet young loofah.
The fish will taste better if you dip it in chili salt and lime, and enjoying it hot will enhance the dish’s flavor.
Information about the glass catfish
- Glass catfish or “glass cleaner fish” is a species of fish in the family Loricariidae, belonging to the order Siluriformes. In Vietnam, many people also call it “tỳ bà fish” or “devil face fish”. In the Mekong Delta region, glass catfish are widely distributed and are often found in various canals, ditches, ponds, lakes, etc.
- It can grow up to 70cm in length and weigh several kilograms. Its appearance is considered quite unattractive by many, with a dark brown body, tough, rough skin, a large mouth resembling a bowl, and fins and tail that are always erect, giving it a rather scary look.
- Regarded as a “specialist” in eating algae and cleaning slime from tank walls and bottoms, it is suitable for cohabitation with many species.
- The taste of glass catfish is rated by many internet users as delicious “not inferior to chicken” due to its particularly sweet and chewy texture.
Where to buy glass catfish?
- Although glass catfish are an invasive species that causes harm, due to their delicious flavor, they have gradually become a specialty, especially in the western water provinces.
- Nowadays, glass catfish are quite commonly used, and you can buy them at markets in the western provinces or directly from locals.
See also:
Hope that 2 ways to steam glass fish with lemongrass and steamed young gourd that TasteVN introduces will help your family have more delicious dishes to enjoy! Wishing you success in making it!
*Image source and recipe referenced from 2 YouTube channels: Huỳnh Thùy Vlog and Tình Quê Vlog
