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Ca loc nuong trui (straw-grilled whole fish)
Cá lóc nướng trui: whole fish charred in its scales and eaten rolled in rice paper
After the rice harvest in the Mekong Delta, farmers would catch snakehead from the flooded fields, skewer each fish on a stick, stand it in the ground and pile dry rice straw over it before setting it alight. When the straw burns away the blackened skin peels off to reveal steaming, sweet white flesh, which is rolled in rice paper with herbs, cucumber and rice noodles. Countryside restaurants around Cần Thơ still serve it this way. Snakehead is hard to buy outside Asia, so use sea bass, barramundi or tilapia and a barbecue or a hot oven. Chef's tip: push a long metal skewer from mouth to tail so you can turn the fish over without it breaking.
- Total time
- 50 min
- Difficulty
- medium
- Serves
- 4
Ingredients
For the fish
- 2 ¼ lb whole sea bass, barramundi or tilapiagutted but NOT scaled, 1 large or 2 smaller
- 1 tsp coarse salt
For the spring onion oil
- 4 tbsp vegetable oil
- 4 spring onionssliced
- 1 ⅜ oz roasted peanutscrushed
For the tamarind dip
- 2 tbsp tamarind paste
- 3 tbsp fish sauce
- 3 tbsp sugar
- 4 tbsp hot water
- 2 cloves garlicfinely chopped
- 2 red bird's eye chilliesfinely chopped
For rolling
- 16 rice paper sheets22 cm round
- 7 oz rice vermicellicooked as the packet says
- 1 ⅜ oz mint, perilla and Thai basil
- 1 cucumbercut into batons
- 5 ½ oz fresh pineapple or green banana (optional)thin slices
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Method
0/8 doneStep 1: Light a charcoal barbecue and let it burn down to glowing coals with a light coat of ash, or heat the oven to 450°F/fan 400°F.
20 minStep 2: Rinse 2 ¼ lb whole sea bass, barramundi or tilapia inside, pat dry and rub the cavity with 1 tsp coarse salt. Common mistake: scaling the fish; the scales act as a shield, so the skin chars while the flesh steams gently inside.
Step 3: Push a long metal skewer through the mouth to the tail.
Step 4: Grill over medium-hot coals for 12–15 minutes on each side, or roast on a rack for 25–30 minutes, until the skin is blackened and blistered all over and the flesh at the backbone is opaque and flakes easily (145°F/145 °F).
30 minStep 5: Meanwhile, heat 4 tbsp vegetable oil in a small pan until hot, pour it over 4 spring onions in a heatproof bowl and stir in 1 ⅜ oz roasted peanuts.
2 minStep 6: Mix 2 tbsp tamarind paste with 4 tbsp hot water, press it through a sieve and stir in 3 tbsp fish sauce, 3 tbsp sugar, 2 cloves garlic and 2 red bird's eye chillies until the sugar dissolves.
Step 7: Rest the fish for 3 minutes, then peel away the blackened skin and scales with a knife and fork. Spoon the spring onion oil over the exposed flesh.
3 minStep 8: At the table, dip a sheet of 16 rice paper sheets in water for 1–2 seconds, lay on 12 lettuce leaves, 7 oz rice vermicelli, 1 ⅜ oz mint, perilla and Thai basil, 1 cucumber, 5 ½ oz fresh pineapple or green banana and a piece of fish free of bones, roll up and dip in the sauce.
Nutrition per serving
- Calories
- 470 kcal
- Protein
- 38 g
- Carbs
- 58 g
- Fat
- 11 g
- Fibre
- 3 g
Nutrition values are estimates.
KrazyBadal
Good to know
- How long does ca loc nuong trui (straw-grilled whole fish) take?
- About 50 minutes in total: 15 minutes to prepare and 35 minutes to cook.
- How many people does it serve?
- 4 as written. Change the servings above the ingredients and every amount scales to match.
- What can I use instead of spring onions?
- Chives, or a little finely sliced onion.
- What can I use instead of fish sauce?
- Soy sauce with a squeeze of lime (vegetarian).
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