To make family meals more diverse, try changing the daily menu with 2 extremely delicious and flavorful ocean tuna eye hot pot dishes with very simple preparation methods. Let’s get cooking with TasteVN and immediately prepare this delicious hot pot that is perfectly restaurant-style!
1. Ocean Tuna Eye Hot Pot with Sour Bamboo Shoot
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Preparation
15 minutes
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Cooking
30 minutes
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Difficulty
Easy
Ingredients for Ocean Tuna Eye Hot Pot with Sour Bamboo Shoot Serves 4 people
Tuna eye 1 kg Vermicelli 1 kg Sour bamboo shoots 500 gr Tomatoes 2 pieces Pineapple 100 gr (pineapple) Garlic 4 cloves Lemongrass 2 stalks Green onions 2 stalks Water spinach 100 gr Sliced banana flower 100 gr Giant water lily 4 stalks (mint) Herbs a little (green onions/cilantro/ Vietnamese coriander) Satay 1 tablespoon Cooking oil 1 tablespoon Common seasoning a little (sugar/salt/seasoning powder/MSG)
How to choose fresh ingredients
How to choose delicious crunchy sour bamboo shoots
- You can choose to buy whole bamboo shoots or thinly sliced bamboo shoots with garlic and chili depending on your preference.
- When buying bamboo shoots, select those with a light yellow outer skin, a characteristic fragrant smell, and no floating layers.
- Additionally, bamboo shoots that have not been soaked in chemicals should not have excessive shine and should look unappealing.
- You should avoid choosing sour bamboo shoots that have a foul smell, an unusual outer skin color such as overly white or brownish-yellow, with spots or mushy surfaces.
- Moreover, if you have time, you can easily make sour bamboo shoots at home following the recipe from TasteVN.
How to choose fresh tomatoes
- Pay close attention to the color and aroma of the tomatoes. Choose those that are bright red, uniformly colored, with a firm and smooth skin, and feel solid when held.
- Good tomatoes have a light, natural fragrance. The green stem is fresh and tightly attached to the top of the fruit. If you pull the stem, if it is firmly attached and does not easily fall off, it indicates that it is fresh tomato, which will taste very good.
- You should avoid choosing tomatoes that are overly red, have wrinkled skin, wilted and detached stems, and have no aroma when sniffed, as these are overripe and mushy tomatoes.
How to choose fresh and delicious water spinach
- Prioritize selecting bunches of water spinach with stems about the size of a rice eating chopstick, avoiding those with unusually large stems. The tips should be small and look a bit stiff.
- It is advisable to eat water spinach in season; the best water spinach is available in summer from April to June.
- Avoid choosing water spinach that looks too lush; when snapping the stem, it should be very crisp and the leaves should be dark green.
See details: How to choose fresh and delicious water spinach
How to prepare Ocean Tuna Eye Hotpot with Sour Bamboo Shoots
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Prepare the tuna eyes
After purchasing the tuna eyes, remove all blood vessels attached around the eyes. Soak the tuna eyes in diluted salt water for about 15 minutes, then take them out and rinse thoroughly several times with clean water, and let them drain.
Next, bring a pot of water to a boil and blanch the fish for about 5 minutes, then remove and let cool.
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Prepare other ingredients
After buying water spinach, you should pick the tender stems, soak them in diluted salt water along with sliced banana blossom for about 10 minutes, then rinse thoroughly with cold water and drain.
Peel the outer fibrous layer of the “dọc mùng”, wash it clean, and then cut it into bite-sized pieces.
For pickled bamboo shoots, rinse them with water. Boil a pot of water and then add the bamboo shoots to cook for about 10 – 15 minutes on low heat. After boiling, remove the bamboo shoots, rinse them with water, and let them drain. Next, use a knife to slice the bamboo shoots into thin pieces.
If using pickled bamboo shoots with garlic and chili already sliced, to reduce the sourness and clean off dirt, just rinse with water 2 – 3 times and let them drain.
Wash the tomatoes and cut them into wedges. Cut the lemongrass into sections and crush them. Peel the garlic and mince it. Wash and chop the green onions, cilantro, and coriander.
Blend the pineapple and then mix it with 3 liters of filtered water.
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Cooking Hot Pot
Place a pot on the stove, add 1 tablespoon of cooking oil and heat it up, then add minced garlic, 1 tablespoon of satay, and smashed lemongrass to the pot and sauté until fragrant.
Next, add the quartered tomatoes and stir evenly over medium heat until the tomatoes change color. Then, pour the 3 liters of fragrant water previously blended into the pot and bring it to a boil.
When the broth starts boiling, add the fish eyes and sour bamboo shoots to the pot. Add 1 tablespoon of salt, 2.5 tablespoons of sugar, 1 tablespoon of seasoning powder, and 1/3 tablespoon of monosodium glutamate to the pot.
Stir well and let the hot pot broth boil again, then season to taste to finish.
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Final Product
The ocean tuna eye hot pot with sour bamboo shoots after completion has an extremely attractive color and flavor. The tuna eyes are tender and fatty, while the sour bamboo shoots are crunchy, combined with a slightly sour and sweet, rich broth. This hot pot is best served hot with a bit of chili fish sauce for an amazing experience!
2. Ocean tuna eye hotpot with traditional medicine
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Preparation
15 minutes
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Cooking
30 minutes
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Difficulty
Easy
Ingredients for Ocean tuna eye hotpot with traditional medicine Serves 4 people
Tuna eyes 1 kg Fresh noodles 1 kg Codonopsis 10 gr Scutellaria 10 gr Goji berries 10 gr Dried tangerine peel 5 gr Red dates 10 gr Cinnamon bark 1 stick Star anise 3 pieces Water lily stem 3 stalks (mint) Onion 3 bulbs Okra 100 gr Lemongrass 5 stalks Shallots 1 tablespoon Rice wine a little Common spices a little (sugar/salt/pepper/MSG/seasoning powder)
Where to buy traditional medicine spices
Traditional medicine spices include a full range of ingredients such as red dates, codonopsis, scutellaria, dried tangerine peel, goji berries,… you can easily find them at traditional medicine shops or e-commerce websites.
How to Prepare Ocean Tuna Eye Hot Pot with Traditional Medicine
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Preparing the Tuna Eyes
The tuna eyes should be briefly blanched in boiling water mixed with a little salt and alcohol for about 5 minutes, then removed, rinsed clean, and drained.
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Preparing Other Ingredients
For the water spinach, peel off the outer fibrous layer, wash it clean with water, and cut into bite-sized pieces about 2 finger widths thick.
The okra should be cleaned, the stem removed, and then cut into bite-sized pieces. The onion should be peeled and cut into square pieces about 2 finger widths long.
The lemongrass should be washed, with 1/3 of the amount minced, while the remaining part should be cut into sections and smashed.
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Marinate the tuna eyes
Marinate the fish with 2 tablespoons of chopped lemongrass, 1 tablespoon of minced shallots, 1/2 tablespoon of monosodium glutamate, 1/2 tablespoon of sugar, 1/3 tablespoon of pepper, 1/2 tablespoon of seasoning powder, and 1/3 tablespoon of salt.
Mix well and let the tuna eyes soak in the spices for about 15 – 20 minutes.
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Cook the hot pot
Place a pot on the stove, add cinnamon bark and star anise to toast until fragrant. Then, add 2 liters of water and all the herbal seasoning into the pot, cook over medium heat until the water boils and the herbs release all their nutrients.
Next, add the marinated tuna eyes and smashed lemongrass into the hot pot, cover and continue cooking until the fish is cooked and the water boils again.
Tip: During cooking, you need to regularly skim off the foam to keep the broth clear and beautiful.
Then add the onion, water morning glory, and okra, and cook for another 5 minutes for the vegetables to be evenly cooked.
Finally, add another 1/3 teaspoon of salt and adjust the seasoning to taste to complete the dish.
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Final Product
So the delicious Ocean Tuna Eyeball Hotpot with Chinese Herbs is complete. The fatty tuna, not fishy, blends perfectly with the rich, fragrant broth infused with Chinese herbs. To fully enjoy this dish, you should eat it with noodles or rice vermicelli and your favorite vegetables!
How to choose fresh and delicious tuna eyes
- You can choose fresh or frozen tuna eyes.
- When selecting, you should choose the tuna eyes that are elastic, translucent, and clearly show the pupil inside. If the tuna eyes are sunken, it indicates that they have been stored in the freezer for too long and the meat is no longer fresh.
- The meat surrounding the eyes that is redder and firmer is tastier, while the clearer the meat, the lower the quality. Take a sample of the meat and rub it in your palm; if it releases a lot of water and the meat is soft and flaky, this fish will not taste good.
- If you choose the frozen type, you need to pay attention to the expiration date on the packaging; the tuna eyes inside should still be fresh, with no leaking fluid or unusual smell.
Effective ways to eliminate the fishy smell of tuna eyes
- You can mix a little salt into water and soak the tuna eyes for about 5 – 10 minutes. Alternatively, you can rub salt on the fish. Finally, just rinse the tuna eyes clean with water before cooking.
- You can also soak them in rice water for about 15 – 20 minutes. Then remove and rinse clean with water.
- Additionally, when washing the fish, you can mix a few tablespoons of alcohol or white vinegar into the water, then soak the fish for about 5 minutes and rinse clean with water.
See details: How to cook fish without a fishy smell
How to choose delicious dọc mùng (Vietnamese mint)
- You should choose fresh dọc mùng, not wilted, still fresh, and with a certain crunch.
- Fresh dọc mùng (Vietnamese mint) has a light green outer skin, smooth and not rough, and the skin should not be peeling.
- You should choose whole and dry stalks, avoiding those that have been cut, and avoiding those that are bruised or show signs of damage.
How to prepare dọc mùng (Vietnamese mint) without itching
- First, wash the dọc mùng thoroughly to remove dirt, then strip off the fibrous outer part. After that, use a knife to cut off the belly part of the dọc mùng.
- You should cut the dọc mùng into bite-sized pieces in a pointed style. Next, mix 1 tablespoon of salt with the cut dọc mùng pieces and let it sit for about 15 minutes.
- Add cold water to the bowl of dọc mùng that is soaking in salt, rinse it thoroughly, wear gloves, and use your hands to gently squeeze out the water.
- Finally, blanch it briefly in boiling water before cooking.
With the above sharing, I hope you now know how to make 2 delicious and flavorful ocean tuna eye hot pots! Wishing you more delicious fish hot pot dishes!
*Refer to the recipe and images from the YouTube channel Huỳnh Trí Bảo and TẤN LONG KÝ SỰ Vlog
