Vietnamese Peanut Sauce

This is another easy sauce, it's not just for spring roll dipping. I also use it for cold noodles with some shredded cucumbers. Believe or not, it's quite delicious. Here is the Nước Tương Chấm recipe.

Peanut sauce made fresh from my kitchen

Ingredients:

• 2 tbsp cooking oil
• 4 cloves garlic minced
• 5 tbsp hoisin sauce
• 4 tbsp smooth peanut butter
• 1/2 cup water

Directions: 

1. Heat pan on medium heat, then add oil and garlic. 
2. Sauté until lightly browned.
3. Add the rest of the ingredients one by one and mix well.
4. Turn the heat up to medium high and bring to a boil.
5. Once it hits a boil immediately turn off the heat
6. Use a whisk to blend till smooth.
7. Remove from heat and chill, or serve right away.
8. You can add some crushed peanuts on top before serving
9. If you use sugar-free peanut butter, a tbsp of sugar would help sweeten it

Vietnamese Pickled Carrots & Daikon

Whenever I eat a Vietnamese sandwich (Bánh Mì), I always pig out on the Pickled Carrots and Daikon (Đồ Chua) from the sandwich. This is probably the easiest side dish to make. It can go in many dishes other than sandwich, you can find them on spring rolls (Goi Cuon), savory crepes (Bánh Xèo), grilled pork and noodles (BúnThịt Nướng), egg rolls (Chả Gìo), rice plates, vermicelli bowls or just eating by itself.

After rinsed from the salt bath

Here is the Đồ Chua recipe I learned from eating at Vietnamese restaurants.

Ingredients:

• 1/2 lb daikon radish
• 1/2 lb carrots
• 1 tbsp salt
• 3/4 cup boiling water
• 5 tbsp sugar
• Water at room temperature
• 6 tbsp distilled vinegar

Cut carrots & daikon into matchsticks

Instructions:

1. Peel daikon and carrots, julienne them to small matchsticks. 
2. Place them in a large bowl, sprinkle with salt evenly and toss to coat. 
3. Soak for 15 minutes.
4. Rinse thoroughly with room-temperature water to remove salt. Squeeze in small handfuls to remove liquid as much as you can.
5. Add the vegetables to jar to near the top.
6. Boil water then mix sugar to dissolve, then add vinegar in a cup.
7. Pour the liquid into the jar. 
8. Put the lid on. Do not refrigerate but check every 12 hours. 
9. Ready to serve in 2 days, if thickness of the cut is close to matchsticks.

Mix salt into the carrots & daikon

Vegan Fish Sauce Recipe

Often times, my vegan friends ask me about vegan option of Goi Cuon (Vietnamese Spring Rolls). I said, it's easy to make them but the dipping sauce is not vegan. Traditionally, Nước Chấm is made with fish sauce that has been fermenting for 2 years. Because the source of fish is unknown, there might be trace of shrimps in the sauce. So, to be on the safe side, let's make a vegan fish sauce.

First of all, you have to buy Pineapple Fish Flavored Sauce. I bought mine at San San Tofu in Houston Asiatown (west of Beltway). If you don't have vegan fish sauce, just use the regular fish sauce on the market. Don't drink the fish sauce from the bottle. It's very salty.

Fresh Fish Sauce Made Fresh from My Kitchen

Ingredients:

• 2 tbsp Fish Sauce of your choice
• 3 tbsp Sugar
• 7 tbsp Water
• 1 tsp Minced Garlic

Directions

1. Heat water in microwave for 1 minute. Combine warm water with sugar in a bowl. Stir until sugar dissolved.
2. Set the liquid aside to let it cool.
3. Add fish sauce and minced garlic to the mixture.
4. Stir well.
5. If you want it spicy, slice a fresh chili pepper and put them in the liquid mixture including the seeds. Or, you can add a tsp of chili sauce in the mixture.
6. You can garnish it with strings of shredded carrots.

Different ways to add spiciness to this dipping sauce 

"This Vietnamese sauce is usually served with spring rolls (both fresh and fried), Vietnamese grilled meats like Vietnamese sausages (nem nướng) and grilled lemongrass pork chops (thit heo nuong xa), and vermicelli noodle bowls." (Source)

Sweet N Sour Textured Soy Protein

This Sweet N Sour Textured Soy Protein was featured during a live cooking presentation last month.

Colorful and Flavorful Vegan Dish

INGREDIENTS

• 12 pc Textured Soy Protein
• 3 Bell Peppers (preferably different colors)
• 2 tbsp Corn Starch
• 1/4 cup Water
• 1 tbsp Ketchup
• 1/2 tbsp Sugar
• 1/2 tsp Garlic Powder
• 1/2 tsp Onion Powder
• 2 tbsp Cooking Oil
• 1 tbsp Soy Sauce

DIRECTION:

1. Soak Textured Soy Protein pieces in boiling hot water until soft, about 1 hour.
2. Rinse them with cold water. Repeat the soaking process twice.
3. Cut up bell peppers and set aside.
4. Cut up soaked Textured Soy Protein in halves and set aside.
5. In a wok, pour cooking oil until heated at high heat.
6. Pour cut up bell peppers into the wok and stir frying constantly.
7. Cook until bell peppers have fragrance (browning) but not burned. Sprinkle garlic powder and onion powder while stirring.
8. Put Textured Soy Protein into the wok.
9. Pour soy sauce into the wok and keep stirring.
10. Put sugar and ketchup into the wok.
11. Stir in corn starch water until liquid thickens.
12. Ready to plate.

Option:

You can add cut up onions with the bell peppers

Video https://youtu.be/lhm8y9mZHaE

Shrimp ‘n Pork Dumplings

This recipe is a modified from Eton Chan, Beef and Pork Dumplings at half portion

Inside filling is what matters the most

Ingredients:

A:

• 1/2 pound Ground Pork
• 12 Raw Large Shrimps, peeled & deveined

B:

• 1/2 teaspoon Ginger, Minced
• 1/2 teaspoon Garlic, Minced
• 1/2 tablespoon Scallions, Minced

C:

• 1/2 teaspoon Sesame Oil
• 1/8 teaspoon Salt
• 1/8 teaspoon Black Pepper
• 3 tablespoon Soy Sauce
• 2 tablespoon Sugar
• 2 tablespoon Cold Water

D:

• 1/2 pound Cabbage

E:

• 1 pack of Dumpling Wrappers

F:

• 2 cups Mung Bean Sprouts

Instructions:

Blanch Cabbage (D)

1. Peel outer layers of cabbage and cut into quarters. Boil in lightly salted water until tender, about 5 minutes. Remove from pot and cool down. Chop finely and set aside.
2. Mince B Ingredients
3. While cabbage is boiling, peel ginger and mince; trim garlic clove and mince; mince scallion white and yellow parts. Set aside.

Combine

1. Combine all ingredients from A, B, C and D in a large bowl. Mix thoroughly until liquids are absorbed into the meat. Cover and let marinate for 2 hours in fridge.
2. Chop Mung Bean Sprouts and mash well. Mix into marinaded meat mix right before assembly.

Assembly

1. Place about pecan-size meat mix in the middle of a dumpling wrapper. Dap edge of half wrapper with a little water and seal, removing all excess air if possible. To seal, fold dumpling in half to resemble a half moon. Lay single layer on tray and cover with a damp cheesecloth.

Cook

1. Fill water to 2/3 of large pot. Boil on high heat. Place dumplings into boiling water one at a time. Until filled on layer surface of the pot. Use a wooden spoon to separate dumplings from the bottom of pot. Lower heat to medium high. Wait until dumplings float to the top and cook 2 more minutes.
2. Remove dumpling from water with a Skimmer. Place them on a plate. Ready to enjoy.

Pork and Beef Dumplings

This recipe was adapted from Eton Chan, Pork and Beef Dumplings at half portion

Dumplings can be pan fried as Pot Stickers

Ingredients:

A:

• 1 pound Ground Beef
  
• 1 pound Ground Pork

B:

• 1 teaspoon Ginger Root
• 1 teaspoon Garlic
• 1 tablespoon Scallions

C:

• 1 teaspoon Sesame Oil
• ¼ teaspoon Kosher Salt
• ¼ teaspoon Black Pepper
• ½ cup soy sauce
• ¼ cup sugar
• ¼ cup cold water

D:

1 pound cabbage

E:

2 packs of Dumpling Wrappers

Instructions:

1) Peel outer layers of cabbage and cut into quarters and boil in lightly salted water until tender. Remove from pot and cool down. Chop finely and set aside. 

2) While cabbage is boiling, peel ginger and mince; trim garlic clove stem and mince; mince scallion white and yellow parts. Set aside. 

3) Combine all ingredients from A, B, C, and D in a large bowl. Mix thoroughly until liquids are absorbed into the meat. Cover and let marinate a couple hours in fridge. 

4) Assemble dumplings by filling a dumpling wrapper with 1 teaspoon of meat mix. Dap edge of wrapper with a little water and seal, removing all excess air if possible. To seal, fold dumpling in half to resemble a half moon. Lay single layer on tray and freeze.

5) To cook, you can boil them in lightly salted water or pan fry them. 

Okinawan Sweet Potato Pie

HAPPY PIE DAY 3.14! 

Secret Revealed! This is one of our popular desserts in the holiday season.

Ingredients:
5 cups mashed potatoes;
4 eggs;
2 cups sugar;
2 tsp vanilla extract;
Pinch of salt;
1 cup flavored Crisco (or butter);
2 cans evaporated milk;
3 unbaked pie crust.

Directions:

1. Boil sweet potatoes until soft, peel and mash until no lumps.
2. Add remainder of ingredients, beat with beater until creamy. Remove string if necessary.
3. Pour into the pie shell.
4. Cover the edge of the crust with foil strips and not touch the filling.
5. Bake at 425° for 15 minutes; then, bake at 250° for 40-50 minutes. Test the doneness by sticking in a toothpick.

You can substitute evaporated milk for coconut milk