Tag: vietnamese
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PK’s Vietnamese Beef Noodle Salad
This simple Vietnamese inspired salad could not be easier.
Think of it as a start though and experiment every time you make it. I have said it before, Southeast Asian flavours are hard to get “perfect” but so easy to get “tasty”. The trick is in tailoring the sauce ratios to your preferences. 🙂
Note: I marinade the beef first and then use very little in the way of sauces on the salad and noodles afterwards. Some soy sauce and I am good to go. Your options are endless though.
You will be:
- Preparing everything
- Cooking the beef strips
- Serving
You will need:
- Ingredients:
- PK’s Vietnamese Beef Marinade #1
- several beef scotch fillet or eye fillet (tenderloin) steaks
- a couple of slugs of peanut oil
- a green salad of your choice (see KT’s NoRecipe Green Salad but add things like mint leaves and coriander sprigs)
- Equipment:
- a long sharp knife
- a chopping board
- a fry pan
- a sauce pan or pot for the noodles
- a bowl to marinade the beef in
Preparing everything
- Earlier in the day or the night before, slice the beef steaks into strips and marinade them using something like PK’s Vietnamese Beef Marinade #1.
- Pop the bowl into the fridge.
- Closer to serving time, make a yummy green salad and drizzle with a bit of vinegar.
- Pull the bowl of beef strips out of the fridge to get them to room temperature just as they are going onto the barbecue or hot plate.
Cooking the beef strips
- Chuck the noodles into a bowl of hot water and let them soften as per the instructions on the pack.
- Heat a fry pan, throw a couple of slugs of peanut oil in and start cooking the beef strips.
Serving
Take the meat off the fry pan and allow to cool some. Bring everything together and drizzle with some soy sauce.
Enjoy,
PK
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PK’s Vietnamese Beef Marinade #1
A simple Vietnamese style marinade to bring out the best in your beef. Mix it into beef strips and let everything sit in the fridge for at least two hours. Then you are ready to stirfry. 🙂
Mix together using a wet mixer:
- 2 lemon grass stalks (tender inner layers only)
- 2 Tbsp fish sauce
- 1 Tbsp palm sugar
- 3 garlic cloves
- a tiny bit of water
- a sprinkle of cracked black peppercorns (optional)
Enjoy,
PK
Related Links:
- see more marinade posts here
- see more Vietnamese cuisine posts here
- see more southeast Asian posts here
- go to all meal ingredients here
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PK’s Rice Paper Rolls
These deceptively filling rice paper rolls won’t break the bank and are full of healthy fillings to boot :).
Bring together your preferred ingredients and have some warm water on standby.
Last time I made them I made use of my FoodHacks: Quick Pulled Chicken Breast and fresh ingredients from my kitchen garden.
Simply
- Place a sheet of rice paper in warm water for 5 or so seconds a side.
- Place the sheet on a moist surface (I used a moistened wooden chopping board).
- Put a small amount of your chosen filling in the top part of the rice paper sheet.
- Fold the top over the filling in a downwards motion and then the sides into the filling.
- Roll the whole sheet down and over several times.
- Eat.
- Repeat and enjoy :).
Serving
I whipped up some of my Southeast Asian Dipping Sauce, squirted in some Sriracha Hot Sauce, added some coriander sprigs and Hoisin Sauce.
Enjoy,
PK
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PK’s Southeast Asian Dipping Sauce
This is my go to sauce if I need to quickly whip up a Southeast Asian style dipping sauce or salad dressing. I use it for rice paper rolls, spring rolls, beef salads, chicken salads and so much more.
Adjust the balance of fish sauce to sugar as you see fit or to suit how you are using it. Put a squirt of Sriracha or sweet chili sauce in there for a bit of a zing :).
Steps:
Simply mix:
- 1 Tbsp fish sauce
- 1 Tbsp peanut oil
- 1 tsp raw sugar
- 1/4 cup lime (or lemon juice depending on purpose)
- sriracha sauce, to taste and optional
Give everything a good whisk to dissolve the sugar and you are done :).
Enjoy,
PK
Related Links:
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PK’s NoRecipe Southeast Asian Dipping Sauce
This is my go to sauce if I need to quickly whip up a Southeast Asian style dipping sauce or salad dressing. I use it for rice paper rolls, spring rolls, beef salads, chicken salads and so much more.
Adjust the balance of fish sauce to sugar as you see fit or to suit how you are using it. Put a squirt of Sriracha or sweet chili sauce in there for a bit of a zing :).
Steps:
Simply mix:
- 1 Tbsp fish sauce
- 1 Tbsp peanut oil
- 1 tsp raw sugar
- 1/4 cup lime (or lemon juice depending on purpose)
- sriracha sauce, to taste and optional
Give everything a good whisk to dissolve the sugar and you are done :).
Enjoy,
PK
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Hoisin Sauce
Hoisin sauce is used in Chinese and Vietnamese cuisine, either as an ingredient in the main dish or as a dipping sauce. It has a lovely bean taste that builds to a slightly spicy plummy after taste.
I use it in a number of ways:
- in sauces for stir fries
- as a condiment alongside Pho (see PK’s Cheaters Pho Ga For One)
- as a dipping sauce for spring rolls and the like
Related Links:
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PK’s Easy Pho Ga
When someone mentions Vietnamese cuisine I immediately think of the famous Vietnamese noodle dish called Pho.
Pho (pronounced like ‘fur’ but without the hard r) is a modern take on more traditional dishes. The Vietnamese people rapidly took to this healthy “fast food” and then spread it around the globe.
I imagine everyone has their own favourite style of Pho. Mine is a sweet and sour broth with some lightly poached chicken, lots of vegetables and tons of rice noodles. Simply multiply the ingredients below for each person you are serving.
I go light on the chili factor (even none at all for my family) and then I use Sriracha hot sauce in my bowl to add some heat.
Tip: Make the fried shallots ahead of time using my method here. They are an optional garnish but I feel they really “make” this dish.
You will be:
- Building the broth
- Poaching the chicken
- Serving.
You will need:
- Ingredients:
- Broth for one:
- 3 cups homemade chicken stock
- a splash of fresh lime juice
- 1.5 Tbsp fish sauce
- a small chunk galangal (galanga)
- a small chunk ginger
- 1/2 cinnamon stick
- 1 star anise
- 1 tsp raw sugar
- black peppercorns to taste, ground
- 1 coriander root
- Bowl for one:
- 250g chicken tenderloins, sliced
- 250g rice noodles, pre-softened in boiling water
- a handful of torn coriander leaves
- a handful of mung bean sprouts
- a few sprigs of vietnamese coriander
- 2 spring onions, white parts, sliced on an angle
- jalepenos , sliced, to taste
- 1/2 a lime (for people to adjust the fish sauce/lime juice balance)
- fried shallots and garlic slices
- A handful of chopped mushrooms like shitake or enoki
- Broth for one:
- Equipment:
- a long sharp knife
- a chopping board
- a grater
- a large saucepan
- a serving bowl
Building the broth
I use my home-made chicken stock because it starts you off with a broth that has been built up with chicken bones, vegetables and garlic.
Making a starter broth this way allows you to subsequently build dish specific flavours on top of it and this is what we will do now.
- Add the 3 cups of chicken stock to the saucepan.
- Peel a chunk of galangal and a chunk of ginger and throw them into the pan whole.
- Add the:
- splash of fresh lime juice
- 1.5 Tbsp fish sauce
- 1/2 cinnamon stick
- 1 star anise
- 1 tsp raw sugar
- ground black peppercorns
- 1 coriander root
- Let everything sit for 5 minutes, to infuse, if you have time.
- Put the saucepan on low heat and then gently simmer for about 10 minutes.
Poaching the chicken
- Add the 250g of sliced chicken tenderloins to the gently simmering pan of broth.
- Allow the chicken to cook for 5 minutes and then remove the pan from the heat (by this stage everything is cooked and you don’t want the chicken to overcook as it will go leathery).
Serving
Serve the broth over the rice noodles and vegetables. Garnish with slices of chili, fried shallots and even omelette and peanuts.
Have in easy reach extra fish sauce, lime wedges and of course Sriracha sauce so you and your guests can adjust the taste to suit.
Enjoy,
PK
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PK’s Cheaters Pho Ga For One
When someone mentions Vietnamese cuisine I immediately think of the famous Vietnamese noodle dish called Pho.
Pho (pronounced ‘fur’ but without the hard r) is a modern take on more traditional dishes but the Vietnamese people rapidly took to this healthy “fast food” and then spread it around the globe.
I imagine everyone has their own favourite style of Pho. Mine is a sweet and sour broth with some lightly poached chicken, lots of vegetables and tons of rice noodles. Simply multiply the ingredients below for each person you are serving.
I go light on the chili factor (even none at all for my family) and then I use Sriracha hot sauce in my bowl to add some heat.
Tip: Make the fried shallots ahead of time using my method here. They are an optional garnish but I feel they really “upgrade” this dish.
You will be:
- Building the broth
- Poaching the chicken
- Serving.
You will need:
- Ingredients:
- Broth for one:
- 3 cups homemade chicken stock
- a splash of fresh lime juice
- 1.5 Tbsp fish sauce
- a small chunk galangal (galanga)
- a small chunk ginger
- 1/2 cinnamon stick
- 1 star anise
- 1 tsp raw sugar
- black peppercorns to taste, ground
- 1 coriander root
- Bowl for one:
- 250g chicken tenderloins, sliced
- 250g rice noodles, pre-softened in boiling water
- a handful of torn coriander leaves
- a handful of mung bean sprouts
- a few sprigs of vietnamese coriander
- 2 spring onions, white parts, sliced on an angle
- jalepenos , sliced, to taste
- 1/2 a lime (for people to adjust the fish sauce/lime juice balance)
- fried shallots and garlic slices
- Broth for one:
- Equipment:
- a long sharp knife
- a chopping board
- a grater
- a large saucepan
- a serving bowl
Building the broth
I use my home-made chicken stock because it starts you off with a broth that has been built up with chicken bones, vegetables and garlic.
Making a starter broth this way allows you to subsequently build dish specific flavours on top of it and this is what we will do now.
- Add the 3 cups of chicken stock to the saucepan.
- Peel a chunk of galangal and a chunk of ginger and throw them into the pan whole.
- Add the:
- splash of fresh lime juice
- 1.5 Tbsp fish sauce
- 1/2 cinnamon stick
- 1 star anise
- 1 tsp raw sugar
- ground black peppercorns
- 1 coriander root
- Let everything sit for 5 minutes, to infuse, if you have time.
- Put the saucepan on low heat and then gently simmer for about 10 minutes.
Poaching the chicken
- Add the 250g of sliced chicken tenderloins to the gently simmering pan of broth.
- Allow the chicken to cook for 5 minutes and then remove the pan from the heat (by this stage everything is cooked and you don’t want the chicken to overcook as it will go leathery).
Serving
Serve the broth over the rice noodles and vegetables. Garnish with slices of chili, fried shallots and even omelette and peanuts.
Have in easy reach extra fish sauce, lime wedges and of course Sriracha sauce so you and your guests can adjust the taste to suit.
Enjoy,
PK
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Sriracha Hot Sauce
This spicy yet tangy sauce from Thailand is a new favourite of mine. It smells like someone bottled a volcano but it doesn’t taste that hot and in fact has quite a complex flavour.
I use it a lot because my family doesn’t like chili and this is a way for me to spice meals up at serving time. Wikipedia writes ‘It is named after the coastal city of Si Racha, in Chonburi Province of eastern Thailand, where it may have been first produced for dishes served at local seafood restaurants.‘
This is the brand that I use:
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The Easiest Nam Jim Dressing
Wikipedia writes ‘Nam jim (น้ำจิ้ม) is Thai for “dipping sauce”. It can refer to a wide variety of dipping sauces in Thai cuisine, with many of them being a combination of salty, sweet, spicy and sour’.
I use this dressing in my PK’s Thai Beef Salad.
I use a blender (don’t tell anyone please) instead of a mortar and pestle because I am lazy. You will get a more visually appealing result if you use the former, though I hope the taste is similar. I primarily use this dressing on my Thai Beef Salads and they have a lot going on visually anyway.
Edit: Last time I made this dressing I used a mortar and pestle and the results were worth it 🙂
If you haven’t already, please go and have a read of my post PK’s Curry Paste Kit. It will show you just how off the charts bonkers I am about using whole spices and the freshest ingredients when making your own pastes etc. Actually maybe give that post a miss ;).
STEPS:
- Gather the ingredients
- Mix in the wet blender
- Serving
You will need:
- Ingredients:
- 1 tsp powdered kashmiri chili
- 5 coriander roots (cilantro)
- 3 garlic cloves
- 2.5cm piece fresh ginger root
- 3 Tbsp fish sauce
- 3 Tbsp lime juice
- 1 Tbsp palm sugar
- Equipment
- a chopping board
- a long sharp knife
- a tablespoon
- a teaspoon
- a medium sized bowl
- a wet blender with a small bowl
- a dry mill (optional)
- a small serving bowl for the middle of the table
Gather the ingredients
Steps:
- Dry mill your whole kashmiri chilis to get 1 tsb. Mostly I use store bought powder though.
- Wash the 5 coriander roots thoroughly if you have just harvested them. I have a stash in the freezer though of roots retained after using the rest of the plant. See my post Herbs – Coriander (Coriandrum sativum).
- Peel and rough chop the 3 garlic cloves.
- Peel and rough chop the 2.5cm ginger root.
- Bring the 3 Tbsp fish sauce, 3 Tbsp lime juice and 1 Tbsp palm sugar together.
Mix in the wet blender
Steps:
- Pop everything into your wet blender and pulse till you get the look you are after.
- Have a taste and add a bit more of anything you think is under represented. For example I normally add a bit more fish sauce for the saltiness factor.
Serving
Pop the lot in a serving bowl. I do this so that every one can build their own Thai salad at dinner. I haven’t tried storing this in the fridge for very long but the salt content of the fish sauce should let it keep for a while. You might just want to freshen up the citrus flavour by adding a bit of lime or lemon juice.
I would love to hear about your favourite Thai salad dressing or dipping sauce.
Enjoy,
PK
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