My OperaVietnamese ingredients
Tuesday, February 5, 2008 11:35:22 AM
Vietnamese dishes are fresh, have a depth of flavour and seem to have amazing health properties at the same time. Have you ever eaten a bowl of pho with all the accompaniments when you’re feeling less than 100 %? One chef friend calls pho the Vietnamese equivalent of Jewish chicken soup – it's good for the body and the soul. Or have you had a few mouthfuls of green papaya salad when your palate is feeling jaded? Instant zing! More than any other cuisine, Vietnamese food centres on herbs and uses an amazing array along with salad greens in many dishes. These are eaten for their healing properties as well as for their taste.
• Fish Sauce is the essence of Vietnamese food, a source of flavour as well as protein. 'Nuoc Mam Nhi' is the first press, the equivalent of extra virgin olive oil. Use this clear clean sauce which costs more than the others on the shelves, for dipping sauces and salads. The second pressing is less expensive and is used for cooking. The famous sauce made with nuoc mam is called nuoc cham – a mix of fish sauce, vinegar, garlic and chilli.
• Hoi Sin or barbecue sauce is a sweet salty bean sauce.
• Noodles: Rice Vermicelli is available in various widths. Glass or Bean thread noodles are also popular and used for frying.
• Rice Crackers: traditionally slow cooked over hot coals.
• Rice Paper Sheets: before using quickly dip each sheet in a bowl of warm water to rehydrate. The rougher patterned side is the inside of the roll as it helps to hold the filling ingredients.
• Rice, known as 'pearl of the gods'. Jasmine Rice is the most widely used.
• Young Coconut Juice is the clear water from the coconut, not the richer white cream or milk.
Pho (pronounced fahr) is a light, fragrant soup eaten for breakfast and all through the day. It is a most loved dish by the Vietnamese. The secret lies in the quality of the stock. Angie uses a combination of marrow bone, oxtail, brisket and a boiler chicken along with cinnamon, star anise and cardamom pods. But her secret ingredient is dried sandworm!
Once the stock is made, Angie blanches rice noodles in boiling water and places them into deep serving bowls. Arrange very thin slices of beef on top and a mixture of chopped coriander and green shallot, white onion and finely sliced jigsaw coriander leaves. She then ladles over the hot stock.
To eat Pho, Angie recommends that you taste the broth then add lemon juice, basil, bean sprouts and chilli to taste.
Green Papaya Salad
INGREDIENTS
1 green (unripe) papaya
2 carrots
Vietnamese mint, shredded
Deep fried eschallots
Cooked prawns, halved
Cooked pork belly, sliced
Dressing
¼ cup fish sauce
¼ cup white vinegar
¼ cup water
¼ cup light soy sauce
½ cup white sugar
Large rice crackers
Fresh chilli, sliced
Beef jerky and crushed nuts, to garnish
DIRECTIONS
1. Peel the papaya, cut in half and remove seeds. Finely shred or grate along with the carrot. Combine in a large bowl. Add mint, eschallots, prawns and pork.
2. Prepare dressing, combine fish sauce, vinegar, water and soy sauce in a bowl. Add sugar and stir until dissolved. Spoon liberally over salad and toss through.
3. Cook rice crackers one at a time Place onto a plastic rectangle take away container and microwave on HIGH for approx 1 minute until puffed. Spoon papaya salad onto the rice cracker, top with chilli, beef jerky and crushed cashew or peanuts.
SOURCE: http://www21.sbs.com.au/foodsafari/index.php?pid=episode&cid=91
• Fish Sauce is the essence of Vietnamese food, a source of flavour as well as protein. 'Nuoc Mam Nhi' is the first press, the equivalent of extra virgin olive oil. Use this clear clean sauce which costs more than the others on the shelves, for dipping sauces and salads. The second pressing is less expensive and is used for cooking. The famous sauce made with nuoc mam is called nuoc cham – a mix of fish sauce, vinegar, garlic and chilli.
• Hoi Sin or barbecue sauce is a sweet salty bean sauce.
• Noodles: Rice Vermicelli is available in various widths. Glass or Bean thread noodles are also popular and used for frying.
• Rice Crackers: traditionally slow cooked over hot coals.
• Rice Paper Sheets: before using quickly dip each sheet in a bowl of warm water to rehydrate. The rougher patterned side is the inside of the roll as it helps to hold the filling ingredients.
• Rice, known as 'pearl of the gods'. Jasmine Rice is the most widely used.
• Young Coconut Juice is the clear water from the coconut, not the richer white cream or milk.
Pho (pronounced fahr) is a light, fragrant soup eaten for breakfast and all through the day. It is a most loved dish by the Vietnamese. The secret lies in the quality of the stock. Angie uses a combination of marrow bone, oxtail, brisket and a boiler chicken along with cinnamon, star anise and cardamom pods. But her secret ingredient is dried sandworm!
Once the stock is made, Angie blanches rice noodles in boiling water and places them into deep serving bowls. Arrange very thin slices of beef on top and a mixture of chopped coriander and green shallot, white onion and finely sliced jigsaw coriander leaves. She then ladles over the hot stock.
To eat Pho, Angie recommends that you taste the broth then add lemon juice, basil, bean sprouts and chilli to taste.
Green Papaya Salad
INGREDIENTS
1 green (unripe) papaya
2 carrots
Vietnamese mint, shredded
Deep fried eschallots
Cooked prawns, halved
Cooked pork belly, sliced
Dressing
¼ cup fish sauce
¼ cup white vinegar
¼ cup water
¼ cup light soy sauce
½ cup white sugar
Large rice crackers
Fresh chilli, sliced
Beef jerky and crushed nuts, to garnish
DIRECTIONS
1. Peel the papaya, cut in half and remove seeds. Finely shred or grate along with the carrot. Combine in a large bowl. Add mint, eschallots, prawns and pork.
2. Prepare dressing, combine fish sauce, vinegar, water and soy sauce in a bowl. Add sugar and stir until dissolved. Spoon liberally over salad and toss through.
3. Cook rice crackers one at a time Place onto a plastic rectangle take away container and microwave on HIGH for approx 1 minute until puffed. Spoon papaya salad onto the rice cracker, top with chilli, beef jerky and crushed cashew or peanuts.
SOURCE: http://www21.sbs.com.au/foodsafari/index.php?pid=episode&cid=91
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