Getting much stronger these days.
September 10, 2010
September 4, 2010
Fried Fish w/ Fish Sauce for Dipping | Ca Chien Cham Nuoc Mam
Here I go again with another easy dish! Haven't had this in a while. I'm using Tilapia, but if I had one, I'd got with the Pomfret.
Scale and gut the fish (Tilapia is pretty easy compared to some other fishes!). Score the skins of both sides. Pat dried with paper towel and season both sides lightly with a little bit of salt.
Heat a pan with oil on Medium High heat.
When the oil is hot, slide in the fish. Let one side fry for about 5-7 minutes or until golden brown.
Flip the fish to fry the other side, another 5 minutes or until gold brown. I then flip it again to give the first side a quick fry before removing it onto a plate lined with paper towels.
Serve with rice and a spicy fish sauce for dipping (crushed garlic, cut up thai bird chili peppers, fish sauce, and lime juice)
Scale and gut the fish (Tilapia is pretty easy compared to some other fishes!). Score the skins of both sides. Pat dried with paper towel and season both sides lightly with a little bit of salt.
Heat a pan with oil on Medium High heat.
When the oil is hot, slide in the fish. Let one side fry for about 5-7 minutes or until golden brown.
Flip the fish to fry the other side, another 5 minutes or until gold brown. I then flip it again to give the first side a quick fry before removing it onto a plate lined with paper towels.
Serve with rice and a spicy fish sauce for dipping (crushed garlic, cut up thai bird chili peppers, fish sauce, and lime juice)
August 27, 2010
Fried Tofu w/ Baby Bok Choy
This entire week, I've been out of my work mode. Sorry, I've been lazy and haven't really cook anything apart from what I've already posted. Always sticking to simple dishes.
Another dish using ingredients found in the fridge.
Cut 4 blocks of firm tofu into bite size pieces.
Add some oil to a frying pan and fry the tofu pieces. Season with a little bit of soy sauce.
My favorite soy sauce, not too heavy.
While the tofu is frying (toss to fry evenly), crush a couple cloves of garlic, mince a small knob of ginger, slice 4 shallots, and match-stick 4 scallions.
Cut the ends to separate leaves of 7 baby bok choys. Wash and drain.
After some minutes, the tofu will be nicely fried and brown. Remove onto a bowl or plate lined with paper towels.
In the same pan, infused shallots, garlic, and ginger in a little oil. Shallots first, then garlic, then ginger.
Add pepper flakes.
Deglaze with soy sauce, water, and a little oyster sauce.
Bring sauce to boil and add in the bok choy, let cook for a couple minutes.
Add scallions and the fried tofu. Serve with rice.
Another dish using ingredients found in the fridge.
Cut 4 blocks of firm tofu into bite size pieces.
Add some oil to a frying pan and fry the tofu pieces. Season with a little bit of soy sauce.
My favorite soy sauce, not too heavy.
While the tofu is frying (toss to fry evenly), crush a couple cloves of garlic, mince a small knob of ginger, slice 4 shallots, and match-stick 4 scallions.
Cut the ends to separate leaves of 7 baby bok choys. Wash and drain.
After some minutes, the tofu will be nicely fried and brown. Remove onto a bowl or plate lined with paper towels.
In the same pan, infused shallots, garlic, and ginger in a little oil. Shallots first, then garlic, then ginger.
Add pepper flakes.
Deglaze with soy sauce, water, and a little oyster sauce.
Bring sauce to boil and add in the bok choy, let cook for a couple minutes.
Add scallions and the fried tofu. Serve with rice.
August 8, 2010
Potluck 8.7.10
I held a potluck last night with a few family and friends. I'm glad most of everyone could make it and for those who couldn't, hopefully we can hold another sometime soon.
The Contributions:
Brother: Beef Green Bean and Snow Peas Stir-fry
Nga: Thai Fried Rice (2 Versions: Tofu & House) & Eggrolls
Phuong: Gumbo (3 versions: Seafood, Meat, & Seafood/Meat)
Julie: Clear Dumplings//Banh Bot Loc (2 Versions: Vegetarian & Meat/Shrimp)
Lisa: Thai Papaya Salad
Me: Vietnamese Beef Stew//Thit Bo Kho
Hoa: Scallion & Shallot Butter Baked Mussels
Van Sisters: Sweet Dream Individual Pastries
There was so much food and everything was delicious. We finished the night off with some karaoke. Julie and Jennifer - you gals are a singing force to be reckoned with. Thanks everyone who came and big thanks to the sibs for your help!
The Contributions:
Brother: Beef Green Bean and Snow Peas Stir-fry
Nga: Thai Fried Rice (2 Versions: Tofu & House) & Eggrolls
Phuong: Gumbo (3 versions: Seafood, Meat, & Seafood/Meat)
Julie: Clear Dumplings//Banh Bot Loc (2 Versions: Vegetarian & Meat/Shrimp)
Lisa: Thai Papaya Salad
Me: Vietnamese Beef Stew//Thit Bo Kho
Hoa: Scallion & Shallot Butter Baked Mussels
Van Sisters: Sweet Dream Individual Pastries
There was so much food and everything was delicious. We finished the night off with some karaoke. Julie and Jennifer - you gals are a singing force to be reckoned with. Thanks everyone who came and big thanks to the sibs for your help!
August 7, 2010
Choco Pie!
As seen in Korean Dramas, most especially: Thank You. I was excited to try this when Phuong bought some since I've seen it so many times in kdrama series. It tastes a lot like Moon Pies.
Good news: It's been MONTHS since I've last watch any series! Viet-dubbed rentals...fanfics...streaming subbed/raw (desperate) videos - Done with it.
Good news: It's been MONTHS since I've last watch any series! Viet-dubbed rentals...fanfics...streaming subbed/raw (desperate) videos - Done with it.
August 4, 2010
Pan Grilled Lemongrass Shrimp Lettuce Wraps
The lil bro cooked dinner tonight.
Baked chicken drumsticks
I was bored so I made something simple, pan-grilled shrimp for lettuce & herb wraps.
Marinade peeled and deveined shrimp with: minced lemongrass, minced shallots, minced garlic, dash of soy sauce, teriyaki marinade, sesame oil, sugar, salt, pepper, and hot pepper flakes.
I skewered the shrimp...just because... =)
Add butter to a grilled pan heated at Medium.
Pan-grill the shrimp
Serve with soft green lettuce and choice of herbs (mint, vietnamese coriander, and fish mint)
Baked chicken drumsticks
I was bored so I made something simple, pan-grilled shrimp for lettuce & herb wraps.
Marinade peeled and deveined shrimp with: minced lemongrass, minced shallots, minced garlic, dash of soy sauce, teriyaki marinade, sesame oil, sugar, salt, pepper, and hot pepper flakes.
I skewered the shrimp...just because... =)
Add butter to a grilled pan heated at Medium.
Pan-grill the shrimp
Serve with soft green lettuce and choice of herbs (mint, vietnamese coriander, and fish mint)
August 1, 2010
Watermelon with Chili Pepper Salt / Dua Hau Cham Muoi Ot
Cold, crisp watermelon tastes good all on it's own and I never thought about eating it any other way until a few years ago. I saw an Aunt eat watermelon with chili peppers and salt and thought "why would someone ruin a good piece of watermelon with salt and pepper?!?!". I tried it myself and it didn't taste too bad. Pretty good actually. The salt made the watermelon sweeter and the chili gave it a little kick. I guess it was one of those Savory Sweet affects again (always a fan of the flavor combo).
Cut up a chili pepper.
Add salt
With a pestle, smash the chili and salt together into a paste
Dip watermelon in the chili salt and enjoy!
Cut up a chili pepper.
Add salt
With a pestle, smash the chili and salt together into a paste
Dip watermelon in the chili salt and enjoy!
July 21, 2010
Steamed Fish w/ Ginger, Scallion, & Garlic | Ca Hap Gung Hanh Toi
A dish I learned from Dad and one I enjoy making because it's so easy.
I'm using striped bass, tilapia works great too.
Scale, gut, and clean the fish (the unpleasant part). I also like trimming off the fins. Score the skin of the fish a couple times diagonally for even cooking. Season both sides with salt, stuff the belly with onion slices and steam on a shallow heat-safe plate.
While the fish is steaming, prepare the vegetables. You'll need minced garlic, match-stick ginger, cilantro, and scallions cut into 1.5 in.
When the fish is cooked, take it out of the steamer, pour out the liquid, and discard the onion from the belly.
I transfered one of the fish to a separate plate (make sure it's shallow enough to hold the sauce) and added half of the scallions greens (saving the other half for the other fish).
Making the sauce for ONE fish - *on med-lo heat the entire time:
In a small pan, heat up some oil. Fry the scallion whites. After the scallions brown, add the garlic.
Let the garlic lightly brown, add the ginger. Add hot chili flake and about a tablespoon of sambal chili paste.
Deglaze with 1/4 cup soy sauce and a tablespoon fish sauce,. Let the sauce reduce for 30 seconds or so. Add3 tablespoons water and simmer for another 30 seconds (adjust to taste). Turn off heat and add the greens of the scallions.
Pour the sauce over the fish. Scoring the fish prior to cooking also helps the fish absorb the sauce. Garnish with cilantro and fried onions. Serve with rice.
I'm using striped bass, tilapia works great too.
Scale, gut, and clean the fish (the unpleasant part). I also like trimming off the fins. Score the skin of the fish a couple times diagonally for even cooking. Season both sides with salt, stuff the belly with onion slices and steam on a shallow heat-safe plate.
While the fish is steaming, prepare the vegetables. You'll need minced garlic, match-stick ginger, cilantro, and scallions cut into 1.5 in.
When the fish is cooked, take it out of the steamer, pour out the liquid, and discard the onion from the belly.
I transfered one of the fish to a separate plate (make sure it's shallow enough to hold the sauce) and added half of the scallions greens (saving the other half for the other fish).
Making the sauce for ONE fish - *on med-lo heat the entire time:
In a small pan, heat up some oil. Fry the scallion whites. After the scallions brown, add the garlic.
Let the garlic lightly brown, add the ginger. Add hot chili flake and about a tablespoon of sambal chili paste.
Deglaze with 1/4 cup soy sauce and a tablespoon fish sauce,. Let the sauce reduce for 30 seconds or so. Add3 tablespoons water and simmer for another 30 seconds (adjust to taste). Turn off heat and add the greens of the scallions.
Pour the sauce over the fish. Scoring the fish prior to cooking also helps the fish absorb the sauce. Garnish with cilantro and fried onions. Serve with rice.
July 8, 2010
Braised Pork Spare Ribs | Suon Heo Rim
I don't make this dish too often since I usually use what ever is available in the house freezer and fridge...and ribs are almost always never there. Made this a couple months ago just never got around to posting it. Savory sweet...
A slab of pork spare ribs cut into 1-1 1/2 inch pieces. Go with baby back ribs if you can since its much more tender. The Asian Market usually sells them already cut, but I bought mine from Meijers - so I butchered it myself with a nice heavy cleaver.
Put them in the pot that you will be cooking it in and add a medium onion cut into wedges, hoisin, sugar, fish sauce, salt, hot pepper flakes, minced garlic, mince ginger, and soy sauce.
Mix well and let marinade for 30 minutes.
Set over high heat for about 40 minutes or until it's nicely caramelized and cooked- adding water if necessary to prevent burning. Garnish with a dusting of black pepper and scallions (or cilantro). Serve with rice.
A slab of pork spare ribs cut into 1-1 1/2 inch pieces. Go with baby back ribs if you can since its much more tender. The Asian Market usually sells them already cut, but I bought mine from Meijers - so I butchered it myself with a nice heavy cleaver.
Put them in the pot that you will be cooking it in and add a medium onion cut into wedges, hoisin, sugar, fish sauce, salt, hot pepper flakes, minced garlic, mince ginger, and soy sauce.
Mix well and let marinade for 30 minutes.
Set over high heat for about 40 minutes or until it's nicely caramelized and cooked- adding water if necessary to prevent burning. Garnish with a dusting of black pepper and scallions (or cilantro). Serve with rice.
July 1, 2010
Snapshot 2
One of my favorite drinks. Sweet, sour, cool, and refreshing. The first and best I ever tasted was from Cancun. I think the difference was in the sugar used...but whatever it was...other mojitos just aren't as good.
from Kona Grill. I've tried flavored ones too, but the classic seems to taste best.
from Kona Grill. I've tried flavored ones too, but the classic seems to taste best.
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