Vietnamese Fish Cakes – Chả Cá
Homemade Vietnamese fish cakes that are springy, savory and beautifully golden, made from simple fish fillets and a handful of pantry ingredients.
Chả cá is one of those Vietnamese foods that I always prefer homemade. Freshly made, the fish cakes are wonderfully fragrant, slightly chewy and bouncy inside, with a golden crust when fried.
And they are incredibly versatile. You can eat them freshly fried with rice, add them to noodle soups, tuck them into bánh mì, or cook them in a simple tomato sauce — one of my favorite ways to serve chả cá at home.
This version is particularly practical because it uses wheat gluten to help create that characteristic springy texture, so you don’t need the more traditional process of repeatedly chilling or partially freezing the fish while making the paste.
Vietnamese Fish Cakes – Chả Cá
Ingredients
Equipment
Method
- Rinse the fish if necessary and pat it very dry with kitchen paper.
- Run your fingers carefully over the fillets to check for any remaining bones.
- Cut the fish into small, thin pieces. Smaller pieces are easier to process into a smooth paste, and cutting the fish also gives you another opportunity to check for bones.
- You should have 500 g prepared fish.
- Place the fish in a large bowl.
- Add the salt, sugar, chicken seasoning powder, onion powder, garlic powder and pepper.
- Pour in the cold water, fish sauce and vegetable oil.
- Using a gloved hand or clean hand, mix and squeeze the fish for about 1–2 minutes, until the seasonings and liquids are absorbed.
- At first, the mixture may seem quite wet. Keep mixing. As the fish absorbs the water and oil, it will begin to feel thicker.
- Tip: If you don’t have onion or garlic powder, you can gently fry finely minced onion and garlic until fragrant, allow them to cool completely, and add them instead.
- Transfer the seasoned fish to a food processor fitted with a metal blade.
- Add potato starch.
- Process on low speed for approximately 45 seconds.
- Stop the machine and scrape down the sides of the bowl, making sure any gluten stuck around the edges is incorporated back into the fish.
- Process again on higher speed for another 45 seconds.
- Scrape down the bowl once more and process for a final 45 seconds, or until the mixture is completely smooth, sticky and elastic.
- The total processing time will be approximately 2 minutes 15 seconds, although this can vary slightly depending on your food processor.
- The finished fish paste shouldn’t simply look like minced fish.
- It should be very smooth, thick, sticky and elastic.
- Scoop up a little with a spoon. It should hold together firmly rather than falling apart, and the mixture should have a noticeable springiness to it.
- That elasticity is what will give your cooked chả cá its characteristic Vietnamese-style bouncy texture.
- Lightly oil your hands or a spoon to prevent the mixture from sticking.
- You can shape the chả cá into small patties for frying, or form larger cakes and slice them after cooking.
- Try not to make the patties too thick so the center cooks evenly before the outside becomes too dark.
- Heat a layer of neutral cooking oil in a frying pan over medium heat.
- Once the oil is hot, carefully add the fish cakes.
- Fry until golden underneath, then turn and cook the other side until beautifully golden and completely cooked through.
- Transfer to a plate lined with kitchen paper or a cooling rack to remove excess oil.
- Serve warm, or allow them to cool before using them in another dish.
What kind of fish should you use?
A firm white fish works very well for homemade chả cá.Cod-family fish are a convenient choice in Europe, but you can also use other fresh white fish or mackerel. In Vietnam, both sea and freshwater fish can be used depending on the style of chả cá you want to make.The most important thing is to choose good-quality, fresh fish.How to Serve Vietnamese Fish Cakes
Freshly fried chả cá is already delicious with a bowl of hot rice and some vegetables, but there are many ways to use it.
At home, I especially love chả cá sốt cà chua — Vietnamese fish cakes simmered in tomato sauce. The slightly springy, savory fish cakes soak up the sweet and tangy tomato sauce beautifully.
You can also serve chả cá:
- with rice and Vietnamese dipping sauce
- in noodle soups
- with bún and fresh herbs
- inside bánh mì
- sliced into fried rice or noodle dishes
- simmered in tomato sauce
It is a wonderful recipe to make ahead because once you have homemade chả cá in the refrigerator or freezer, a simple Vietnamese meal can come together very quickly.
Storage
Keep cooked chả cá in an airtight container in the refrigerator for approximately 3 days.
For longer storage, freeze the cooked and cooled fish cakes in a freezer-safe container, separating layers with baking paper if necessary.
You can also prepare the fish paste ahead of time and keep it well covered in the refrigerator if you’re going to cook it shortly afterward.
A Little Note from My Kitchen
Living in France means that I don’t always have exactly the same fish or ingredients I would find easily in Vietnam. Over time, I’ve learned that Vietnamese home cooking doesn’t have to mean recreating every ingredient perfectly.
Sometimes it’s about understanding what makes the dish work and adapting it to what is fresh and available where you live.
For chả cá, good fish, proper seasoning and that wonderfully springy texture are what matter most.
And when a batch of golden homemade fish cakes comes out of the pan, my kitchen feels just a little bit closer to Vietnam.
