Sour Soup with Fish - Vetnamese Recipe

Sour Soup with Fish
Canh Ca Chua
Sour soups are often part of a multicourse Vietnamese meal on special occasions, but they are also hearty enough to serve as a lunch or light supper entree. My friend Khai Dzoan, chef at his mother’s Cam Van Dzoan restaurant in Saigon, taught me this recipe. Not really that sour but tangy from tamarind, the soup is loaded with flavors from pineapple, chiles, lemongrass, herbs, shrimp, and fresh fish. Khai’s recipe also called for taro stem, but I have omitted that, as it is a difficult find in the West. Serve with steamed rice or add noodles for a full meal.
 
Ingredients:

• 1-1/2 to 2 pounds fresh fish fillets (catfish, bass, snapper, halibut, grouper, etc.), cut into 1-inch chunks
• 3 tablespoons fish sauce, divided
• 1 large or 2 medium shallots, minced
• 8 cups fish stock, chicken stock, or water
• 1 ounce tamarind pulp, dissolved in 1/2 cup boiling water and strained (reserve water)
• 1 clove garlic, sliced
• 2 stalks lemongrass, peeled, lightly crushed, and cut into 2-inch sections
• 2 teaspoons sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 6 ounces cooked baby shrimp
• 1 cup diced pineapple
• 1 to 2 red serrano or Thai chiles, sliced
• 1/2 red bell pepper, seeded and cut into 1-inch pieces
• 2 to 3 okra pods, stems removed and sliced into quarters lengthwise
• 1 tomato, sliced into 8 wedges
• 2 scallions, sliced into 1-inch pieces diagonally
• 1/3 cup mixed cilantro and mint leaves, coarsely chopped
• Lime wedges

How To Cook
Marinate the fish pieces in 1 tablespoon of the fish sauce and the shallots. Place the stock in a large pot with the tamarind water, garlic, lemongrass, sugar, remaining fish sauce, and salt. Bring to a boil and cook for 10 minutes. Remove the lemongrass. Add the fish, shrimp, pineapple, chiles, bell pepper, and okra, and simmer for about 10 to 12 minutes, or until the fish is almost done. Add the tomato and scallions, and simmer another 5 minutes. Ladle into bowls and garnish with the herbs and lime wedges.