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Vietnamese Pan-Fried Fish with Nước Chấm

Course: Main Courses - Fish & Seafood
Cuisine: Vietnamese

Ingredients

For the Nước Chấm:

  • 2 Tablespoons Fresh Lime Juice
  • 2 Tablespoons Fish Sauce Or to Taste
  • 2 Tablespoons Sugar
  • 2 Tablespoons Water
  • Sliced Bird's Eye Chilies To Taste, Optional

For the Fish:

  • 2 1 to 1 1/2 Pound Whole Fish
  • Salt & Pepper To Taste
  • Flour for Dredging
  • 2 Tablespoons Butter
  • 2 Tablespoons Olive Oil

To Serve:

  • Jasmine Rice with Lemongrass & Ginger Or Plain Jasmine Rice
  • Cilantro
  • Green Onions Sliced

Instructions

Make the Nước Chấm (Vietnamese Dipping Sauce):

  • In a small bowl, combine lime juice, fish sauce, water and sugar. Whisk until well combined. Add some sliced chilies, if desired. Set aside.
  • Note: The amount of fish sauce you use should be determined by taste as the strengths of different brands of fish sauce will differ.

Prepare the Fish:

  • Clean fish and descale as necessary; remove head if desired. I like to use trout, which does not need to be descaled, but I do like to remove the head. Rinse thoroughly and pat dry.
  • In a skillet, melt together butter and oil over medium heat.
  • While the skillet is heating, season fish with salt and pepper inside and out. Dredge each fish in a light coating of flour.
  • Place the fish in the hot skillet and cook for 5 minutes until fish is golden brown. Flip the fish, being careful not to break the skin. Cook another 5 minutes until golden.

To Serve:

  • Serve fish immediately over a bed of rice. Top with cilantro and green onions.
  • When ready to eat, pour over some of the Nước Chấm.