On hot sunny days, having a bowl of sour soup with bồn bồn to cool down is unbeatable! Let’s join TasteVN in the kitchen to make 3 delicious and easy-to-make sour soup recipes right at home!
1. Sour soup with snakehead fish and bồn bồn
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Preparation
15 minutes
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Cooking time
30 minutes
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Difficulty
Easy
Ingredients for Sour Soup with Snakehead Fish and Bồn Bồn For 4 people
Snakehead fish 1 kg Bồn bồn 300 gr Tomatoes 100 gr Bean sprouts 100 gr Basil 50 gr Chili 1 piece Lime 1 piece Fish sauce 1 tablespoon Sugar 3 tablespoons Salt a little
How to choose fresh and delicious snakehead fish
- Choose wild snakehead fish as they are firmer, sweeter, and more fragrant than farmed fish.
- Buy fish that are slender, long, and feel firm to the touch, not mushy.
- Avoid fish that show signs of a strong fishy smell, soft and mushy flesh, pale color, or bruised belly.
See details: How to choose fresh snakehead fish
How to prepare Sour Fish Soup with Bồn Bồn
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Prepare the fish
To eliminate the fishy smell and clean the slime, the snakehead fish should be scaled, cleaned of gills, and cut off the fins, tail, and internal organs.
Then, rub salt on the fish, rinse it clean with cold water, and cut the fish into bite-sized slices.
How to clean snakehead fish to remove slime and fishy smell
- You must remove all internal organs and thoroughly clean the scales.
- Use diluted lemon juice or rice vinegar mixed with water to soak the fish for about 2 – 3 minutes, then rinse with clean water to help eliminate the fishy smell.
- Alternatively, after cleaning the fish, you can soak it in rice water for about 15 minutes to help remove the fishy smell.
- Using coarse salt to rub the fish and then rinse with water is also a good method to reduce the fishy smell.
See details: Effective ways to remove fishy smell from snakehead fish
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Prepare other ingredients
Pick the basil leaves, wash them clean, and then chop them finely. Wash the tomatoes and cut them into wedges.
Wash the bean sprouts clean with water, then drain. Wash the Bồn Bồn thoroughly with water, then squeeze out the water. Slice the chili into small pieces.
Cut the lemon in half, squeeze the juice into a bowl, then add 3 tablespoons of sugar and stir until the sugar dissolves.
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Cook the soup
Pour 1 liter of water into a pot, place the pot on the stove, and turn on the heat to boil. Once the water boils, add the fish to cook until done, then remove the fish to a plate.
Then, add the bồn bồn (water lily stem), and tomatoes into the pot of fish boiling water, bring the water back to a boil, add the bean sprouts, stir well, then add the mixture of lime juice and sugar, and 1 tablespoon of fish sauce, and stir well.
Taste and adjust the seasoning to your liking, then add the basil and sliced chili, stir well and then turn off the heat.
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Final Product
You scoop the sour soup with water lily stems into a bowl, then add the cooked snakehead fish.
The sour soup with water lily stems has a fragrant and distinctive flavor, with the water lily stems being slightly sour, and the sweet, tender snakehead fish blending together with the sweet and sour broth, making it very appealing.
Remember to prepare a bowl of chili fish sauce to dip the fish meat in!
2. Sour Soup with Shrimp and Water Lily Stems
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Preparation
15 minutes
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Cooking
30 minutes
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Difficulty
Easy
Ingredients for Sour Soup with Shrimp and Water Lily Stems Serves 4
Water lily stems 1 kg Giant river shrimp 300 gr Tomatoes 3 pieces Thai basil 50 gr Lemon 1 piece Chili 1 piece Fried garlic 1 tablespoon Fish sauce 1 tablespoon Sugar 2 tablespoons Salt a little
How to choose fresh and delicious shrimp
- Choose shrimp that have intact, firm shells, are transparent in color, and have a distinctive smell (without being fishy).
- Choose shrimp where the head and legs are tightly attached to the body, not loose.
- It is advisable to choose shrimp that have slightly curved bodies, firm flesh, and tails that are neatly arranged together.
- Do not buy shrimp with tails that are spread out and not neatly arranged, as these may be shrimp that have been caught for a long time or have been soaked in preservatives.
How to prepare Sour Soup with Shrimp and Bamboo Shoots
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Prepare the shrimp
After buying shrimp, cut off the sharp head and legs, remove the black thread, then soak the shrimp in diluted salt water for about 10 minutes, then take the shrimp out and rinse them clean with water and let them drain.
Quick way to remove shrimp threads
- Method 1: Use a knife to make a small cut along the back of the shrimp and remove the shrimp thread.
- Method 2: Count backward from the shrimp tail to the second groove, connecting between two segments of the shrimp shell, pierce with a toothpick and pull to extract the shrimp thread.
- Method 3: Turn the shrimp over, use one hand to hold the shrimp body, and with the other hand peel back both sides of the shrimp head, then firmly hold the connection between the head and body, slowly separate the shrimp head from the body. At this point, the shrimp thread is attached to the part near the shrimp head, so it will be pulled out along with it.
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Prepare other ingredients
Wash the tomatoes and cut them into wedges. Wash the water lily thoroughly with water, squeeze to drain.
Slice the lemon and squeeze to extract the juice. Pick the basil leaves, wash them clean, and chop them finely. Slice the chili.
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Cook the soup
Add 2 liters of water to the pot, then place the pot on the stove, turn on the heat to medium to boil the water.
When the water boils, add the shrimp and boil for about 10 minutes until the shrimp is cooked, then remove the shrimp and place it on a plate, let it cool and peel off the shell.
Then add the water lily and tomatoes to the pot and bring the water back to a boil.
Season the soup with 2 tablespoons of sugar, 1 tablespoon of fish sauce, 1 tablespoon of lemon juice, and stir well to dissolve the seasonings.
Next, add the peeled shrimp to the pot, cook for another 2 minutes, taste and adjust the seasoning to your liking, then turn off the heat.
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Final Product
You scoop the sour shrimp soup with bamboo shoots into a bowl, add some chopped basil, a few slices of chili, and some fried garlic on top, and it’s ready to enjoy.
The sour shrimp soup with bamboo shoots is delicious with its distinctive flavor, the sourness of the bamboo shoots, the sweetness of the shrimp, along with the sour-sweet and spicy broth that is incredibly tasty.
3. Sour Pork Rib Soup with Bamboo Shoots
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Preparation
20 minutes
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Cooking
30 minutes
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Difficulty
Easy
Ingredients for Sour Pork Rib Soup with Bamboo Shoots Serves 4
Bamboo shoots 300 gr Pork ribs 500 gr Garlic 2 cloves Lemongrass 1 stalk Chili 2 pieces Tamarind pulp 20 gr (1 squeeze) Basil 4 sprigs Cilantro 5 sprigs Cooking oil 2 tablespoons Fish sauce 1 tablespoon Common seasonings a little (Salt/ sugar/ monosodium glutamate)
How to choose fresh and delicious spare ribs
- Choose spare ribs that are light pink, press and feel springy and do not have a sour smell. This is fresh and delicious spare ribs.
- It is advisable to choose ribs with flat and small bones. This type of rib has more meat and less bone than large ribs.
- Do not choose ribs that have a foul smell, meat that is pale green, slimy meat, and does not have springiness when pressed with the hand.
How to prepare sour soup with spare ribs and bồn bồn
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Prepare the spare ribs
Wash the spare ribs thoroughly, soak them in diluted salt water for about 10 minutes to reduce the smell, then rinse them again with water and let them drain.
How to clean spare ribs without odor
- Method 1: Rub the ribs with salt for about 2 – 3 minutes and rinse again with water to remove the fishy smell.
- Method 2: Using vinegar or alcohol to wash can also eliminate the smell of the ribs.
- Method 3: You can also reduce the odor of the ribs by briefly blanching them in boiling water with a few smashed slices of ginger, then rinsing with clean water.
See details: How to clean spare ribs without odor
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Prepare the other ingredients
Wash the sour cucumber with water, squeeze out the water, and then cut it into bite-sized pieces. Pick the leaves of the basil, wash them, and then chop them finely.
Wash the cilantro, chop it finely. Mince the lemongrass. Peel the garlic, crush it, and then chop it finely. Slice the chili.
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Cook the soup
Place a pot on the stove, turn on the medium heat to warm the pot, add 2 tablespoons of cooking oil, then add the minced lemongrass and minced garlic to sauté until fragrant.
Then add the pork ribs and stir-fry until they are firm, then season the ribs with 2 teaspoons of monosodium glutamate, 1 tablespoon of fish sauce, stir well, and then add 1 liter of water. Next, add tamarind juice, mash the tamarind, and bring the water to a boil.
Once the water boils, skim off the foam, then season the soup with 1/2 teaspoon of salt, 1 tablespoon of sugar, stir well for the seasoning to dissolve, then add the sour cucumber and stir gently.
Continue to boil until the water boils again, taste and adjust the seasoning, add the basil and cilantro, stir gently, then turn off the heat.
Serve the soup in a bowl, add a few slices of chili on top, and it’s ready to enjoy.
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Final Product
The sour soup with bamboo shoots is fragrant with the sourness of bamboo shoots, tender and sweet ribs blended with the sweet and sour broth, making it delicious and appealing.
On hot sunny days, having a bowl of sour bamboo shoot soup with tender ribs served with white rice and a bowl of spicy chili fish sauce is simply perfect. Let’s make it for the family to enjoy!
How to choose good pickled bamboo shoots
- When buying pickled bamboo shoots, choose those with a light yellow skin, a distinctive fragrant smell, and no surface foam.
- You should not choose pickled bamboo shoots that have a foul smell, have unusual colors like overly white or brownish-yellow, or have spots or are bruised.
- Additionally, choose freshly pickled bamboo shoots to ensure a moderate sourness.
- You can buy pickled bamboo shoots at markets in the Mekong Delta provinces or purchase them online. If you have time, you can also make pickled bamboo shoots at home using the following recipe from TasteVN.
How to choose fresh and delicious tomatoes
- Choose tomatoes that are bright red, evenly colored, intact, and not bruised. They should have a light, distinctive tomato fragrance.
- It is recommended to take fruits that still have stems, with fresh stems firmly attached to the top of the tomato.
- Do not choose bruised fruits or those without a fragrant smell, as they may have been forced to ripen.
See more
So you now know the recipe for 3 ways to cook sour bồn bồn soup that are extremely simple and refreshing for your family. Wishing you success in your cooking!
*Refer to the images and recipes from the YouTube channels: Minh Miền Tây, I Love Can Tho Dinh Thi Le Hoa and Hieu Huynh