1. Preparation materials
500g (choose the middle part to taste, the meat will be firm and fatty).
Pork belly (ba chi): 100g (helps braised dish have more natural fat and is more delicious).
Shallots, garlic, chili peppers, scallions.
Delicious fish sauce, sugar, seasoning granules, ground pepper, cooking oil.
A clay pot.
2. Implementation steps
Step 1: Preliminary processing and marinating fish
Buy "ca hú" fish and wash them thoroughly to drain.
Wash pork belly, slice into thin bite-sized pieces.
Marinate the fish in a bowl with half of the minced shallots and garlic, 2 tablespoons of fish sauce, 1 tablespoon of sugar, a little seasoning and ground pepper. Mix well and let the fish absorb the spices for about 20-30 minutes.
Step 2: Burn the meat and create color
Put a clay pot on the stove over medium heat, add 1 tablespoon of cooking oil and 1 tablespoon of sugar to directly beat the coloring liquid right in the pot until it turns into a beautiful cockroach color.
Next, add the pork belly and stir-fry evenly in a clay pot until the meat is charred, reduced fat and golden brown.
Step 3: Braise the fish
Pour all the marinated grouper (including the marinating water) into the earthenware pot. Gently turn the surface of the fish to make the fish meat firm for about 2-3 minutes.
Add about half a cup of warm boiling water to the pot. Boil over high heat until the water boils, then reduce to low heat.
Season again with fish sauce and sugar so that the salty and sweet taste is harmonious with your taste. Thanks to the long-lasting heat-retaining properties of the earthenware pot, you only need to simmer for about 15-20 minutes and the seasoning will deeply penetrate each fiber of the fish meat.
Step 4: Complete
When the water in the earthenware pot gradually dries up, thickens into a thick brown sauce layer covering the fish, the stove can be turned off.
Depending on the family's taste, you can add a few whole chili peppers and chopped scallions on top, sprinkle with a little ground pepper and enjoy.
