Banh Cuon - Pork Rice Crepes

I am very excited about this entry because this recipe has been long overdue. A friend of mine, a fan of Vietnamese cuisine, specifically requested for Banh Cuon. I was happy to oblige because I have put off making this dish long enough. I've literally seen my mom makes this dish hundreds of times. I'm usually very nervous when making something new for the first time but I felt as if it was second nature to me.

Banh Cuon originated from northern Vietnam commonly eaten during breakfast. It is made by steaming rice flour into thin, round sheets. A mixture of ground pork, wood ear mushroom, and onions are spread on to the rice sheet and then folded into a roll. Banh Cuon is usually eaten with different type of sides such as cha lua (pork patty), cha chien (fried pork patty), and nem chua (fermented pork patty). I prefer thinly sliced cha chien with a lot of steamed bean sprouts and basil leaves. And of course the fish sauce, never forget about the fish sauce!

The trickiest part about making banh cuon is the rice flour in general. You will likely run into some trouble when you mix the rice flour and then steaming it into thin sheets. My mom's secrets for good banh cuon is being comfortable with mixing your own flour, letting your flour sit overnight and finding the best nonstick pan you could find. I used a pre-packaged banh cuon mixture that could be found at any Vietnamese grocery store. Instead of following the directions from the back I constantly revise ingredients as I cook. Once you steamed the rice flour into thin sheets you can pretty tell what it will needs by the taste and texture. Don't worry if the first few sheets turns out to be horrible, over time it will come out better. Another problem you may run into is getting the rice sheet off the pan. This is where it gets fun! Dont be afraid to slam the pan down on the table. I know I make a lot of noises trying to get the sheets off the pan but just consider it music from your cooking.

All the pictures from this entry are courteousy of my friend Duc who did a great job capturing every step throughout the cooking process. And thank you to Thu for a beautiful presentation of the banh cuon. I hope you will enjoy this recipes as much as I enjoy making it :)


Ingredients:

Rice flour mixture:
-1 bag of prepackage banh cuon mix
-3 tablespoon of tapioca flour
-2 tablespoon of cooking oil
- pinch of salt
-5 cups of water

Pork mixture:
-1/2 lb of ground pork
-1/2 medium onion minced
-1/2 cup of wood ear mushroom minced
-1/2 teaspoon of salt
-1/2 teaspoon ground pepper
-1/2 tablespoon sugar
-1 teaspoon mushroom seasoning
-1/2 tablespoon of fish sauce
-cooking oil

Other:

-basil leaves rough chopped
-bean sprouts steamed
-cucumber
-cha chien/ cha lua cut into half circle or thin strips
-prepared dipping sauce

1. Mix all the ingredients for the rice flour mixture and let sit over night.
2. Heat up cooking oil in a pan. First sauteed the wood ear mushroom for a couple minutes. Add the pork and diced onions.
3. Flavor the pork mixture with salt, sugar, mushroom seasoning, ground pepper, and fish sauce. Avoid over salting the pork mixture because you will eating banh cuon with fish sauce later on.

Making the banh cuon:


1. Even if you use a nonstick pan, rub the surface with some cooking oil. Wait for the pan to get hot on medium heat.
2. Ladle some rice flour onto the hot pan. Tip the pan back and forth making sure the rice flour cover all the surface of the pan. Put the lid on and let flour steam for about a minute.
3. Remove pan from heat and flip the pan upside down onto a baking sheet.
4. Add a spoonfull of pork mixture to the center of the rice sheet.
5. Fold the sides inward. Roll from bottom to the top sides.

Goi Thit Bo Xao - Sauteed Beef Salad

A fellow reader gave me a great tip to add cucumber and tomatoes to my Bo Tai Chanh recipe. Since I love both very much, I was glad to try it out. As I was picking up the ingredients at the grocery store I had this craving for "xa lach tron thi bo", sauteed sliced beef on a bed lettuce and tomatoes. I tend to do that a lot, change my dinner plan base just like that. Xa lach tron is one of my favorite dish to eat in the summer time because it's light but still has a lot of flavor. I thought it would be fun to turn it into a goi simply by using cabbage and a lot of fresh herbs. This is simply why I love to cook so much. It makes me so happy to be able to play around with ingredients to satisfy my craving. Don't be scared, play with your food!

Ingredients:

1/2 sliced beef (it's doesn't have to be an expensive cut)
1/2 tablespoon of minced garlic
1/2 tablespoon of minced shallots
1 cup of cherry or grape tomatoes (cut in half if needed)
1 carrot julienned
1 cabbage julienned
1 cucumber (cut into 3 section and then thinly sliced)
1 lime
fresh herbs rough chopped (i used a litttle bit of everything basil. coriander, mint, and cilantro)
oyster saucefish sauce
salt
ground pepper
sugar
fresh chili
roasted peanut
vinegar
cooking oil

1. Marinade the beef with salt, ground pepper, and oyster sauce. Just a little bit of everything.
2. Prepare your vegetables.
3. Add a sprinkle of salt to the cabbage and carrots. Use your hands to lightly squeeze it, this will take out some of the moisture.
4. Heat up 1/2 tablespoon of cooking oil and sauteed the beef to your liking. I prefer not to cook mine all the way, about medium rare. Let the meat cool down.
5. Prepare the sauce by combining 1 tablespoon of fish sauce, 2 teaspoon of vinegar, and 1/2 tablespoon of sugar, and sliced chilis.
6. Add tomatoes and cucumber to the cabbage mixture. Toss everything together with the fish sauce.
7. Add the sauteed beef right on top and squeeze 1 lime over the beef. This should help cook the meat a little bit more.
8. Add more fish sauce or lime to your liking.
9. Toss in fresh herbs right before serving.
10. Sprinkle some roasted peanuts right on top.

Enjoy!

Mien Ga - Chicken Cellophane Noodle Soup

Mien ga is now one of my favorite Vietnamese comfort food. My mom makes mien ga with shredded chicken, chicken gizzards, black fungus, and plenty of ground pepper. The show stopper is really in the simplicity of the broth. With the right amount of salt, sugar, fish sauce, and ground pepper this soup really prove that less is more.

I actually don't remember liking this soup as a child because I always feel the noodle is just too mushy. My mom has the habit of cooking the noodle right in the broth. Her method does save a lot of time but the noodles will always be overcooked. My dad feels overcooking the mien noodle will ruin this dish, and I couldn't agree more. For best result soak the noodle in warm water for about 15 minutes. Once you pour hot broth over it, the noodle become perfectly al dente. Like basil is to pho, sawtooth herb is unique to mien ga. I couldn't find any sawtooth herb in my area so I just have to settle with a lot of cilantro. This soup is mmm...mmm...good, eat your heart out Campbell's chicken noodle soup!

Broth:

1/2 Chicken

2 liter of water

2 teaspoon of salt

1 ounce rock sugar

1 and 1/2 tablespoon of sugar

2 tablespoon of fish sauce

1/2 tablespoon chicken bouillon

2 teaspoon of ground pepper

Other ingredients:

cellophane noodle soak in warm water

1/2 cup cilantro rough chop

1/2 cup green onions minced

1/2 cup black fungus

1. Trim the chicken fat to your liking.

2. Cook the chicken in the water to make a broth. Remove any scum.

3. Once the chicken is fully cooked then remove from broth.

4. Season the broth with the remaining ingredients. Add more or less to your liking.

5. Sauteed the black fungus with green onions, fish sauce, and ground pepper. You can actually add this to the broth but I prefer to add them separately.

6. Shred the chicken into smaller pieces or you can cut the into smaller portion.

In a bowl add noodles, chicken, sauteed black fungus, green onions, and cilantro. Pour hot broth over the noodles and add freshly ground pepper on top. Enjoy!

My ABCs

Got this fun post from Thy, thanks for tagging me :)

The Rules

1. Link the person who tagged you.
2. Post the rules on your blog.
3. Share the ABCs of you.
4. Tag 4 people at the end of your post by linking to their blogs.
5. Let the 4 tagged people know that they have been tagged by leaving a comment on their website.
6. Do not tag the same person repeatedly but try to tag different people, so that there is a big network of bloggers doing this tag.

1. A – Available/Single? Single
2. B – Best friend? My mom
3. C – Cake or Pie? Cake
4. D – Drink of choice? Sweet Tea
5. E – Essential item you use every day? Cellphone
6. F – Favorite color? Lavender
7. G – Gummy Bears Or Worms? The sour worms
8. H – Hometown? SB, Indiana
9. I – Indulgence? Green manoges with sweet chili fish sauce
10. J – January or February? None
11. K – Kids & their names? None
12. L – Life is incomplete without? Family and friends :)
13. M – Marriage date? I want it to be August or September
14. N – Number of siblings? 2 older brothers
15. O – Oranges or Apples? Apples
16. P – Phobias/Fears? Failure
17. Q – Quote for today? The greatest pleasure in life is doing what people say you cannot do.
18. R – Reason to smile? To make other smile too
19. S – Season? Fall
20. T – Tag 3 People?
21. U – Unknown fact about me? Birds freak me out
22. V – Vegetable you don't like? Certain beans
23. W – Worst habit? Procrastination
24. X – X-rays you've had? my teeth
25. Y – Your favorite food? Hmm this is really tough but I have to say Goi Vit.
26. Z – Zodiac sign? Cancer

Ga Roti - Vietnamese Inspired Roasted Chicken

I was re-introduced to this dish by a friend of mine. I was staying with her for the summer and she offer me food that her parents pack for her from home. My first thought upon trying her mom's ga roti is confusion. It tasted so familiar yet I can't seem to remember if I had it before. It looks like ga kho (braised chicken) but it has a sweet soy flavor to it. I was instantly a fan! I called my food guru right away, my mom, and asked her why she never made us this tasty chicken. Apparently she makes this very often but just not the same style. Instead of braising, my mom choose to pan fried her chicken. Awesome I no longer feel like I was cheated out of this dish.

I gather a couple recipes from my friend's mom, my aunt,and my mom. It took a couple of practice round but I am finally satisfy with this recipe. I much prefer my ga roti braised in the soy sauce until it becomes a rich glaze. Drizzling that sweet glaze over hot steamed rice is just heaven. Like the way my mom makes Ga Ragu, I too put coconut juice in my Ga Roti. The end result is just amazing, the meat is so tender that it falls off the bones.

Ingredients:

12 pieces of chicken (thighs and drumsticks)

2 shallot minced

2 garlic minced

1/2 teaspoon of ground pepper

1 teaspoon of five spice
1teaspoon of chili powder

2 tablespoon of fish sauce

2 teaspoon of chicken boullion

4 tablespoon soy sauce

2 tablespoon of brown sugar

1/2 can of coconut soda (coco rico)

1. Rinse and dry the chicken.

2. Combine all the ingredients except for the coconut juice. Add the mixture to the chicken to marinade for about 15-20 minutes.

3. Heat up cooking oil in a pan/pot. Pan seared the outside of the chicken, save the marinade for later.

4. Add the rest of the marinade and the coconut juice. Let chicken cook in sauce on medium heat for about 30 minutes or until sauce thicken into a glaze.

5. Ocassionally turn the chicken from side to side so they sauce will coat the the chicken evenly.

Enjoy!

Kona Grill

Kona Grill
14395 Clay Terrace Blvd # 180
Carmel, IN 46032
(317) 566-1400

Kona Grill is the first restaurant I tried in Indianapolis, way back in high school. I was visiting a friend who loves sushi and Kona happen to be one of his favorite. Even though it was years ago I still remember my unforgettable experience, seared swordfish that was oh so moist! Now that I live here, I occasionally go to Kona for their happy hour specials and sushi. On my most recent visit I decided to try something off the dinner menu, something i rarely do anymore. It was a satisfying meal for me but a bumpy ride for my friends.

Kona is located at Clay Terrace outside mall in Carmel. It offers American cuisine with an edge, exciting Asian fusion, fresh seafood, and award-winning sushi. The ambience is very chic. You have the option of sitting in the dining area, patio, or at the bar. I highly recommend the bar area because you have front row seats to the gigantic fish tank filled with exotic fish. The prices can get expensive depending one what you order, especially steaks and seafood. Don't worry you are not just paying for the service and atmosphere, the food is actually really good.

We went during the happy hour special so we just couldn't pass up the $5 calamari. The calamari is fried in a light batter and serve with a spicy mayo sauce. It is crispy on the outside yet still tender on the inside. I order the calamari on every visit and it just doesn't get old!

Next up is the happy hour sushi roll for just $3. You can choose rolls with crab, shrimp, salmon, tuna, or some vegetarian option. The happy hour sushi are tasty for the money but I much prefer the sushi off the regular menu. I like big rolls filled with all sort of seafood that you can barely get into your mouth.

For the main course, I ordered the fresh seafood linguine with mussel, scallop, and shrimp. The linguine is toss in a creamy tomato sauce, very subtle in flavor but in a good way. The mussels were grilled separately and added to the pasta before serving. I'm usually not a fan of mussels but the sweetness made them my favorite part of the meal. I expected a lot of pasta and a few shrimp here and there but as you can see you get plenty.

My friends shared the pork tenderloin topped with a shitake mushroom sauce. It also came with a nice helping of white cheddar mashed potatoes and sauteed baby bok choy. Unfortunately, the baby bok choy was the best thing about the dish. The tenderloin was drenched in the mushroom sauce which is such a turn off because it really take away the natural flavor of the meat. After trying a bite I was a bit glad for the sauce because the pork was dry and bland. I guess we came on a bad night for the pork tenderloins because my friends have had them before and loved it.

The pork tenderloin certainly did not scare me away. I have had so many good experiences at Kona that I will return for more. If you are ever in the north side, give Kona a try or at least come for the happy hour. Happy hour specials include appetizers, sushi, pizzas, and drink specials. Check website for for hours.

Bo Tai Chanh - Rare Beef Lime Salad

J

When other little girls love eating cupcakes and brownies, I like man's food. What I mean by that is "mon nhau", the Vietnamese term for food eaten while drinking. My dad often took me along to his friend's house to drink when I was little. Before you start judging my dad, I was there because there are always other little kids for me to play with. I love asking my dad for whatever they have availabe to eat because they are all so great. Common "mon nhau" are roasted beef, steamed offals with shrimp paste, blood sausage, and just about everything deep fried. When you are a kid and in the middle of playing, the last thing you want to do is waste 30 minutes of your time trying to finish your meal. I rather have something quick and have little bit of everything.

One of my favorite is the Rare Beef Lime Salad, introduced to me by my cousin. It was tender and so flavorful with the lime, fish sauce, and spicy herbs. I can eat that all day while listening to my dad talk with his friends. My cousin's specialty was "mon nhau" so he gave me some pointers to preparing this dish. To get tender meat, try cooking small portions of the sliced beef in pineapple juice or coconut juice.  Bo tai chanh can be eaten with different sauce, nuoc cham.  If you have access to soy bean sauce, I highly recommend that but a simple chili ginger fish sauce would be great as well.

Ingredients:

2 lb of thinly sliced beef (any lean cut is fine)

1/2 medium onion (thinly sliced)

2 lime

2 cup of pineapple juice

1/2 cup of Vietnamese coriander (rough chopped)

fish sauce

vinegar

sugar

fresh chilies
crushed peanuts
1/2 red bell pepper (optional)
1 large can of pineapple juice

Sauce:

ground soy bean sauce
minced garlic
minced chilies
lime
sugar

Sauce:

4 tablespoon of soy bean sauce
1 tablespoon of sugar
1/4 of lime
1/4 tablespoon of minced garlic
1 teaspoon minced chilies

1. Boil pineapple juice.  You want to dip the sliced beef in the hot pineapple juice and remove right away.  I like to use a small strainer.  

2. Drain the beef liquid.
3. Squeeze 3 whole lime in a bowl. Add the beef to the lime juice. Wrap up the beef and let cool in the fridge while you work on other steps.

4. Add about 2 tablespoon of sugar and 1 tablespoon of vinegar to the sliced onions.

5. Rough chopped the Vietnamese coriander. Thinly sliced the red bell pepper.
6. Prepare the peanuts.

7. Add some fish sauce to the beef and mix.
8.  Add the bell pepper, fresh chilies and sliced onions to the beef and mix.
9.  Move the beef salad to a clean plate. Top off with crushed peanuts and coriander.
10. Enjoy!