Ca kho is a familiar and nutritious dish of Vietnamese people that goes well with rice. However, to make a delicious and fragrant ca kho dish with tender and flavorful fish, don’t overlook the following secrets to make the dish even more perfect.
Preparation of the fish before cooking
After buying the fish, you need to clean and remove the fishy odor. To remove the odor, you can add some salt to the fish, soak it for a few minutes, and then clean the fish. This will make the fish clean and eliminate the fishy smell.
When gutting the fish, you also need to remove the fish bladder and the black membrane inside the belly to reduce the fishy odor. After rinsing the fish, use a knife to make a horizontal cut on the fish body, about 1cm away from the head and tail. You will see a white sinew line exposed. Slowly pull it out completely. Doing this on both sides of the fish body will greatly reduce the fishy smell.
If you are dealing with smooth-skinned fish such as basa fish, catfish, pike, or eel, you can pour some hot water into the fish and scrape off the slime. This way, the fish will be clean and free of fishy smell.
Alternatively, you can soak the fish in rice water for about 10-15 minutes to reduce the fishy smell.

Marinating the fish to reduce the fishy smell
When marinating the fish, you should not add too many complex seasonings. After cleaning and cutting the fish into sections and putting them in a large bowl, add a little fish sauce, soybean paste, soup powder, or salt, chopped dried shallots (optional), and marinate for about 2 hours for the flavors to penetrate.
Marinating the fish for a longer time will make it more tender and flavorful. If you don’t have much time, you can marinate it for 50 minutes.

Cooking the fish with which seasonings?
It is recommended to use homemade fish broth for braising the fish to make it more flavorful. To make the fish meat tender and more fatty, you can add a little pork belly to the braise, ensuring a much more appealing flavor for the ca kho dish. If you don’t have pork belly, you can add a little cooking oil or lard to prevent the fish from becoming dry and make it more tender.
When braising, add the fish and the accompanying ingredients into the pot. Remember to alternate layers of ginger or pork in between the fish. Pour in the fish broth, and if the broth is not enough to submerge the fish, add some warm water and bring it to a boil over high heat.
During the braising process, add 1 tablespoon of pure fish sauce. Pure fish sauce is naturally fragrant and flavorful and is considered the “eternal enemy” of fishy smell. It can easily help you get rid of the fishy smell during cooking.

Some people also use pure fish sauce to wash and remove the fishy smell of fish intestines. Moreover, fish sauce makes the fish meat more tender and enhances the flavor.
Once the fish starts to boil, cover the pot and reduce the heat to simmer for about 40-45 minutes until the fish is tender and fully cooked.
If you like double-cooked ca kho, you can let the pot of braised fish rest and reheat it before serving.