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Cooking
40 minutes
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Difficulty
Easy
Stewed stewed dishes with snakehead fish are always loved for their rich flavor, delicious taste, and extremely simple preparation. In today’s Cooking section, let’s join TasteVN to try making a delicious, sweet, and easy-to-make stewed snakehead fish with gourd at home!
Ingredients for Stewed Snakehead Fish with Gourd For 4 people
Snakehead fish 2 pieces Gourd 1 fruit (large type) Minced garlic 1 tablespoon Minced shallots 1 tablespoon Ground chili 1/2 tablespoon Coloring sauce 2 teaspoons Fish sauce 3 teaspoons Green onions 1 stalk Cooking oil 1 tablespoon Common seasonings a little (sugar/salt/seasoning powder/MSG/pepper)
How to choose fresh ingredients
How to choose good snakehead fish
- It is best to buy live snakehead fish to ensure freshness for the dish.
- You should choose fish that are of moderate size, not too big or too small. The head should be slightly pointed, small, and firm. The body of the fish should be elongated, not too round, with a dark black color, feeling firm to the touch and not mushy. This is wild snakehead fish, which will have firmer and tastier meat.
- If the fish is no longer alive or has been simply processed, you can observe the fish’s anus to determine if it is still fresh. Fresh fish will have a small anus. If the anus of the snakehead fish is enlarged, it indicates that the fish is about to go bad and may sometimes be treated with chemicals.
See details: How to choose fresh snakehead fish
How to choose young and delicious bottle gourd
- You should choose bottle gourds that are medium-sized, elongated, have green skin, still have fine hairs, the skin is soft (easy to press with a fingernail), feel heavy in hand, have a thick stem, and fresh sap marks indicate they are young; when eaten, they will be soft and sweet.
- Do not choose bottle gourds that are too large, have hard skin, or are yellowing because those are old gourds, have many seeds, and the flesh is tough, which will taste sour and negatively affect the flavor of the dish.
How to cook braised snakehead fish with bottle gourd
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Prepare the ingredients
After buying the snakehead fish, to clean and eliminate the fishy smell, you should scrape off the scales, cut off the fins and tail, and remove the internal organs.
Soak the fish in diluted salt water for about 5 minutes, then rinse it clean with water. Use a knife to separate the head from the body, then cut the body into pieces about 2 fingers thick.
Tip: For braised dishes, do not cut the fish too thinly, as it will easily break apart during cooking.
Effective cleaning method for snakehead fish to remove slime and fishy smell
- You need to remove all internal organs and thoroughly clean the scales. When cutting the fish’s gills, you should cut very close to expose the white tendon, using your hand to remove that tendon will help eliminate the fishy smell.
- You can use kitchen ash or betel nut lime to rub all over the fish; this method helps remove all the fish slime.
- Alternatively, after cleaning the fish, you can soak it in rice washing water for about 15 minutes to help eliminate the fishy smell.
- Besides using rice washing water, you can use vinegar or rice wine to rub all over the fish; this method also effectively removes the fishy smell.
Peel the bottle gourd, wash it clean, then use a knife to cut it into quarters lengthwise and then cut it into bite-sized pieces.
Wash the green onions and cut them into sections.
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Cook the stew sauce
Heat a pan on the stove, add 1 tablespoon of cooking oil and heat it up, then add all the minced garlic, shallots, and ground chili to sauté until fragrant.
When the shallots, garlic, and chili are aromatic, add 100ml of water, 3 teaspoons of sugar, 2 teaspoons of seasoning powder, 1/2 teaspoon of salt, 1/2 teaspoon of monosodium glutamate, 1/2 teaspoon of ground pepper, 2 teaspoons of color sauce, and 3 teaspoons of fish sauce to the pan.
Stir well for the seasonings to dissolve completely and continue to cook on high heat until the sauce mixture boils.
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Cooking Fish
Put the snakehead fish in the frying pan, cook the fish over high heat for about 3 minutes until the fish meat firms up, then add the gourd.
Reduce the heat and cook the fish and gourd for about 15 – 20 more minutes for the ingredients to become tender and absorb the seasoning evenly. Finally, sprinkle a little ground pepper and chopped green onions on top, adjust the seasoning to taste, and it’s done.
Tip: You can add a few fresh chilies or sliced chilies if you want it spicy!
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Final Product
The hot and fragrant snakehead fish with gourd dish. The fish meat is tender, aromatic, and fatty, while the gourd is crispy and sweet, soaked in rich, spicy sauce that stimulates the taste buds. This dish is best served hot with white rice and dipped with some fresh vegetables or cucumber, making it absolutely wonderful!
See more
With just a little time and a few simple steps, you can have a delicious and flavorful dish of snakehead fish stew with gourd, simple to make at home. Wishing you success and a hearty meal!
*Refer to the recipe and images from the YouTube channel Let’s Cook Together
