Vietnamese Sweet and Sour Fish Soup (Canh Chua Cá)

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Canh chua cá is an iconic Vietnamese sweet and sour soup made with pineapples, tamarind, tomatoes, and catfish. It’s sweetened with pineapple and its sour component comes from tamarind.

SERVES: 4
PREP TIME: 5 minutes COOK TIME: 20 minutes TOTAL TIME: 25 minutes

Ingredients

  • 1/2 teaspoon oil
  • 1/2 onion, sliced
  • 2 cloves garlic, minced
  • 1 Knorr chicken bouillon cube
  • 4 large tomatoes, quartered
  • 20 ounces pineapple chunks
  • 3 stalks elephant ear or celery, thinly sliced
  • 1 pound catfish
  • 2 spoonfuls tamarind paste
  • 1/2 tablespoon fish sauce
  • 1 inch ginger, sliced
  • 1/2 teaspoon sugar
  • 6 ounces bean sprouts
  • 4 servings rice
  • 1/4 cup dill, chopped

Instructions

  1. In a large pot, heat the oil. Add onion and garlic and stir fry until fragrant, about 1 minute.

  2. Add bouillon, tomatoes, pineapples, celery, catfish, tamarind, fish sauce, ginger, sugar, and bean sprouts. Stir fry for about 2 minutes.

  3. Add enough water to cover everything by half an inch and bring to a boil.

  4. Once boiling, reduce heat and simmer for 20 minutes or until fish is cooked. Taste and adjust seasoning as needed.

  5. Divide rice into 4 serving bowls. Ladle soup over rice. Top with dill. Enjoy!

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