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Tarragon Egg Salad

Published

on September 3, 2009

. 11 Comments

For the past two weeks, our little apartment has been burning up. The Astronomer and I have been taking turns sitting in front of the Vornado to cool down because air conditioning is a luxury our home was built without. When the weather is this unforgiving, the stove should be left firmly off.

I found this delightful recipe for egg salad while searching Epicurious for tarragon uses. It requires minimal stove time, and the results really hit the ‘I want something light, but substantial’ spot. Drawing inspiration from my favorite egg salad sandwich at Pasadena’s Euro Pane Bakery, I kept the yolks slightly runny and the whites just under firm. The egg salad tasted fabulous mounded atop a nest of baby spinach and a thick slice La Brea Bakery bread. File this one under: Deliciously easy things to cook when your house feels like an oven.

8 large eggs
1/2 cup mayonnaise
3 tablespoons finely chopped shallots (optional)
1 1/2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh tarragon, or to taste
2 teaspoons white-wine vinegar
1/4 teaspoon salt, or to taste
1/4 teaspoon black pepper, or to taste
Thick slices of crusty bread
Greens (i.e. baby spinach, mesclun, pea shoots, etc.)

Cover eggs with cold water in a heavy saucepan and bring to a rolling boil. Turn off the stove as soon as the water begins to boil and leave the eggs undisturbed for three minutes. Place a lid on the saucepan and leave the eggs for an additional two minutes. Transfer eggs with a slotted spoon to a bowl of ice cold water and let stand for five minutes to cool. Peel eggs and finely chop.

Stir together eggs and remaining salad ingredients in a bowl with a fork. Egg salad can be made one day ahead and chilled, covered. To assemble, spread some mayonnaise or mustard (if using) on bread, then add the greens, and lastly the egg salad. Eating an open-face egg salad sandwich in a lady-like manner is nearly impossible, so please, just dig on in.

Makes 6 sandwiches.

Adapted from Gourmet, April 2003

Jicama and Mandarin Orange Salad

Published

Gastronomer

on April 2, 2009

in Recipe, Vegan and Vegetarian

. 2 Comments

There’s something about the combination of fresh lime juice, minced garlic, and chopped cilantro that gives this fresh and chunky Jicama and Mandarin Orange Salad an uncanny resemblance to traditional Vietnamese goi (salad).

3 cloves of garlic, minced
1/4 cup fresh lime juice
6 tablespoons olive oil
1/2 teaspoon sugar
6 mandarin oranges, peeled and cut crosswise into 1/4-inch-thick slices
1 pound jicama, peeled and cut into 1/4-inch-thick matchsticks (3 cups)
3/4 cup packed cilantro sprigs, chopped

Mince and mash garlic to a paste with 1/2 teaspoon salt, then whisk together with lime juice, oil, sugar, and 1/2 teaspoon pepper in a large bowl.

Just before serving, add mandarins, jicama, and cilantro and gently toss. Season with salt and pepper.

Adapted from Gourmet, November 2008

Veggie Life Restaurant – South El Monte

Published

Gastronomer

on March 9, 2009

in Banh Xeo, Bun Bo Hue, Goi, Mon An Chay, Restaurant Review, San Gabriel Valley, Vegetarian and Vietnamese

. 9 Comments

When my mom swung into town recently for her monthly business trip, she requested that we dine at a Vietnamese restaurant specializing in vegetarian fare. While my mom is normally a happy omnivore, she was abstaining from meat for the first month of the Lunar New Year. A quick search on Yelp yielded Veggie Life Restaurant in South El Monte—an area of town with a heavy concentration of Vietnamese Americans.

From the second we walked into the eatery, we knew we were in for a treat. Like all of the area’s great Vietnamese restaurants, this one had a comfortable and informal vibe that reminded me of Saigon—food prep was taking place on tables unoccupied by diners and the staff greeted us with smiles.

The key to excellent Vietnamese vegetarian fare is a killer mock nuoc cham (fish sauce based vinaigrette). Veggie Life’s nuoc cham really hit the mark, especially when doused atop our starter, the goi ngo sen (lotus stem salad). Our favorite elements of the salad were the generous amounts of fresh herbs and the chewy strands of agar.

For my main course, I chose the chef’s “six delights” rice platter. Count ‘em!

The six delights included lemongrass “beef,” “chicken” drumstick, “pork” loaf, tofu skin wrapped “meat,” “fish” loaf, and thinly shredded “pork.” I am an all-around fan of mock meats and thus enjoyed this compilation platter very much, especially the tofu skin roll and the drumstick. The portions at Veggie Life are livin’ large, so The Astronomer had to help me finish it.

My rice platter was served with a hot bowl of nuoc leo—a simple vegetable stock.

My mom indulged in a tasty bowl of bun bo Hue—a spicy beef noodle soup from the city of Hue. It’s hard to match the robust flavors of meaty bun bo, but this veggie version held it’s own. Fresh lemongrass provided the bulk of the broth’s flavors.

The Astronomer surprised us all by ordering banh xeo—Vietnamese crepe stuffed with mushrooms and bean sprouts. The banh xeo was served with huge lettuce leaves for wrapping, a plethora of herbs for garnishing, and a bowl of nuoc cham for dipping. The Astronomer was very happy with his selection and wrapped, garnished, and dipped his banh xeo like a seasoned veteran. I thought that the banh xeo was really oily, but I must admit that banh xeo wouldn’t quite be banh xeo if it didn’t leave one’s hands and lips glistening with slick grease.

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Veggie Life Restaurant
9324 Garvey Ave #B
South El Monte, CA 91733
Phone: 626-443-8687