Home Cooking with Thuy

Gà Rô-ti - Roasted Chicken or Braised Chicken

2013-08-12T08:00:00.000-04:00

There is three ways to make ga roti. The ones who can afford an oven in Vietnam, make a roasted version. You can grill it over charcoal. My preferred method is the braised version. It offers a sauce and the chicken can be very tender if you braise it at a low enough heat for a longer period of time. This is an adaption of my mother in-law's version.

For the braised version of this recipe, leg quarters is the preferred cut of chicken to use. The dark meat offers the fattiness that lends to a tastier dish. I personally don't like drumsticks, so I use thighs.

8 thighs

6-8 cloves garlic, minced finely

2 Tbsp soy sauce

1 Tbsp fish sauce

1 Tbsp oyster sauce

Ground black pepper, preferably freshly ground for sweetness

Sugar

Water

First you want to prepare the chicken. Start by trimming off any excess skin on the thighs and bits of visible fat. You can go skinless also. Marinade the chicken with the garlic, soy sauce, and oyster sauce. Allow for marinade for about 2 hours or more.

Heat up a deep pan or wok with enough oil to cover the bottom of the pan. Sprinkle in about 1 Tbsp or enough to have a thin layer of sugar covering the bottom of the pan and allow for it to develop color. You want the sugar to be almost black but not burnt. You want a very rich dark color. Add the chicken and turn the chicken so that the caramel coats the chicken. Brown it on both sides. Add 1-2 tsp of water and cover the pan. Simmer the chicken for about 5-7 minutes on each side. Add the freshly ground black pepper and fish sauce.

If like a more tender chicken, braise for about 30-40 minutes on low with the lid on.

Phở Gà - Chicken Pho

2013-08-05T08:00:00.000-04:00

Pho ga is a less popular version of the pho that everyone loves. It is simple, mild, and delicate. I think the dish is ugly because there is no way to make chicken pretty for this dish. What it lacks in outward appearance, it makes up in flavor. For pho ga, I find that a free range chicken (gà đi bộ) or a chicken feed a vegetarian diet offers the best flavor. Like in most Asian cooking, you want to aim for a clear broth. You will achieve this by washing the chicken thoroughly, a slow boil, and removing any impurities that comes up when cooking.

Broth:
1 whole chicken
2 chicken leg quarters
2 inch knob ginger or 1/2 tsp ginger powder
1 large onion, peeled and halved
2 whole star anise
1 bunch of cilantro stems or 1 tbsp coriander seeds
1-2 cubes of chicken bouillon, optional, Maggi brand
1 tbsp size yellow sugar
1 stick Saigon cinnamon
2 tbsp fish sauce
3-4.5 qts Water

Bowls:
1 pkg pho noodles
1/2 onion (red or yellow) sliced thinly
Chopped green onions/scallion, green parts only is preferred but you can use the whole stem
Chopped cilantro leaves, or the whole stem if you want more of a cilantro kick
Lime wedges
Mung bean sprouts, optional
Thai bird peppers
Culantro leaves
Fried garlic and shallots
Lemon basil (aka Thai basil)

Split the chicken into 11 pieces (2 drums, 2 thighs, 2 wings, halving the 2 breast, and backbone). Wash the individual pieces well, concentrating on the backbone more since this piece is where a lot of the scum will come from. Do the same to the leg quarters. You can split the drum and thighs more to expose more of the bone to get more of the chicken flavor. Add to a 6-qt stockpot or larger and use enough water to cover the chicken. Bring water to a boil, but don't allow for the water to come to a rolling boil. If that happens, it will incorporate the "scum" into the broth and cloudy up the broth. Peel and skewer the onion with toothpicks (to prevent it from falling apart in the broth) and add to the pot.

Dry toast the star anise, Saigon cinnamon, and coriander seeds. Wrap in a cheese cloth or add to a large tea infuser. Smash the ginger or slice it to get a large surface area. Tie up the cilantro stems. Add to pot. Skim any "scum" that surfaces. Allow for the broth to simmer for about 1.5 hrs on low heat offers the best flavor but 45 minutes to 1 hr on medium heat will produce a nice broth.

Always remove the chicken about 40-45 minutes and set aside to cool before shredding. You can remove the tea ball or sachet at this point if you like. Add the remaining ingredients. The bouillon cubes can be used if there isn't enough "chicken-ness" to your broth. (Happens more when you use a conventional chicken.) Adjust the level of saltiness with fish sauce or kosher salt.

Shred the chicken by hand to give texture and contrast to your bite. I like to mix the dark and white meat together, but some people only enjoy the white meat, so you can separate them. Arrange each bowl with a handful of pho noodles, thinly sliced onions, chicken, sprouts, and green onions. Ladle the hot broth over it to soften them. Add the herbs and lime at the end. You can dress your pho with hoisin and sriracha if you like.

Tôm Rang Muối - Salt and Pepper Shrimp

2013-07-29T08:00:00.000-04:00

In the picture above, it is hybrid of the Chinese and Vietnamese version. I copied The Yummy House version with using a wheat starch to help the shrimp get a nice crunch to it. Normally the shrimp is left intact, with the pointy part of the head and tail snipped off and the legs trimmed. Since my son loves shrimp, I made this recipe without the shell and head.

1/2 lb large shrimp, headless, peeled and deveined, with tail on
wheat starch
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp black pepper
oil for frying

optional:

2 tbsp chopped cilantro

2 cloves garlic, minced
1 pinch of dried pepper flakes

Wash the shrimp in really cold water. Add ice to tighten up the shrimp. While the shrimp is sitting on ice, mix together the wheat starch, salt, and pepper. Coat each shrimp with the dry mixture. (If you want a thick coating, dip the shrimp in an egg white wash before the wheat starch coating.) Allow the shrimp to sit in the wheat starch mixture while you heat up a 1-qt (or slightly larger) saucepan with some oil. You want enough oil to at least come half way up the shrimp when you cook them. You want the oil to be hot when you start frying, otherwise your food will be greasy. Fry the shrimp about 2-3 minutes on each side. You looking for a nice golden color. Placed them on paper to blot off the excess oil.

In a pan, heat up 1 tsp of oil. Add the minced garlic, and chopped cilantro. Stir well until the two have a very nice fragrance. Add the pinch of pepper flakes. Toss in the shrimp at the end.

Sườn Rim Mặn - Caramelized ribs

2013-07-22T08:00:00.000-04:00

Cooking on the bone has a way of imparting flavor. The fat molecules that is inside of the bones is released into the meat when it is cooking. This dish is one of my family's favorite and it can be a very inexpensive dish to make. The suon dish was part of my rack of rib challenge, where I attempted to see how many different dishes I can make with one rack of ribs. (I will post more about that later.)

You can buy ribs already prepared for you at the Asian market. It is often called Hong Kong style ribs. I also get my local grocery store butcher to saw it across the bone and cut them into small pieces when I get home. If you have a heavy clever at home, you can also cut them into small pieces yourself (like I choose to do on the day I made this dish.)

1 lb ribs
2 cloves garlic minced
1 small shallot minced
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp sugar
1 tsp black pepper
1 tbsp fish sauce
2 tsp water

First you want to marinade the ribs with the minced garlic and shallots. Set aside for 15 mins.

Let's make the caramel sauce. Heat a pan or wok with enough oil to cover the bottom. Add the sugar and watch for the sugar to develop color.

When the sugar get to a dark brown color, add the ribs in and stir to evenly coat the ribs with the caramel. Brown the ribs for about 5 minutes. Add the salt, pepper and water. Cover and allow to cook for about 10-15 minutes. The ribs will be cook when you see the meat pull from the bone, as pictured. Add your fish sauce. Stir in well and taste to adjust with more sugar or fish sauce.

Most Vietnamese families will dress this dish with sliced cucumbers and tomatoes. The caramel sauce goes well with them.

Canh Chua Gà - Tamarind Soup with chicken

2013-07-15T08:00:00.000-04:00

This is my absolute favorite canh recipe. My 10 month old nephew and 3 year old son loves this canh too. It has a lot of fruits and vegetables in it. You can mix and match different combination to get the flavor profile you like. The recipe I am sharing with you is my way of doing it. There are many different variations and they differ from region to region, country to country.

It is very similar to the Thai tom yum soup. I am unsure of the origin of this soup but I think I can safely speculate that the Vietnamese immigrants introduce this dish to Thailand. Pad Thai and fish sauce is so common in Thai cuisine and you can thank the Vietnamese immigrants.

3 qts water
20 okra cut into 1 inch segments
3 organic tomatoes cut into wedges
1/2 lb bean sprouts
3-5 stems bac ha/alocasia odora/taro stem or celery sliced thinly on the diagonal
1 whole fresh pineapple cut into chunks (please avoid Del Monte Fresh brand, it's a GMO)
1 Tbsp tamarind powder
4-5 cloves garlic smashed and minced
1 medium shallot minced
3 sprigs ngo om/rice paddy herb
1 tbsp fish sauce
1 lb chicken, catfish, salmon
2 tbsp oil like peanut, vegetable, canola (I use peanut because it isn't a GMO)
1 stalk chopped green onion
5 sprigs chopped cilantro

Heat up a large stock pot, at least 5 qts, with the water. In another pot, heat up water to a rolling boil to parboil your choice of protein. Allow the protein to boil for at least 3 minutes. Remove the protein and rinse under cold water to remove any foam or impurities (especially with the chicken) and place it into your cooking pot. Add the pineapple chunks to tenderize the protein. Add the tamarind powder and simmer for 15 minutes for the chicken or 10 minutes for the fish.

While the protein is cooking, heat up a small sauce pan with 2 tbsp of oil. Add the garlic and shallots. Sauteed until you achieve a nice golden brown color to them, usually 2-3 minutes. Set aside, off the heat.

Add the okra into the stockpot after the 10 or 15 minute mark, depending on your protein selection. Allow to cook for about 2 minutes before adding the bean sprouts and tomatoes. Simmer for another 2 minutes and add the fish sauce. Spoon the fried onion and garlic oil into the pot and stir well. Add the rice paddy herb leaves, chopped onions and cilantro. Adjust to your taste by adding more fish sauce.

The soup should have texture to it. The sprouts should still have a bite even though it is wilted. The bac ha or celery should be soft and almost spongy like. The tomatoes should still have it shape but soft. The orka should be soft but not mushy.

Lemon Loaf

2013-07-12T08:00:00.000-04:00

I came across a lemon loaf recipe on Pinterest from Jenn's Random Scraps blog. It taste great but it was heavy. After doing some adjustment to the recipe, it came out light and more to my liking. I didn't use all the glaze in this picture. I keep it to the side so I can control my calories.
I still can't figure out why my loaf cracks at the top, but it does make a nice glaze catcher. If you do know why and how to fix it, please message me.

1 1/2 cups organic flour

1 tsp baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

3 eggs, room temp

1 cup organic sugar

3 tbsp organic butter, softened

1 tsp vanilla extract

2 tsp of gourmet lemon extract

Juice from one large lemon

1/2 cup oil

zest of one lemon

Glaze:

1 cup powdered sugar

2 tbsp whole milk

1/2 tsp lemon extract

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees. Grease and flour your loaf pan. Tap out any excess flour. Flouring your pan is very important, so don't skip this step (like I did the first time and couldn't get the loaf out.)

Allow for the butter and eggs to sit on the counter until it reaches room temperature. If you don't have a micro-planer or a zester, use a peeler to zest the lemon. Take the outer of the lemon off and run you knife to chop it finely. In a bowl, combine all your dry ingredients and sift it. In another bowl, combine the butter, eggs, vanilla extract lemon juice, and lemon extract. When you have creamed it together, add the flour mixture in slowly, Fold the mixture together with the oil. Add the lemon zest at the end.

Bake for about 40-45 minutes or until your toothpick comes out clean.

Combine the glaze ingredients and whisk together well until there is no lumps.

Allow the loaf to cool completely before glazing it.

Nui Gà - Chicken Noodle Soup - Nouilles avec poulet

2013-07-08T08:00:00.000-04:00

My 3 year old son loves nui ga, more so when mommy makes it. It is one of his favorite dish. This French influenced dish is a wonderful one pot meal and it can freeze easily. I used orzo in this dish, which "bloomed" from sitting in the broth, making it a hit with many small children.

1 cup orzo
2 qt water
2 cloves garlic minced
2 cups diced carrots small optional
1/2 lb ground or sliced thinly pork or chicken
2 stalks green onions, chopped
1/4 cup chopped cilantro
1 tbsp fish sauce
1 tsp mushroom seasoning optional
2 tsp chicken bouillon powder
1/4 cup minced onions

Heat up a large stock pot and add oil to cover the bottom. Have your meat mixture nearby before you put the garlic in the pot. Saute the garlic until a light brown color then add your meat. Brown the meat to bring some color. Add your minced onion, bouillon powder, mushroom seasoning, and carrots. Add your water and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat so you don't have a hard boil. Skim off any foam that rises to the top, to ensure you have a clear broth. Add orzo and cook until it is soft. Add fish sauce and turn off heat. Add the chopped onions and cilantro and taste. Adjust with more fish sauce if too bland.

Gà Kho Xốt Đậu Đen - Chicken with fermented chili black bean sauce

2013-07-01T08:00:00.000-04:00

When I was in college, I was introduced to dim sum. One of my favorite little dim sum dish was the steamed ribs with black bean. The salty fermented taste of the black beans was very pleasant to my palate and I wanted to replicated it but had no idea where to start. I stumbled on a prepared jar of black beans and came up with this dish. Kho is better know in the western world as braising, a French cooking technique. You would cook/sear the meat at a high heat and then you simmer in a liquid. This dish is served over rice with a platter of sliced cucumbers, tomato, lettuce/leafy herbs.

1 lb boneless skinless chicken thighs

1/2 tsp kosher salt

1 tsp black pepper

1 tbsp oyster sauce or XO sauce

1/4 tsp mushroom seasoning

2 cloves garlic minced finely

1 stalk green onions cut

1 tsp of fish sauce

1.5 tsp chili black bean sauce

2 tbsp of water or chicken broth

Lee Kum Kee Brand is the best of all that I have tried.

Prepare chicken by cutting it into bite size pieces and set aside. In a pan, heat up enough oil to cover the bottom. Make sure the chicken is close by before you brown the garlic. When the garlic is a light golden color, add the chicken and saute with mushroom seasoning, salt and pepper. When you chicken is browned, add the water or broth and cover. Cook on a medium heat until the chicken has tighten up, usually about 7-10 minutes. Remember to stir occasionally. Add the oyster sauce, chili black bean sauce (picture of the jar below), and fish sauce . Taste and adjust to your liking. You can add 1/4 tsp of sugar if you find it too salty or one dimensional. Finish the dish with the green onion.

Bánh Bao - Vietnamese Style Steamed Buns

2013-06-19T23:07:00.003-04:00

This bun many will recognized from the dim sum restaurants, filled with sweet red BBQ meat. The bun has many different variations as the Chinese migrated out and settled in different parts of the world. In the Vietnamese variation, pork still takes main stage but takes on a more savory flair. The addition of peas and carrots may have it's roots with the French colonization. I love the big fluffy pastry with a hint of sweetness in contrast to the earthy-savoriness of the shiitake mushroom in the filling.

I can imagine wives packing their husbands many little buns for lunch while they work in the rice paddies. They are easily eaten with one hand. The modern family can benefit from freezing these buns. You can individually wrap each bun and freeze them for up to 3 months. Just zap them in the microwave for 30 seconds to 1 minute (depending on your equipment).

pastry:
4.5 cups all purpose flour
1/2 cup sugar
1 tbsp baking powder
3 tbsp oil
1.5 cup room temperature whole milk

filling:
1 lb ground pork or chicken
8-10 medium or 6-8 large shiitake mushroom diced
1/2 cup finely chopped onions
2 tbsp oyster sauce
1 tsp kosher salt
2 tsp black pepper
1/3 cup frozen or canned peas
2 links Chinese sausage
3 or 6 eggs hard boiled eggs

Parchment paper cut into rounds or torn into squares
1/2 cup vinegar (optional)

Combine all the dry ingredients and mix well. Make a well in the middle and pour in the milk and oil. Incorporate the dry mixture and work the dough until it comes together. Pour the mixture out on a lightly floured surface and knead the dough until it come to a smooth texture. Shape into a ball and place it back into a bowl, cover, and place aside to rest for 1 hour.

Boil eggs until they are hard. Cut into 4's or 8's depending on how much egg you like in each bao. Reconstitute the shiitake mushroom if you are using the dried version in warm water. Dice the mushroom and onion in small pieces. The Chinese sausage can be cut into two ways:
1. slice thinly on the diagonal
2. dicing into small cubes
The traditional way is cut on the diagonal. I discovered that dicing them into cubes taste better to me. The smaller cut allows more Chinese sausage per bit and keeps the filling moist because of the fat content. If you like the taste of the sausage but not the fat, you can render the fat from the sausage first before adding it to the bao. Mix everything together for the filling, minus the eggs.

After the dough has rested, pour it out of a floured board and knead the dough some more. Half the dough and then roll it out into a log. You can cut anywhere between 8-12 pieces depending on how big you like your baos. You want to cover any pieces you aren't currently working on so it doesn't dry out. With the piece of dough in your hand, you want to roll it between your palms to make a ball shape. Flatten the ball and stretch the circular shaped dough by hand or with a rolling pin. You want to aim for a thick center and thinner edges because you will be gathering the edges together. Take a tablespoon of filling and place it in the center then top it off with a piece of hard boiled egg.

With the bao in your non-dominate hand, cup the edges of the dough upwards. With the dominate hand, pinch the dough, like you are closing a taco. Do the same on the opposite side, like you are making a hobo bag. You now should have 4 corners on the bao. Take the opposite pointy corners and pinch them together until you have a rounded pouch. Twist the top where all the edges meet and were pinched together. Place the finished bao on the parchment paper.

Heat up a steamer and add 1/2 cup of vinegar to the water when it starts to boil. Steam the buns for 20-25 minutes. When opening the steamer, please make sure that the lid isn't dripping water in the bao. Or you can place a towel under the lid while steaming to catch any evaporation.

Thịt Heo Quay - Crispy Roast Pork

2013-06-18T22:48:00.001-04:00

Crispy pork cooked on a gas grill.

I only make this dish on special occasion because it takes too much effort in regards to watching it when it is cooking. If you never had it before, it is an absolute treat. The skin is cooked until crispy and crackling. The Chinese 5-spice seasoning makes the meaty part just divine. In the picture above, I tested the pork on a gas grill and it wasn't as easy as the oven version because it kept catching on fire because of the high fat. The oven method allowed from the pork to cook at more controlled environment and dying out the surface to allow for the skin to crisp up.

1 to 1.5lb of pork belly
1/8 tsp Chinese 5-spice powder
3 tsp Kosher salt divided 2 to 1
1/2 tsp ground black pepper
1.5 tsp of sugar
2 cloves garlic minced finely
.5 tsp baking powder

Wash and clean the pork belly. You want to scald the skin side with boiling water and scraping it with the side of my knife and pat dry. Score diamond cuts into the meaty side of the meat. You also score the skin side, carefully making sure that you don't cut all the way through to the fat. You can also stab the skin side with skewers. Mix together the Chinese 5-spice, 1 tsp of salt, sugar, minced garlic, and black pepper and rub into the meaty sides, making sure that you don't touch the skin side.

Rub the baking soda on the skin and wipe off any excess. Let the pork belly rest in the fridge for a couple of hours so the meat can marinade. Heat up the oven to 400-degrees. Before putting it in the oven, rub the remaining 2 tsp of salt on the skin and place it on a raised baking rack. Cook with the skin side down for about 35-40 mins. Take the meat out of the oven and flip the pork belly over and wipe off any excess fat. You can use skewers and stab any extra holes so that the skin can bubble up and become crispy. Place the meat back on the highest rack, closest to the broiler element and allow it to cook and dry up. This step, you want to watch with the oven door open so to make sure it doesn't burn. If there is a lot of fat, use paper towel to blot off the excess to ensure maximum crispiness.

Once done, let the pork belly rest for 10-15 minutes before cutting.

Cutting tip: You want to cut through the meaty side first and stop at the skin. Once at the skin, use the other hand to whack down on the knife or otherwise the crispy skin will come off as one piece.

Tôm Hùm Xào Hành Gừng - Lobster with Onion and Ginger

2013-02-26T13:15:00.001-05:00

Lobster is a specialty in Vietnamese cooking. You normally only see it during big celebrations and weddings. Canadian lobsters were on sale for Valentine's Day and I took this opportunity to make this dish for my family to eat. It is a very simple dish to make with lots of favor. Unfortunately, these lobsters didn't come with the head, so the "guts" wasn't available to make the sauce a little extra special.

2 - 1.5 to 2 lb Lobster

1 medium onion

1 inch nub of ginger

2 stalk green onion scallion

2 tsp minced garlic

1 tsp fish sauce

1 Tbsp oyster sauce

1/4 cup broth or water

Clean the lobster. Remove the head and split down the middle, exposing the "guts" and scoop it into a separate bowl. Take the claws and with the back side of the knife, hit the claw hard enough to crack the shell but keep the structure of the claw intact. With a pair of scissors, cut the little legs off the underside of the lobster and cut down the underside to open up the tail and carefully remove the underbelly skeletal structure. With a knife, cut the tail into segments about 1-inch wide. Half the onion white onion and slice it and cut the green onions into 1 inch pieces.

In a hot deep pan or wok, heat up enough oil to cover the bottom. Saute the garlic for a little color before adding the ginger and the "guts". Toss the lobsters in, cook it until there is a little color and before adding in the broth. Cover and let cook for about 3 mins. Add the white and green onions and let them cook for a little before you season it with the oyster and fish sauce. When you add the sauce, let it cook for a little before you taste it. You want the flavors to meld together before you make adjustments to it. You can adjust it with a little sugar if you find it too salty.

Serve this up with some rice and same sauteed bok choy, ong choy, Chinese broccoli, or snow peas leaves.

Sườn Bò Nướng Tẩm Gia Vị Hàn Quốc - Korean galbi

2013-02-08T22:30:00.002-05:00

My version of the Korean galbi

Galbi served with Boston leaf lettuce, shiso leaf, pickled carrots and ssamjang.

The LA style of the beef ribs were on sale and I was inspired to make some Korean galbi for my family. I don't cook Korean food or even eat it often, but I had fond memories of sitting around the table eating Korean food on a Friday at an office I use to work at.

I usually get my marinade from a bottle because I wasn't very familiar with the flavors components to come up with a marinade myself. This time I wasn't going to pay $5.00+ for a bottle. So I went to ol' Maagchi's webpage to get some inspiration. I am looking at the recipe and thought that there is no way I was going to pay $3.00+ for an Asian pear for this recipe!!! We are on a budget. So I pondered for a few moments and I know that the majority of the marinade is a soy sauce base and every Korean swears on sesame oil. So this is the marinade I came up with from all the ingredients that came from my kitchen. I personally like the flavors better than any Korean restaurant I have been too. I hope you enjoy.

1/2 cup soy sauce

1/4 cup water

1 tsp sesame oil

1 inch nub ginger root

2 stalks green onion, white parts only, smashed with the side of your knife

4-5 cloves garlic
1 Tbsp honey

2 Tbsp brown sugar

1/4 cup organic apple juice
1/2 small organic apple, peels and cored

Ssamjang paste

3-3.5 lbs of beef ribs

Take all your solid ingredients and placed them into a mini chopper and chop until you have a paste. Add all your liquid ingredients and set aside. If you don't have a chopper, smash everything together in a mortar and pestle or smash everything with the side of your knife and rock the knife over it and scrap them over your cutting board to make a paste.

Wash you beef ribs well by scrapping the exposed parts of the bones with your knife to remove any bone fragments. Also remove the membrane from the underside of the bones. Afterwards, rinse several times to ensure that it is well cleaned and allow for it to sit in a strainer or colander to remove any excess water.

In a large zip top bag, place the well drained ribs in with the marinade. Let it sit for at least 4 hrs, preferably overnight. Take the ribs out of the fridge for at least 30 mins before grilling.

When grilling you want the grill very hot. Depending on the thickness, you will be aiming between 3-7 mins total. Look for shrinkage around the bones and also the meat will bounce back a little when you press on it.

I like to eat mine wrapped in lettuce with pickled daikon and carrots with some fresh cucumber slices. You can use the Korean soybean paste with the hot pepper paste as a condiment for this dish. I prefer the Vietnamese nuoc cham.

soybean paste

Hot pepper paste

Cánh Gà Nướng Xả - Lemongrass Grilled Chicken

2012-11-18T18:16:00.001-05:00

The smell of lemongrass brings me back to my childhood on the Mississippi gulf coast. The smell of the lemongrass when it hits the heat of a grill makes my mouth waters. When I went to Vietnam, I remember the smell of it in the air as I drove down Hwy 1. There is no other seasoning that comes close to the lemony, grassy smell. My favorite dish using lemongrass is the grilled wings.

10 wings, cut into two pieces or three and disgarding the tips
1-2 stalks of lemongrass mince white parts only or 3 Tbsp prepared lemongrass from the freezer section
3 cloves of garlic finely minced
1 medium shallot
1 Tbsp oyster sauce
2 Tbsp fish sauce
1 Tbsp of neutral oil
2 tsp of brown sugar
1-2 Thai bird chili, more or less depending on how hot you like

Cut your chicken wings in sections as desired. In a large bowl or zip top bag, add all your ingredients and allow to marinade for at lease 2 hours or overnight.

Heat up grill until about 400-degrees on a gas grill or hold your hand over a charcoal grill for no more than 3 seconds. Grill for about 10-12 mins on each side. It maybe shorter, depending on how hot the grill gets. You want to look for shrinkage at where the joints are at.

Bò Kho - Vietnamese Beef Stew

2012-11-03T13:02:00.000-04:00

Bo Kho is great with a French bread

Bo kho is a beef stew made in Vietnam. This dish has a heavy French influence. If you were to look at the recipe for boeuf Bourguignon, you would definitely see the similarities. The red color comes from the spice blend that mimics the color from the red wine.

This is one of my husband's favorite dishes. He loves how his mother makes this dish. Below is the Vietnamese bo kho, but I prefer adding the pearl onions and root vegetables favoring the French influence of my mother's side of the family.

2-3 lbs of beef chuck cut in 1 inch cubes or buy the stew beef

2 beef tendon (optional)

1 lbs organic carrots
2 lbs sweet potatoes or a pound each of sweet and regular potatoes

5-6 cloves garlic, minced

1-2 stalks of lemongrass (white parts only, minced and halved)

1 pkg beef stew seasoning from Asian market (blend of paprika, anise, garlic, chili, ginger, onion and cloves)

.5 tsp Madras curry powder

2 Tbsp fish sauce
2 diced fresh organic tomatoes or 1 standard can of diced tomatoes or 1 Tbsp of paste

Water or broth (chicken or beef)
Thai Basil

Optional veggies:

Frozen peas

Pearl Onions

Daikon

Mushrooms

Cut the beef if you didn't buy it that way. In a deep bowl, add the beef with the beef stew seasoning package, garlic (setting aside about one clove) , fish sauce, half the lemongrass, and curry powder. Set aside for at least 30 mins.

Prepare the veggies by cutting them into large 1-inch segments or cubes. If you plan on using the beef tendon, clean the tendon and boil them until it is soft all the way through. In a medium stock pot, heat up some oil, and sauteed the garlic and lemongrass, until fragrant. Add the marinaded beef. Stir until there is a little color on the meat then add your water or broth and tomatoes. Reduce heat and cover at medium heat for about 15 mins. Add the tendon and veggies. Cook for another 30 mins or until the veggies are tender. Add frozen peas and pearl onions at the end. Season with fish sauce to your taste. Chop some Thai basil to finish.

You can enjoy this dish with pho noodles or a nice crusty loaf of French bread.

Stir-fried basics

2012-10-07T15:07:00.003-04:00

Chicken and organic zucchini served with rice and beans

What can be more perfect than a stir-fried dish. It is almost a full meal all in one pan. If you take the time to prepare, it can freeze nicely and be heated up in a pinch. Like most Asian meals, rice is served with stir fries. Add a clear soup and it is a very healthy and hydrating meal. Here is the components of a basic stir-fry. You can build on these stir-fries once you start to understand what taste best for you and your family. Here is the parts that go into a stir-fry:

-1/2 lb any meat of your choice
-selection of vegetables that compliments well with your meat choice
-1/2 sliced onion into small wedges
-Fish sauce or soy sauce to taste (depending if you prefer Viet or Chinese food)
-1 tsp of oyster sauce
-2 cloves garlic, mince and halved
-1 tsp shallot
- pinch of salt
- black pepper

For the meat, you want to freeze the meat until it is stiff but still pliable. It allows you to cut the meat very thinly, across the grain. Crush and mince one clove of garlic and mix with shallot into the meat to marinade the meat. Let sit for a few minutes. If you want to use beef, the Chinese restaurants use a cornstarch slurry to tenderize their beef. I learned this technique from a former friend in college from Hong Kong. You would let the meat and mixture sit for 10-15 minutes before cooking it.

You should cut your vegetables into small bite size pieces. It aids in the cooking process and the same time trick your mind into thinking your are eating more. If you plan to freeze your stir-fry, always blanch your veggies to keep them crispy and crunchy. (I strongly believe that texture saves colons.) Blanching is an option when eating immediately. Have everything near by when you are ready to cook.

In a very hot pan or wok, add a little oil. When you see the oil smoke a little take the pan/wok off the heat and add the half of the garlic to the pan and swirl the oil around, making sure that the garlic doesn't burn. If it does, snoop out the garlic, then add the shallots and stir. Add the meat mixture. Quicky cook the meat with a pinch of salt to remove any moisture from the meat. If you are using veggies that take a while to cook, removing your proteins, like beef and shrimp, so that it doesn't overcook. Add the fish sauce and oyster sauce. Add your sliced onion and allow them to soften a little before adding your vegetables. Stir and mix well. Top off with the black pepper. Taste and adjust to your liking. If you want it a tad bit more sweeter, add a pinch of sugar at a time and taste until it is to your liking.

Vegetables good with beef and pork: broccoli, snap peas, green beans, kai lan, bok choy, asparagus

Vegetables good with chicken: zucchini, crook neck yellow squash, kai lan

One breast

makes for a lot of food

chicken sliced thinly

this is what was remaining after I made two plate

Thai inspired Grilled Wings

2012-10-07T13:02:00.001-04:00

One of my high school friends has a blog on her Thai inspired dishes. I am a sucker for some wings and I had to give this recipe a try. It is very inexpensive to make and it is very addictive. Of course, I never follow any recipe to the tee and I modify recipes to what I have available at the house and adjust taste to my liking. Here is a link to the original recipe. I hope you enjoy it.

20 whole wings, cut up however you prefer
8-10 cloves of garlic
1 large shallot
2 Tbsp minced lemongrass, the light parts or already prepared from the frozen food section
1-2 Tbsp of finely chopped ginger
2-4 Tbsp of sambal olek, more or less depending on heat level
1 Tbsp of palm sugar or brown sugar
2 tsp of honey
1/2 cup of soy sauce
1 small gumball size piece of wet tamarind (minus the seed) or a 1/2 tsp of powdered version

Prep your wings and make sure they are nice and dry before adding the marinade. Mix the remaining in ingredients into a gallon zip top bag or a large mixing bowl. I usually use a food chopper and chop everything at one time. Let it sit for at least 3 hours or preferably overnight. If you placed it in the fridge, please take them out and let them sit for 15 minutes before grilling. Depending on your gas or charcoal method, cook until there is a little bit of shrinkage. It usually take a total of 15 minutes.

Gỏi Đu Đủ Lào - Lao style Papaya salad

2012-10-04T16:33:00.002-04:00

Goi Du Du Lao

When I was in college, I had several Lao girls as roommates. Almost everyday, we would eat "tom ma hoong" or "tom ma tha-et" (papaya or cucumber salad). I had adapted the recipe and adjusted it for a more Vietnamese palate.

Papaya salad

2-3 cups shredded papaya
4-6 cherry tomatoes/ 10-15 grape tomatoes/ 1 regular tomato
Thai bird chilis
1-2 cloves garlic
2-3 tsp organic sugar/ 1-2 disk of palm sugar or brown sugar
1 tsp thick anchovy sauce
1/2 tsp finely ground shrimp paste
1 Tbsp lime juice
1 tsp of salted crab sauce (optional)

Prepare the papaya. You can use a sharp knife, box grater, or a specialty peeler. The knife version should only be used if you have SUPERIOR knife handling skills. I think this method offers the best texture and makes the salad taste better.

Please do not use this method if your knife skill isn't great.

The specialty tool is the easiest and the method I strongly recommend for everyone. You can get this tool at most Asian markets. There are two brands that I use and they both come come Thailand.

The orange handle tool, KOM KOM, has multiple function and is made for decorating.

This tool only shreds.

In a mortar and pedestal, add the sugar. If you are using the palm sugar disk, break up the clump or shave it with a knife. Add the garlic and chilis and pound it into a paste. Add the lime, thick anchovy sauce, shrimp paste, fish sauce, and cut the tomatoes into the paste. If you can find salted crab sauce, add it. Press on the tomato lightly and taste the sauce. Adjust the sugar to your liking. You want to achieve a balance of , spicy, salty and sweet. Once you get it to your liking add the papaya and stir to even coat the papaya.

Vietnamese Frittata

2012-10-04T14:17:00.002-04:00

Growing up, my mom would make this all the time. As kids we all love eggs. It was something so easy to make that even my little siblings could make their own eggs at 8 years old. Here is my healthier version of mom's recipe.

1/2 lbs of ground chicken, turkey, or pork

1/2 organic diced onions

1 stalk chopped scallions

1 tsp organic black pepper

2 Tbsp fish sauce

1 diced organic tomato

1 bunch mung bean thread/ cellophane

1/2 cup of black fungus or 1/2 cup of sauteed button mushroom

1/2 cup finely shredded organic carrots

1 box frozen spinach

1 dozen brown or organic eggs

Start off by soaking the black fungus and mung bean thread in hot water to reconstitute it and prepping the onions, scallions, tomato, and carrots. Add the dozen eggs into a large bowl and lightly beat the eggs. Squeeze any excess water from the frozen spinach and roughly chop it. Add all the ingredients but the meat into the bowl and mix well.

Preheat the oven at 375. With a deep pan that is oven safe, heat until the pan on the stove top before adding some oil to lightly cover the bottom. Add the ground meat and cook to add some color. You don't want to mixture to be fully cook or it will be too dry. Add the egg mixture to the pan once the meat has some color. Cook on the stove until the bottom is somewhat firm to give texture to the bottom of the frittata. Move the pan to the oven and bake until the center is firm. Allow to cool a little before serving.

Nem Nướng̣ - Grilled Vietnamese Sausage

2012-10-02T12:09:00.000-04:00

Nem is a ground pork mixture. Roll it up in a wrapper and fry and it is called an eggroll/Imperial roll. Grill it and it is called nem nuong. Flatten it out and cook it and it is called cha. Roll it in rice paper and it is a fresh roll. It is very inexpensive to make and if you plan it out, you can make several days of meals with different spices and seasonings.

The following recipe is one of my family's favorite. We grab a couple of loaves of crusty baggettes, toast them up, spread some mayo and pate, sprinkle on some soy sauce and fresh cut peppers, stuff them fat with pickled julienne carrots and daikons and add the nem and dress it up with some cilantro on top.

Nem Nuong:

1 lb all-natural ground pork/chicken
10 cloves garlic
1 large shallot
1/4 cup of organic sugar
1 tsp salt
1 Tbsp freshly ground organic black pepper
1 Tbsp baking powder
1/2 tsp fish sauce
1/2 tsp oil

With the side of your knife, whack the garlic to remove the paper. Finely chop and mince the garlic. Finely dice the shallot bulb. In a large bowl, add your pork, garlic, shallot, sugar, salt, black pepper, oil, and fish sauce. Dissolve the baking powder by adding a few drops of water into the baking powder, just enough to easily mix into the meat mixture. Add all the ingredients together. Allow the mixture to rest for about 30 minutes.

Before grilling, shape the mixture into little patties, any shape of your liking. I like to shape them depending on what I am using the nem for: long wide and flat shape for banh mi, little round meatballs for noodles, log shaped for fresh rolls, etc.

Heat up the grill, grill pan and make sure that the cooking surface is hot before putting the nem on. Grill for about 3-4 minutes on each side.

Cháo Gà Và Gỏi Gà - Rice Porridge with Chicken Slaw

2012-09-29T00:16:00.002-04:00

Rice porridge is usually the first meal that parents introduce to infants as their first solids. It is a rice dish boiled in large amounts of water to produce a soft silky texture. Rice porridge is universal in all East and Southern Asian countries. Brown Asians call this dish congee or a variation on the word. Yellow Asians call this dish jook or a variation of it. It is feed to young and old, sick or healthy. Some people would reminisce about the comfort it brings.

This recipe makes use to the water that is left over when boiling a chicken to make the porridge. Vietnamese people love to mix texture when eating, so the crunchiness of the cabbage and carrots is a wonderful contrast to the soft silkiness of the porridge.

1 whole chicken
1 cup of rice
1/4 cup of Vietnamese coriander
1/2 organic onion
1 bag of Cole slaw or you can shred cabbage and carrots by hand
Salt
Ginger powder
Chicken bouillon cubes or powder
1 stem of chopped green onion/scallion
1/4 cup of cilantro

Nuoc Cham

Clean and pat whole chicken. If your chicken comes with gizzards, you can used them if you like. Split the chicken in half, down the breast and flip chicken over. I like to discard the backbone because I think it makes the broth cloudy, but you can use it if you like. Add the chicken into your stockpot and fill up the pot to the chicken is submerged. Boil on a low heat, making sure that it doesn't come to a rolling boil to keep the broth clear. Occasionally skim to remove any impurities and scum that floats to the top.

Once the chicken is done, remove the bird and set aside to cool. Skim any impurities and scum from the broth and add the rice. Cook the rice at low to medium heat. Stir occasionally to make sure that rice doesn't stick to the bottom. When you see that the porridge is thicken and the rice has bloomed, you would seasoned it to your taste. Start off with the chicken bouillon. I like to use just enough to get a nice aroma of chicken. Then add the ginger powder. (If you don't have access to ginger powder, you can always add a piece of ginger about an inch long into the water when boiling your chicken. Make sure to cut the ginger into small enough pieces to get the essence of the ginger out but not too small that you can't scoop out the pieces before adding the rice.) Then add salt to your taste.

In a large bowl, add your Cole Slaw, Vietnamese coriander leaves, thinly sliced onion, and cilantro. Mixed together. I like to have large chunks of chicken add to my slaw, but you can have it on the side.

When you are ready to eat, garnish the porridge with some chopped green onions and dress it with the nuoc cham (recipe below).

Crock-pot Phở

2012-09-27T14:08:00.003-04:00

Pho, a Vietnamese beef noodle soup. It costed about $15.00 to make and it made about 8 bowls, so it lasted the whole day. Each bowls averages out to $1.88 a bowl. I used oxtail for my recipe. It is a lot more expensive to use oxtail but for the amount of beef flavor, it is worth the extra money. If you don't want to spend the money, get soup bones that has the marrow exposed. I like to buy the bones from the local ethnic stores, but a lot of the chains are carrying them, depending on the neighborhood. The great thing about the ethnic stores is how they cut the bones, especially the oxtail. My local Publix cuts the oxtail at the joints, while the Chinese and Latino markets will cut the pieces in between the joints to expose more of the bone. Plus, it is cheaper to buy them from the ethnic markets.

Fast and cheap pho
Broth/stock:
1 lb of oxtail or 2 lbs of soup bones
1 gallon of water
8 points of star anise
2 cinnamon sticks
1 golf ball size piece of yellow rock sugar
2 Tbsp of fish sauce
1/2 whole organic medium onion
1 organic carrot (optional)
2 organic celery stalks (optional)

Bowls:
2 package of medium size banh pho noodles or pad thai noodles
1/2 pound of London broil, par-frozen and cut thinly
1 bunch of green scallions/spring onions
1/2 bunch of cilantro
1 cup of Thai basil optional
Culantro optional
1 lime
6 cloves of garlic
1 Tbsp of neutral oil like canola
Hoisin

To make the broth:
Start up the large crock-pot add the 1.5 gallons of water. While you are doing that, start up another pot and parboil the bones. Parboiling the bones will help remove the scum so that you will have a nice clear broth.
While waiting for the bones, stick a couple of toothpicks into the half onion and over a hot dry pan, brown the onion's cut end and toast the cinnamon sticks, and star anise. Place the spices and onion into your stockpot. When the bones get a good boil on it, dump the contents out and wash the bones very well in cold water. Make sure to rub the bones to get off any impurities. After you cleaned the bones, place them into the crock-pot and simmer on high for 4-6 hours. (Low setting on crock-pot if you are planning to make pho for breakfast.)

About an hour before eating, place the package of dry noodles into a large bowl or container. Pour boiling water over the noodles and allow it to sit for about 5-7 minutes. The noodles will cook itself. Dump out any remaining water so the noodles doesn't get soggy.

Prepare to slice the London broil into paper thin slices. It is easier to slice it if the meat is still semi frozen or is stiff because isn't moving around. You want it as thin as possible. Set aside.

Whack the garlic with the side of your knife to take off the paper on the garlic and roughly chop the garlic. Heat up a small pot with the oil and drop the garlic in, stirring it until the garlic is golden brown. Remove from heat. Cut up the onions and cilantro. Wash the Thai basil and culantro well. Cut the limes in half, at the equator and quarter each half.

To prep the bowls: in a large bowl, place about 1 cup of noodles in with a few slices of London broil to cover up the noodles. Add the scallions, cilantro, a squeeze in a wedge of lime and spoon some fried garlic in the bowl. Ladle the piping hot broth over the noodles. You may need some hoisin if you are using the soup bones. Tear some basil and culantro in, if you desire.

If you don't plan to eat pho all day, you can freeze half the broth. It freezes well.

Food Stamp Challenge

2012-09-17T03:52:00.001-04:00

Welcome everyone to The Huynh-Le's family food stamp challenge.

My husband and I had a couple over one evening and the subject of Mario Batali came up on his family's food stamp challenge. My friend stated that her family of 4 could not live on the budget. I disagreed, stating that my family of 3 can live more than well on the budget. We average about $250.00 to $300.00 a month and we purchase as much organic foods as we can possible afford.

While surfing, I came across a link where affluent people and families are taking the food stamp challenge to experience what it means to be a low income family struggling to eat. The average food stamp budget is roughly $4.00 per person, per day. So it got me thinking on how I believe that I can do this challenge, since a lot of people feel that a family can not eat well on $4.00 per person a day.

Here are the basic guidelines I am using for my family's challenge. Since this is a food stamp challenge, I looked up what is eligible to be purchased with food stamps. I am a Florida resident, so I based my budget solely on the state's maximum income of $526.00 for a family of 3. That averages out to $5.84 per person per day.

Most of the people who took the challenge, only did it for a week. Most of the Congresspeople who did this challenge only did it for a few days. This challenge for me is ongoing because I feel that I am one of those in-between-er families: too rich for public assistance but too poor to eat like the "average" American family. I will attempt to post some recipes and my family weekly menu. I will not break down cost per meal per person on a daily or a weekly bases. I will have receipts to back up my food spending and it will include any cost of dining out. I will attempt to share with you any shopping tips to save money.

The Asian Meal
The average Asian meal is centered around rice. Rice is staple for a lot cultures around the world. It is a high density of energy food, but for Americans, we do need to cut back on rice. The average Vietnamese meal consist of rice and 2-3 side dishes. It usually consist of a meat, soup, fresh veggie platter of lettuce, sliced cucumbers, tomatoes, and herbs.

Updated June 24, 2013:
Earlier this year, I added an additional person to my family. With the addition of the baby and our income remaining the same, no additional cost of food has occurred. The secret to the success of staying within budget for my ongoing food stamp challenge is COOKING. Really cooking. If you were to walk into most grocery stores, majority of people don't buy food from the perimeter of the store where fresh items are located.