Vietnamese Cha Ca Thang Long Tumeric Fish with Mung Bean Noodles and Fresh Herbs

Vietnam is a beautiful country with the kindest, friendliest soft spoken people. The food is always cooked from scratch using local, seasonal, fresh ingredients. The markets are full of unusual, fresh, bright colored delicacies and can provide browsing entertainment for an entire morning.

A few years ago, I just took off to Asia. I studied cooking with some amazing and inspirational chefs in Vietnam, Thailand and Lao. It was a life changing experience. What they taught me expanded my culinary knowledge like never before. I now incorporate so much of what I learned in my Asian cooking experience and use so many of their flavors in the food I cook today.

This dish is a popular dish originating in Hanoi. This is as close to authentic as I could get, changing it a bit to suit American tastes and eliminated the ingredients such as Galangal and Shrimp paste as they are more difficult to get and require a visit to special grocery stores.

I also did not saute the green onions and dill. You can do this in a separate pan from the fish as to not get them too greasy. Then add on top of the dish if you want to be authentic.

The dish was invented by a little hole in the wall restaurant, not fancy, restaurant called Cha Ca La Vong in Hanoi, Vietnam. At Cha Ca La Vong. The fish is marinated and the herbs and noodles prepared in advance, but you are provided a little pan in the middle of the table to cook the fish at the moment. It is served hot and sizzling. It looks like a lot of ingredients, but it is actually very easy to prepare and doesn't take a lot of time as if you lay out all the ingredients, you can just have your family or guests add them all as to their liking.

So many healthy ingredients are used in this dish. You must use fresh dill to be authentic and even if you do not like dill, you might become a fan because of this dish.

It is also traditionally served with rice noodles. I prefer the consistency of the mung bean noodles and my family prefers them in this dish. You can use either. Shrimp paste (a strong purple paste) is generally out for most American Palates. It is an acquired taste. But, you must have the fish sauce for the rounding out of flavors, the richness of the dish and the right amount of salty flavor. Do not leave it out. You might become a huge fan if your not regularly using it.

What I learned in Asia, Vietnam in particular, is that they incorporate 5 flavors into every dish. Sweet, Spicy, Sour, Bitter and Salty. Each flavor has a deeper meaning to them. And the combination makes for the most wonderful blend of layered flavors on your palate, if combined in a the right way.

Unfortunately, Cha Ca La Vong has become very touristy, raised prices, and the service is faltering. So if your in Hanoi and want the authentic experience try Cha Ca Thang Long. It is still highly rated and authentic.

Prep Time: 15 minutes

Marinade Time: 1 hour

Cooking Time: 10 minutes

Serves: 4

Ingredients:

2 lbs firm white fish, cut into long strips about 2 inches wide.

1 bunch fresh dill (do not substitute dried)

1 bunch spring green onions, White parts cut into 3-4 inch pieces, green parts whole or sliced thin

Marinade:

3 Tbs tumeric powder

2 Tbs minced shallots

2 Tbs minced garlic cloves

3 Tbs sugar

3 Tbs coconut oil

3 Tbs fresh grated ginger or a good ginger paste

⅓ cup Asian fish sauce

For Sautéing:

Avocado oil or another neural oil

3-4 Tbs cornstarch

Nuoc Cham Sauce:

For dipping and pouring over the fish and noodles

1 cup cold water

4 Tbs Asian fish sauce

4 Tbs fresh lime juice

2 Tbs sugar

1 minced garlic clove

1 fresh thai, bird, or serrano chili pepper or 1 tsp chili garlic sauce (I prefer the chili so that if someone is sensitive to spice, they can choose not to eat it)

For Serving:

Bean thread noodles or rice noodles

Sliced radish

Fresh Basil

Fresh Cilantro

1 cucumber

Shredded iceberg lettuce

Roasted Peanuts

Hot Peppers or Garlic Chili Sauce

Directions:

Combine all Marinade ingredients a bowl. Cut your fish into long pieces about 2 inches wide. Marinate 1-3 hours.

Next, prepare the Nuoc Cham. Combine all ingredients, stir well and refrigerate until ready to use.

Bring a pot of water to a boil. Add whichever vermicelli size noodles you chose, rice or mung bean. Do not overcook. This should take maybe a minute or two at most, stiring them with tongs. Set aside.

Sprinkle the fish with cornstarch. Do not heavily coat, just sprinkle evenly on both sides of fish. . Pour the oil into your fry pan about ¼ inch thick, heat on medium high. Place the fish evenly spaced into your pan. You may need to do two batches as overcrowding will make your fish not crisp up the same way. Cook fish on each side about 4-5 minutes until light brown. Remove and drain on paper towels.

I did not cook my dill or the whites of the green onions. If you wish to do so, this is the authentic way, but I would suggest you saute them for a minute in another pan to avoid them being too oily, 30 seconds is enough.

Place your noodles on your serving plate. Top with the fish, dill and green onions. Serve with fresh basil, cilantro, chopped green onions, roasted peanuts, sliced radishes, some sliced cucumber and peanuts. Serve all the toppings alongside for each person to serve make their platter to their tastes. Serve Nuoc Cham sauce on the side. Tell your guests to pour the sauce over the noodles and fish.