Chào buổi sáng GUS bạn bè!!!!! (Good morning GUS friends.) I had my most excellent Vietnamese food fix when I went to Tanglewood on Wednesday. Orient Express is in West Stockbridge, MA. I always order the Vietnamese egg rolls and then I had the Grapefruit Chicken Salad. Stupendous!!! I couldn't quite figure out the "dressing" on the salad so I went a googling when I returned. I discovered there are zillions of different versions. All have the basic food part -- it is the sauce/dressing that is the conundrum.
While searching I found some other recipes tangentially related to Vietnamese cooking.
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This first recipe is from my new favorite food website, Todd Porter & Diane Cu: White on Rice Couple. Stunning recipes and photos -- they are both photographers and dog lovers!!! More of their recipes below. Pure joy just to look. The discussion about this recipe is at the link -- and will show that there are many versions. I prefer the one with grapefruit, which is the second recipe below. But who knows? This one could be great adapted to my tastes which involve no to very low sugar.
(Gỏi Gà or Gỏi Bắp Cẚi Gà) Vietnamese Chicken Salad Recipe
If you don't like or can't eat fish sauce, there are substitutes by the zillions. Just google fish sauce substitute.
YIELD: 4 SERVINGS.TOTAL TIME: 40 MINUTES
There are many variations of this fabulous and classic Vietnamese Chicken Salad. The salad can be especially pleasing with different textures and flavors ranging from fried shallots, roasted peanuts, fried garlic and picked onions to different Vietnamese herbs such as mint, basil or the classic rau ram (Viet coriander). Some salads will be heartier with more chicken than cabbage, so you can choose your ratios and toppings to your personal taste. The chicken can be boiled, poached, grilled, fried or bbq.
ingredients:
for the salad:
about 4 cups thinly shredded cabbage (regular or napa)
handful of rau ram (Vietnamese coriander) or mint, basil, cilantro
1/4 c shredded Carrots
crushed, roasted Peanuts
fried Shallots
fried Garlic
Pickled Red Onions
for the chicken marinade:
2 lbs Chicken, sliced to desired thickness for boiling, poaching, grilling or bbq (go for the brown meat!)
1 T fresh Ginger, crushed or grated
1 large clove Garlic, crushed or finely minced
2 T Vegetable or Grape-seed oil
2 T Fish Sauce
1 t Sugar
for the fish sauce dressing
2/3 c Fish Sauce
2 T fresh Ginger, crushed or grated
1/3 c Water
3 cloves Garlic, finely minced or crushed
1-2 Red Chilies, minced
1 T Sugar
2 Tablespoons of fresh Lime Juice or more to taste (about 1 lime, depending on how juicy it is)
directions:
make the chicken
In bowl, combine all chicken marinade ingredients and let marinade for about 20 minutes. Cook chicken using your desired method: boil, poach, grill or bbq.
Once chicken has cooled, shred the chicken.
make fish sauce dressing
In medium bowl or large jar, combine all ingredients well. Allow sugar to completely dissolve before serving.
You can keep chilled in fridge for up to 1 month.
final assembly:
In large bowl, combine cabbage, herbs and shredded carrots. In medium bowl, place shredded chicken and a few tablespoons of fish sauce to evenly coat the chicken.
When you're ready to serve, toss chicken into the salad and add more fish sauce dressing to taste. Top with fried shallots, garlic, peanuts and/or pickled onions.
Vietnamese Grapefruit and Jicama Salad in a Ponzu Dressing with Candied Pecans
Except for the Candied Pecans, this recipe is pretty close to what I had at Orient Express. I may have to play with it a bit.
from that great Vietnamese chef, Emeril Lagasse
Ingredients
Ponzu Dressing:
4 tablespoons soy sauce
8 tablespoons red wine vinegar
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
3/4-inch square piece Konbu (dried kelp)
1 cup grape seed oil
1 tablespoon honey
1 teaspoon minced garlic
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
1/4 teaspoon cayenne
Salad
1 (1-pound) jicama, peeled and julienned
1/2 pound red cabbage, finely sliced
1 large carrot, peeled and julienned
1/4 cup chopped fresh mint
1 fresh Thai chile, thinly sliced, or Serrano chile
2 ruby red grapefruits, peeled and segmented
Candied Pecans, recipe follows
Directions
In a bowl, combine the soy sauce, red wine vinegar, lemon juice, and kelp. Cover and let sit for 12 to 24 hours. Strain the soy mixture. Add the oil, honey garlic, black pepper and cayenne to the strained mixture, and whisk to combine.
In a large bowl, toss the jicama, cabbage, carrots, mint, and chili with dressing to taste. Fold in the grapefruit segments, being careful not to break, adding more dressing as needed. Top with the candied pecans, and serve.
Yield: 6 servings
Candied Pecans:
2 teaspoons vegetable oil
2 tablespoons brown sugar
1 teaspoon rice vinegar
1/2 cup pecan pieces
1/8 teaspoon cayenne
1/8 teaspoon salt
In a medium skillet, combine the oil, sugar, and vinegar, and cook, stirring over medium heat until the sugar is dissolved. Add the pecans, cayenne, and salt, and cook, stirring, until the nuts are toasted and evenly coated, 4 to 5 minutes. Remove from the heat and spread on a baking sheet lined with waxed paper.
Yield: about 1/2 cup
Tomato Crisp Recipe
from Todd Porter & Diane Cu: White on Rice Couple
Definitely click the link for the beautiful pictures. This is a great website for recipes and other stuff.
YIELD: SERVES 4-6TOTAL TIME: 1 HOUR
See post for additional recipe details.
ingredients:
2 pounds (910g) ripe Tomatoes, cored and cut into wedges
1 Tablespoon (8g) Cornstarch
Kosher or Sea Salt
fresh cracked Black Pepper
3/4 cup (90g) Flour
1/4 cup freshly grated parmigiano reggiano
2 Tablespoons finely minced Italian Parsley
1 Tablespoon minced or crushed Garlic
1 Tablespoon (15g) packed Brown Sugar
1 teaspoon Kosher or Sea Salt
1/2 cup (1 stick / 113g) cold unsalted Butter, cut into ½-inch pieces
½ cup (40g) old-fashioned Oats
directions:
Preheat the oven to 375°F. Butter a 2 qt. baking dish.
Put the cut tomatoes into the prepared baking dish. Toss with the cornstarch and season lightly with salt and pepper.
Combine the flour, cheese, parsley, garlic, brown sugar and teaspoon of salt in a medium bowl. Mix together well.
Pinch the butter into the flour mixture until it resembles coarse sand (or cut it into the flour mix with a pastry cutter). Work in the oats with your fingers until evenly distributed.
Spread the crisp topping over the tomatoes. Bake for 45 minutes or until the topping is golden brown. Serve warm or at room temperature.
Crispy Quinoa Fritters With Green Tomato Chutney and Green Zebra Heirloom Tomatoes
also from White on Rice Couple Again -- click the link -- the pictures and narrative are wonderful. I may have to order their cookbook due out in October.
The hardest part of making the quinoa fritters is getting them into a patty. They have a tendency to stick to the hands, so try to wash your hands often, cleaning them of the loose quinoa and flour. Try to make the quinoa patties firm, so that they don't break apart. As soon as you get them into a patty, carefully fry them in the hot oil. I fried them a little bit longer to get a crispy outside and they were still delicious on the inside.
For the Green Tomato Chutney, I used this recipe.
Yield: 2 Pints
Ingredients
6 cups chopped green tomatoes
1 1/4 cups chopped onion
1 cup white vinegar
1 1/2 cups brown sugar
2 teaspoons ground ginger
1/2 teaspoon cloves (use a teaball or spice bag to keep them from overpowering your chutney)
2 cinnamon sticks
3 star anise pieces
1/4 teaspoon red chili flakes (use more for a spicier chutney)
1 teaspoon sea salt (if using regular table salt, use 1/2 teaspoon)
Instructions
Combine tomatoes, onion, vinegar and sugar in a 5 quart non-reactive pot over medium heat. Add the ginger, cloves, cinnamon sticks, star anise and red chili flakes.
Cook over low heat for 1 to 1 1/2 hours, stirring frequently to prevent scorching. Add salt at the very end of cooking.
When chutney has reduced by more than half, turn off heat. Use tongs to remove cinnamon sticks and star anise bits. Fill jars, wipe rims, apply lids and screw on rings. Process in a boiling water canner for 10 minutes.
Eat on turkey sandwiches, or with a bit of goat cheese.
Ideally this recipe should take one long day or over two days. The quinoa needs to be pre-cooked, then allowed to cool completely. I cooked the quinoa the night before and refrigerated it, giving it a firmer texture. You can also make the chutney ahead of time too, allowing the chutney to cool completely too before eating.
ingredients for fritters:
1 cup of raw quinoa
1/2 cup of grated parmesan cheese
2 large eggs
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
additional flour for dusting
1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika
1 small onion, finely minced (the smaller the mince is, the easier it will be to mold the patties)
3/4 to 1 teaspoon of sea salt (I liberally seasoned the quinoa mix)
lots of fresh cracked black pepper to taste
vegetable oil for frying
directions:
Cook quinoa to package instructions (should be about 2 cups water-1 cup quinoa. Simmer covered for 12-15 minutes). Allow to cool completely.
In large bowl, combine cooked quinoa, eggs, parmesan cheese, flour, onion, paprika, salt and black pepper. Mix thoroughly to combine all the ingredients, but be gentle to not make the quinoa mushy.
In large skillet, add oil for frying, about 1/2 inch in depth. Heat the oil to medium/high heat.
Use about 3 Tablespoons of quinoa mix and form into a tight ball, then press down to form a patty. Add a little bit of flour around outside of the patty to keep it from sticking to your hands.
Finish making all the patties, then fry them in oil, on both sides till crispy brown. This should take about 3-5 minutes on each side.
Blot hot fritters on paper towels.
Serve quinoa fritters with green tomato chutney.
Vietnamese Pork and Shrimp Spring Rolls
again, again from White on Rice Couple. And the pictures are really helpful.
YIELD: SERVES 3-4TOTAL TIME: 45 MIN
In his cookbook Vietnamese Home Cooking, Charles Phan has a great story behind these spring rolls and how his Mother has a very unique twist by adding a smear of homemade mayonnaise to moisten the wrapper. We suggest you get the book to understand how she does all this, as well as how he makes his full version of the rolls with his peanut dip. The recipe we're sharing today is our own recipe that we serve with our hoisin peanut dip.
ingredients:
for the pork and shrimp spring rolls:
1/2 pound medium shrimp, peeled and deveined
3 teaspoons vegetable oil
about 1/2 pound ( 8 oz) boneless pork loin or shoulder
1 ( 8-10 oz) package of dried rice vermicelli noodles or "rice sticks", cooked to package instructions.
1 small head of lettuce
1 medium cucumber, cut into thin strips
fresh herbs: mint, asian basil. Vietnamese coriander, Vietnamese perilla or cilantro
about 12 ( 8-inch) rice paper wrappers or rice paper spring roll wrappers
for hoisin peanut dip:
1/4 cup hoisin ( If hoisin dip is too thick, add water to thin out the dip)
2 heaping tablespoons peanut butter, almond butter or cashew butter.
1 teaspoon rice vinegar
1/2 teaspoon sesame oil
directions:
For the hoisin peanut dip: In medium bowl, combine all dip ingredients together. Use a fork to help blend well.
Cook the dried rice vermicelli noodles to package instructions.
For the rolls, start by preparing the pork. Bring medium pot of water to boil and add pork. Boil the pork on medium heat for about 15-25 minutes or until the pork is cooked.
Remove from water, allow to cool and slice into thin strips.
For the shrimp, heat a medium pan, add vegetable oil. Lay shrimp on pan and sear on both sides till shrimp becomes pink and cooked. Remove shrimp from heat, allow to cool and slice each shrimp lengthwise in half.
Gather all your filling ingredients on plates: noodles, shrimp, pork, lettuce, cucumber, herbs and rice paper wrappers.
Please check out our photo tutorial on how to roll spring rolls and the photographs in the blog post to see how to roll with the sliced shrimp showing on the outside.
Add warm water to a large bowl. Quickly dip each rice paper wrapper in warm water for a few seconds and lay on rolling surface such as a cutting board or plate (they will still be slightly stiff).
Lay your lettuce first on the soft spring roll wrapper, then add the strips lettuce, herbs, cucumber, noodles and pork.
Roll spring roll till you have about 1/3 of rice paper left, then lay about 2-3 pieces of shrimp, cut side up in a row and finish rolling. The shrimp will lay on the outside of the spring roll when you are finished rolling.
Serve with the hoisin peanut dip.
Click on the link above for a helpful tutorial with photographs showing the step by step method. how to roll spring rolls. Link for tutorial.
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