What are Delicious Catfish Dishes? Unveiling 11 Extremely Appetizing Recipes

Amur catfish is a freshwater fish primarily found in the rivers and lakes of Vietnam. With firm meat, few bones, and a natural sweetness, Amur catfish is an ideal ingredient for preparing many delicious dishes, from stewing and braising to steaming, frying, and grilling. If you are wondering what to cook with Amur catfish, the following article will reveal 11 attractive dishes to help make your family meals more diverse and appealing. Let’s explore with Ola Squid right now!

1. What to cook with Amur catfish?

Amur catfish can be transformed into many different dishes, each preparation method maintaining the natural sweetness of the fish meat while creating a unique and addictive flavor for diners. Below are 11 suggestions for dishes made from Amur catfish:

1.1. Amur catfish with green bananas and tofu

Ingredients:

• 1 Amur catfish
• 100g pork belly
• 2 pieces of tofu, 3 green bananas
• Turmeric, spring onions, dried shallots
• Perilla leaves, Vietnamese coriander
• 1 minced dried shallot, 1 tablespoon turmeric powder
• Seasonings like salt, seasoning powder

How to cook Amur catfish with green bananas:

• First, soak the Amur catfish in water mixed with lemon to remove slime, rub with salt, wash clean, and cut into bite-sized pieces. Marinate the fish with minced dried shallots, turmeric powder, and soup powder for about 40 minutes.
• Peel the bananas, cut into pieces, split into quarters, and soak in diluted salt water. Cut tofu into square pieces and fry until golden; slice the pork belly into small pieces; wash and finely chop the herbs.
• Next, mix the bananas with seasonings and turmeric powder, briefly sear the pork belly until slightly charred, then add the bananas and stir for about 5 minutes. Add water to cover the bananas, then add the fish to cook.
• When the bananas are tender, reduce the heat and add the tofu. Once the bananas are completely soft, sprinkle with herbs and adjust the seasonings to finish.

1.2. Crispy fried Amur catfish

Ingredients:

• 500g Amur catfish fillet
• 100g crispy frying flour
• 1 tablespoon minced garlic, basic seasonings.

How to make crispy fried Amur catfish:

• Wash the purchased Amur catfish then marinate with minced garlic, salt, sugar, and pepper for about 1 hour to absorb the flavors.
• Afterward, roll the fish fillets evenly in crispy frying flour, fry over medium heat until golden and crispy, flipping gently so the flour layer does not fall off. Lower the heat so the fish cooks through while maintaining crispness.
• Next, remove the fish, blot excess oil, and enjoy with raw vegetables, rice paper, vermicelli, and sweet and sour fish sauce.

>>See more similar delicious dishes: Suggestions for 2 ways to make crispy fried squid and breaded squid

1.3. Amur catfish braised with fermented rice

Ingredients:

• 350g Amur catfish
• 2 stalks of lemongrass, 30g dill
• 2 chili peppers, 1 fresh galangal root
• 2 tablespoons sour fermented rice (mẻ), 1 tablespoon soy sauce
• Basic seasonings

How to make:

• Processing the fish: clean the gills and innards, rub with salt, blanch briefly for 2-3 minutes then scrape off all slime. Cut the fish into bite-sized rounds and drain.
• Prepare seasonings: peel the galangal, crush the lemongrass, slice the chili, and cut the dill into sections. Mix the fish with galangal, lemongrass, chili, fermented rice, and seasonings, then marinate for 15-20 minutes.
• Braising: place the fish on the stove, braise over medium heat, add filtered water, and cover for about 10 minutes. When the sauce thickens, add soy sauce, braise for another 7-10 minutes, then sprinkle with dill, stir gently, and turn off the heat. Amur catfish braised with fermented rice has a light brown color, accented by the green of dill and red of chili, with a characteristic aroma from galangal, lemongrass, and fermented rice along with the natural sweetness of the fish, bringing a rustic hometown flavor.

1.4. Amur catfish soup with sour bamboo shoots

Ingredients for Amur catfish sour soup:

• 1kg Amur catfish
• 200g sour bamboo shoots
• 10g shallots
• 500g tomatoes
• Fish sauce, salt, cooking oil, seasoning powder, MSG, vinegar or lemon

How to cook Amur catfish sour soup:

• Clean the Amur catfish, scrape off slime, and remove innards. Wash the fish with salt water mixed with vinegar or lemon, briefly dip in warm water to eliminate slime and fishy odors, then cut into bite-sized pieces.
• Peel and thinly slice shallots, wash tomatoes and cut into wedges. Rinse the sour bamboo shoots with water; if too sour, you can boil them briefly before cutting into bite-sized pieces.
• Next, sauté the shallots with oil, add the fish and stir gently, season with seasoning powder, fish sauce, and MSG. Sauté briefly until the fish is firm, then turn off the heat.
• In another pan, sauté the tomatoes separately until soft, then add them to the fish pot. Add water just enough to cover the fish, bring to a boil, then add the sour bamboo shoots. Adjust seasonings to taste, simmer for a few more minutes, and it is done.

>>See more: What to cook with Black Pomfret? Suggestions for 4 attractive preparation methods

1.5. Amur catfish in tomato sauce

Ingredients needed:

• 500g Amur catfish
• 3 shallots
• 3 tomatoes
• Garlic, spring onions, chili, lemon
• Cooking oil, seasoning powder, pepper, fish sauce

How to make Amur catfish in tomato sauce:

• Clean the slime off the Amur catfish, remove innards, wash thoroughly, and cut into bite-sized pieces. Wash the tomatoes and cut into wedges. Finely mince shallots, garlic, and chili; chop spring onions.
• Next, marinate the fish with 1/2 teaspoon pepper, 1/2 teaspoon cooking oil, 1 teaspoon seasoning powder, and a little tomato paste to absorb the flavors. Then fry the fish until golden on both sides and remove to drain.
• Afterward, sauté the shallots and garlic until fragrant, add tomatoes and sauté until soft with a bit of chili. Season to taste, stir until the sauce is smooth and thick, then turn off the heat. Pour the tomato sauce evenly over the fried fish and sprinkle with spring onions to enjoy.

1.6. Braised Amur catfish

Ingredients needed:

• 1kg Amur catfish
• 7 green bananas
• 300g pork belly
• 3 chili peppers, 2 shallots
• 2 ginger roots, ½ lemon, 1 galangal root
• Fish sauce, salt, cooking oil, seasoning powder, pepper, caramel sauce

How to cook braised Amur catfish with pepper:

• Clean the Amur catfish slime and remove innards. Use crushed ginger and lemon juice to rub on the fish body to eliminate fishy odors, rinse, and cut into bite-sized rounds.
• Peel the green bananas, soak in diluted salt water, then rinse and slice. Wash the pork belly and cut into pieces. Divide shallots, ginger, and galangal into two parts: one part minced and the other part sliced.
• Marinate the fish with shallots, ginger, galangal, minced chili, fish sauce, seasoning powder, salt, and caramel sauce. Mix well and let the fish absorb the spices for about 30 minutes.
• Then, place a pan on the stove and sauté shallots with oil, add the pork belly and stir until firm. Add water, season with pepper and spices, then bring to a boil; add the green bananas and sliced galangal and cook for about 15 minutes. Finally, add the Amur catfish to the pot, add enough water, and continue braising until the fish is tender and the sauce thickens.

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1.7. Fried Amur catfish with tamarind fish sauce

Ingredients for fried Amur catfish with tamarind fish sauce:

• 1kg Amur catfish
• 80ml filtered water
• 2 tablespoons tamarind pulp juice
• 2 sliced chili peppers
• 1/3 onion
• 1 teaspoon lemon juice or vinegar
• Fish sauce, sugar, cooking oil

How to make fried Amur catfish with tamarind sauce:

• First, clean the purchased Amur catfish, let it drain, then score the body a few times. Fry the fish over medium heat until golden and crispy on both sides, then remove to blot excess oil.
• Next, add tamarind juice, filtered water, chili, onion, and seasonings to the pan, simmer gently for 2-3 minutes, adjusting for a balanced sour-salty-sweet taste, then turn off the heat. Arrange the fish on a plate, pour the tamarind fish sauce evenly on top, and enjoy.

1.8. Sour Amur catfish soup

Ingredients include:

• 500g Amur catfish
• 300g sour bamboo shoots
• 1 tomato
• Dill
• 1 tablespoon fermented rice (mẻ)
• Salt, MSG, cooking oil

Instructions for cooking sour Amur catfish soup:

• Clean the Amur catfish slime, wash thoroughly, and cut into chunks. Wash the dill and cut into short sections; wash the tomato and cut into wedges. Mix fermented rice with water and filter to get the sour liquid.
• Next, lightly sauté the tomato with oil until soft, add the sour bamboo shoots and stir well, then add the filtered fermented rice liquid.
• When the water boils, add the Amur catfish to the pot, season to taste, then cover and cook over low heat for 3-5 minutes until the fish is cooked. Sprinkle with dill and turn off the heat.

1.9. Steamed Amur catfish with gourd

Ingredients to prepare:

• 700g Amur catfish
• 2 gourds
• 1 sprig of spring onion
• Sugar, seasoning powder, pepper

How to process steamed Amur catfish with gourd:

• Clean the Amur catfish of slime and fishy odors, then cut into bite-sized pieces. Peel the gourd, wash, split in half, and then slice vertically about 1cm thick.
• Next, marinate the fish with 1/2 teaspoon pepper, 1 teaspoon sugar, and 1 teaspoon seasoning powder. Arrange gourd and fish alternately in a bowl, with the gourd placed on the top layer.
• Then bring water to a boil in a steamer, place the fish bowl inside and steam for 15-20 minutes until the fish is tender.

1.10. Grilled Amur catfish with sate sauce

Preparation of ingredients:

• 2kg Amur catfish
• Garlic, chili
• Sate sauce
• Salt, sugar, fish sauce, seasoning powder, MSG, chili sauce

How to make grilled Amur catfish with sate sauce:

• Clean the purchased Amur catfish, slit along the spine and lightly score both sides of the body to easily absorb seasonings.
• Grind garlic and chili with salt and sugar. Then mix in sate sauce, chili sauce, fish sauce, seasoning powder, and MSG, stirring well to create a thick mixture.
• Next, apply the sauce evenly over the entire fish body, making sure to stuff spices into the scored slits and marinate for about 30 minutes for the fish to absorb evenly.
• Place the fish on a grill or in an oven at 200°C for about 30 minutes. Flip as needed and grill until the fish is dry and gives off a fragrant aroma.

1.11. Amur catfish with pickled greens

Ingredients needed:

• 500g Amur catfish
• 500g pickled mustard greens
• 3 tomatoes
• 1/2 pineapple
• 2 dracontomelon (sấu)
• Ginger, chili, spring onions, dill
• Cooking oil, seasoning powder, MSG, salt

How to make Amur catfish with pickled greens:

• Clean the Amur catfish, rub with salt to deodorize, rinse, and cut into chunks. Marinate the fish with salt, seasoning powder, and minced ginger to absorb the flavors.
• Rinse the pickled greens and drain; cut tomatoes into wedges. Peel the pineapple and cut into bite-sized pieces. Crush the ginger; cut spring onions and dill into sections.
• Briefly fry the fish with cooking oil until the meat is firm, then remove and set aside. Then, sauté shallots, add tomatoes and sauté until soft, then add the pickled greens and dracontomelon and stir well. Add boiling water, add the pineapple to cook together, and season to taste.
• Add the fish to the soup pot and simmer gently. Before turning off the stove, add spring onions, dill, and chili to maintain a fragrant aroma and attractive color.

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2. Nutritional value of Amur catfish

Amur catfish meat is both sweet and rich, firm, high in protein, vitamins A, D, E, DHA, and many essential minerals for the body. Thanks to these nutrients, Amur catfish is not only good for health, supporting heart health and preventing aging, but it is also prepared into various dishes such as braising, steaming, grilling, and more. In traditional medicine, Amur catfish is also known as “niệm ngư” or “di ngư,” which has the effect of tonifying energy, improving circulation, and acting as a diuretic, being both delicious and nutritious.

3. How to process clean Amur catfish

To have a delicious and safe Amur catfish dish, you need to prepare it properly according to these steps:

• First, you need to immobilize the fish by lightly tapping the head, then quickly blanch the fish body in hot water and use a knife or papaya leaves to rub and remove slime. Note to blanch quickly and the water should not be too hot to prevent the fish from cooking prematurely.
• Next, cut off the head, gills, innards, fins, and tail, then chop the fish into bite-sized chunks.
• If the fish still has slime, rinsing it with sea salt and a few slices of fresh lemon will help the fish be cleaner. For Amur catfish with eggs, you can keep them to prepare nutritious dishes.

4. Distinguishing Amur catfish from Catfish (Cá trê)

Amur catfish and common catfish (cá trê) are often confused because their shapes are quite similar, but they can be easily distinguished based on a few prominent features. Amur catfish has a round body, smooth skin, small fins, longer upper barbels than lower ones, and sweet, firm meat. Meanwhile, the common catfish has a flatter body, coarser skin, large barbels that are equal in length, and the meat is not as sweet as Amur catfish.

With the suggestions for dishes from Amur catfish in the article above, we hope it has helped you find the answer to the question “what to cook with Amur catfish”, thereby enriching the daily meals for your family. If you want to explore more attractive cooking recipes as well as other useful articles, don’t forget to visit the Blog of Ola Squid today! Besides freshwater fish, if you are looking for premium coastal specialties, you can browse our high-quality dried squid products to bring the taste of the ocean to your kitchen.