Vietnamese Sour Soup (Canh chua)
Overview
Canh chua is a sweet and sour soup from southern Vietnam, especially the Mekong Delta. A light broth is soured with tamarind and sweetened with pineapple, then cooked with tomato, okra, bean sprouts and the spongy stems of elephant ear plant. Fish such as catfish or snakehead, or prawns, are added, and the soup is finished with fried garlic and fragrant herbs such as rice paddy herb. It is served with rice as part of a family meal, often alongside caramelised fish.
History
The Mekong Delta, with its rivers, rice fields and abundant fish and fruit, shaped canh chua. Families cooked it daily with whatever fish and vegetables were at hand, and its balance of sour, sweet and salty is typical of southern Vietnamese food. Today it is found throughout Vietnam and in Vietnamese communities abroad, where it is a familiar home-style dish.
Main ingredients
Fish, tamarind, pineapple, tomato, bean sprouts, rice paddy herb. The soup is built on tamarind broth and is usually served hot. Diet: pescatarian; usually gluten-free.
Explore: Fish and seafood soups · Tomato soups · Rice soups · More soups from Vietnam
Recipe
Method
- 1
Dissolve tamarind in hot water and strain into 1.2 l water.
- 2
Bring to the boil, season with fish sauce and sugar and add the fish.
- 35 min
Add pineapple, tomato and okra and cook for 5 minutes.
- 4
Add bean sprouts, then top with fried garlic and herbs.
- ✓
Serve. About 35 min from start to bowl.
Pictures
Sources
Description, history and recipe written by SoupWiki and checked against the sources above. Calories and times are rough estimates.
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