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Published: October 15th 2011
Oh, Vietnamese food, you are so delicious! Apart from our horrible fish soup in Dong Van we haven't had a bad meal anywhere. Street food is really where it's at, so cheap and so delicious but we've sat in plenty of good restaurants too. Since my paternal grandmother died many years ago the art of genuine Vietnamese cooking has been lost to me. My grandmother was renowned for her cooking, to this day my family speaks of how great of a cook she was. But I was too young and naive to pay attention at the time, I thought all grandmothers could cook like her. So I figured my best bet for learning how to cook some dishes is in Vietnam itself. I had to be careful when choosing a class though, our daily budget is $45 and I wanted to get the best bang for our buck. We stumbled across The Morning Glory Cooking School which offered a tour of the local market plus four hours of cooking for $25. It seemed like a great deal since the other classes we found were 2 hour classes for $20 and no market tour. I was SO excited that day! Joel walked
me to the class and we parted ways, the first time we've been apart since our trip (yes, we actually still like each other!)
First came the market tour. Our guide pointed out the many spices and herbs we would be using in our dishes that day and she also demystified local produce by telling us what some odd shaped fruit and vegetables were that we don't find too often in the states. She pointed out the difference between small ginger, garlic, and shallots that is used commonly in Vietnamese cuisine. The smaller ones have more flavor and she cut them open to let us smell the difference between the small ginger and the bigger ginger we use in the US and the difference was really amazing. They only use the big ginger for tea and candy, the smaller ones go in dipping sauces. She also showed us galangal, also called blue ginger, which is used in sauces and for medicinal purposes. We sniffed turmeric, lemongrass, garlic chives, Chinese coriander, and five spice powder which I learned contains anise, black cardamon, nutmeg, cloves, and cinnamon. This is used in Vietnamese BBQ which I would later learn is absolutely delicious!
Fresh Herbs
Mint, coriander, basil, chives, ect. She showed us all the different eggs for sale in the market, surprisingly duck eggs are used much more often in cooking than chicken eggs. It also makes denser, creamier cakes as well. Next came the herbs, so many! Anise basil (used in pho), lemon basin (for beef salad), Vietnamese mint (used for things like chicken and rice), and the mint we're used to which they use for teas and cocktails. Coriander is used for stir-frys and soups and chives are used in fresh spring rolls and soups. We sniffed some watercress which smelled fishy, they pull it right out of the rivers every morning to sell at the market. Amazingly the market opens between 3-4 AM and closes around 7-8 PM, of course the sooner you get there the better, so you get the freshest herbs, fishes, and meats. On a hot day in the middle of the afternoon the market is hard to walk through when you pass the meat section since it smells rancid, but early that morning I didn't smell a thing. She took us to the seafood section next and showed us the fish and crabs they pull out of the river. She showed
Ms Vy
A third generation chef, Ms Vy grew up in Hoi An and opened her first restaurant in 1994. She also just had her first cookbook published, Taste Vietnam. us how to pick out a fresh fish by looking for clear eyes and pink gills, and of course if its still flopping you know it's super fresh.
After the market she lead us back to the cooking class where we washed up and got started with the real deal. We each had our own cooking stations with banana leaves as cutting boards and a propane stove to cook our dishes on. Ms Vy, our instructor was really great. The first dish she showed us was Cabbage Leaf Parcels with Shrimp Mousse in Broth. She said this is what Vietnamese women cook for their mother-in-laws so that they know their sons are marrying someone who cooks well. She compared this soup to chicken and noodle soup, this is what the Vietnamese eat when they aren't feeling well and want something simple yet delicious. We started off with a very simple clear vegetable broth and added cabbage and a few carrots (not too many or the carrots will over power everything). Then she cooked the shrimp mousse in the broth and wrapped them in cabbage leaves and tied them in a pretty bow with a spring onion. After letting it
Cabbage soup with shrimp
Very good! Perfect if you're feeling under the weather. simmer for 10 minutes its ready to eat. She passed around her soup for us to taste and it was amazing. The broth is clear and flavorful without being overly spicy. Then it was my turn to try. Of course mine didn't turn out nearly as pretty as hers, I had trouble wrapping my bow around the cabbage leaf, plus I over salted it, but it was still really good. Her assistants scooped away all the dirty dishes and started passing out the ingredients for the next dish, she really runs a very clean and organized kitchen which I loved.
Next came fresh shrimp and pork spring rolls. She showed us the many different kinds of rice paper (there are a lot) and the best ones to use for fresh rolls. Then she showed us how to stack the herbs and lettuce with the vermicelli noodles and how to place the pork and shrimp beside it. The best part was the crunchy deep fried shrimp rolls that go in the middle and then we rolled it all up and dipped it in fish sauce. The textures of the fresh herbs, the chewiness of the pork, and the crunch of
The finished product
Ms Vy explained that they cut the fat off the pork for tourists but Vietnamese people like to eat it with all the fat on because it adds more flavor. the fried spring roll in the middle was simply divine! She reminded us that Vietnamese cooking is all about using the freshest ingredients and layering the textures to create the perfect dish. And it was perfect. My spring roll didn't get wrapped very pretty but it still tasted darn good.
Next we marinated chicken Vietnamese style. Here is the recipe so you can make it yourself, rest assured its worth it.
16 chicken thighs, skin off
1/3 cup fresh turmeric or 1 tablespoon ground turmeric
1/3 cup lemongrass, pounded
1 tsp sea salt
1 Tb sugar
1/2 tsp coarse black pepper
1/2 tsp five spice powder
4 lime leaves, sliced finely
2 Tbs garlic, pounded
2 Tbs shallots, pounded
1 tsp dried chili flakes
1 tsp sesame oil
1 Tbs fish sauce
8 wooden skewers soaked in water 1 hour
Place chicken tights in a bowl. Add salt, sugar, pepper, and five spice. Mix well.
Pound turmeric, add to chicken with garlic, shallots, lemongrass, chilli, lime leaves, seasame oil, and fish sauce. Mix well, use gloves so turmeric won't turn your hands yellow. Marinate 30 minutes. Thread 2 pieces onto each skewer, grill 5-6 minutes on each
Mango Salad with Marinated Chicken
I was in heaven with every bite :) side on a low heat. Serves 4 as a main dish.
We made a mango salad to go with the chicken skewers and man was it good! I could eat it everyday! It had thinly sliced green mangos, onions, mint, sesame seeds, fried shallots, lime juice, garlic, fish sauce, and chili's. The flavors of this dish are distinctly Vietnamese, a very refreshing salad and a perfect combination to go with the grilled chicken. Lastly we made Banh Xeo, or crispy pancakes. I've always seen them as Vietnamese crepes on menus in the states. In a small frying pan we cooked up some small shrimp and little bit of pork, then you add the batter which I always thought had eggs in it, but it doesn't! It's liquid rice, mung beans, coconut cream, and other spices all mixed together. Then you fry it until it gets nice and crispy, roll it in rice paper with fresh herbs and banana slices and dip it in a sweet and sour sauce. Yummy! The crispy fried goodness of the pancakes goes so well with the bite of the fresh herbs and banana slices. I could eat one of these everyday too but I
probably shouldn't.
Joel met me outside of the class when it was over and I was buzzing from my high, I blabbed all about it and he said I'd have to take one more before we left Hoi An. I did take one more at the Hai Cafe, but it wasn't quite the same. It was more of a cooking demonstration but it was still a lot of fun. There I learned how to make Grilled Fish in Banana Leaves, Fried Spring Rolls, and Beef Salad. The food was delicious and my cooking buddies were pretty hilarious. I knew it was going to be a good class when the chef passed around a bottle of rum and told us to drink, I've never been a fan of rum until I tasted this stuff. It was amazingly smooth and sweet, I wish I knew the name but I couldn't take a picture of the bottle since I left the battery to the camera in the hotel room. Otherwise I would share pictures of this class with you too. Two of the women in the class refused to help the chef chop vegetables and herbs, one of them said, "I came
Sea bass at the market
See the baby fish in the big fishes mouth? here to eat and to drink, I don't cook and I don't intend on starting now". Of course everyone looked at her like she was crazy, she WAS in a cooking class for crying out loud, but she turned out to be a hoot.
If you want any of the other recipes just let me know and I'll be happy to email them to you . Next up, our adventures of Hoi An tailors and the beauty of the Cham ruins at My Son, a UNESCO world heritage site. Until then!
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