Vietnamese Fish and Seafood Dishes

Vietnamese seafood and fish dishes are not only fantastic to eat but are healthy and relatively easy to prepare. With Vietnam being a relatively lush and green country it is able to produce a wide range of herbs and vegetables that give food a fresh taste and unique fragrance.

Vietnamese food is relatively low in fat which makes it a healthy option, something that is becoming more and more important to many people.

Vietnamese cooking is traditionally done over a fire, with most food prepared by boiling, barbecuing, frying and steaming, not using roasting or baking methods of cooking.

Asparagus and Crab Soup

To serve 4 you will need:

• 300g of asparagus spears that have been trimmed and halved
• 4 shallots that have been chopped
• 800ml of chicken stock
• 3/4 of a tablespoon of cornflower
• An egg that has been beaten
• 100g of crab meat .This can be either fresh or from a tin
• 1 1/2 tablespoons of fish sauce
• 3 tablespoons of sunflower oil
• Chives
• Salt and pepper

First take the asparagus spears and cook in the chicken stock for approximately 8 minutes or until they become tender .Next you need to remove the asparagus from the stock, but ensure that you retain the stock, and, using a large wok or large frying pan, heat the sunflower oil and stir fry the chopped shallots for approximately 3 minutes, but ensure that you do not allow the shallots to turn brown. Next add the asparagus spears, chicken stock and chopped crab meat. Once all these have been added bring the ingredients to the boil and cook for approximately 4 minutes.

Placing it Back in the Wok

The next step is to remove the wok or frying pan from the heat and add some of the liquid into the cornflower mixture before placing it back in the wok or pan and stirring until the mixture begins to take on a slightly thick appearance. You then take the fish sauce, along with the salt and pepper, and pour the egg into the soup, ensuring that you stir vigorously as you do so. Next take the snipped chives and add these, stirring as you do so, and serve. You may garnish with extra chives if you so desire.

Barbecued Whole Fish

This is a very popular Vietnamese dish ands can be prepared in approximately 45 minutes. To serve 4 you will need.

• A small snapper or bream that has been cleaned and scaled
• A teaspoon of chopped red chilli
• A large onion that has been finely sliced
• 2 cloves of garlic that have been finely sliced
• 1 1/2 teaspoons of crushed green peppercorns
• 2 tablespoons of fish sauce
• 1 teaspoon of sugar
• 1 tablespoon of oil
• 3 spring onions that have been cut and finely shredded
• A medium piece of ginger that has been sliced

First take the fish and wash thoroughly both inside and out before pat drying with paper kitchen towels. Once this is done, take a sharp knife and cut 2 slashes, on both sides, into the thickest part of the fish. Next take the peppercorns, fish sauce and chilli and mix,using either a food processor or a mortar and pestle, until a paste is made. Next take the paste and brush over the fish before covering and placing in the fridge for approximately 30 minutes.

Using the Barbecue

The barbecue needs to be heated to a high temperature and the fish cooked for approximately 10 minutes on each side. By this time the flesh of the fish should flake easily. During this cooking period use a frying pan to heat the oil before adding the onion and stirring until it takes on a brown appearance.

Next add the garlic, sugar and ginger and cook for around 5 minutes. Once the fish is cooked place it on a plate, pour over the onion mixture and serve with rice and a dipping sauce of your choice. ~Lemon and garlic dipping sauce is a good choice for this dish and can be made by stirring 1/3 of a cup of lemon juice, 2 tablespoons of fish sauce and 1/2 a tablespoon of sugar together until the sugar dissolves. Then just stir in a red chilli and 2 finely chopped cloves of garlic.