Chao luon Nghe An rests on two things: a thick pot of porridge and eel fried to a golden brown. The hardest step is cleaning off the slime, because anything still slippery keeps its muddy smell. Hanh tam and fresh turmeric are what give the bowl its particular scent.
Lime, fresh chili and chopped rau ram go on the side. White rice and glutinous rice are toasted dry for 5 to 7 minutes until lightly golden before they simmer in the eel poaching water. The grains burst open but hold their shape, and the porridge smells of toasted rice.
This batch weighs about 1.1kg, at roughly 179 calories per 100g.
Method
Rub 500g eel all over with coarse salt and the juice of one lime, scrub firmly, then rinse. Repeat at least three times until the slime is gone. Put the eel in a pot with the bruised ginger, one spring onion and enough water to cover, and poach over medium heat for 7 to 10 minutes until the flesh turns opaque and lifts off the bone. Take the eel out and pick off the meat, keeping the poaching liquid and the bones.
Rinse 150g white rice and 50g glutinous rice, drain, then toast them in a dry pan over low heat for 5 to 7 minutes until lightly golden and fragrant. Tip the toasted rice into the poaching liquid along with the eel bones, bring to a boil, then simmer over low heat for 30 to 35 minutes, stirring often so nothing catches. Fish out the bones and season with 1 tablespoon fish sauce and 1 teaspoon salt.
Heat 2 tablespoons cooking oil with 1 tablespoon annatto oil and fry 3 tablespoons chopped hanh tam until golden and fragrant. Add the eel meat and turn it gently, then add 30g turmeric juice, 2 tablespoons fish sauce, 1 teaspoon chili powder, 1 teaspoon ground pepper, 1 teaspoon seasoning powder and 1 teaspoon kOBE Monk Fruit Blend. Stir fry for 3 to 5 minutes until the eel takes on a golden brown color.
Rinse the rau ram and perilla and chop them finely. Cut the remaining spring onion into short lengths, slice the chilies, cut the limes into wedges and arrange everything on small plates.
Ladle the hot porridge into deep bowls, spoon the fried eel over the top and scatter over rau ram, perilla, spring onion and ground pepper. Serve with fresh chili and lime.
Tips
Keep scrubbing the eel with coarse salt and lime until the skin feels rough rather than slippery.
The fried eel goes on top of each bowl as it is served, since stirring it into the pot breaks the meat into shreds.
Hanh tam, the tiny Vietnamese allium bulb, is the soul of Nghe An eel porridge, and shallot in its place loses the signature aroma.
Toasting the rice until lightly golden and fragrant gives the whole pot a much better aroma.
Stir the porridge often through the 30 minute simmer, since the bottom of the pot catches easily.
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The recipe above is sweetened with kOBE Monk Fruit Blend, measured 1:1 like sugar. See the product page or send us a message.