How to Cook Delicious Chau Doc Fish Noodle Soup with Authentic Southern Flavor

Prepare the ingredients

Wash the snakehead fish briefly, scrape off the scales, and remove the belly. Then use coarse salt to rub all over the fish to reduce the sliminess, rinse it with clean water, and cut the fish into small pieces.

Chop the garlic and shallots finely. Slice the chili thinly with a knife.

Wash the lemongrass, then divide it into 4 equal parts. One part is cut into 7-8 cm long pieces, and the remaining 3 parts are finely chopped.

Peel the turmeric with a knife and wash it clean with water.

Wash the accompanying herbs with water and drain them in a basket.

Cooking the broth

First, put 20 grams of lemongrass, 20 grams of turmeric, and 30 grams of rice paddy herb into a mortar and pound them finely with a pestle.

Next, add 400 ml of coconut water, 1 liter of plain water, and the finely pounded mixture of lemongrass, turmeric, and rice paddy herb into a pot. Then, place the pot on the stove and bring it to a boil.

When the water boils, add the cleaned snakehead fish into the pot, boiling it for 15 minutes. After 15 minutes, take the fish out and let it cool for 10 minutes.

After removing the fish, use a strainer to remove the remnants of turmeric, rice paddy herb, and lemongrass.

Next, dissolve 10 grams of fermented shrimp paste in 30 ml of plain water, then add it to the broth.

Add 10 grams of seasoning, 5 grams of salt, 15 grams of rock sugar along with 20 grams of minced lemongrass, 20 grams of minced shallots, and 20 grams of minced garlic into the pot. Continue to stir well.

Stir-frying the fish

Once the fish has cooled, proceed to separate the fish from the bones. When removing the bones, remember to cut the fish into bite-sized pieces.

Be careful not to break the fish meat, as it will not taste good when eaten.

After separating the fish, add it to a pan and stir-fry for 3 minutes with 20 ml of cooking oil, 40 grams of lemongrass, 20 grams of shallots, and 10 grams of garlic.

Final Product

You add in turn the noodles, fish, a bit of aromatic herbs, water lily flowers, and then pour the broth on top.

You can take fish sauce with a bit of chili to make a dipping sauce to eat with the fish. You can eat the fish noodles with Vietnamese pork sausage, roasted pork, or balut.

Accompanying vegetables are shredded water spinach, shredded banana flower, bean sprouts, Vietnamese coriander, water lily flowers, and aromatic herbs.

The finished noodle dish should have an eye-catching color, the snakehead fish meat should not be broken, should be bone-free, and have a balanced taste.

Prepare the ingredients

Clean the snakehead fish by removing the scales and entrails, eliminating the fishy smell, then let it dry.

Prepare 3 stalks of turmeric, 5 red onions, and 2 stalks of bun ngải, then pound them into a fine paste.

Preparation

Then you add the mixture you just ground into the pot along with a few stalks of lemongrass and stir-fry for aroma, then add 2 liters of water to the pot and bring to a boil, add the cleaned snakehead fish and simmer for about 30 minutes. When the fish is cooked, take the fish out to remove the bones, using a strainer to also take out the lemongrass and the initial cooking mixture.

Simmer the broth on low heat, then season with 3 tablespoons of seasoning, 2 tablespoons of sugar, and 1 tablespoon of shrimp paste. You can adjust the seasoning to suit your taste. After the bones have been removed from the fish, add it back to the pot and simmer for another 15 minutes. Once the broth is cooked, remove the fish to keep it separate and add it back when serving.

Ingredients

This noodle dish should be served with fish cake, roasted pork, water lily, Vietnamese coriander, and other herbs to provide a full flavor. The broth is sweet and fragrant from the fish and shrimp paste, enhanced by the aroma of turmeric and rice paddy herb.