Fried rockling with turmeric, dill and vermicelli

Chả cá

By: Andreas Pohl, Tracey Lister
From: Real Vietnamese Cooking
Serves: 6
Photographer: Michael Fountoulakis

The most famous restaurant to eat this dish in Hanoi is Cha Ca La Vong, in the Old Quarter. A specialty of the Doan family, their closely guarded recipe has been handed down through generations, delighting diners huddled around tabletop burners on cold Hanoi evenings, taking in the rich aromas. Cha ca literally means ‘fried fish’. The special twist with this recipe is that the fish is cooked twice (first grilled, then fried), so you’ll need a firm-fleshed fish that does not break apart easily during cooking.

Ingredients

Quantity	Ingredient
	rockling fillets, skin and bones removed, cut into 3 cm chunks
200g	dried rice vermicelli
	vegetable oil, for pan-frying
	dill sprigs
12	spring onions, thickly sliced
80g	roasted peanuts, chopped
1 small handful	coriander leaves
	Classic dipping sauce, to serve

Marinade

Quantity	Ingredient
3cm	fresh galangal, roughly chopped
1	long red chilli, seeded and roughly chopped
2 tablespoons	ground turmeric
1 tablespoon	sugar
60ml	mam tom or fish sauce

Method

To make the marinade, pound the galangal, chilli, turmeric and sugar to a paste in a mortar. Add the mam tom and 2 1/2 tablespoons water and stir until the sugar dissolves. Smear the marinade over the fish and marinate for about 2 hours.
Heat a chargrill or barbecue to medium. Have a hot wok or frying pan ready for the second fish cooking stage.
Meanwhile, soak the vermicelli in boiling water for 5 minutes. Gently stir to separate the noodles, then drain and refresh under cold water. Cut into easy-to-manage lengths.
Thoroughly pat the fish dry with paper towel; excess liquid will make the fish stick to the grill. Chargrill for 2–3 minutes on each side, until charred areas appear, but remove before the fish is cooked all the way through.
Heat about 2 cm of oil in the hot wok or frying pan. Test if it is ready by dropping a small piece of bread into the pan: it should quickly turn lightly golden. Add one-third of the fish and cook for 3–4 minutes, turning once. Add one-third of the dill and spring onion and toss until wilted.
Divide one-third of the noodles among six deep serving bowls. Top with the fish, then one-third of the peanuts.
Cook the remaining fish and herbs; serve up the remaining ingredients, for diners to help themselves.