Bun Cha Ca - Fish Paste Soup (Lent Friendly)

Lent season just started and I want to make sure I post a couple Lent friendly recipes before it ends.  If you are Catholic, you cannot eat meat products (poultry, pork, beef) on Friday.  However, seafood is allowed which is fine by me since I love seafood.  There are plenty of Vietnamese recipes that uses seafood.  A lot of soups can be Lent friendly by using seafood and vegetables to make the broth.

During my last trip to Vietnam, I stayed mainly in Da Nang, which is located in central Vietnam near Hue and Hoi An.  It was my first time ever in central Vietnam and I was ecstatic because I love their cuisine so much.  Soups such as Bun Bo Hue and Mi Quang; rice cakes such as Banh Bot Loc and Banh Beo all originated from that region. Every day I got to eat all of my favorite food and got to try new dishes unique to that region, I was in heaven.  When I got back to the states, all I want do is cook those dishes over and over again while the flavors and memories are still fresh in my mind!

Bun Cha Ca is a noodle soup that really stood out, a specialty of Da Nang, and the first soup I ate when I first arrived. There was a vendor that sells this particular soup at every corner.  I've had Bun Cha Ca in Saigon before but different from the ones from Da Nang.  The ones from Da Nang are sweeter due to a very unique ingredient, bi do (pumpkin, globe squash).  The squash also added a beautiful yellow color to the broth.  This soup is usually eaten with vermicelli noodle but I used rice macaroni (nui) to change things up a bit.

I used dried prawns (tom kho), globe squash, mushroom, daikon, and onions to make the broth.  If it weren't for Lent I would also use pork bones. The globe squash makes the broth very sweet so not much of it is needed.  Globe squash is pretty heavy to me so I only add a few pieces here and there to my bowl or else I would get full just eating that alone.  I used store brought fish paste and then fried at home.  Hope you will enjoy my spin on Da Nang's Bun Cha Ca!

Ingredients:

1/2 cup of dried prawns (rehydrated)
1 daikon
2 cups of mushroom (sliced)
1/4 of globe squash (peeled and seeds remove)
1 onion
4 tomato (quartered)
fish paste (or already prepared Cha Ca)
vermicelli noodle
green onion
cilantro
cooking oil
fish sauce

1.  Add the rehydrated prawns into a 6 quart pot and fill with water.  Add the daikons and onions.  Let pot cook on medium until all the sweetnes and flavor has been extracted.
2.  If you are using already fried fish cake, just cut into thick slices for easy eating.  If not, fried your fish paste in oil.  Heat up plenty of oil in a wok or pan, add the fish cake to the pan and then flatten it with a spatula.  Cook both side until golden brown.  Remove and let it cool on paper towel.
3.  Season your broth with salt and mushroom seasoning(1 tablespoon); continue to let it cook until the the prawns has been completely extracted from flavor, and daikon and onions have become mushy.  The best way to tell is to have a bite of your prawns, if it's soft and flavorless you can discard.  Remove the daikon and onions as well.
4.  If you do not plan to eat the actual squash/pumpkin and only want to use it to make the broth, add the whole thing to the broth.
5.  If you do plan to eat the squash, chop it up for easy eating and add to the broth.  Let the squash cook until tender.
6.  Add the sliced mushroom to the broth.
7.  Heat up some oil in a pan with a little bit of chopped green onions, sauteed the tomatoes with some fish sauce.  Add the sauteed tomatoes into the broth.
8.  Taste the broth with additional fish sauce and sugar if needed.
9.  Prepare vermicelli noodles, green onions/cilantro for garnish.
10.  Prepare a bowl of noodle and then add broth and fish cakes.
11.  Enjoy!

Homemade Banh Beo - Steamed Rice cakes with Shrimp Flakes

Out of all the steamed cakes Vietnam has to offer, Banh Beo is definitely in my top three.  Banh Beo originated from Hue city in central Vietnam, but loved throughout Vietnam.  The rice cakes are made from steaming a rice flour batter in little bowls.  Once the batter has cooked we then pile on fine shrimp flakes.  Other common toppings associated with Banh Beo are oil scallion, ground mung beans, and roasted bread.  You can eat it them in individual bowls or the rice cakes can be transfer to a plate.  Banh Beo can be unique to certain city, therefore preparation of toppings and sauce may differ.  Like most rice cakes Banh Beo is eaten with prepared fish sauce, I prefer eating them with a light and sweet fish sauce so I can slurp everything up.

About 5 years ago I learned that my soon to be sister-in-law is from Hue.  Knowing that she will be moving to the Midwest where Vietnamese food is non-existent, I decided to learn a few specialties of central Vietnam so she won't feel so homesick.  I was lucky to be able to learn how to make Banh Bot Loc from my friend's mother.  As for Banh Beo, my first attempt was following the directions on the back of a bag of pre-mixed flour.  It was pretty successful but I know the rice cakes could have been better.  My mother often mix extra ingredients whenever she use a pre-mixed flour bag to make Banh Cuon so I thought I test it out.  After many ups and downs in the kitchen, I have found a recipe which I am very satisfy with the texture of the rice cakes. Every bite is soft and chewy!

I do not make Banh Beo very often because it is very time consuming.  Nowadays I usually only make it when i'm home and with my sister-in-law, because we have develop a pretty efficient system over the years.  I posted a recipe for Banh Beo before using pre-mixed flour package a several years ago, I finally got around to writing an entry this new recipe.   I love and cherish this recipe very much so enjoy!

Batter For the Rice Cakes:

3 cups of rice flour
1 cup of tapioca flour
5 cups of water
a pinch of salt
1 tablespoon of vegetable oil

Steamer
Little shallow bowls

1.  Mix all the ingredients together and let sit a couple hours to let the flour expand.  I like to mix the flour the night before and use it the next day.
2.  Before steaming make sure you stir the flour mixture again because it may have clumped up.
3.  Add water to your steamer and heat it up.
4.  Brush some cooking oil onto the little bowls and ladle in the rice flour mixture.  How much goes into the bowls depends on how thin you like your cakes to be.
5. Transfer to steamer and let cook for about 5 minutes or until cakes are firm.  Remove and let it cool a bit.

Toppings:

1 lb of shrimp ( I use Argentina shrimp that is naturally more orange, I usually do not add any coloring to my shrimp)
4-5 green onions (minced)
4-5 carrots julienned (optional I like eating pickled carrots with Banh Beo)
cooking oil
vinegar
sugar
fish sauce
water
fresh chili

1.  Wash and peel the shrimps.
2.  Heat up some cooking oil in a pan.  On low heat, cook the shrimp in the oil.  Once cooked remove to paper towel to soak up some of that oil.
3.  Smash the shrimp flat with a pestle on a cutting board.  And then use your hand to shred down the shrimp even more.

4. Transfer shrimp to a non stick pan (NO oil is needed) on low to medium heat.  Stir the shrimp meat until it dries up.  Transfer to a bowl.

5.  Marinade the julienned carrots with half a cup of sugar and 3 tablespoon of vingear.  Mix together, this is how I made super fast pickled carrots.
6.  Heat up some cooking oil in a pan, add the minced green onions.  Let onions cook in the oil.  Transfer to a bowl.
7.  Add 2.5 cups of boiling water to 1 cup of sugar.  Let cool.  Add fish sauce, lime, and fresh chili to the sugar water to make a sauce.

How to Prepare your Banh Beo:

Spread some scallion oil on top of the rice cakes, and then shrimp. Pour lots of fish sauce and pickled carrots on top and enjoy!

Mi Xao Bo - Stir Fried Egg Noodle with Beef

Having to work at a few Asian restaurants in my lifetime has taught me a few tricks on stir-frying.  I'm glad I was able to learn a few technique that I can use at home.  Mi xao is a pretty simple dish to make but if you want restaurant quality mi xao that's going to take a few extra steps.  Like many noodle dishes such as Pad Thai and Hu Tieu Xao, I like my mi xao a certain way.  The noodle and vegetables must be firm, can't tell you enough how much I dislike mushy noodle and vegetable in anything stir-fried.  The best way for all the components in your mi xao to cook perfectly is to cook them separately.  That's the reason why it requires a few extra step but I assure you it's worth the effort.

Ingredients:

1 bag of fresh chow mein
1 lb of eye round beef (sliced)
1 bag of Chinese broccoli (Cai Lan)
2 carrots
1 pack of mushroom
2 tablespoon of minced garlic
oyster sauce
fish sauce
soy sauce
mushroom seasoning
ground pepper
salt
sugar
vegetable oil

1.  Marinade the sliced beef with about 2 tablespoon of oyster sauce, 1 teaspoon of sugar, 1 teaspoon of mushroom seasoning and 1 tablespoon of minced garlic.
2.  Wash and prepare your vegetables so that they will stir-fry more easily.
3.  Boil a pot of water (enough for all your vegetables) and add 1 teaspoon of salt.  Have a big bowl filled with some ice water ready.  Once the pot of water have come to a boil, add your vegetables to the pot.  Removed the vegetables after about 1 minute and drain all the hot water.  Transfer the veggies into the bowl with ice.  This will stop the vegetables from cooking any further and ensure that your vegetables will stay crispy.  After a minute drain the vegetables from the iced water.
4.  Boil water in a pot.  We will use this pot to heat up the noodle and let it cook gradually through steaming.  If you cook the noodles all the way now, it will be mushy after stir-frying it later.  Once the pot of water have come to a boil, add the noodles to the pot for about 15 second and make sure all the noodles have submerge under the boiling water.  After 15 seconds drain the hot water and just let the noodles cook gradually in the steam.  Make sure you toss the noodles so that it doesn't stick together especially the bottom batch.
5.  Heat up some cooking oil in a wok.  Add the marinaded beef and stir-fry.  When you are stir frying make sure the heat is on the highest setting and you are constantly stirring everything so it doesn't burn. Once the meat has cooked about 70%, add the vegetables.   Season everything with 1 teaspoon of salt.  Stir-fry everything together until all the ingredients is well seasoned.  Remember the vegetables has been pre-cooked, the purpose of stir-frying now is to season you do not want to overcook the vegetables.  Transfer beef and vegetables to a separate bowl.
6.  Heat up about 1/4 cup of cooking oil in  wok.  Add 1 tablespoon of minced garlic to the oil.  Add the noodle to the wok, make sure the heat is on the highest setting.  Stir and mix the noodles in the oil and garlic. Add about 1/4  tablespoon of fish sauce and 2 teaspoon of soy sauce to the noodles and  mix.  The beef and vegetables from before should have produce some liquid.  Spoon that liquid to the noodles to season it, don't do it all at once.  Just a couple spoonful to coat the noodles.  Make sure the heat is still on high and you are constantly moving the noodles around.  Once you have season the noodle well turn off the heat.
7.  Drain the access liquid from the beef and vegetables, and then add the beef and vegetable mixture to the noodles.  Mix so that everything is evenly distributed.
8.  Transfer to a plate topped off with some ground pepper and enjoy!

Hen Tron Banh Trang - Clam Sauteed w/ Sesame Rice Cracker

I had the opportunity to try this delicious dish in Hoi An.  The baby clams were fresh picked from the river earlier that morning. The meat was so sweet and firm, not something I can find at home.   The clams were lightly sauteed with no seasoning just some fresh onions. It was eaten with rice cracker and mam nem (fermented fish sauce). Even though I was already full from breakfast and lunch, I pretty much inhaled a plate within 3 minutes.  

Whenever I make this at home,  I usually have to settle with canned clams or frozen clams. While it no longer has its natural sweet flavor, I still prefer using frozen clams because it has better texture than canned clams.  I use fresh minced garlic and shallots to help fragrance the clams and just a tad of fish sauce to season.  I also like adding some julienned green mangoes for tartness and freshness. For the sauce you'll want to dilute the mam nem with fresh lime juice, sugar, crushed garlic, and fresh chili.  The sauce can be eaten on the side but a lot of times I just mix some in because everybody in my family loves mam nem.  If you prefer to omit the mam nem, I would use more fish sauce when seasoning the clams. Of course this dish cannot be complete without Vietnamese coriander (rau ram), crushed peanuts, and fresh chili.   Enjoy!

Ingredients:

1 pack of frozen baby clams

1 teaspoon of minced garlic

1 teaspoon of minced shallots

1 stalk of green onion minced

1/2 green mango (julienned)

chopped Vietnamese coriander

fresh chili

crushed peanuts

sesame rice cracker

cooking oil

fish sauce

sugar

Sauce:

3 tablespoon of mam nem

2 teaspoon of crushed garlic

1 tablespoon of sugar

1/4 of fresh lime (juice)

chili (your preference

1.  Thaw out the frozen clams.   The clam has absorb a lot of water you'll want to squeeze out as much as you can.

2.  Heat up cooking oil in a pan.  Add the minced garlic and shallots and cook until fragrance.  Add the clams and green onions.  Season lightly with fish sauce and sugar.  Transfer to a bowl.  

3.  Prepare mango, coriander, sauce, rice cracker, peanuts.

4.  Add green mango and fresh chilies to the clams and toss.  At this point you can add prepared mam nem or serve it on the side.   

5.  Transfer to a serving plate topped with crushed peanuts, chopped coriander, and additional fresh chilies.  Rice cracker

on the side.

6.  Scoop clams with rice cracker and enjoy!

Rau Muong Tron Thit Bo - Beef Water Spinach Salad

Firstly I like to wish everybody a happy new year!  May 2014 bring you lots of luck, love, prosperity, laughter, and of course good food!  I'm sorry for my absence but it was much needed.  I got the opportunity to travel so I disconnected myself from all social media and just appreciate what was in front of me.  This upcoming year marks my 6th year blogging, thank you everybody for your support all these years.  I can't wait to share new recipes inspired from my travels.

I'm a huge fan of Vietnamese drinking food.  Whenever I'm on vacation, I always look for a good restaurant to "nhau".  Nhau refers to getting together to eat and drink.  Getting together to drink is a way of life for Vietnamese men, they often get together several times a week.  They meet each other at a small restaurant that specialize in a specific protein.  Men sit for hours slowly drinking and enjoying delicious food.  You rarely see women at those type of establish but why deprive yourself from good food?

Rainier BBQ in Seattle, Washington is one of my personal favorite.  They have a variety of drinking food and everything I've tried has been pretty good.  One of my favorite dish is a beef salad with rau muong (water spinach).  It reminds me of Bo Tai Chanh another one of my favorite.  It's so refreshing with the finely julienned water spinach stem and dressed in a tangy dressing.  It's so addicting to eat, one serving is never enough!  The best part is how easy you can recreate this dish at home.  If anyone is complaining about eating too much salads this is the one you need to try!  I hope you like my interpretation is flavorful dish, enjoy!

Ingredients:

water spinach stem (julienned)
1 lb beef (thinly sliced)
1/2 onion (finely sliced)
garlic (minced)
shallots (minced)
lime
fresh chili
fresh mint leaves (rough chopped)
vinegar
sugar
fish sauce
cooking oil

1.  Prepare the water spinach.  There is a tool you can use to julienned your water spinach easily.  Or you can use a razor but that require a little experience. http://www.vietworldkitchen.com/blog/2007/06/water-spinach-s.html  Let it soak in water so it will curls and then drain completely.
2.  You can use eye round beef if you prefer lean meat but I like some texture and fat so I used rib eye.  Marinade the beef with garlic, shallots, and fish sauce (~2 tablespoon).
3.  Marinade the slice onion with 1/2 tablespoon of sugar and 1/4 tablespoon of vinegar.
4.  For the dressing combine 5 tablespoon of sugar, 4 tablespoon of lime juice, 1/2 tablespoon of sugar, and 5 tablespoon of fish sauce.  The sauce should be sweet, tangy, and salty.  You can add more sugar, vinegar, and fish sauce to your liking.  Make sure you mix the sauce well so the sugar dissolves.
5.  Heat up a frying pan with some oil and cook the beef.  I cook mine about medium rare, the dressing will cook it some more.
6.  Mix the water spinace, sliced onions, and mint leaves together.  Move it to a serving platter.  Pour the meat mixture on top, and then the dressing on top.  I use about half the dressing, and reserve the remainder for later if needed.
7.  Top with chopped chili and more mint leaves if prefer.
8.  Toss lightly before eating, enjoy!

Bo Bia -Jicama Spring Rolls

I love just about every single spring rolls in existence, from pork belly to baked fish.  Bo bia, on the other hand, never really made that much of impact on my appetite.   I can't remember eating them a lot growing up, therefore I never crave for them.  Last year during a family reunion, my aunt had bo bia on the menu.  The females of the family got together to form an assembly line to make bo bia.  A few people were in charge of rolling them, while others were in charge of wrapping them up so they will stay fresh, and some were in charge of re-stocking the fillings.  It was a lot of fun being in the kitchen with my family and dogging on each other's roll.  We were all so hungry at the time too so we kept sneaking in a roll here and there.  Anytime someone's roll were deemed ugly, that roll was to be disposed immediately in the form of eating it!  We definitely took advantage of that and soon everybody started messing up on purpose.  My aunt and mom finally caught on when we kept asking for more fillings.  Because of that day, I became very fond of bo bia!

Bo bia is made with a variety of ingredients; sauteed jicama, Chinese sausage, eggs, sauteed dried prawns, lettuce, and mint leaves.  Prepared fish sauce is my dip of choice for most spring rolls but bo bia is the only exception.  Bo bia is best eaten with a peanut-hoison sauce.  This type of sauce is richer but it's a nice balance with all the vegetables in the roll.

Ingredients:

1 Jicama (5-6 cups)
1-2 carrots (3 cups)
1 cup of dried prawns
4-5 Chinese sausage link
10 eggs
salt
peanut butter
hoisin sauce
vegetable oil
chili paste
lettuce
mint leaves or cilantro
rice paper

1.  Rehydrate the dried prawns in warm water.  Once it has soften, sauteed the prawns in oil and two spring of minced green onions.

2.  Julienne the jicamas and carrots.  Sauteed them in a little bit of oil until tender and season
 with a couple pinch of salt.

3.  Boil the sausage link in water until fully cooked and then thinly slice the sausage to your liking.

4.  Beat the eggs and then fry them very thinly as if you are making crepes.  Once your eggs are fried, slice them in thin strips, if not you can leave them as a sheets.

5.  Prepare your lettuce and mints/cilantro.  Chop them up and then mix them together.

6.  Lay out all the ingredients and get ready to roll.

7.  In a sauce pan combine 3 cup of water, 1 cup of hoisin, and 1/2 cup peanut butter to make the sauce.  Add chili to your liking for spiciness.
8.  Roll, dip, and enjoy!

Pho Chay - Vegetarian Pho

There was a period of time when I wanted to ease myself into vegetarian cooking.  It was healthier and of course you feel a bit more humane.  It didn't last very long, however, I just miss eating steaks and seafood too much. I, however, got one thing out of it, I had lots practice with making pho chay.  I really admire vegetarian cooking, especially Vietnamese vegetarian dishes.  A lot of times it taste so much similar to the original dish and taste so good that you hardly notice the meat is missing.  

With any soups, the most important factor is the broth.  I use a lot of roots vegetables to make the broth for pho such as; daikons, carrots, leeks, cabbage, onions, and ginger.  You'll want to cook these vegetables down until they basically fall apart, and then remove them from the broth.  You will attain a very subtle and sweet broth and the only thing you will need to season the broth is salt and spices you use to make traditional pho.  Instead of meats, I use tofu, mock meats, and more vegetables.  You'll want to sauteed the tofu and mock meats with some soy sauce and sugar so it's not bland in the soup. I lightly blanch my favorite vegetables such as carrots, broccoli, baby corn, and mushroom to add to the soup.  Make sure you season each component well; the broth, the "meats", and the vegetables.  

I would totally choose traditional pho over pho chay any day of the week but it's nice having options for certain occasions.  When lent come around, I have another noodle soup option. When you are feeling ill and in need of something light and warm, pho chay is a great option.  Are you having vegetarian guests for dinner? You can't go wrong with introducing Vietnam's most famous soup pho, but vegetarian style.  Hope you will find this recipe helpful in the future, enjoy!

Ingredients:

1/2 cabbage

1 daikon

3-6 medium carrots

1 leek

1 onion

1 ginger

broccoli

mushroom

baby corn

tofu

canned mock meat (optional, get the one without added flavoring)

star anise

cinnamon

cloves

pho noodles

green onions

lime

cilantro

salt

sugar

mushroom seasoning

soy sauce

How to make the broth:

1.  Wash and prepare the cabbage, daikon, and about 3 carrots.  Put these ingredients in a 6 quart pot and fill it up with water.  Let the vegetables cook down in the broth and then season with sugar, salt, and soy sauce, and mushroom seasoning. Once the vegetables fall apart or has cooked down enough, remove the vegetable.  

2.  Broil the ginger and onion in the oven. Remove any skins and then add to the pot as well.

3.  Roast the spices in the oven, you'll need about 2 cinnamon stick, 5 star anise, and 4 cloves.  Add the spices towards the end when the broth is done and ready.  Remove the spices after 15 minutes. 

The "Meats" and Vegetable:

1.  Cut the tofu and meats to bite size.  Heat up some cooking oil in a pan, and sauteed the tofu and mocked meats with some soy sauce and a little bit of sugar.  Make sure you seasoned it well and the tofu is cooked all way.   

2. Cut up the broccoli and carrots and mushroom.  Blanch all them and the baby corn in boiling water and add enough salt to give the vegetable some taste on their own.  If you prefer more flavor, you can sauteed the vegetables with soy sauce and sugar just like the tofu.

Assembling:

1.  Prepare the pho noodles, lime, and garnish for the soup.

2.  Put noodles in a bowl, add the tofu, mocked meat, and vegetables on top.  Add hot broth and then topped off with the garnish.  

3.  Add hoison and sriracha to your liking, and enjoy!