How to cook stingray stew with bananas and tofu, a unique dish to relieve heaviness for the family meal

How to make Stewed Stingray with Banana and Tofu

• 1

  Prepare the stingray

  First, to clean, remove slime, and eliminate the fishy smell, wash the stingray thoroughly with diluted salt water along with a little vinegar. Use your hands to rub and scrub the fish meat evenly.

  Rinse with clean water and then rub salt once more, continue rinsing with clean water and then place it in a basket to drain.

  Cut the fish into bite-sized pieces.

  Tip: Use a scraper to remove the skin from the tail meat of the stingray to eliminate the fishy smell.

  
• 2

  Prepare other ingredients

  Green bananas bought should be peeled and soaked in diluted salt water. To prevent the bananas from turning black and to remove the sap, add 1 tablespoon of vinegar. Cut the bananas into thick slices like stingray slices, or you can cut them lengthwise. Then, drain the bananas.

  Pork belly should be sliced into bite-sized pieces as shown in the picture, or you can cut it into squares. Then, place a pan on the stove, add about 20ml of cooking oil (about 2 tablespoons), wait for the oil to heat and then add the meat to fry until it is browned on the edges over medium heat.

  Tofu should be cut into small rectangular pieces and fried until golden on both sides over medium heat.

  Wild betel leaves should be washed clean, drained, and chopped finely.

  

  

  

  
• 3

  Marinate the stingray

  Marinate the stingray with the following spices: 2 teaspoons of salt, 5 teaspoons of sugar, 1 teaspoon of monosodium glutamate, a little ground pepper, 1 tablespoon of chili sauce, and add 1 tablespoon of fish sauce, mix well and marinate for 15 minutes for the fish to absorb the spices.

  Tip:

  • The marinating process can be done by placing the fish in the refrigerator to help the fish absorb the spices faster
  • You can replace chili sauce with dried chili, fresh chili, ground chili, or satay.

  
• 4

  Sauté meat and stir-fry fish

  Place a pan on the stove, add 30ml of cooking oil (about 3 tablespoons) and wait for the oil to heat up. Next, you proceed to fry the shallots until fragrant and golden, then add the marinated stingray and stir-fry for 5 – 10 minutes for the fish to absorb the flavors, firm up, and not fall apart when stewed.

  

  
• 5

  Cooking stingray with green bananas and tofu

  Add 4 types of ingredients into the same pot: sliced green bananas, diced fried tofu, stir-fried pork belly, and stingray that has just been sautéed. Next, pour boiling water over the ingredients. At this stage, if you want to enjoy it with noodles, you should add more water.

  Proceed to simmer the fish on high heat for about 5 – 7 minutes; during this time, taste and adjust the seasoning to suit your family’s preferences. You can check the doneness by trying to break a banana in the pot; if the banana is soft, the dish is ready. Finally, add the finely chopped Vietnamese pepper leaf on top of the pot and wait for it to cook slightly before turning off the heat, avoiding overcooking the leaves as they may become bitter.

  

  
• 6

  Final product

  The dish of spicy simmered stingray with tofu served with noodles or rice on rainy, cold days is just perfect. The sweetness from the stingray and pork belly combined with the aroma of bananas creates an irresistible dish.