Vietnamese Fish with Turmeric-Dill Sauce (Cha Ca La Vong)
This classic Hanoi recipe combines Vietnamese catfish with fresh dill, sliced onions, fish sauce and turmeric. The ingredients are a totally unexpected combination, but they WORK. You can use any semi-firm white fish, or even tofu for a veggie version. To make this Paleo you can omit the rice noodles, or sub kelp or miracle noodles. Or just serve the whole thing in lettuce wraps!
Servings 4
Ingredients
- 1/2 medium red onion, thinly sliced
- 1/4 cup roughly chopped fresh dill
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 tablespoon minced fresh ginger root
- 1/4 cup Vietnamese fish sauce
- 1/4 cup fresh lime juice
- 2 tablespoons coconut oil
- 2 teaspoons sriracha
- 2 teaspoons honey or cane sugar, optional
- 1 teaspoon ground turmeric
- 1 pound catfish, cod, haddock, halibut or other white semi-firm fish, cut into 2-inch cubes
- 14 ounces rice noodles, cooked according to package directions, for serving
- 1 head Bibb or Boston lettuce, for serving
Instructions
- Preheat the broiler.
- In a large mixing bowl, combine the red onion, 2 tablespoons dill, garlic, ginger, fish sauce, lime juice, coconut oil, sriracha, honey and turmeric; stir until combined. Fold in the fish and set aside to marinate for 10 minutes at room temperature.
- Meanwhile, cook the rice noodles according to packaged directions and divide between 4 bowls with a few leaves of Bibb lettuce as garnish.
- Transfer the fish to an 8x8 baking dish and broil until the fillets are cooked through and the red onions are tender, about 5 minutes.
- Spoon the fish over the noodles and lettuce and garnish with the remaining dill. A few extra lime wedges wouldn’t hurt either.