Anchovies: 17 Simple & Delicious Dish Ideas

Anchovies have a natural sweet taste, tender flesh, and affordable prices, making them a familiar seafood in Vietnamese family meals. This type of fish can be processed into many diverse dishes, from braising, frying, and grilling to salads and fermented sauces, helping the family menu become more abundant. So, what to cook with anchovies that is both delicious and easy to prepare? To answer this question, let’s follow this detailed article by Ola Squid right now!

1. What to cook with anchovies?

1.1. Braised Anchovies

Ingredients:

• 500g fresh anchovies
• 200g pork fat
• 1/2 head of garlic, 5 shallots
• 3 sprigs of green onions, 2 chilies
• 4 tablespoons cooking oil
• 1 teaspoon MSG, 1 tablespoon seasoning powder
• 3 tablespoons fish sauce, 2 tablespoons sugar

How to make braised anchovies:

• Clean the anchovies, remove the heads, tails, and gills, then wash and drain. Wash the pork fat with salt water, remove the skin, and dice. Peel, wash, and finely mince the shallots, garlic, and chilies. Wash and chop the green onions.
• Next, place the fish in a large bowl, season with fish sauce, seasoning powder, sugar, MSG, and 1 tablespoon of cooking oil. Mix well and marinate for about 15 minutes to let the fish absorb the spices.
• Heat 1 tablespoon of cooking oil, add the pork fat, and stir-fry over medium heat for 5-10 minutes until golden brown, then remove and set aside.
• Next, heat 1 tablespoon of sugar with 2 tablespoons of oil over medium heat until it turns a caramel color. Then, sauté the minced shallots, garlic, and chili until fragrant, then add the fish and stir for about 1 minute until firm.
• Add 1/2 cup of water just to cover the fish, cover the pot, and braise over medium heat for 20 minutes. Open the lid, adjust the seasoning, and braise further until the sauce thickens. Finally, add the green onions and pork cracklings, stir well, then turn off the heat and enjoy.

1.2. Anchovies Braised with Turmeric

Ingredients:

• 400g white anchovies
• 2 sprigs of green onions, 6 bird’s eye chilies
• 20g garlic, 20g shallots
• 30g chili powder, 30g turmeric powder
• 1 teaspoon pepper, 2 teaspoons chili powder
• 3 tablespoons fish sauce, 1 tablespoon turmeric
• 1 teaspoon brown sugar, 1 tablespoon vinegar

How to prepare anchovies braised with turmeric:

• First, wash the anchovies thoroughly with vinegar-mixed salt water, shake gently, then rinse again. Finely chop shallots, green onions, and garlic to sauté. Mix the sauce consisting of ¼ cup water, 1 tablespoon fish sauce, and 1 teaspoon brown sugar.
• Next, use a cast-iron pot and heat 1 tablespoon of cooking oil (you can add pork fat if you like it rich), sauté shallots and garlic until fragrant. Then add the mixed sauce, turmeric powder, and chili powder and stir well. When the mixture boils, add the fish, season with more fish sauce, chili powder, whole bird’s eye chilies, and sprinkle with pepper.
• Continue to cover and braise for about 5 minutes until the water is almost gone. Finally, add the green onions and turn off the heat. Turmeric braised anchovies have a characteristic fragrant aroma, are deeply seasoned, and have an attractive golden color, ready to be enjoyed with hot rice.

1.3. Anchovies Braised with Pepper

Ingredients:

• 300g anchovies
• 1 sprig of green onion
• A little chili powder or fresh chili
• 1 tablespoon cooking oil, 1 tablespoon sugar
• 1 teaspoon seasoning powder, 1 teaspoon MSG
• 1 teaspoon ground pepper, 1 teaspoon fish sauce
• 1/2 teaspoon salt

Instructions for anchovies braised with pepper:

• Wash the anchovies several times and drain. Wash and finely chop the green onions.
• Place the fish in a pot (preferably a clay pot), marinate with spices including salt, sugar, seasoning powder, MSG, pepper, chili, oil, and fish sauce. Then stir gently for the fish to absorb the spices.
• Next, put the pot on the stove and heat over low fire until the fish boils gently. Continue to stir evenly and add boiling water just covering the fish surface, then simmer until the water is almost evaporated. Finally, season to taste, sprinkle green onions, and turn off the stove.

>>> See more: What to cook with catfish? Top 11 super rice-pulling delicious dishes

1.4. Anchovies Braised with Pork Belly

Required ingredients:

• 400g fresh anchovies
• 200g pork belly
• 1 chili, 2 sprigs of green onion
• 1 tablespoon cooking oil, 1 tablespoon chili sauce
•  2 tablespoons fish sauce, 1 tablespoon oyster sauce
• 2 teaspoons minced garlic, 1/2 teaspoon MSG
• 1/2 teaspoon seasoning powder, 1 teaspoon pepper
• 2 tablespoons sugar

How to cook anchovies braised with pork belly:

• Cut off the heads of the anchovies, wash them, and drain, then marinate with sugar for about 15 minutes to make the fish firm, then discard the liquid. Wash the pork belly and cut into bite-sized pieces. Wash and finely chop green onions and chilies.
• Heat cooking oil with sugar until it turns a caramel color, add garlic and sauté until fragrant. Next, add the pork belly and stir until firm, then add the anchovies. Season with oyster sauce, chili sauce, fish sauce along with seasoning powder and MSG.
• Then lower the heat and simmer the fish for about 10 minutes until the sauce thickens. Sprinkle pepper, chili, and green onions, adjust seasoning, then turn off the stove.

1.5. Concentrated Braised Anchovies

Ingredients

• 300g anchovies
• 4 shallots, 2 fresh chilies
• 2 tablespoons fish sauce, 1 tablespoon cashew oil
• A little sea salt, 1/2 teaspoon pepper
• 1/2 teaspoon seasoning powder, 1 tablespoon sugar

How to make concentrated braised anchovies:

• First, after buying anchovies, soak them in diluted salt water for about 10 minutes to remove the fishy smell, rinse thoroughly, and drain. Wash and crush the chili and shallots.
• Next, put the fish in a pan and marinate with fish sauce, sugar, seasoning powder, pepper, cashew oil, and the shallot-chili mixture. Then mix well for the fish to absorb the spices for about 30 minutes.
• Cook the fish over high heat until it boils, then lower the heat and braise for another 10 minutes until the sauce thickens and becomes sticky. Finally, adjust seasoning to taste and turn off the heat.

1.6. Anchovy Kho Quet

Ingredients

• 200g anchovies
• 5 fresh chilies, 3 sprigs of green onions
• 4 cloves garlic, 1 shallot, pork fat
• 1/3 tablespoon pepper, 1/3 tablespoon MSG
• 1/3 tablespoon salt, 1/3 teaspoon sugar
• 1/2 tablespoon fish sauce, 1/3 tablespoon seasoning powder

Instructions for making anchovy kho quet:

• Clean the anchovies, wash with diluted salt water, and drain. Marinate the fish with salt, MSG, sugar, seasoning powder, pepper, and fish sauce, mix well and leave for about 15-20 minutes to absorb the flavor.
• Wash and chop the green onions, finely mince the chili. Peel and mince the shallot and garlic.
• Then put a pan on the stove and heat pork fat, sauté the shallot and garlic until fragrant. Add fish sauce, sugar, and filtered water to the pot, then stir until the mixture boils and turns a beautiful color. Continue to add pepper, then put the anchovies in and braise over low heat for about 15-20 minutes until the fish is evenly flavored and the sauce thickens. Sprinkle green onions and chili, season to taste, and turn off the stove.

1.7. Fresh Anchovy Salad

Ingredients

• 200g fresh anchovies
• 1 green mango
• Onion, garlic, chili, lime
• Roasted peanuts
• Elsholtzia (Vietnamese balm), coriander
• 1 teaspoon sugar, 1/2 teaspoon MSG
• 1 tablespoon fish sauce, 1 teaspoon soup powder

Instructions for making fresh anchovy salad:

• First, wash the anchovies with diluted salt water, rinse with clean water, and drain. Mix the fish with lime juice and leave for about 15-20 minutes to lightly cure the fish and reduce the fishy smell.
• Peel the mango and shred it. Thinly slice the onion, slice the garlic, and remove seeds from chili then cut into strips. Wash and chop elsholtzia and coriander.
• Place the anchovies in a bowl, add mango, onion, herbs, chili, and garlic. Continue to season with fish sauce, sugar, soup powder, MSG, squeeze in more lime, then mix well and taste to your liking. Finally, arrange the salad on a plate, sprinkle roasted peanuts, and add some elsholtzia on top.

Similar delicious dish: What to cook with climbing perch? Suggested 8 delicious preparation ways

1.8. Fried Anchovies with Garlic and Chili

Ingredients

• 300g anchovies
• 2 chilies, 4 cloves garlic
• 1 sprig green onion, a little minced ginger
• 100g tapioca starch or cornstarch
• 2 tablespoons sugar, 1 tablespoon chili sauce
• 3 tablespoons fish sauce
• 1/2 teaspoon pepper, 1/3 teaspoon salt

Preparation

• Wash the anchovies, drain, and mix with salt. Then put the fish in a bag with starch and shake gently to coat evenly. Heat oil and fry the fish over medium heat until golden and crispy, then remove and drain oil.
• Next, mix fish sauce, sugar, pepper, and chili sauce together. Sauté garlic, chili, ginger, and green onions with a little oil until fragrant, then add the fish sauce mixture and stir well. Finally, add the fried anchovies to the pan, toss quickly so the fish is evenly coated with the sauce, then turn off the stove.

1.9. Fried Anchovies with Sate

Ingredients:

• 250g anchovies
• 1 minced shallot, 1 minced garlic
• 100g crispy frying flour
• 1 tablespoon fish sauce, 1 tablespoon sate
• 1/2 teaspoon annatto powder, 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1/2 teaspoon pepper, 1/4 teaspoon seasoning powder
• 1 tablespoon sugar, 300ml cooking oil

How to prepare fried anchovies with sate:

• Clean the anchovies, wash with diluted salt water, then drain. Marinate the fish with pepper, garlic powder, and annatto powder for about 5 minutes to absorb.
• Next, mix the fish with crispy frying flour to coat evenly, then deep fry over high heat until the fish is golden and crispy, then remove and drain oil.
• Sauté garlic and shallot with a little oil, then add sate, fish sauce, sugar, and seasoning powder and stir until thickened. Finally, add the fried anchovies and toss quickly to be evenly seasoned with the sauce, then turn off the stove.

1.10. Fried Anchovies with Fish Sauce

Ingredients

• 400g anchovies
• 5 cloves minced garlic, 1 minced chili
• 100g crispy frying flour
• 1/2 teaspoon annatto powder, 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1 tablespoon chili sauce, 1 tablespoon fish sauce
• 1/4 teaspoon ground pepper, 1 tablespoon sugar
• 1/4 teaspoon MSG, a little roasted sesame, cooking oil

Instructions for preparing fried anchovies with fish sauce:

• Buy anchovies, remove guts and heads, wash with diluted salt water, then drain. Next, marinate the fish with garlic powder and annatto powder for about 5 minutes to absorb.
• Mix the fish with crispy frying flour to coat evenly, then deep fry over high heat for 4-5 minutes until golden and crispy, then remove and drain oil.
• Next, sauté garlic and chili with a little oil, add fish sauce, sugar, MSG, pepper, and chili sauce, and stir until thickened. Add the fish to the pan, toss quickly to coat evenly with sauce, sprinkle roasted sesame, and turn off the stove.

1.11. Anchovy Fermented Fish Sauce

Ingredients:

• 1kg anchovies
• 100ml white wine, 100g sea salt
• 2 garlic bulbs, 1 tablespoon dried chili
• 2 tablespoons ground pepper
• 150g sugar, 50g MSG

How to prepare anchovy fermented fish sauce:

• Clean the anchovies of impurities, wash several times with water, then drain. Divide the garlic into two parts: one part peeled and minced, the other part roasted until the skin is charred, peeled, then minced.
• Next, put the fish in a basin, mix well with sea salt, sugar, MSG, pepper, and dried chili. Add the roasted garlic and white wine, continue to stir well to let the fish absorb the seasoning.
• Then put the fish mixture into a jar and close tightly, wrap with nylon, then expose to the sun for about 20 days.
• After the incubation time, the anchovy fermented fish sauce will have a characteristic aroma, which can be used directly or to prepare many other dishes.

See more: What to cook with yellowtail? Revealing 12 easy-to-make dishes at home

1.12. Fried Anchovies

Ingredients

• 200g dried anchovies
• 200g flour, 100ml water
• 1 chicken egg
• Appropriate amount of green onions
• 1 teaspoon sugar, ¼ teaspoon seasoning powder
• ½ teaspoon salt, ½ teaspoon pepper

How to make fried anchovies:

• Wash and chop the green onions. Put flour in a bowl, add egg, water, salt, seasoning powder, pepper, and sugar, stir until the mixture is smooth, then add green onions and mix well.
• Then add the dried anchovies to the flour bowl, stir gently so the fish is evenly coated with the flour layer. Next, heat oil in a pan, ladle portions of fish into the pan, fry until both sides are golden and crispy, then remove and drain oil to complete.

1.13. Anchovy Paste

Ingredients

• 1kg anchovies
• 200g salt, 50g sugar
• 5 tablespoons dried chili powder
• Several bird’s eye chilies

How to make anchovy paste:

• Wash the anchovies several times under the tap, remove the fish belly and dirt, then drain in the sun.
• Thinly slice the bird’s eye chilies and mix with the anchovies, salt, sugar, and chili powder, then stir well so the fish is seasoned.
• Next, put the fish and marinating liquid into a jar, press lightly, sprinkle some more dried chili on top, clean the jar mouth, and close the lid. Keep the jar in a dry and cool place for 15-20 days before using.

1.14. Sour Anchovy Paste

Required ingredients:

• 1.5kg anchovies
• 2 cups yellow sugar, 2 cups fish sauce
• Minced garlic and chili
• A little wine, salt, and roasted rice powder

How to make sour anchovy paste:

• Peel and mince the garlic, wash the chili, remove stems, and slice thinly. Wash the anchovies with salt water, then rinse with wine and drain. Mix the fish with roasted rice powder, garlic, and chili so the seasoning is absorbed.
• Next, put the fish sauce and yellow sugar into a pot. Then heat over low fire and stir well until the mixture is fragrant and boiling lightly, then let it cool until warm.
• Put the marinated fish into a jar, pour the warm sugar-fish sauce over the fish to submerge. Ferment the paste for at least 2 weeks before using. Sour anchovy paste after fermentation has a rich flavor and strong aroma, and can be used as a dipping sauce or to prepare many other dishes.

See more: What to cook with red snapper? 10 delicious and nutritious dishes from red snapper

1.15. Mango and Anchovy Salad

Ingredients

• 150g fresh anchovies
• ½ onion, 1 horn chili
• 1 Keo mango
• 2 sprigs mint, 2 sprigs celery
• 50g roasted cashews, 50g crispy frying flour
• 1 tablespoon minced chili, 1 tablespoon minced garlic
• 1 tablespoon fried shallots, 4 tablespoons passion fruit juice
• 200ml cooking oil, 1/3 teaspoon MSG
• 2 tablespoons sugar, 2 tablespoons fish sauce

How to make

• First, remove the heads of the anchovies, wash gently so they don’t break, and drain. Peel the mango, cut into strips, and slice the onion into thin rounds. Remove celery roots and strings, cut into segments, and chop the mint. Remove seeds from chili and cut into strips, and crush the cashews.
• Continue to mix the fish with crispy frying flour, removing excess flour. Heat oil and fry the fish until golden and crispy for about 3 minutes, then remove and drain oil.
• Then dissolve fish sauce, sugar, and MSG with boiled and cooled water, passion fruit juice, and minced garlic and chili. Stir well to blend the seasonings.
• Put mango, celery, and onion in a bowl, add the salad dressing fish sauce, 1/2 of the fried anchovies, fried shallots, cashews, mint, and chili strips. Mix well, then arrange on a plate, place the remaining fried fish on top, pour the rest of the dressing, and garnish with more mint.

1.16. Anchovy Clear Soup (Canh Ngót)

Ingredients

• 150g anchovies
• 3 tomatoes, 1/2 pineapple
• 5 sprigs celery, 3 sprigs green onion
• 1 shallot
• 1/2 tablespoon soup powder, 1 tablespoon cooking oil
• 1/2 tablespoon seasoning powder, 1/2 teaspoon pepper
• 1/2 teaspoon MSG, 1 tablespoon sugar

How to prepare anchovy clear soup:

• Clean of grit, sand, and leaf fragments, wash the fish 2-3 times with water. Then, marinate the fish with soup powder, seasoning powder, and pepper, then mix well and leave for 10 minutes.
• Remove pineapple eyes and core, cut into bite-sized pieces. Cut tomatoes into wedges, and cut green onions and celery into segments. Thinly slice the shallot.
• Then put a pot on the stove and sauté the shallot with cooking oil, add the pineapple and stir for 1 minute, then add 1.5 liters of water, season with sugar and MSG. When the water boils, drop the anchovies along with the marinating liquid in. When the water boils again, add the tomatoes and cook for another 3 minutes.
• Finally, add green onions and celery, sprinkle with pepper, and season to taste. Anchovy clear soup has a harmonious sweet and sour taste, the fish is soft and sweet, the soup is fragrant with green onions and celery, and slightly spicy with ground pepper.

1.17. Anchovy Fritters

Ingredients

• 300g fresh anchovies
• 50g crispy frying flour
• 1 chicken egg, 200ml cooking oil
• 2 chilies, 3 shallots
• 4 cloves garlic, 5 sprigs green onion
• 1/2 teaspoon sugar, 1/2 teaspoon ground pepper
• 1/2 teaspoon MSG, 1/2 teaspoon seasoning powder

Instructions for making anchovy fritters:

• Wash the anchovies and drain. Remove chili stems
  

  

  , wash, and slice thinly. Remove green onion roots, chop finely, and mince the shallots and garlic.

• Next, mix 1/2 of the green onions, all the shallots, minced garlic, 1/2 of the chili with pepper, sugar, seasoning powder, and MSG into the fish. Toss well and marinate for 10 minutes to absorb the flavors.
• Whisk the crispy frying flour with the egg and water until moderately smooth. Continue adding the remaining green onions, 1/2 of the chili, pepper, seasoning powder, and salt, then add the fish and stir well so the flour wraps the fish evenly.
• Heat oil in a pan then add the fish to fry each side for 5-7 minutes until golden and crispy. Finally, remove the fish to a plate, and fry the rest similarly.

Must-try delicious dish list:

• What to cook with mudskipper? 13 mudskipper recipes with standard Western flavors
• What to cook with lizardfish? Top 10 easy and rice-pulling lizardfish dishes
• What to cook with rabbitfish? Summary of delicious dishes you can’t miss

2. Notes when making anchovy dishes

Anchovies are small, nutrient-rich fish favored in many Vietnamese dishes. However, below are some notes you should not miss so that anchovy dishes always maintain their full delicious flavor and nutritional value:

• Choose fresh fish: You should prioritize anchovies with translucent white bodies, shiny skin, bright eyes, and firm, resilient flesh. Avoid buying fish with a cloudy color, blurred eyes, soft flesh, or a fishy foul odor. For milk anchovies, choose those with uniform color and size.
• Clear origin: Buy fish from reputable stores to ensure food safety and hygiene.
• Prepare large anchovies: If the anchovies are large, remove the heads and guts so the dish won’t be bitter.
• If you use dried anchovies, you should soak the fish in rice water for about 15 minutes before preparing to help remove dirt and reduce the fishy smell.
• If you buy fresh anchovies and don’t use them all at once, you should store them in the refrigerator, preferably using them within 1-2 days. Prepared fish should be allowed to cool completely before storage and should not be kept too long to avoid losing flavor and ensure food safety.

Hopefully, these suggestions will help you find a preparation method that is both delicious and attractive for the whole family as well as answer the concern of “what to cook with anchovies”. To discover more diverse recipes and attractive cooking secrets for even more perfect meals, don’t hesitate to visit olasquid.com right away! While searching for seafood inspiration, you can also explore our premium dried seafood shop for the highest quality snacks to complete your family’s dinner table.