Vietnamese Spring Rolls

I'm quite sure when it comes to chain food store of Chinese cuisine, most people quickly remembered the name "Panda Express" and how wonderful the food tasted. After you get you pick of rice or noodles and the variety of choices for main entree. Before reaching the cash register, the server will ask you "would you like an eggroll with your meal?" and most people would say "yes"...come on now...it's that good!!!

That's what the Chinese people are famous for: Kung Pow chicken, Orange chicken and eggroll! For us Vietnamese ancestry, spring roll is our way of life (beside pho). The idea for this post originated while browsing through my blogroll and ended up at a post of Viet World Kitchen. In this post, the author (a previous contestant of the Top Chef serie) asked her follower about what is authenticty Vietnamese cuisine? From the perspective of a foreigner or someone who is not familiar with the Vietnamese cuisine? and not surprisingly, Goi Cuon is the name that was brought to my attention; thus, my post today dedicated to this appetizer.

The ingredients have two components: main ingredients and by-choice ingredients. Main ingredients include: rice paper, pork belly layer, shrimp, nuoc mam (a type of seasoner fish sauce, usually home-made). By-choice ingredients include: lettuce and any type of vegetables you would want you want with your goi cuon.


1) Vegetables 2) boil shrimp 3) cooked broil pork 4) thin rice noodle 5) nuoc mam

The etiquette for this dish is quite simple.

Step-by-step instruction

1: Submerge your rice paper in warm water and quickly removed from the bowl of water and placed it on your round plate.

2: Use a small piece of lettuce as your base of support and began piling the all the ingredients together as shown.



3. Began folding two extra sides of the mix and slowly start rolling from the extra side behind the mix. Began rolling forward slowly and pressing the mix together before they bust out.

the final product (as shown below), dip with the dipping sauce (shown above)


Thanks and enjoy studying/eating/reading/cramming!!!

=]

A quick dessert...."che chuoi"

Che chuoi is the dessert I have chosen today for my entry and this dessert reminds me of my homeland a lot. Our family emigrated from Vietnam for over 8 years now and to be quite honest, as many others, I've been Americanized; for the good and bad. I still retain some ethnic identity of my own Vietnamese heritage since I still can read and write in Vietnamese quite fluently; however, I often have trouble trying to find the right vocabulary for translation from English to Vietnamese.

Che chuoi is one of those dishes that have grown with you and every now and then, you just got to have it; to suffice for your thirst of your own identity in a different way. Personally, it is one of my favorite Vietnamese dessert; its succulent taste and easy-to-make recipe. It did not take me more than 20 minutes to make this dessert at all and this dish's inspiration is purely out of spontaniety.

The pictures below depcited the "suppose product" and the "experimental result". The first picture can be accessible through online and the next picture is the version from my own lab. You can tell the difference right away. First, this is a spontaneous idea; thus, there were not adequate "funding" and the lack of "supplies" shortened the ideal image of a picture perfect situation. Secondly, the second picture depicted the dessert while cooking since I was too lazy to get my phone and snap a picture for the finished product. Last, I was not feeling well so that might have taken a bit out of my enthusiasm for the dessert also.





Have a great day and enjoy eating!

=]

Correction

In the previous post, the main topic was Italian meatballs and these are the pictures for the post. I thought I had encrypted them with the post but I guessed not....


The first picture depicted all the ingredients in the moving bowl. I also modified this recipe from its original version a little bit. I could not find ground veal at HEB so i resorted to using ground chicken instead. I also added in cilantro for a bit of aroma. The fresh parsley was really strong. The second picture depicted the meatballs while cooking. The smell was fantastic. I wish this is one of those smell-a-web kinda of thing.


The last picture showed the completed plate of Italian meatball. All these pictures were taken using my phone's camera so please excuse the bad quality and un-professionalized manner of the picture. This blog was created for the purpose of homemade and authenticity; thus, I want to pursue a surreal manner of picturesque.

Thanks and goodnight!

=]

Italian Meatball

The idea of today's post originated from a FOOD NETWORK TV SHOW called "How to Boil Water?" The show featured Tyler Florence and his skillful technique/recipe of Italian Meatballs. One thought came to mind while watching this show, "I can make it too"; so I've thought.

The recipe can be found here and the ingredients can be bought at your local neighborhood market. One thing noticed, this recipe is made for a big crowd so make sure to weigh and balance the recipe effectively for a smaller crowd. In many ways, this recipe is almost exactly like the MEATLOAF's post since the preparations required very little effort. Mix the ingredients together in a large mixing bowl. One lilttle tips, add a little bit of vegetable oil on your hands before rolling the meatballs since the oil the will prevent the mix sticking to your hands.

I tried to make the marinara sauce to simmer meatballs while cooking. Overall, the meatballs were ok. I guess this is one of those times when "it is not me, it's you (recipe)". I got a mere 2.5 thumbs up and for the first time, I do not feel guilty.

=]

Hamburger Helper

This post is a bit of a cultural paradox for me. Believe it or not, I've never tried Hamburger Helper before and to be quite honest, I am not a big fan of semi-cooking in the first place. Asian culture has taught me the value of all things "fresh". In Asian cuisine, freshness of ingredients is the key to be scrumptious and tasty dish. We Asians tend to neglect the semi cooking method of buying things from the can and preferred to cooked it from scratch.

Americans, however, utilized the semi-cooking method to their full advantage and trust me, it is a big plus to the busy life one encountered. I, myself, have been in this country for eight years; thus, I am Americanized enough to have tasted and willing to try almost anything of this country has to offered, literally. I am not here to judge the differences, the bad or the good of Oriental and Occidental cuisines but simply to pinpoint the greatness of each culture and I am quite glad I have the privilege to do so.

Today's post was recommended by one of the judge since she is an American Native. She noticed how I fixed everything from scratch and usually told me to get these stuffs from canned products or boxed recipes. I never had the courage to try, until now. The recipe can be found behind the box or if you would like to be a bit more creative, try googling it and there are tons of stuff you can try.

IF you guys know me, I always tend to make minor changes to the recipe to add a bit of my own personal flavor so I called it "mine"; very cliche but you know what, I LIKE IT! I added fresh parsley and some exotic flavors--lime, cilantro, a bit of chunk tomato. The result was not one of my favorite but my roommates totally enjoyed it very much! I got 3 thumbs up and I am proud of myself!

Goodnight America!
=]

Update!

FYI! I had another failure, not flan, this time. Remember about the post of pâté? Well it was a total disaster and the taste was horrible. Like many failures, I do not know the reason why and I have thoroughly checked the ingredients, preparations, and cooking steps and I just cannot grasp the idea of, yet, another failure!

First, the color was not the same pasty color I was looking for. The murky color of authentic pâté was, clearly, not there. Maybe because I had to substitute a lot of ingredients as listed with other brands. However, that should not be the problem with the taste at all!

Second, the texture was not consistent with the usual texture I usually tasted. For this process, I simply cannot find the reason to justify my actions. I have tasted a wide varieties of pâté from many different cuisines and the variation is not a big gap. My version was just totally off! =[

Finally, the taste was just plain and lacked the flavors I enjoyed so much. My hope for this project was high and, yet, this is just another disappointment I have to added to my "Need-Trophies" shelve...

I am quite disappointed because I received no thumbs up nor down in this project from the "judges" since there were not even ANYTHING to judge in the first place; a negative score would do so much better than my score!...It was a complete disaster.


=[ Goodnight College Station

Watercress Soup

What is watercress? That should be the question many of you readers are wondering about right now. Watercress is a perennial plants indigenous mostly in Europe and central Asia. "It is one of the oldest known leaf vegetables consumed by human beings" according to many sources of food anthropology, including Watercress.com.

In cooking, watercress gives out a rather bitter and tart taste that is perfect for salad mixes, a contrast to the sweet taste of other greens in its family. The dish i'm preparing tonight is a simple watercress soup with minced pork. Very easy to prepared and little time required. However, the collection of ingredients will be quite hard to find since watercress is not sold in your normal grocery stores. There is one supermarket that sells watercress, by bunches, in College Station area. The store is called an Asian marketplace located near Walmart on 2818. You can contact me for the exact location via email or do a simple search on Google.

Watercress Soup

4 bunches of watercress (3 person servings)
a pinch of salt
1/2 lb. of ground pork (or meat of choice)
minced fried onions
1/4 cup of chopped scallions
1/2 tsp of pepper


Cooking

Brings water to boil (3 cups of water)
Slightly seasons the ground pork with some salt, add the minced fried onions in the meat also.
When water boils, add the seasoned ground pork in the pot and stir slightly until the meat is cooked.
Adds the watercress and turns the heat off after adding the vegetables to avoid overcooked texture.
Adds the chopped scallions and the pepper together.

P.S. Watercress is one of the eight vegetables of V8 juices....a mystery to us all, until now! =]

Spicy Italian Meatloaf

I picked up this recipe while grocery shopping at my, once again, favorite local food market. This dish is among one of many favorite dishes of Western cuisine. Meatloaf is a comfort food and usually used as a cure for those with a broken heart and a supplement for satisfaction goodness. For me, this is an experiment for the supplemental goodness.

Spicy Italian Meatloaf

1 1/2 lb. Ground Beef
1 Jar Canyon Foods Giardiniera Relish
1/2 Cup of Italian Style Bread Crumbs
1/4 Cup Milk
3/4 Cup Grated Parmesan Cheese (Reserve 1/4 Cup)
1 8 oz. can Tomato Sauce (Reserve 1/4 Cup)
2 Eggs (slightly beaten)
1/2 Cup diced Mozzarella (Optional)

Directions: Combine all ingredients in a large mixing bowl until incorporated. Place in a loaf pan or roll in parchment paper and bake at 400 degrees for 30 minutes. Top with reserved tomato sauce and parmesan and bake an addtional 10 minutes or an internal temperature of 160 degrees.



Above depicted the images of the easy-preparation-and-cook meatloaf in a scrambled form and a log of meat.

Please excuse me for my unappeal photo skills...There's a reason why I don't own a Canon or Nikon as my camera of choice. I received 4 stars from both judges for this meatloaf.

P.S. Pick up a recipe from HEB kitchen station...it will do you some good, as it did to moi.

Duck Liver Pâté

Lately, all posts are linked together; fried liver, fried catfish, and now we're back to liver once again. I have a very peculiar taste for the French cuisine and I enjoyed almost every delicacy of the French has to offered. Although I have never been there, but what i'm quite sure is that French food must taste very damn good =]

As mentioned, duck liver pâté is a French delicacy and the almost national dish of France, known for its succulent and buttery taste. It is used in a spread-form for pastry, mainly used as an appetite with pastry. Pâté is a time-consumed thing; from preparation to tasting usually takes about 3-4 days (according to the recipe).

I followed the recipe religiously and gave it my best effort of any dishes I have ever prepared so far. Hopefully, by wednesday night, we will have a enjoyable result, one of which I can be proud of.

Until then, please spare me some patience as I am anxioulsy waiting for my magnum opus.

Au Revoir mon amis.

Fried Catfish (Indian Style)

Sooo If you have not notice the trend, this post is also another "All "fried" related". The topic and recipe of today's experiment are provided by a good friend of mine, chose to remained anonymity. We shall name the friend Jackolantern for the time being.

The recipe for this dish is fairly quite simple since and fried batter is not in the mix. I got the fish from HEB (my favorite grocery store of College Station) and the cost for two catfishes is about 5 dollars, not bad at all. I chose not to follow the normal mix of conventional catfish served at restaurants but rather just to fried them with hot oil. The seasonings for this dish are the normal seasonings of salt, sugar, and garlic powder. One exception, the friend "accidentally" poured a bit of curry powder into the mix and almost instantly, the marinated fishes have a new aroma, and its smell quite tasty uncooked.


The pictures above are the catfishes while being marinated and cooked on the spot. I am eating the fish as typing and the slight touch of curry flavor does add a whole lot to the whole dish. I gave myself 5 thumbs up.

=]

Fried Liver

After trying the food from Brazil and other countries, I am compelled to test my grounds. The topic of the day is liver and this means liver of anything...duck, pig, and chicken. Don't pouch your lips and give me that yucky face, you probably have tasted liver before you just don't know it. Liver is a delicacy to many cuisines, including the most celebrated cuisine of modern cooking, France. Foie gras and pâté are synonymous with the Frnech cuisine for its succulent taste and a perfect matching with bread.

The discussion of the day is not all about just the French cuisine but for the usage of liver. Furthermore, I introduce to you guys fried liver. This is a random thought and, personally, I think it would taste great since it has a rich a buttery texture. This is a simple mix and I choose to do the double dip. All purpose flour was used for the batter, a pinch of salt, and two beaten eggs on the side.

Liver is sold at various markets, even HEB so getting the supply should not be a problem at all. Thoroughly wash the livers and let it dry before cook. Dip the livers into the beaten eggs mix and toss it into the batter mix, roll it, shake before remove for batter residue, dip it into the eggs again and lastly, dip the liver into the batter one more time before deep frying it. Allow 10 minutes for cooking between each batter.

Well since this is a snack, i enjoyed it by myself and the judges were not at home in the first place; thus i'm excused from being judged and fought over my food. If you want to try the liver beforehand prior to cooking it yourself....take a drive to your local Chicken Express and fried liver is on the menu at a cheap price.

Good Day! =]

Bitter Gourd

For sometimes in life, bitterness is the thing we need in life; the bitter truth and the inconveniences of our journey. My life has been quite "sweet" lately and I need to balance it out with some bitterness. Bitter melon is an indigenous fruit/vegetable to Southeast Asian region and for some cultures, it is regarded as a delicacy. Bitter melon served as a counterbalance flavor to the sweetness of many Asian cuisines. The medicinal ability of this vegetable is very versatile for its effective cure of headache, digestion, constipation, and various other effects. 

The dish I have chosen tonight is "mixed bitter gourd and eggs" and this dish is very well known to the Vietnamese people. This dish required very few preparations--beat the eggs and cut the squash into thin slices. The dish can be made within 10 minutes and is a quick fix for many Asian families. 

Ingredients:

*3 bitter melons

*4 eggs

*1/4 teaspoon of salt

*1/4 teaspoon of oil

*1/4 teaspoon of water

*1 clove of garlic

serving size: 2

Preparations: 

*Wash and cut the bitter melons into half; peels off the inside seeds

*Cut the melons into thin slices of 1/4 of an inch

*Peels and dices the garlic

*Beats the eggs and adds half of all reasonings while beating the eggs gently

*Turns the stove in HIGH heat

Instructions: 

*Heats the oil and add the garlic and stir until slightly golden

*Adds the bitter melons with the garlic and stir fry for 2 minutes

*Adds the water and stirs for another 3 minutes

*Pour the eggs into the mix and adds the rest of the seasoning together

*Turns heat off and serve on plate

Failed Attempt: 2

As I am struggling to balance out between school-works and work, life is just not quite all sweet right now. Thus, it is no insanity for me to satisfy my sweet craving for FLAN! The delicate dessert is known for its succulent taste and soft texture, all the reasons that leave me to have more. 

That was my last flan while I was in Brazil. This piece of heaven costed me only 5 US dollars (after currency exchange) and believe me, I wanted more when since I'm back. 

This is my second attempt for making flan  and I really wanted to put my utmost effort into this project.  Since my first attempt of cheesecake was a success, Tyler Florence is the man at the hour; thus, I entrusted his recipes and decided to follow it once more. This recipe seems quite easy to follow for its step-by-step instructions and simple language. I am an ignorant when it comes to cooking jargons and related terms. 

I followed the recipe with my most attentive details and effort. The caramel glaze was even very good, although it takes two trials this time. Upon slicing the flan, I noticed a sudden burst of liquid came out from the flan which personally thought was quite odd because the flan is supposed to be intact and soft. The whole "flan colossal" collapsed after I sliced the first one. There goes again, another wasted effort on flan only this time, it is a mystery since I do not know which steps I have mistaken or wronged about. I guess in some ways, it was not a wasted effort at all; for the trial and errors of life; for the mistakes I've made. you only know about true result something after it has been finished and for that, I will try again to make this perfect flan.