White bowl of tangy fish soup with bone-in fish pieces, pineapple, tomato, okra, fried shallots and chopped herbs in a clear broth. — Photo: Phương Huy (thảo luận) · Public domain · Wikimedia Commons

Vietnamese · Lunch · Dinner

Vietnamese Sour Fish Soup

Name: Vietnamese Sour Fish Soup
Prep time: 20 min
Cook time: 25 min
Total time: 45 min
Cuisine: Vietnamese
Ingredients: 500 g catfish fillet, cut into 4 cm pieces; 3 tbsp packed tamarind pulp (seedless block); 1/2 cup hot water, for soaking tamarind; 5 cups water, for the broth; 1 1/4 cups fresh pineapple, cut into bite-size pieces; 2 medium tomatoes, cut into wedges; 8 pods okra, sliced diagonally; 1 1/2 cups bean sprouts; 1 tsp vegetable oil; 3 cloves garlic, finely chopped; 1 medium shallot, thinly sliced; 2 tbsp fish sauce; 1 tbsp sugar; 1 large red chilli, sliced; 1/2 cup loosely packed fresh coriander, chopped; 1/2 cup loosely packed Thai basil leaves; 2 stalks spring onions, sliced

Canh chua cá

By BerryFit Kitchen · Nutrition checked with USDA data · Updated Oct 11, 2026 · How we make recipes

A bright, tangy southern Vietnamese broth soured with tamarind and sweetened with pineapple and tomato, filled with tender catfish, okra and crisp bean sprouts. It is light, fragrant with fresh herbs and finished with fried garlic.

Prep: 20 min
Cook: 25 min
Total: 45 min
Serves: 4

Easy
Dairy Free
High protein

13%

Per serving267kcal13% of a 2,000 kcal day

23gProtein

25gCarbs

9gFat

4gFiber

Calories come from: Carbs 37% · Fat 30% · Protein 33%

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Ingredients

For 4 servings

500 gcatfish fillet, cut into 4 cm pieces
3 tbsp packed40 gtamarind pulp (seedless block)
1/2 cup120 ghot water, for soaking tamarind
5 cups1,200 gwater, for the broth
1 1/4 cups200 gfresh pineapple, cut into bite-size pieces
2 medium250 gtomatoes, cut into wedges
8 pods100 gokra, sliced diagonally
1 1/2 cups150 gbean sprouts
1 tsp5 gvegetable oil
3 cloves9 ggarlic, finely chopped
1 medium30 gshallot, thinly sliced
2 tbsp36 gfish sauce
1 tbsp12 gsugar
1 large15 gred chilli, sliced (optional)
1/2 cup loosely packed10 gfresh coriander, chopped
1/2 cup loosely packed10 gThai basil leaves
2 stalks30 gspring onions, sliced

Steps

1
Soak the tamarind pulp in the 120 ml hot water for 10 minutes.
2
Mash the tamarind with a spoon, then press it through a sieve into a bowl and discard the fibres.
3
Toss the catfish pieces with 1 tbsp of the fish sauce and set aside while you prepare the vegetables.
4
Heat the oil in a large pot over medium heat and fry the garlic for 1-2 minutes until golden; lift out half the garlic and set it aside for garnish.
5
Add the shallot to the pot and cook for 2 minutes until soft.
6
Add the tomato wedges and cook for 3 minutes until they start to soften.
7
Pour in the 1.2 litres water and the strained tamarind liquid and bring to a boil.
8
Add the pineapple, sugar and remaining 1 tbsp fish sauce, then simmer for 5 minutes.
9
Lower the catfish into the broth and simmer gently for 5-6 minutes, skimming off any foam, until the fish flakes easily and reaches 63 °C / 145 °F inside.
10
Add the okra and simmer for 2 minutes until just tender.
11
Taste and balance the sour and sweet notes; if it needs more depth, let the herbs and fried garlic do the work rather than adding more fish sauce.
12
Turn off the heat and stir in the bean sprouts.
13
Ladle into bowls and top with coriander, Thai basil, spring onions, chilli if using, and the reserved fried garlic.

Swaps, storage and make-ahead

Swaps

Use firm white fish such as tilapia or snapper instead of catfish if catfish is hard to find.
Replace the tamarind pulp with 2 to 3 tbsp lime juice added at the end for a quicker sour note.
Use canned pineapple chunks in juice, drained, instead of fresh pineapple.
Swap okra for sliced celery or taro stem if you prefer a less silky texture.

Storage

Refrigerate leftovers within 2 hours in a covered container and eat within 3 to 4 days, reheating until steaming hot; the fish, sprouts and herbs soften on standing, so this soup is best eaten fresh and should not be frozen.

Make ahead

Strain the tamarind and prepare the broth with tomato and pineapple up to 2 days ahead and keep it refrigerated, then bring it to a boil and cook the fish, okra and sprouts just before serving. The fried garlic can be made a day ahead and kept airtight at room temperature.

Nutrition values are for the recipe as written.

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Allergens and nutrition

Contains: Fish

Check the labels of packaged ingredients for allergens and suitability for your diet.

Full nutrition

	Per serving (676 g)	Per 100 g
Calories	267 kcal	39 kcal
Protein	22.8 g	3.4 g
Carbohydrates	25.4 g	3.8 g
of which sugars	16.5 g	2.4 g
Fiber	4 g	0.6 g
Fat	9.1 g	1.3 g
of which saturated	1.8 g	0.3 g
Sodium	856 mg	127 mg

Nutrition is calculated from USDA FoodData Central data and may differ from what you cook.