In the waters of Phu Yen, there are many types of fish, such as hammerhead fish, straight fish, horizontal fish... This fish has many bones but sweet water; when cooked salty with pineapple and tomato, the flavor is rich, when cooked sour with tamarind leaves, it has a unique flavor.
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| At Gia market (An Ninh Tay commune, Tuy An district), many people look to buy fresh catfish every time they go to the market. Photo: LE TRAM |
In the mountains, the fish is salted and then dried to become salted fish. When grilled over charcoal, it has a delicious, fatty aroma. When fried, the salted fish has a rich, fatty taste. When recalling it now, some people still miss the taste of salted fish.
All are delicious
Fresh and delicious catfish is often sold in coastal markets from Dong Hoa town to Tuy Hoa city, to Tuy An district and Song Cau town. Compared to mackerel, tuna, anchovy, and sardines, catfish has "less meat and more bones", but many people crave it because the fish is sweet when cooked with pineapple and has a rich flavor when cooked with tamarind leaves. Mr. Do Chi in Hoa Hiep Trung ward (Dong Hoa town) said: Every day I see the market selling catfish, I run to find and pick a handful of young tamarind leaves. Catfish cooked with young tamarind leaves will permeate the tip of the tongue with a rich sour and spicy flavor. My grandmother used to cook this dish, I'm used to it now, so when I have catfish, I just crush the tamarind leaves, add a few chili peppers to the pot, and it has an unforgettable sour and spicy taste.
According to many fishermen in the Lo Ba sea area (Hoa Hiep Trung ward, Dong Hoa town), in the summer, the fish appear from the shore to the open sea, sometimes a small boat catches dozens of baskets of fish in one trip. There are many types of fish, such as hammerhead fish, straight fish, horizontal fish... Hammerhead fish is as big as an open hand, the meat is delicious beyond words, each time you eat it, you can easily pick up a big chopstick. The horizontal fish has bones that stick out horizontally, the fish's body is wide. The straight fish is longer than the horizontal fish, and its body is meatier.
Both the horizontal and vertical fish cooked with pineapple and tomatoes are very sweet. Mr. Nguyen Bao Toan in Binh Kien commune (Tuy Hoa city) shared: I lived and worked in Ho Chi Minh city for a while, and sometimes I really craved the horizontal fish. When I had the chance to go back to Phu Yen, I bought the horizontal fish to cook with pineapple and tomatoes. The horizontal fish is a bit expensive, sometimes I don't have enough money to buy it, so I bought horizontal and vertical fish to cook with pineapple and tomatoes. Boil water, put the cleaned fish in, turn on low heat to boil, skim off the foam, then add the chopped tomatoes and pineapple. When the water boils again, season to taste, turn off the heat, then add the onion and coriander, and when scooping into a bowl, sprinkle some ground pepper and it's done. The bowl of horizontal fish soup is sweet with a bit of saltiness, with an unforgettable elegant flavor. This type is mainly drunk with the broth, because the fish meat is not as satisfying to eat because it has... more bones than meat.
At Gia market (An Ninh Tay commune, Tuy An district), early in the morning, many people look to buy fresh catfish that has just been "run" in from Tien Chau port. Ms. Tran Thi Duyen in An Ninh Tay commune just bought a bunch of fresh catfish, saying: Catfish is easy to get stuck in the throat with bones, but this fish is minced very finely, rolled into balls and cooked into a delicious dish. Cook a pot of catfish soup, roll the balls, and use the water to pour over rice, and the meat is dipped in fish sauce and dipped in raw vegetables, it is delicious beyond words.
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| Catfish soup with tomatoes and pineapple. Photo: Internet |
Salted catfish "seduces" cold rice
People in the mountainous areas of Son Hoa, Dong Xuan, Song Hinh or further away rarely have the opportunity to eat fresh catfish, but mainly keep salted catfish in their kitchen. Ms. Bui Thi Nga in Son Dinh commune (Son Hoa district) said: People in my hometown occasionally have the opportunity to go to Hoa Da market (An My commune, Tuy An district) to buy some fresh catfish, mainly catfish, to mince, shape into balls, fry until golden, and cook soup with tomatoes, pineapple, star fruit, or dang leaves, dit leaves. If they don't have fresh fish, they buy salted catfish to save for later use.
Ms. Nga said: My father died early, my mother worked hard to raise us all by herself but we were always short of money. One time, my mother went to work far away and hadn’t returned until late at night. My two sisters were so scared that they went to the neighbor’s house to wait for her. Seeing someone else’s house grilling salted catfish with a fragrant smell, hunger was rumbling in our stomachs, they gave each of us half a bowl of rice. My mother came back, the meal was served on a tray placed on the dirt floor, the dish was also salted catfish, my two sisters and I ate deliciously. Later, the salted catfish was also fried, but my mother fried it and added a little fish sauce, MSG, and ground pepper… The fried salted catfish had a rich, fatty taste. Even now, when I think about it, I still remember it fondly!
Mr. Nguyen The Binh in Xuan Phuoc commune (Dong Xuan district) also praised the delicious salty catfish, which is eaten with rice. “Grilled salty catfish over charcoal, when going to the other side of the ditch to visit the fields, passing three or four fields, the aroma still lingers. In the mountains, catfish “entices” cold rice. In the morning, I grill catfish over charcoal to eat cold rice until full, then go to work in the fields. Now, every now and then, I still crave grilled catfish over charcoal,” said Mr. Binh.
The fish is easy to get stuck in the throat, but this fish is finely chopped, shaped into balls and cooked into a delicious dish. Cook a pot of fish soup, shape the fish balls, and use the water to pour over rice. The meat is mixed with fish sauce and dipped in raw vegetables, and it is delicious beyond words.
Ms. Tran Thi Duyen in An Ninh Tay commune, Tuy An district |
MANH LE TRAM
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