Red tilapia is a type of fish that is no longer unfamiliar in Vietnamese meals when prepared into many delicious dishes. Today, Tastetutorial.com will introduce you to 2 recipes for braised red tilapia, ensuring that this braised dish will make you want to eat more rice. Let’s get cooking right away!
1. Braised Red Tilapia
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Preparation
15 minutes
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Cooking
35 minutes
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Difficulty
Easy
Ingredients for Braised Red Tilapia Serves 4
Red tilapia 1 fish (about 1 kg) Green onions 4 stalks Chili 2 pieces Vinegar a little Caramel sauce 2 teaspoons Cooking oil 1 tablespoon Fish sauce 2 tablespoons Common seasonings a little (Salt/ sugar/ monosodium glutamate/ pepper)
How to cook Red tilapia in clay pot
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Prepare red tilapia
To clean the fish and remove any fishy smell, when buying fish, scrape off the scales and clean the insides. Place the fish in a bowl and wash the fish with a little vinegar and salt, using a knife to scrape off the slime.
Then rinse thoroughly with water and let it drain, cut the fish into bite-sized pieces, about 2 finger widths thick.
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Marinate red tilapia
Wash fresh chili, let it drain, chop 1 chili finely, keep 1 whole.
Remove the roots of green onions, wash them clean and separate the onion roots, chop the green onion leaves finely.
Marinate the fish with 1/2 teaspoon of salt, 2 teaspoons of sugar, 1 teaspoon of monosodium glutamate, 2 tablespoons of fish sauce, 2 teaspoons of coloring sauce, chopped chili, and 1/2 of the chopped green onion leaves.
Mix well and let it sit for about 10 – 15 minutes for the fish to absorb the flavors.
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Fish Stew
Place the green onions at the bottom of the pot, add the fish on top, pour all the marinating liquid over, and cook on high heat for about 5 minutes until the fish meat is firm.
Next, add 5 tablespoons of filtered water, 1 tablespoon of cooking oil, and 1 whole chili, cover the pot, and simmer on low heat for another 10 – 15 minutes until the fish is cooked, absorbs the seasoning, and becomes fragrant; the sauce should also thicken at this point.
After 15 minutes, when the fish is cooked, open the lid, add the remaining green onion leaves, a little pepper, adjust the seasoning to taste, turn off the heat, and serve immediately.
Tip:
- Placing the green onions at the bottom of the pot helps prevent the fish from sticking to the pot during cooking.
- If you have time and to ensure quality, you can refer to how to make color sauce at home according to the recipe from Tastetutorial.com.
- Depending on your preference, you can either cook the fish until it’s completely dry or leave a bit of sauce to enjoy with white rice.
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Finished dish
Stewed red tilapia with the aroma of scallions, pepper, and thick, flavorful sauce is truly enticing, isn’t it? The fish meat is sweet, fatty, and firm, not flaky, with a hint of spiciness from the chili. Paired with white rice, it can’t get any better.
Enjoy it hot for the most delicious experience. Additionally, you can also serve stewed red tilapia with noodles or alongside various herbs that complement the dish well. Wishing you a good meal!
2. Stewed red tilapia with pepper (recipe shared by a user)
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Preparation
30 minutes
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Cooking
20 minutes
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Difficulty
Easy
Ingredients for Stewed red tilapia with pepper (recipe shared by a user) Serves 4
Red tilapia 500 gr Chili 1 piece Scallions 1 stalk Caramel sauce 1 teaspoon Fish sauce 9 teaspoons Cooking oil 7 teaspoons Common seasoning a little (sugar/ monosodium glutamate/ ground pepper)
Ingredient image
How to cook Tilapia braised with pepper (recipe shared by a user)
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Prepare and marinate the fish
To clean the fish, use a knife to scrape off the scales, use scissors to cut off the fins, gills, and clean the belly. Next, use available ingredients such as rice water, lemon, salt… to rub and eliminate the fishy smell and slime. Rinse again 2 – 3 times until clean, then cut into pieces about 2 finger lengths.
Place the cut fish into a pot and then add in order 1 teaspoon of coloring sauce, 3 teaspoons of sugar, 1 teaspoon of monosodium glutamate, 1 teaspoon of ground pepper, 3 teaspoons of cooking oil, and 9 teaspoons of fish sauce, then stir well to coat the fish with the seasoning. Cover the pot to marinate for about 15 minutes for the fish to absorb the flavors.
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Cook the tilapia
Place a pot on the stove, add 4 teaspoons of cooking oil and set to medium heat. When the oil is hot, add the fish, turning it continuously to sear the fish without burning it.
Next, add 1/2 bowl of filtered water (rice bowl) into the pot, add 1 sliced chili, and braise the fish on low heat for about 15 minutes until the water thickens, then add a stalk of chopped green onion about 1/2 finger length. Adjust the seasoning to taste and turn off the heat when finished.
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Final Product
The plate of braised red tilapia with pepper looks really eye-catching. The aroma of the braised fish spreads an appealing fragrance, the fish meat is firm and shines a brownish-yellow color that makes you crave it just by looking at it.
When you pick up a piece of fish and put it in your mouth, can you feel the perfect blend of fish and spices? Braised red tilapia with pepper is delicious and savory, eaten with hot rice is simply irresistible.
How to choose fresh and delicious red tilapia
- To have a delicious dish, you need to choose fresh red tilapia, with clear eyes, when touched it feels slimy, the gills are pink, the scales are firm and flexible.
- If the slimy layer on the fish turns sticky, the eyes are sunken and cloudy, the scales easily come off, the gills are white or dark, the flesh is soft and not elastic, floating on the water surface. Those are characteristics of spoiled fish, which should not be purchased.
How to clean fish without slime and smell
- Use salt or rice water: After cleaning the fish, you can rub it with salt or soak it in rice water for about 15 minutes to eliminate the fishy smell.
- Use lemon and vinegar: You can dilute vinegar with cold water or lemon with cold water, soak for about 5 minutes to quickly remove the fishy smell. This method is very useful for slippery fish types.
- Use white alcohol: Use diluted white alcohol, marinate the fish for about 2 minutes, then dry it; the fish will smell less.
- Use spices: Use spices such as pepper, onion, chili, ginger, coriander, etc., to reduce the fishy smell. If you don’t mind the smell of Vietnamese coriander, you can rub it with the fish to remove the fishy smell!
Red tilapia is a very familiar food, easily bought at the market. From the ingredients and 2 recipes shared above, you can prepare a simple yet nutritious meal for your family. So why wait? Let’s get into the kitchen and immediately prepare the braised red tilapia dish!
