Vietnamese Fried Fish with Turmeric & Lemongrass (Ca Chien Sa Nghe)
Looking for a healthy alternative to deep-fried fish? This Vietnamese pan-fried fish with turmeric and lemongrass is easy to make, has a crispy bite, and is more flavorful than your average fish fry!
To make things easy, you do not need to have fresh fish fillets in order to create a great taste— any frozen fillets of a white and mild fish will work just fine. When using frozen fish, just make sure to thaw it entirely, then pat it dry to get rid of excess moisture.
If you are unfamiliar with lemongrass, here is a guide on how to cut lemongrass. For this recipe, you will be finely mincing it.
Prepare your marinade by mixing together the garlic, minced lemongrass, fish sauce, sugar, turmeric powder, 2 tablespoons of coconut oil, salt, and pepper in a bowl. Spread the marinade over the fish on both sides until fully coated.
Start by cleaning your fish fillets with water and then drain them so there is no excess water dripping from them. You can keep the fish fillets as they are, halve them, or cut into bite-sized pieces– whatever your preference!
Remove from the refrigerator and lightly sprinkle cornstarch on both sides of the fillets.
Heat 2 tablespoons of cooking oil in a pan and add in the fillets. Fry for 3 minutes on each side, until fish is no longer translucent. It’s ok if some of the lemongrass and marinade fall off the fish, just scoop it back on when ready to serve. Enjoy!
If you liked this recipe, you should try
- Thai Drunken Noodles with Tofu (Pad Kee Mao)
- Jamaican Jerk Chicken Wings
- Thai Fish Cakes (Tod Mun Pla)
Vietnamese Fried Fish with Turmeric & Lemongrass (Ca Chien Sa Nghe)
Ingredients
- 2 to 3 tilapia fillets
- 3 cloves of garlic minced
- 2 tablespoons of shallot minced
- 2 stalks of lemongrass minced*
- 1 teaspoon of fish sauce
- 1 teaspoon of turmeric powder
- 1 teaspoon granulated white sugar
- 1 teaspoon of sea salt
- ¼ teaspoon of black pepper
- 1 teaspoon of chili powder optional
- 1/3 cup cornstarch
- 3 tablespoons coconut oil
Instructions
- Start by cleaning your fish fillets with water and then drain them so there is no excess water dripping from them. You can keep the fish fillets as they are, halve them, or cut into bite-sized pieces.
- Prepare your marinade by mixing together the garlic, lemongrass, fish sauce, sugar, turmeric powder, 2 tablespoons of oil, salt, and pepper in a large bowl. Spread the marinade over the fish on both sides until fully coated.
- After marinating, lightly sprinkle cornstarch on the fillets on both sides.
- Heat 2 tablespoons of cooking oil in a pan and add in the fillets. Fry for 3 minutes on each side, until fish is no longer translucent. It’s ok if some of the lemongrass and marinade fall off the fish, just scoop it back on when ready to serve. Enjoy!
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Good week-day recipe for times when you want to do other things in life besides slave in the kitchen! It whips up in a flash. We served it over rice noodles with lettuce and cucumbers. And don’t forget the nước chấm!
Delicious!! But next time I’ll cut back on the salt. 1 teaspoon was a little too much.