2008 August | gas•tron•o•my

Archive for August, 2008

Noodlepie’s Sarnie

Published

on August 31, 2008

in Banh Mi, Saigon, Street Food and Vietnamese

. 6 Comments

There was an era a few months back when I would read Noodlepie almost nightly for dinner ideas. The Gastronomer was working late, so I was on my own to scour the streets of districts 1 and 3 in search of new dishes, and I found a lot of winners. Once, I stumbled upon a post entitled “Is this the best sandwich in Saigon?” It was about a lady selling banh mi thit nuong in the evenings at 37 Nguyen Trai Street. He writes:

I’ve tried many a sarnie in this mad megalopolis, but this particular specimen is undeniably the bread’s bollocks. Enjoy. I did. Burp.

Of course I had to try it. There are two primary styles of banh mi thit nuong in Saigon—one is nuoc mam-based, while the other is dressed with some version of barbeque sauce. This lady’s sandwich was my first taste of the latter style. The sandwich is simple, just meat, do chua (pickled daikon and carrots), cucumber slices, and barbeque and chili sauce. Being a weakling, I typically decline the chili sauce, but I’ve tried the sandwich spicy a few times and it’s still pretty damn good. The pork pieces are circular—closer in shape and texture to bun cha patties than the meat typically featured in banh mi thit nuong.

On my first visit to the stand, I had to wait 10 to 15 minutes behind a line of motorists and workers from nearby shops to receive my sandwich. This has become a routine—there’s no doubt this lady is popular! She starts selling banh mi and bun thit nuong in the late afternoon and typically runs out of meat by 7:30. It’s no wonder—the sandwiches are awesome. I can’t quite go so far as to proclaim them the best in town (my favorite sandwich vendor in District 4 still has a special place in my heart), but they’re definitely a must try, and two for 14,000 VND is one of the best dinner deals out there.

There are few things I’ll miss more upon leaving Saigon than banh mi thit nuong. This is the dish that almost singlehandedly convinced me that it’s okay to eat meat for breakfast every morning, and on more than one occasion, I’ve eaten three sandwiches in one day. The nuoc mam-flavored variety seems more traditionally Vietnamese to me, while the version with barbeque sauce brings back memories of Alabama. Either way, nothing brings joy to my heart like spotting a miniature grill on a street cart. It’s a sure-fire sign of good times to come.

Bánh Tráng Trộn

Published

Gastronomer

on August 29, 2008

in Banh Trang Tron, Saigon, Street Food and Vietnamese

. 5 Comments

Banh trang tron is a hodge-podge salad-type creation that I’ve only encountered in street food form. Whereas most of Saigon’s pavement eats are sold on some sort of rolling metal cart, banh trang tron is sold exclusively by conical hat-donning women carrying weighty baskets over their shoulders.

The surest sign that you’ve stumbled upon a banh trang tron dealer is the small hoard of business suit-clad women crouching around her baskets waiting for their take of the stuff.

The base of the dish is banh trang (rice paper), which are cut into strips and kept dry as a bone. A packet of flavoring agents that includes chili powder and MSG are added to the banh trang strips. Next, an abundance of fresh rau ram (Vietnamese coriander) is torn into the mix, followed by a squeeze of sour Vietnamese kalamansi juice and hard boiled quail eggs. The vendor combines (tron) the ingredients with her hands and serves up a portion in a plastic bag with two skewers serving as makeshift chopsticks.

Even though banh trang tron is a painfully dry dish, it manages to meld all of the ingredients into a cohesive flavor. Although edible, it’s just not all that appealing, especially the clumps of chili powder. The Astronomer conjectures that this dish was thought up during an era of extreme poverty to spruce up plain old rice paper. I think he may be on to something.

26.2 Miles & Asiana Airlines

Published

Gastronomer

on August 28, 2008

in Airplane Food, Korean and Scenes

. 3 Comments

On our final morning in Beijing, The Astronomer woke up super-early to catch the men’s marathon. I was wiped out after a late evening of track and field and chose to sleep in before boarding our trans-Pacific flight. I know, I’m weak. The Astronomer caught the pack of runners at three different points along the course. Here they are around four minutes into the race. The lead pack cleared the first mile in 4:41. Insanity!

The conditions on race day were 74 degrees in the shade and 84 degrees on the course. Here are the leaders 36 kilometers into the race (six kilometers left). Sammy Wanjiru of Kenya is in first at this point, and he pulled away to win in a time of 2:06:32. What pollution?

After playing groupie, The Astronomer returned to the hotel and we got in our own (much slower) run and then headed off to the airport.

On the first leg of our flight from Beijing to Seoul, we were served beef with rice, peas and carrots. Side items included a roll, butter, potato salad, fruit salad and a tube of Korean chili paste. Although it’s hard to tell from the picture, the portion of beef seemed quite generous. Our idea of what constitutes a proper protein portion has been forever distorted after residing in Vietnam for a year. We thought this meal was on par with the ones we’ve eaten on United and Cathay Pacific—solid airplane fare.

Before leaving us alone to watch movies and pass out on the second leg of our flight from Seoul to LAX, the stewardesses served dinner. Our choices were Korean or Western. The Astronomer and I had one of each—Korean for her and Western for him. I think it’s so wonderfully cool that Asiana serves bi bim bap on board. Imagine if Vietnam Airlines served pho. Wouldn’t that be a trip (literally and figuratively)? The bi bim bap came with a little fold-out note card instructing fliers in English, Chinese and Korean how to assemble and eat it. I saved the foldout because it was just too precious to throw away with the garbage.

The instructions advised me to add the hot rice to the beef and vegetable mixture first. Then, I squirted Korean chili paste on top. Lastly, I mixed it all together well. The instructions suggested that I eat the bi bim bap with the hot soup and the banchan (kimchi, burdock with peanuts and tiny salty dried fishes), which I did. The bi bim bap was probably the best thing I’ve ever eaten on board a plane.

The Astronomer’s Western steak and potatoes didn’t come close to matching the awesomeness of my bi bim bap. The steak was anti-tender, but The Astronomer said the sauce was good. Suuuure.

Eight hours later (two hours before landing at LAX), we were served a final meal. I chose the crispy fried seafood, which wasn’t so crispy by the time it arrived in front of me. The soba noodles with wasabi weren’t the least bit gluey, and they actually tasted quite good! What’s cool about flying on a non-American airline is that soba noodles are considered a perfectly normal thing to serve on board. Love that!

The Astronomer went for the “bulgogi” for his final meal. It tasted exactly like the beef and rice dish we were served from Beijing to Seoul. Before we knew it, we were back on American soil. Unbelievable!

And because reader Nate inquired, here’s some ping pong action from Day 2 in Beijing. The Astronomer and I were rooting for the French dude in blue because he looked like a dad and had a little beer belly. Too bad he lost to the ultra-fit eastern European. Give the old man a break!