Bún Kèn (Coconut Fish With Noodles)
Published Jan. 30, 2022
- Total Time
- 1 hour 10 minutes
- Rating
- Comments
- Read comments
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Ingredients
- 1pound yellowtail collar, or whole small fish
- 1shallot, halved
- ½teaspoon whole black peppercorns
- 1lemongrass stalk, bruised with the back of a knife
- 1cup cilantro stems, bruised with the back of a knife
- ¼cup fish sauce
- 2fresh Thai chiles or other small hot chiles, minced
- 2garlic cloves, minced
- 1teaspoon lime juice
- 1cup grated palm sugar or granulated sugar (6 ounces)
- ¾cup plus 2 tablespoons unsweetened coconut water (7 ounces)
- 12tablespoons annatto oil or vegetable oil
- 1medium white onion, diced
- 5lemongrass stalks, tender white, purple and pale green parts minced
- 2ounces cilantro root, minced (½ cup) or 4 ounces cilantro stems, minced (1 cup; see Tip)
- 2tablespoons minced garlic
- 3tablespoons turmeric powder
- ½cup coconut cream or 1 cup coconut milk
- 6fresh makrut lime leaves, midribs removed, minced
- 2 to 4fresh Thai chiles or other small hot chiles
- ¼cup fish sauce
- 2(8-ounce) packages dried vermicelli rice noodles
- 1bunch rau răm (Vietnamese coriander)
- 2cups bean sprouts
- 1bunch basil leaves
- 1bunch cilantro leaves
- 1carrot, peeled and shredded (see Tip)
- 1Japanese cucumber or 2 Persian cucumbers, shredded
- 1small green papaya, seeds removed, peeled and shredded
For the Stock
For the Coconut Nuoc Chăm
For the Curry
For the Noodles
Preparation
- Step 1
Make the stock: Place the yellowtail collars in a pot large enough to fit them snugly, then add the shallot, peppercorns, lemongrass, cilantro stems and 5 cups water. The fish should be completely covered. If they aren’t, add a bit more water. Bring the water to a boil over high heat, then reduce the heat to low and simmer uncovered for 20 minutes. Turn off the heat, strain the stock and reserve the fish, setting it aside to cool. Return the strained stock to the pot, discarding the other solids. When the fish is cool enough to handle, separate the meat from the bones, return the meat to the stock and let stand off heat.
- Step 2
Meanwhile, make the nuoc chăm: In a small pot over high heat, bring all the ingredients to a boil, stirring to dissolve the sugar. Remove from the heat and let cool before transferring to a jar.
- Step 3
Make the curry: In a medium saucepan over medium-high heat, add 3 tablespoons oil and the onion. Spread the onion out evenly in the pan and let it fry without touching it, so it gets slightly charred at the edges, about 5 minutes. Tip the onion and oil into the fish stock.
- Step 4
Lower the heat to medium and add the remaining 9 tablespoons oil, the lemongrass, cilantro root and garlic. Stirring constantly, cook until tender and fragrant, about 5 minutes. Add the turmeric powder and stir for 15 seconds, then tip everything in the saucepan into the fish stock. To the same saucepan, add the coconut cream, makrut lime leaves and chiles, and turn the heat up to high. Use a wooden spoon or heatproof spatula to scrape up any bits of lemongrass, cilantro or garlic that may be stuck to the bottom of the pan. When the cream starts to boil, turn off the heat and let it steep for about 10 minutes. Pour the coconut cream and fish sauce into the stock, turn the heat to low and stir the curry sauce.
- Step 5
While the cream steeps, prepare the noodles: Cook the rice noodles according to the package directions and drain well. In each bowl, layer noodles and fish curry, then top with a pinch of the rau răm, bean sprouts, basil, cilantro, carrot, cucumber and green papaya. Put the rest of the toppings on the table, along with the nuoc chăm, for seasoning.
- When cooking with cilantro root, use as much of the bottom root as possible to make the most of its intensity of flavor. Try not to trim away anything, except for dirt, and soak the roots in water, shaking them off and giving them a good rinse to get rid of any stubborn grit A handheld shredder, which resembles a vegetable peeler with a serrated blade, will make quick work of shredding the cucumber, carrot and green papaya. If you don’t have one, you can finely slice the vegetables with a knife.
Private Notes
Comments
Dried makrut leaves are available online but I wouldn't bother. Frozen, yes. Omit or try fresh citrus leaves or dried or fresh peel along with the coconut. Steep a bit, then REMOVE to avoid bitterness. Fresh toppings add texture, color, and interest. Try lemon basil, cilantro leaves, Thai or holy basil. Green papaya is neutral, wet, a bit crunchy. Try slivered rutabaga, celeriac, jicama, daikon, or mild turnip. At the table squeeze, then stir in, some fresh lime - key lime is more authentic.
Phenomenal. My family loved it. Couple of notes. Fish collars are hard to find. I used a few salmon steaks. Fatty fish is the key. I couldn't find rau ram at H-Mart or our local grocery. Not a dealbreaker. The rice vermicelli was way too much. I would use half or less. Last, be careful on step 4! I thought the oil and the lemongrass, et al went into the stockpot. No, it's into the saute pan to make a little roux of all the lemongrass, cilantro stems, etc. THEN they go into the stock pot.
I was immediately taken back to the street food we ate after school in Bangkok and can't wait to try this! Well worth a masked trip to an Asian grocery, or - if necessary - an order from Amazon. When I returned to the States in 1976 it was impossible to replicate the flavors by making substitutions, making this kind of family recipe even more of a treasure.
Recipies like these are why I pay for this app. A classic standout! Thank you!
I doubled this for a small party using 2 pounds of yellowtail collars (pretty easy to find frozen at an Asian mkt.) Definitely takes time to do (took me over 2 hours) but incredibly delicious. Love the coconut nuoc cham...it's totally brilliant. Just don't use white napkins...still soaking them to get the turmeric out!
Too much sugar in the Nuoc Cham.