🍲⭐ Premium

Soupe de poisson aigre-douce (Canh Chua)

Name: Soupe de poisson aigre-douce (Canh Chua)
Prep time: 15 min
Cook time: 25 min
Total time: 40 min
Yield: 4 servings
Cuisine: VN
Ingredients: 500 g firm white fish fillet (catfish, pangasius or snakehead), cut into 3 cm chunks; 1 tsp fish sauce (for marinating the fish); 40 g tamarind pulp (or 2 tbsp tamarind concentrate); 200 ml hot water (to soak the tamarind); 1 litre water or light fish stock; 2 tbsp cooking oil; 3 cloves garlic, minced; 2 shallots, minced; 2 medium tomatoes, cut into wedges; 150 g ripe pineapple, cut into thin wedges; 100 g okra, trimmed and sliced on a diagonal; 80 g elephant ear stem (bạc hà), peeled and sliced on a diagonal (optional; celery can replace it); 100 g bean sprouts; 2 tbsp fish sauce (to season the broth); 1.5 tbsp sugar; 1/2 tsp salt; 1–2 red chillies, sliced; a handful rice paddy herb (rau om), chopped; a handful saw-tooth herb (ngò gai) or cilantro, chopped; 2 tbsp fried garlic, for garnish

15m

Prépa

25m

Cuisson

Portions

Facile

Difficulté

Une soupe de poisson vive et acidulée du delta du Mékong, au tamarin, à l'ananas et à la tomate, parfumée d'herbes fraîches.

#vietnamese#soup#sour-soup#fish#tamarind#mekong-delta#comfort-food

Portions

4portions

Ingrédients

Nutrition

calories220

protein19g

carbs16g

fat9g

fiber3g

Par portion

Étapes

Marinate fish, soak tamarind

Toss the fish chunks with the fish sauce and let them sit while you work. Soak the tamarind pulp in the hot water for 10 minutes, then mash it well with a spoon and strain through a sieve, pressing out all the juice; discard the seeds and fibres.

500 g fish
1 tsp fish sauce
40 g tamarind pulp
200 ml hot water

✅ C'est prêt quand : the tamarind liquid is smooth with no fibres left, and the fish is lightly seasoned

⏱10:00

Build the sour base

Heat the oil in a soup pot over medium heat and sauté the garlic and shallot until fragrant. Add the tomato wedges and cook for 2–3 minutes until they soften and release their juice; this is the backbone of the broth's flavour. Pour in the water (or stock) and the strained tamarind juice, and bring to a boil.

2 tbsp cooking oil
3 cloves garlic
2 shallots
2 tomatoes
1 litre water or stock
40 g tamarind juice (strained, from step 1)

✅ C'est prêt quand : the tomatoes have broken down a little and the broth is boiling and smells tangy and fragrant

⏱4:00

Simmer the fish gently

This step is part of Foodie Premium. Subscribe to unlock the full method, cooking mode and every recipe in the library.

Add the vegetables

This step is part of Foodie Premium. Subscribe to unlock the full method, cooking mode and every recipe in the library.

Season and balance

This step is part of Foodie Premium. Subscribe to unlock the full method, cooking mode and every recipe in the library.

Finish and serve

This step is part of Foodie Premium. Subscribe to unlock the full method, cooking mode and every recipe in the library.

Marinate fish, soak tamarind

500 g fish
1 tsp fish sauce
40 g tamarind pulp
200 ml hot water

✅ C'est prêt quand : the tamarind liquid is smooth with no fibres left, and the fish is lightly seasoned

⏱10:00

Build the sour base

2 tbsp cooking oil
3 cloves garlic
2 shallots
2 tomatoes
1 litre water or stock
40 g tamarind juice (strained, from step 1)

✅ C'est prêt quand : the tomatoes have broken down a little and the broth is boiling and smells tangy and fragrant

⏱4:00

Simmer the fish gently

This step is part of Foodie Premium. Subscribe to unlock the full method, cooking mode and every recipe in the library.

Add the vegetables

This step is part of Foodie Premium. Subscribe to unlock the full method, cooking mode and every recipe in the library.

Season and balance

This step is part of Foodie Premium. Subscribe to unlock the full method, cooking mode and every recipe in the library.

Finish and serve

This step is part of Foodie Premium. Subscribe to unlock the full method, cooking mode and every recipe in the library.

History & Culture

The Story Behind the Dish

📍 Mekong Delta, southern Vietnam📅 Traditional, rooted in rural farming and fishing communities🍲 VN

Canh chua grew out of the Mekong Delta's abundance of freshwater fish, tropical fruit and rice-field herbs. Farming families built the soup around whatever was fresh that day — a catfish from the canal, a ripe pineapple, tomatoes and okra from the garden — souring it with tamarind instead of vinegar or lime, which gives it a deeper, rounder tartness.

The dish reflects the blended food culture of the Delta, where Vietnamese, Khmer and Chinese cooking traditions have long lived side by side. It remains a staple of southern home cooking, almost always served alongside kho (a salty braised fish or meat) and a bowl of rice, so that one dish's sourness balances the other's richness.

⭐ Why It's Famous

Canh chua is one of the clearest expressions of southern Vietnamese flavour: sour, sweet, salty and herbal all at once, built entirely from humble, local ingredients.