Stir-fried Chicken with Cashew Nuts

I was quite excited recently to see three new food shops that had opened near my house. That kind of thing doesn't happen that often. I had been watching this row of shophouses being built and then one by one each owner opened a food shop. At the moment there are three in a row. The ones on either side sell noodles. Nothing exciting about that because there are noodle shops everywhere. However, the middle one had a sign saying “ gaeng gup khao ” meaning curry with rice. I love curries. (You probably know that already.) The food shop opposite where I live sells curries and soup for take-away. It only costs 15 baht each but they are quite often disappointing. The meat is often miniscule or just bony. If I buy there I have to add my own meat.

So, this morning I set off down the road to investigate what curries they had for sale. I wasn't disappointed. They had a really nice selection. The sign said 20 baht for one dish with rice and 25 baht for two. Very reasonable. I chose a curry and a chicken dish and indicated that I wanted to take it home by saying in Thai “sai toong”. This literally means put in a bag. However, many people say “sai haw” for when they want take-away. This means wrap in banana leaves which they used to do a lot in the olden days. Even though plastic bags and foam boxes are used more often today, people still stick to the old words. Thee two big bags cost me 45 baht baht. More expensive than the other shop, but just take a look at the picture below and you can see I got value for money. Aroy ! 

The dish I got was called stir-fried chicken with cashew nuts or gai pat met mamuang himmapaan in Thai. Actually they didn't have cashew nuts which would have made it a bit more expensive. So they substituted with normal nuts. They also added tomatoes which gave it a kind of sauce and sheen that dry versions don't usually have.

This dish is quite easy to cook. As usual, I won't give you the amounts because Thai people don't usually measure anything. Fry some garlic in a pan until golden brown. Then add the finely sliced chicken and cook until ready. Add the onion, cashew nuts, fried dried chilis and spring onion. Stir well. Season with fish sauce, dark soy sauce and a pinch of salt. Garnish with some coriander and fresh red chili.

This is really delicious. I often order this dish when I go to restaurants to eat with friends.

Chicken Coconut Soup with mushroom

I read in the newspaper the other day, that a research team from the UK had proved that an extract of galangal can both kill cancer cells and protect healthy ones from the disease. As this is a common ingredient in Thai stir-fries and soups I was intrigued to learn more. I went onto the Internet and googled "galangal". I eventually found a recipe for Tom Kha Gai (chicken coconut soup). As this is on my favourites list I decided to have a go at cooking it.

My first stop was my collection of cookery books. I soon discovered that although each book had a recipe for Tom Kha Gai they were quite different from each other. From my memory of eating this dish I decided to use the recipe from "Thailand The Beautiful Cookbook". I made a list of the ingredients before setting off to the supermarket. I needed: coconut milk, galangal, lemon grass, kaffir lime leaves, lime juice, coriander leaves and some chili. They wanted green but I wanted red. 
On the left is the galangal (kha). As you can see, it is similar in appearance to ginger. It is pinkish and has a peppery flavour. The label on the pack said it cost 45 baht per kilo. This pack cost 5.75 baht. More than enough. On the next shelf I noticed another pack with both lemon grass (right), galangal and kaffir lime leaves (below right). These are the ingredients for Lemon Grass Soup (more famously known as Tom Yum). As this was only 7 baht I decided to go for that. (1 US$ is presently 38 baht.) As far as I understand, although these two dishes have similar ingredients, Tom Yum focuses more on the lemon grass and Tom Kha Gai focuses more on the galangal. If you are wondering at this stage what "tom" means then I will tell you that it means "boiled".
Next I needed the coriander or "pak chee" in Thai. There were two varieties on the shelf. One was "pak chee tai" and the other "pak chee jeen". I guess the former was Thai and the latter Chinese. As "pak chee jeen" was translated into "coriander" on the label I knew which one to pick. This only cost 4 baht. Next on my list was the small green limes, coconunt milk, chilis and of course the chicken. Oh yes, did you know that the red chilis that are labelled in English as "red bird chili peppers" are called in Thai "mouse shit chilis"! I wonder why they didn't translate that properly in the supermarket? 

Quang noodle, so good speciality!

Quang noodle soups differ than most normal noodle soups in that the soups have just enough broth to barely cover the noodles. Unlike other Vietnamese noodle soup bowls whose broth will cover the noodles almost completely, Quang noodle broth is barely enough to slurp during the meal. If you do not eat a Quang noodle bowl fast enough, the broth will generally quickly be soaked up by the noodles. Quang noodle soups are generally pork and dried shrimp broth based, although some regional and family recipes will use chicken and even duck. What makes Quang noodle soups unique is the richness of the broth, the lack of it and the crushed peanut toppings on the noodles.

The mystery of Quang noodle is in that pot above. This is ‘nuoc sot mi quang’ or Quang noodle sauce. This makes the stock slightly sweet and a smidgen spicy. This dish's ingredients include rice, vegetables and meat. After being soaked in water, the rice is ground to a fine powder and made into attractive smooth white noodles. Accompanying vegetables are water morning-glory, cress, young banana flowers and herbs. Especially, the famous Tra Que savory of Quang Nam Province will give the dish more flavour. You can use pork, chicken, fish, crab or shrimp to make the broth. If chicken is chosen, the meat is separated, seasoned and stir-fried while the bones are stewed. Finish the stock by adding cooked chicken meat.

There are many Quang noodle restaurants in Quang Nam and Da Nang. Each area is famous for one certain recipe. For example, Thanh Chiem Village in Dien Ban District, Quang Nam Province is known for shrimp noodle, while chicken noodle is at its best in Tuy Loan, Hoa Vang District, Da Nang City.

A traditional version says: “I make for you, darling, green tea and Quang noodles to express my feelings”. Thus, you can visit a Quang noodle kiosk in Danang City to enjoy the typical flavor of the soups, for instance: Ngan Quang Noodle at 108 Dong Da Street, Lu Quang Noodle at Ham Nghi Street, Vi Quang Noodle at 155 Trung Nu Vuong Street and so on.

A unique “banh xeo” in Vietnam

Like the salad roll, the “banh xeo” is a do-it-yourself dish that involves the messy but delicious process of wrapping the crepe in lettuce with cilantro and basil. Though the filling might fall out on your table, you will be completely lost in the crispy, warm combination of lettuce and crepe, and the attentive staff will happily clean up after you.
Different styles of “banh xeo”

“Banh xeo” is prepared differently throughout the country. Tourists traveling about in Vietnam are sure to encounter a different recipe, and sometimes even a different name, for “banh xeo” depending on which region and province they are visiting.

These are a pale yellow spicey Vietnamese style crepe. One piece on the bottom, and another on top encase what is usually a salad consisting of been sprouts, prawns, boiled pork, taro and carrot. Drenched in fish sauce, and you have a deliciously messy slice of fine pleasure. The dish is round, and you cut it into slices, like a pizza, so it resembles a triangle on the main platter, but usually by the time it arrives on your plate, it could resemble anything really.

In the Southern region, the “banh xeo” is the size of a large dish and yellow in color due to the employment of turmeric powder. The Southern people always add coconut milk to the rice flour to make the crepe extra delicious. The crepe is stuffed with bean sprouts, mung beans, shrimp and pork. A sweet and sour fish sauce and fresh vegetables are used as accompaniments.

In the Central region, “banh xeo” cooks make a smaller crepe that is white in color. In Hue, the crepes are called “banh khoai”, which is similar to “banh xeo”, but smaller in size and stuffed with fennel, sour star fruit, green banana and a thick soy sauce.

In addition to selling the crepes to patrons, vendors also prepare them en masse for birthday parties and festivals. Northern preparations of “banh xeo” are similar to the ones down south, but include special fillings like slices of Indian taro and manioc. In some regions, “banh xeo” is prepared thick, but Southern crepes are characteristically thin, crispy and served fresh out of the frying pan. The secret to extra-thin crepes is a deep frying pan and a quick wrist to coat the frying pan with the batter before it starts to set.

Where to enjoy “banh xeo”?

In Hanoi, there are a lot of addresses for you to enjoy “banh xeo”, such as 22 Hang Bo Street, “Quan Ngon” restaurant at 12 Phan Boi Chau Street or “Chin Tham” restaurant on Thai Ha Street.

In HCMC, southern-style “banh xeo” can be found at Banh Xeo 46A on Dinh Cong Trang Street, District 1 or An la ghien Restaurant at 54A Nguyen Van Troi Street, Ward 15, Phu Nhuan District. Those seeking a meatless version of “banh xeo” can find them at vegetarian restaurants on An Lac Restaurant, 175/15 Pham Ngu Lao Street, District 1, and Thien Nguyen Restaurant, 174 Calmete street, District 1.

 

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Pasta With Homemade Ricotta & Oven Roasted Tomatoes

Two of my favorite Italian ingredients are oven roasted tomatoes and creamy homemade ricotta cheese, and I decided recently to combine them both in a pasta dish as I was craving a big bowl of comfort food. There are two ways to enjoy this pasta dish depending on what you prefer. I leave my ingredients separated, and enjoy the different flavors on each forkful as I eat my pasta, while my husband mixes the ricotta into the pasta with the other ingredients before he eats, creating a creamy, more blended pasta sauce.
Roasting brings out the natural sweetness of tomatoes through caramelization which once roasted, are wonderful used in many recipes. Although the cooking time is a long one since you roast them at a low temperature, it takes only minutes to prepare the tomatoes for the oven, so while they are roasting you can be busy doing other things. Homemade ricotta cheese can in fact be made in mere minutes, and is so much better than many of the commercial brands you buy in the grocery stores. The steps in this recipe may look long, but you can roast the tomatoes and make your ricotta cheese on one day, then cook and assemble your pasta dish the next.
To simplify this recipe, you can buy your ricotta cheese and pesto sauce if you are short on time, but do choose the best quality whole milk ricotta cheese and pesto you can find. I simply coarsely chopped my tomatoes after I roast them, but if you prefer, you could puree them into a smoother sauce. This “sauce” is great served on long pasta like the strangozzi pasta (similar to spaghetti) from Umbria shown in the photos, or on short pasta such as rigatoni or penne. You will have leftover ricotta cheese and pesto sauce if you follow the recipe below, but both can be used again for another recipe. Do bring all the ingredients to room temperature before preparing the pasta.