Category Archive for ‘Saigon’ at gas•tron•o•my

Archive for the 'Saigon' Category

Final Feast @ Bà Sáu’s

Published

on October 12, 2008

in Cha Gio, Curry, Family Gatherings, Mi Xao / Hu Tieu Xao, Saigon, Thit Kho, Vietnamese and Xoi

. 11 Comments

The day before The Astronomer and I departed from Saigon for Hanoi, Ba Sau (my grandma’s younger sister) invited us over to her home in Phu Nhuan District for a final feast. Throughout our year in Vietnam, Ba Sau treated us to fabulous homemade eats, and this last lunch was no exception.

Ba Sau and her daughters-in-law worked all morning to prepare this amazing spread. I had some of my best meals in Vietnam at Ba Sau’s lovely home. I fondly remember the time she made a special version of bo bia when my friend Liana came to visit and the time she prepared banh tet from scratch during Tet. Her generosity and mad kitchen skills are unparalleled.

My Uncle Son’s (Son is his name) wife made xoi gac—sticky rice flavored subtly and colored intensely with gac fruit. The prune-looking garnish is actually a gac seed.

Ba Sau made one of my all-time favorite dishes, thit kho—caramelized hunks of braised pork legs and hardboiled eggs. The layer of fat is pure lusciousness.

Ba Sau’s ca ri ga—chicken curry—is the stuff dreams are made of. The rich, creamy and slightly spicy broth tastes amazing poured upon vermicelli noodles or dipped with a fresh baguette.

The feast would not be complete without Ba Sau’s signature dish cha gio—Vietnamese egg rolls. Each cha gio is the length of one’s pinky finger and filled with a mixture of ground pork, spices (fish sauce, pepper, etc.) and taro root. The crisp and blistering golden skins are my favorite part. I asked my grandma back in the states why our family doesn’t make cha gio like Ba Sau’s and her reply was that it was just too labor-intensive.

The mi xao gion—crisp noodles topped with a light gravy and chunks of vegetables (cauliflower, bok choy, carrots) and various meats (beef, squid, shrimp)—was also fabulous. My aunts kept on refilling my bowl everytime I finished a serving. I gladly gobbled up everything set before me.

And last, but certainly not least, khổ qua nhoi thit—bitter melon stuffed with pork. True to its name, bitter melon is usually too bitter for my tastes, but Ba Sau’s rendition was surprisingly palatable. I didn’t quite get the exact details about how she extracted the bitter from the melon, but somehow, someway, the melon tasted slightly sweet and just a bit bitter. Ba Sau does wonders in the kitchen.

Family—Cau Minh and Son (top), Di Phung and Mo (bottom, left), Cau Son and his wife. We left Saigon with full bellies and huge smiles upon our faces. I seriously cannot wait to get back to Saigon—Ba Sau’s hospitality is nothing short of five stars.

Bánh Xèo with Friends

Published

Gastronomer

on October 9, 2008

in Banh Xeo, Bo La Lot, Restaurant Review, Saigon and Vietnamese

. 2 Comments

Just two more posts about Saigon and then we’re off to Hanoi, Sapa and then finally, America. I can’t believe how much I ate—it’s October for Pete’s sake! Anyhow, leaving Saigon was a great excuse for The Astronomer and I to gather all of our favorite peeps for a banh xeo and bo la lot feast. We initially planned to gorge at our favorite sizzling crepes joint in Phu Nhuan District but discovered that it was no longer in business when we motorbiked by to confirm the address. Down, but not out, we decided to move the party to an equally fabulous banh xeo shack in District 10.

The usual suspects—Hanh, Hawk, Nina and The Boyfriend—were present and accounted for. The evening’s special guests included Fiona, Jason, Chris, Tom, Mai and Erica.

Our party of 12 was seated al fresco with a perfect view of the hot griddles and hard working cooks. The hum of motorbikes and taxis cruising down CMT8 provided the soundtrack to our bumpin’ evening. We started the feast off with a couple plates of bo la lot (grilled seasoned beef wrapped in betel leaves). As expected, they were a hit. Some diners (namely those who hail from Central Vietnam) wrapped the bo la lot in rice paper with vermicelli noodles and star fruit and dipped them in nuoc mam or mam nem, while others (namely lazy folks) just ate them straight up. I was with the latter group.

Although my Saigon grandmother would argue otherwise, I think the best style of banh xeo are those from the central region. They’re petite little numbers filled with mung beans, whole shrimp and pork that are crisp all over.

There weren’t many photos taken this evening because my hands were covered in greasy goodness from the awesome banh xeo. The chefs traditionally rest the crepes on a rack prior to serving them to allow the oil to escape, but due to the insatiable appetite of our huge party, the crepes were served hot off the griddle and thus, super-duper oily. No matter, they were still excellent.

After we had our fill of banh xeo and bo la lot, we paid our ridiculously cheap bill, snapped this pic (can someone please explain to me why Asian females flash the peace sign when photographed?), and jammed over to Turtle Pond for Saigon’s greatest dessert—kem trai dua (coconut ice cream served inside a young coconut). Afterwards, we went bowling and then headed to Vasco’s for a nightcap. Vasco’s was then followed by Wiener Time at Apocalypse Now. At around 2 AM, we finally crashed and went home. I may not go out too often, but when I do, there’s no question I go big.

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No Name
1 Bac Hai Street (on the corner of Cach Mang Thang Tam and Bac Hai streets)
District 10, Ho Chi Minh City

Nui Xào Bò - Stir-fried Pasta with Beef

Published

Gastronomer

on October 7, 2008

in Mi Xao / Hu Tieu Xao, Saigon, Street Food and Vietnamese

. 1 Comment

It’s more or less common knowledge that the French introduced baguettes to the Vietnamese during the colonial era, but a lesser know French culinary influence are Western-style noodles like spaghetti, penne and macaroni. Known as nui in Vietnamese, the word is derived from the French nouille.

Growing up, whenever mom or grandma prepared steaks or chops, the juicy slabs of meat were always accompanied by noodles (most often spaghetti) rather than rice. Sometimes the noodles were simply stir-fried with garlic, butter, pepper and soy sauce, and other times they were cooked a bit more elaborately with onions and tomato paste. My grandma also like to slip some star-shaped pasta into her chicken and beef soups.

The major difference between pasta as we know it and Vietnamese nui is the employment of rice flour in the latter, because semolina isn’t native to Vietnam. Italian brands of pasta like Barilla are available in most of Saigon’s grocery stores, but their prices are often three times higher than locally produced nui.

The lovely plate of nui xao bo pictured here was made by the Lunch Lady’s younger sister, who works under the same shady tree. The noodles were sauteed with thin slices of beef and thick slices of onions in oil, fish sauce and a smidgen of tomato paste. Side items included fresh tomatoes, iceberg lettuce and a condiment-sized bowl of soy sauce.

The Astronomer and I encountered nui dishes most often at venues serving mi xao don (crispy noodles with gravy). We also encountered nui combined with fried eggs at a snack shack on Ky Dong. Personally, I like to prepare nui with eggs and pork floss. Flossy flossy indeed.