Sweet and sour Vietnamese caramelised salmon (ca hoi kho)

Vietnamese caramelised salmon, known as Ca Hoi Kho in Vietnamese, is a dish that combines succulent salmon fillets with a blend of sweet and sour flavours. The dish is prepared by searing salmon fillets in a caramel sauce made from sugar and water.

To enhance the flavour, fish sauce, garlic, ginger, and chili are added. One of the beauties of Vietnamese caramelised salmon is its versatility. It can be served as a family meal, paired with steamed jasmine rice and sautéed vegetables, or accompanied by a light salad or refreshing cucumber noodles. Image credit: Instant Pot.

Ingredients

• 1 Tbs olive oil
• 1/3 cup + 2 Tbsp light brown sugar
• 3 Tbsp fish sauce
• 1 Tbs + 2 tsp (25ml) Soy sauce
• 1 thumb size piece of ginger, peeled and finely grated (1tsp)
• Finely grated zest & juice of 1 lime
• ¼ tsp freshly ground white pepper
• 3 Tbsp water
• 3 garlic cloves very finely slices
• ½ – 1 red chilli finely sliced (optional)
• 4 middle-cut salmon fillets (skin on or off) 180gm -230gms each, pin-boned
• Chopped spring onions to serve
• Fresh coriander to serve
• Extra wedges lime

Method

1. You can either leave the skin on the salmon or take it off. If you leave it on and want to pre-cook it first, heat a large non-stick skillet and when it’s smoking hot, add a little olive oil and sear the salmon fillets skin side down for 1 minute. Alternatively, proceed straight to your multicooker.
2. Set the multicooker to Sauté. Add the olive oil, sugar, fish sauce, soy sauce, ginger, pepper, lemon zest and juice and the water cook for about a minute until the sugar is dissolved and bubbling. Add the garlic and chilli and cook for a further 30 seconds. Push Cancel to turn the multicooker off.
3. Place the fillets of salmon with the skin side facing up and spoon some sauce over. Put the lid of the multicooker on and set it to Sealing.  Select Pressure Cook and change the level to Low Pressure for 1 minute (remember to take it off the Keep Warm setting).  Allow a 5-minute natural release of pressure and then turn the sealing vent down to manually release the remaining pressure. If your salmon is underdone, cook it to your preference using the Sauté function.
4. Remove the pieces of salmon carefully and arrange flesh side up on a platter. Put the inner pot with the sauce back into the multicooker and heat on the Sauté function.  Cook the sauce for a minute and until the sauce has thickened. Spoon this over the salmon and garnish with sliced spring onions, fresh coriander and additional lime wedges.
5. Serve with steamed jasmine or basmati rice and any other cooked Asian greens such as bok choi.