Monday, August 30, 2010

Vietnam 2010 - Day 4

Just as we started, the final meal in Vietnam was another bowl of Pho but this time at Pho 24 just 2 stores down from Pho 2000. Pho 24 is altogether a more modern joint with many franchises and definitely more comfortable to dine in. Broth wise, the one at Pho 24 is more rustic and cloudier than over at Pho 2000. Both have its merits but my vote goes to Pho 2000 for the cleaner taste. The noodles are identical as far as I could tell. Meat wise, the selection at Pho 24 is much more satisfying – offering raw fillet, tendons, brisket and meatballs whereas Pho 2000 only has the boiled shoulder. I was intrigued to see Creme Caramel on the menu and ordered one to try. It should have stayed off the menu.


Last minute shopping for coffee and nuts concluded the trip.







Special thanks to Jeremy for sharing his pictures for me to post here. Any shots that look better than mine usually are are probably his.

Vietnam 2010 - Day 3

Day 3 had the potential to be a great excursion to Vung Tau but mistakes were made. I thought we could explore the whole place on bicycle, but turns out the terrain was a lot more challenging than expected. Look at how dramatically the hills rise over the town. It’s no wonder they emulated Rio de Janeiro in building a statue of Christ on one of the summits.





Lunch was supposed to be an orgy of cheap seafood and beer. I pre-scouted a restaurant. 3 years ago, Hai Sang Song was frequented by locals for its great value. We took a cab there and settled on the table. Something was wrong. This place looked too nice to be serving cheap food. The waitresses were too attentive and circled around our table like vultures. Suspicious, I got up to inspect the seafood tanks. WTF! 1.5 million Dong per kilo for the local lobsters (cleverly written only in Vietnamese)? That’s like SGD$110. Screw that! Back at the table, my friends was hungry and wanted some soup. I wasn’t paying attention to them as I was still looking at the ridiculous price charts. That’s a fatal error. The waitress has slyly directed him from a prix fixe soup to a seasonally priced crab hotpot which I only discovered when the item was brought to us. When I revealed that we’ve been had, our appetites have all but dissolved. Avoid this place like the bubonic plague.

The day was rescued with a stroke of wild luck when we took a cab to Cholon (Chinatown). The driver spoke pretty good Mandarin and we got a relaxing guided tour of the district in air conditioned comfort. Towards the end we asked for a dining recommendation and were directed to a place for Lau Canh Chua – fish hotpot. Everything about the restaurant radiated of good things to come. From charcoals pits, not fanned, but blown by freaking air pumps to 3 fully occupied levels of dining space.


Fish hotpot is probably not the right term – it was chock full of ingredients: fish heads, fish fillets, fishballs, fishcakes, dried fish flakes, meatballs, pork liver, pork kidney, pork stomach, fried pork skin, squid, prawns, cabbage and preserved vegetables in chicken/fish broth all managed to find room in the snug hotpot. The flavours were pure Chinese but much more hearty than what we find in Singapore.

Vietnam 2010 - Day 2

The second day started with a tour of Cu Chi tunnels. The history was interesting but the exhibits were merely recreations of the real thing. We intended to lunch at the famous Banh Xeo restaurant at district 3 but of all days of the year, it was closed for the first day of the Hungry Ghost Festival. Luckily, our cabbie spoke fluent Mandarin and recommended us a place for Bahn Cuon which is basically Chee Cheong Fun wrapped around ground pork and pork lard. A nice lunch but it was nothing to write home about.


This, I think, is some sort of fried bean cake.




Here, we were way out of downtown Saigon and away from all other tourists.


Dinner was the tourist attraction of Quan An Ngon, which is basically a congregation of food stalls in spruced up surroundings with excellent service and great value. We made up for our missed Banh Xeo here. The crepe-like pancake was nice and crispy on the edges but the centre was just a touch soggy. It’s a nice appetiser nonetheless.


The Bo Kho, which is sort of a Vietnamese take on Boeuf Bourguignon was served with a small loaf of baguette. On the surface of the flavour profile, there was definitely a hit cinnamon and star anise and perhaps cloves and turmeric too. Propping up the spices was taste of patiently caramelised tomato puree. You can actually still see the slick of red tomato oil. The unapologetically fatty beef drives home the message that we were in serious territory of deliciousness. My only qualm with this dish was the criminally under-toasted baguette.


The rice paper rolls and chicken sticks there were rather average. We also ordered a Pho and a Bun Luon (noodles with fried eel). They were both respectable though both tasted suspiciously of the cursed Maggie Chicken Stock. Seriously, that stuff is ruining great food up and down Asia.



Sunday, August 29, 2010

Vietnam 2010 - Day 1

It’s been 11 days since I posted on this, my pet project for the summer. For most of this week I was in Vietnam for a last-minute holiday just as the vacations draws to an end. Add a couple of days to sort out the photographs and think about what to write and here we are on the cusp on the commencement of the new academic year. Thankfully, tomorrow would be just a lecture reviewing the basics of quantum mechanics. =)

Now, however, I shall attempt to review my trip chronologically.

The first meal in Saigon was the ever predictable Pho Bo. We had ours at Pho 2000 just beside Ben Thanh market. The texture of the rice noodles came as a surprise. I expected the thick Bee Hoon mouthfeel but was instead rewarded with something more like ethereally thin Ipoh Hor Fun that disappears down the gullet. The broth here is done the classic way at low temperature and long hours with massive quantities of beef bone. It's light and clear but the beefiness oozes through ever drop of it. As warned, the boiled beef shoulder was just that – boiled meat.


The itinerary for the first day included the Reunification Palace, War Remnants Museum and the Notre Dame Cathedral. The first two were admittedly forgettable unless you are really into the Vietnam War.

Traffic conditions.


Note the 'X' over the USAF emblam.


We were introduced to the Monsoon season with a sudden downpour as we headed towards the War Remnants Museum. We ducked into a cafe at the Sports Club nearby and experienced best coffee I’ve had in Saigon. It’s a common practise to serve a light green tea on the side. The effect is undisputedly Yin and Yang. The coffee was sweet (maybe too sweet), chocolaty, thick and heaty while the tea is light, refreshing and cooling. In an ideal world I could sit there all day long with a good book.


Potrait of war victims.


Vietnamese calligraphy, I like.


Not sure, but sure feels like a Soviet-inspired monument.


And nobody gets electrocuted.


I quite liked the cathedral but the decision to isolate the building on an island with traffic running on all 4 sides is pretty imbecilic.

Notre Dame Cathedral - Thou Shalt Never Get A Clear Shot.



Next meal was at a Northern Vietnamese restaurant serving Bun Cha – Quan Ho Tay. I have been craving for that since I first saw it in Bourdain’s No Reservations which sort of inflated my expectations. Turns out, Bun Cha is a really really simple and light dish. There are 3 elements in it – the rice noodles, this time more substantial than the noodles in the pho but still very light, the basket of greens and the dip which was sweet, sour and rich with rendered pork lard. If I am to take a wild stab, I would make the dip with some pork broth, fish sauce, pickled cucumbers, the pickling liquid, sugar, honey (there was a hint of something floral) and lard. I found the charcoal grilled patties and pork slices were more like accompaniments rather than the focus of the dish although I definitely wouldn’t mind doubling the amount of meat. To eat, dunk some noodles and greens in the sauce and slurp just like soba.


Al fresco dining option.


The place also serves a mean Banh Tom – battered small prawns and shredded sweet potato. One could tell that it was freshly made and fried to order as the prawns still maintained their juiciness despite the batter being very crisp.


I also walked passed this Bahn Mi store that was once voted as the Best Sandwich in Saigon. Obviously, this woman hasn’t sold out and fell prey to the evils of business expansion. Despite the torrential rain there were a line of locals queuing and she was already running out of baguettes when I arrived. All I could take home was the maddening fragrance of grilled meat.


Since the Ben Thanh Night Market was just at my hotel’s door step, we stopped to sample a Bun Bo Hue – Hue style beef noodles and Bun Mam – seafood noodles with a punchy prawn paste broth. Both were rather tasty but unrefined.


Night Market at our door step. Sweet!

Wednesday, August 18, 2010

Kingfish Sashimi and Tempura

My dad unexpectedly brought a sashimi-grade kingfish fillet back from Sydney, giving me a chance to use my recently acquired vintage ‘Tamahagane’ Yanagi-ba (sashimi slicer). The edge didn’t disappoint though my technique leaves room for vast improvement. I didn’t have much to use in terms of garnish so I had to make do with half a lime and some needle cut cucumbers.


The rest of the fillet was done tempura style with some small prawns with the head left on, onions, shiitakes, red and yellow papers, sweet potatoes and eggplants. My batter? 2 parts all-purpose flour, 1 part Dragon Boat brand Crispy Flour and enough cold beer to get the correct consistency.

Monday, August 16, 2010

Prawns, Chorizo and Anchovy Linguini

Anchovies in pasta sauce is great, and it’s a shame that this flavour is hard to come by here. I guess putting anchovies in the menu still constitute a small risk some restaurants are not willing to take. The way it is done here, browned patiently with garlic, puts the anchovies firmly in the background while giving the sauce a savoury depth.

Browning the anchovies and garlic. Prawns pre-seared. Prawn shell stock boiling away.


Chorizos (not shown) were crisped and then the base tomato sauce added. Allow it to brown before adding the stock.


Add stock, reduce, dump in ¾ cooked pasta, stew and reduce.


Serve with basil and lemon peel.

Sunday, August 15, 2010

Yau Zham Grouper

I got inspired to attempt this restaurant classic while watching the TV. Usually, you need a truckload of oil to deep fry fish as crisp as they do professionally but I found that if you dry your fish very thoroughly, you can get away with shallow frying in about a centimetre of oil. After butterflying it I let it dry in front of the fan for an hour until the skin feels dry and leathery. If you look carefully I actually broke the fish and then hid the damage under the spring onions =P. I like this recipe even better with a generous fillet of cod. Just remember to score the skin well.

Woodwillows

Mycofarm mushroom farm is only a couple of minute’s drive from my place. Of the varieties they cultivate, I think the woodwillow is the most interesting in texture and taste. Sauté in a screaming hot pan with butter and garlic and deglaze then with a little wine. It may sound unusual but I like to season with light soy instead of only salt. Poached egg on the side and a nice toast complete a hard-to-top breakfast.


Monday, August 9, 2010

Beef Cheek Bourguignon

I realized all my posts so far have a Japanese theme. Here's a change of flavour with an old French classic. While traditional recipes call for cuts like shoulder, I think that the cheek is the most superior of stewing meats with a good proportion of fat, collagen and muscle.

The trick with Bourguignon is that it is easy to get something cloyingly sweet. Use less vegetable and instead of only wine, I used half wine and half stock for the braising liquid. Aromatics came from a bouquet garni, clove and star anise.



Couldn’t resist showing off the Ichimonji TKC Gyuto which I sharpened with a convex bevel.


The braising liquid and vegetables were blended, strained and then mounted with butter for the sauce.

Friday, August 6, 2010

Winter 2009 - Japan - Others

This is the last of my Winter 2009 series. Its just collection of food-related pictures.

Amazing looking mushrooms at Himeiji farmer's market.


Knives at Sakai Ichimonji store on Doguya-Suji arcade in Osaka. Doguya-Suji is a restaurant supplies district clustered with many knife shops.



Famous crab at Dotonbori.


Grilled oysters and oyster farms at Miyajima. Home of the famous Itsukushima Shrine





The most amazing little alley near Shinjuku packed full of yakitori joints. I hate myself for missing out on yakitori while in Japan. The entrance of the alley is near the Uniqlo corner store just outside Shinjuku station. Follow your nose and you won't miss it.



Horse sashimi.


Hand made udon at Roppongi. Easily the best noodle dish I had in the whole trip. Somehow I didn't find any ramen places which I liked better than Marutama.


Sushi train joint in Ueno.







Parting words of wisdom.