I have to admit it’s getting better
For the latest Cooking with the Diva segment, I did my all-time favorite dish, Vietnamese catfish with caramel sauce. Here’s my written introduction to it on 98.3 The Coast’s site:
While name of the dish is intriguing, that’s nothing compared to how it tastes! Vietnamese caramel sauce feels barely related to what you put on your ice cream. It’s much, much darker, almost black, and because it’s so dark, it’s actually bittersweet. When you simmer catfish in it with a few other ingredients, you create a rich and seductive dish that almost everyone falls in love with. With a few minor variations, you can also use the same sauce and technique with chicken, shrimp, and pork with equally impressive results. The flavors are intense, and you’ll want something to soak up every drop of the finished sauce, so serve it with rice.
Ingredients
Caramel sauce (sugar, water, shallots, garlic, fish sauce, vegetable oil)
Catfish fillets
Scallions
Ground black pepper
Given that little list of ingredients, the complexity you get from that little list is stunning, definitely worth a try, whether you make it or order it! The best method for making caramel sauce base (sugar/water caramel) I’ve found so far is in Into the Vietnamese Kitchen by Andrea Nguyen. It’s worth the price of the book just for that alone since the caramel sauce can be tricky. And the rest of the book is outstanding as well, I’ve cooked from it many times and have always been happy with the results.
Video after the jump.
