Vietnamese · Seafood
Vietnamese caramel trout

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Method
- step 1
- Put the sugar in a large shallow pan, along with a small splash of water. Heat gently, swirling the pan, until the sugar has dissolved. Increase the heat and bubble the syrup until it turns a dark amber colour. Add the fish sauce, most of the chilli and ginger, then splash in 1 tbsp water to dilute. Boil again until syrupy, then add the fish fillets, skin-side down, and the bok choi, cut-side down.
- step 2
- Cover the pan with a lid and simmer for 4-5 mins until the fish is cooked and the bok choi has wilted. Turn off the heat, squeeze over the lemon and scatter with the remaining chilli, ginger and the coriander sprigs. Serve with rice.
Cooking notes
Scaling works best when you weigh ingredients rather than measure by volume — small differences in packing can compound at higher multipliers.
For volume-to-weight conversions of any ingredient — flour, sugar, butter, salts — use the ingredient converter. To translate the recipe's oven temperature between °C, °F and gas mark, see the temperature converter.
When you scale this recipe up or down, remember that cooking time does not scale linearly. A doubled cake takes longer, but not twice as long; a doubled soup takes roughly twice as long. The cooking-time guide gives sensible starting estimates by dish geometry.
Recipe video
Vietnamese caramel trout
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OpenCooking time
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OpenIngredient density
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OpenOpen in main scaler
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OpenFrom the journal
Original essays on the small details.
The why behind the technique — original writing on the ingredient and equipment choices that separate a good cook from a frustrated one.
Eggs by weight, not by count
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The case for the oven thermometer
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Butter temperature ruins more cookies than the oven does
Cold, softened, melted — three states, three completely different bakes
Read essayDecember 15, 2025
Go deeper
Where this recipe sits in the wider tradition.
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