Vietnamese Lunch

As I said in Sunday's post, I no longer have to rely on LOGS and there is a great variety of places to grocery shop down here. One of my favourite places to go is T&T Supermarket, a large Chinese chain. And I have one within walking distance! Needless to say, I go there often. They have good prices and because it's a large chain, the variety is stunning. The exotic ingredients are both puzzing (pigs uteri) and exciting (fresh keffir lime leaves). The store closest to me has a food court, too, and it has several different cultures represented there. There is Korean food, Thai food, Japanese food, of course Chinese food, and one place I've been to a couple of times, Vietnamese food.

I have always enjoyed Vietnamese food, and one of my favourites is salad rolls with shrimp. I've ordered these a couple of times, for the not-so-bad price of $4.75. They are made fresh (unlike Save-on Foods' ones, which are terrible) and come with a tangy sauce.


But look at what else is in theses salad rolls. On the bottom, there are a couple of slices of that pale sausage similar to the one I encountered in my pho experience last year. I was a little surprised when I first saw this, but once I tried it, I really liked it. The sausage is very mild in flavour and is a touch - just a touch - salty. It's really good!

I also tried something new at my last trip there, Vietnamese carioca. They were described as deep fried rice balls, and I could see that they were coated in coarse sugar and drizzled with caramel. But when I bit into one, it was like biting into soft, mushy marshmallow. They were not balls of whole grain rice. I think this is more of a rice flour dumpling, deep fried. And they were really good! The texture of the balls was quite decadent and they used real caramel for the drizzle, not a caramel sauce. That really impressed me.


Lunch that day was yummy, and it only cost $6!

Cooking with Kylie: Pork Fried Rice

Yes, two Kylie recipes in a row! This is because I made two Kylie recipes this week!

There is just something so comforting about fried rice, and I have tried Kylie's Chicken Fried Rice and her Prawn Fried Rice. I'm not a huge fan of pork, but I was feeling like I wanted to try something new, so I got some nice pork loin for a decent price and made this dish.

Hoisin sauce and pork are just made for each other, I think. And again, malt vinegar makes an appearance! I actually think this sauce would make a nice glaze for BBQ pork loin, which I might try over the summer since I'll be babysitting my brother's BBQ for a while.

Pork Fried Rice, from Kylie Kwong's Simple Chinese Cooking, page 260

400g pork fillets (I used pork tenderloin)
1/2 cup vegetable oil (OK, I never use the amount of oil Kylie calls for! I used about 2 tbsp in total for this recipe)
4 eggs, lightly beaten
1 small red onion, finely sliced
1 tbsp chopped ginger (I never remember to buy this so, um, I used dried)
2 tsp white sugar
2 tbsp hoisin sauce
2 tbsp soy sauce
1 tbsp malt vinegar
1/4 tsp sesame oil
4 cups steamed rice
a few finely sliced green onions

1. Slice pork into strips and set aside.

2. Heat half the oil in wok until the surface begins to shimmer slightly. Pour eggs in and scramble; remove.

3. Heat remaining oil in wok and stirfry onion & ginger for 30 seconds. Add sugar and stirfry for 30 seconds. Add pork and stirfry for another 30 seconds. Stir in hoisin sauce, soy sauce, vinegar, and sesame oil, stirring for one minute. Toss in rice and reserved eggs and stirfry, using a spatula to break up egg & any rice clumps. Lastly, add spring onions and stirfry another 30 seconds until well-combined and rice is heated through. Serve.

I loved this! I chose well with the pork, too, because it was so nice & tender. Another great recipe from Kylie!

Solstice Dinner, Part 2, and Christmas Eve Dinner

I hope everyone is enjoying the holidays this fine Boxing Day morning, and that you are all not too hung over from last night's festivities! I am just relieved this trying time in my life is over and that life can now return to normal.

Which includes posting here!

Let me just briefly finish my round-up of the Solstice meal I served on Monday (though the dessert will be Monday's Magazine Monday post so, really, I'm only covering the side dishes right now).

So, in addition to the sausage-stuff, bacon-latticed pork loin roast I served, I made three sides.

One was very simple, and that was steamed yellow beans from my garden, which I took the time to blanch and freeze immediately after picking in August. I was a little concerned about how they would turn out because when I removed them from the freezer, they looked odd...Not freezer burnt, but kind of translucent and splotchy. But, they steamed up just fine and were great!

I also made the same Brussels sprouts recipe I used last year. You can see that here. Really simple dish, even if slicing all the sprouts is a pain in the ass. Instead of the pine nuts, though, I used some of the pecans that came in the package from Jodi, and let me tell you, they totally elevated this dish to a new level! And once again, when I added these to the heat of the pan, they had an out-of-this-world aroma! Brilliant!
And then, finally, everyone's favourite, the Caramelized Onion & Brie Bread Pudding. Again, this was a smashing hit. I think a lot of people get potatoed-out over the holidays, and this is a great idea for a starch in your meal. In addition to using brie, and party because of the exorbitant cost of brie in these parts, I had a bunch of mozzarella left over from the pork loin, so I cubed it up and put it in, too. It was awesome and everyone was really happy with it.

So, apart from dessert, which as I said I'll post about on Monday, that's a wrap for Solstice 2009!
Now, onto Christmas Eve, which happens to be my father's birthday. We always have a big family get-together for this and my SIL does most of the cooking. Usually, Dad gets his favourite, steak & kidney pie, which is quite disgusting. This year, though, Shan decided to make another of Dad's perennial favourites, Beef Wellington.

But before we get to the main course, let's talk about the appies! Because we always have appies! First of all, Shan's aunt brought some West Coast prawns her brother had caught himself over the summer. These were to die for! There is absolutely no comparison between these prawns and the ones you buy frozen at the grocery store. They taste way richer, for one thing, and they have a much more tender texture and a more subtle colour. In the dish Shan's aunt brought, she paired the prawns with a sour cream mixture, cocktail sauce, and then topped with the prawns. We ate this with crackers and it was so good! Shan's aunt also makes a wonderful crab dip that has sambal olek in it. It was gone very quickly, I can tell you that. And finally, because my dad doesn't touch seafood with a 10-foot pole, Shan made him some stuffed mushroom cups, which were also excellent.
So, if you don't know what Beef Wellington is, basically, it's fillet mignon wrapped in puff pastry with shallots & mushrooms. Shan added gorgonzola this time, though not for me as I cannot stand moldy cheese. She did an outstanding job and everyone in attendance was thrilled to bits.For side dishes, we had steamed asparagus and green beans, salad, roasted butternut squash, and a risotto made with aged Asiago cheese.
This was a meal you'd pay a lot of money for in a restaurant, let me tell you! It was incredibly impressive. Thanks to Shan for all your hard work!

And yes, there was dessert. But that deserves a post of it's own, so you'll have to be patient with me!

Cooking With Kylie: Prawn Fried Rice

I really have been cooking up a storm with Kylie Kwong's Simple Chinese Cooking!

I love rice, I love fried rice, I love shrimp, I love scrambled eggs, so how could I go wrong with this recipe? Well, I couldn't. It was excellent, and it was very simple - made even more simple due to the fact that I hate celery, so I didn't have to chop any of it up! This was really easy to put together in the time it took to cook some jasmine rice. I made half a recipe, and discovered that 3/4 cup of uncooked rice will give you approximately 2 cups of cooked rice, which was perfect.

Prawn Fried Rice* (from page 256 of Simple Chinese Cooking adapted by me)

about 1/2 lb shrimp (I used medium because this is what I usually have on hand), de-veined & roughly chopped
2 tbsp vegetable oil
2 eggs
1 tbsp finely chopped ginger
2 cups steamed rice
1 tbsp saké
1 tbsp oyster sauce
1/2 cup finely sliced green onion
salt to taste (I didn't need any)

* prawns are basically shrimp. Tomato/Tom-ah-toe.

1. Cook rice. Or, use leftover.

2. Heat 1 tbsp oil in wok, at high heat until oil shimmers. Add eggs & scramble until almost done. Remove to a plate.

3. Add 1 tbsp oil to the wok. Stir-fry shrimp & ginger about 1 minute, or until the shrimp are nearly cooked.

4. Add rice, saké, and oyster sauce, and eggs, and stir-fry for about 1 minute. Add green onions & stir-fry for another minute. Serve & enjoy!
I loved this meal - and it was a meal in and of itself! The flavours were subtle and delicious, and as I said, this was simple.

Hawaiian Rice

So, the place where I work provides dinner for the residents, and dinner always includes a dessert. The menu rotates over 8 weeks, and last Monday happened to be Hawaiian Rice night. I've never been around for Hawaiian Rice night.

The relief cook hadn't been around for Hawaiian Rice night, either, because when he looked at the recipe, he was really skeptical. He thought it looked weird and was asking if I'd ever seen the regular cook make it before, and if I'd ever tasted it, etc. I said no, it was a first for me, too.

It does look strange - kind of like a combination of ambrosia salad and rice pudding. Here is the recipe.

Hawaiian Rice (makes 6 servings)

1 1/2 cups cooked rice
1 cup mini marshmallows
3/4 cup crushed pineapple, drained
- combine these ingredients and chill for 3 hours

Add: 1 cup cool whip or whipped cream and 3 tbsp sugar. Fold into rice mixture. Chill again. Sprinkle with coconut. Serve.

Here is step one...

Here it is just before step two...

My shift ended before the dessert was finished so I have no idea how this turned out. But I will see the cook again soon and ask him how it went.

What do you think? Does this appeal to you or not?

Magazine Monday #32: Fish & Rice

Today's MM recipe comes from the March/April issue of Clean Eating Magazine, where there is a segment on fast, five-ingredient meals. This simple fish and rice dish caught my fancy because of its simplicity, and though the original recipe calls for tilapia, I can't seem to find any around here these days, so I substituted basa. I am liking basa; it was on sale at the local overpriced grocery store last week, and it really has great flavour. I also didn't use brown rice, but the last bit of basmati I had on hand.

Tilapia with Soy Sauce & Pineapple Scallion Rice

1 cup brown rice
4 x 6oz tilapia fillets - or basa fillets
2 tbsp low sodium soy sauce
1 8oz can pineapple chunks, reserve juice
6 scallions/green onions, sliced
salt & pepper to taste

1. Cook rice.

2. Meanwhile, place fish in a baking dish either lined with foil or sprayed with cooking spray. In a small bowl, combine soy sauce with 3 tbsp of pineapple juice, then pour over the fish. Season with salt & pepper if desired (I did not so desire). Bake at 450F for 15 - 20 minutes.

3. In a skillet with a tad bit of oil or some cooking spray, saute the scallions/green onions for about 2 minutes. Add the pineapple chunks and cook for a minute. Fold into cooked rice.

4. Serve fish with rice, pouring any remaning pan juices over the top.

I really enjoyed this dish and would definitely make it again!

Enjoy!

101 Uses for a Roast Chicken #13: Dirty Rice

I see ads all the time for Zatarain's rice mixes, and a couple of weeks ago, my local overpriced grocery store had them on sale and I decided to take the opportunity to try one out. I didn't, however, read the instructions until I got home, so I didn't know I would be adding beef to the mix. But luckily, I had a better idea! When I made stock for my tofu soup, I froze the shredded chicken for a future use, and thought it would go well in this dirty rice mix.

I was right!

I had the perfect amount of chicken left over and added it to the rice mix when you're directed to add the beef. The flavour was excellent. The rice mix, though Cajun in origin, wasn't too spicy for me and tasted great. This was a really good meal that I'd definitely do again!

Feasting with Hot, Sour, Salty, Sweet

Last May I reviewed Jeffrey Alford and Naomi Duguid's Beyond the Great Wall, and for the review I made a huge family meal with a menu and recipes taken from the book. It was a hugely successful meal, and BtGW is still on my shelves, still one of the nicest books I own. At Christmas, I was given an Amazon gift certificate by a very generous friend, and one of the books I chose was the volume written before BtGW by the same authors. On Saturday, I made a Vietnamese meal for my family - and it was another resounding success.

Hot Sour Salty Sweet takes us on a culinary journey through southeast Asia and encompasses dishes from not only Vietnam but Cambodia, Thailand, Laos, Burma, and southern China. These countries and their widely varied cultures have on thing in commong: the Mekong River and its tributaries. As with BtGW, HSSW is part cookbook, part travel book, and part photographic ecstacy. The authors blend recipes in with stories of their travels throughout the region and epic photography that'll just make you want to jump on the next plane to Asia. It's on par with BtGW for sure, and I'm just as stoked about having it on my shelves. The recipes were also just as fabulous.

I decided on a mainly Vietnamese menu consisting of (recipes without page numbers are my own):

Salad Rolls
Must-have Vietnamese Table Sauce (p. 28)
Vietnamese Herb and Salad Plate (p. 68), which included Carrot & Daikon Pickled Salad (p. 85)
Deep-fried Rice Balls (p.105)
Baked Vietnamese Chicken*
Aromatic Lemongrass Patties (p. 251)
Banana & Coconut Pudding*

* Recipes to appear in a forthcoming post.

The idea behind the herb & salad plate is, as the authors describe in the recipe: "to wrap, to accompany, to enhance, or to alter the other dishes, or [the herbs and veggies] are simply eaten on their own. The salad platter gives each person a chance to vary tastes and textures, mouthful by mouthful, as the various herbs and salad vegetables complement the cooked food with fresh flavours."

My herb and salad plate included:

Fresh Mint, basil, and cilantro
Lettuce leaves
Lime wedges
Carrot & Daikon Pickled Salad
Bean sprouts
Cucumber slices

Well, it certainly isn't lettuce season in these parts, I can tell you that. The lettuce at the local overpriced grocery store was crappy and expensive, so head lettuce it was. Other than that, this was a fresh, attractive way around which to centre a meal.

The Aromatic Lemongrass Patties were not a recipe from Vietnam, but from Laos. They were really easy to make and tasted great. I didn't use fresh lemongrass, but opted instead to go for a less expensive alternative, lemongrass powder. My local ovepriced grocery store sold this powder in its bulk section, so I decided to try it out. Although I think it lacked the punch of fresh lemongrass, it was certainly aromatic and tasty.

Aromatic Lemongrass Patties (adapted by me)

1lb ground pork
2 green onions, finely chopped
salt & pepper
1 tbsp lemongrass powder

Combine all ingredients by hand and form into small patties (I got about a dozen because I used some of the ground pork for my Dad's salad rolls since he won't eat shrimp). Grill on BBQ or indoor grill for 6 - 7 minutes per side, or until cooked through.

I rarely deep fry anything, but I was compelled to do so by the recipe for Deep-fried Jasmine Rice Balls, also a dish from Laos, though the authors say they might originally be Vietnamese. These treats are apparently common street food in Laos and Vietnam, and normally they're served with herbs, pork, and a sauce. They went perfectly with the herb & salad plate.

Deep-fried Jasmine Rice Balls (adapted slightly by me)

1 large egg
4 cups cooked jasmine rice
1/2 tsp each salt
1 tsp sugar
1/4 cup unsweetened coconut
1 tsp lemongrass powder (I had exactly this amount remaining after making my other dishes with it)
Oil for deep-frying

In a large bowl, combine rice, coconut, seasonings. Add the egg and mix together by hand so egg is evenly distributed throughout the rice mixture. Using wet hands, form into 10 - 15 balls. I chose smaller ones since I was deep-frying in my wok.

You'll need enough oil to get a depth of 1 1/2 - 2" in the bottom of whatever pan or wok you use. Heat to the oil shimmery. Drop a small clump of rice in to see what happens: the oil is ready when the rice sinks and then immediately rises back to the surface, while gently browning. Slide the balls carefully into the oil and fry, in batches, until deep golden brown. Remove with a slotted spoon and drain on paper towels. Serve with herb & salad plate and Vietnamese Must-have Table Sauce.

Here is a round-up of the rest of the meal:

Shrimp salad rolls, containing bean threads, lettuce, carrot, mint, and shrimp. I served these with a Thai peanut dip I had kicking around my fridge in addition to the Must-have Table Sauce.






This was a chicken recipe that I totally whipped up on my own, using the Must-have Table Sauce as a guide. It was the best part of the meal! I'll be posting the recipe soon - I promise!




I didn't quite know what to serve for dessert as the sweet recipes didn't look like they'd go over well with my family, but a recipe for Bananas in Coconut Cream caught my eye on page 298. I made my own, quicker, cheaper version using Jello's coconut cream pie filling. A recipe for this will be posted soon, too. This was a great dessert, actually, and as you can see, I am not above resorting to using such shortcuts at all - but only once in a while!



As with BtGW, I highly recommend Hot, Sour, Salty, Sweet. It's pricey, but it's worth it. It's not just a book, it's an experience!

To see the rest of the pictures, a nice and convenient Flickr set has been created for your viewing pleasure, here.