Gastronomy Blog by Cathy Chaplin

Banh Mi

07 Jan 2009

Bánh Mì & Chè Cali – San Gabriel

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With the mountains and ocean less than an hour away from home base, The Astronomer and I have a range of leisure options during the weekends. Whereas The Astronomer grew up camping and canoeing in the Midwest, my outdoor experiences consisted of sixth grade camp (Camp Fox—represent!) and lounging on the beach in San Diego.

I am a self-proclaimed “hotel person,” so it came out of left field when I suggested to The Astronomer that we go hiking in the mountains nearby. Needless to say, he enthusiastically agreed. My friend Laurie suggested that we hike to Switzer Falls for our introductory outing.

Before heading to the mountains, we drove to the San Gabriel Valley for hiking snacks. For me, the absolute best part of hiking is eating in the woods, preferably perched atop a giant rock.

Bánh Mì & Chè Cali is a local chain selling Vietnamese sandwiches, sweets and small nibbles. According to gas•tron•o•my reader Danielle, the branch in Alhambra is the freshest. However, due to time constraints, The Astronomer and I visited the one on San Gabriel Boulevard.

Sandwiches hover around $2.25 at Bánh Mì & Chè Cali. There’s also an on-going “buy two, get one free” deal that The Astronomer and I couldn’t pass up. For our three sandwiches, we chose a thit nuong (grilled lemongrass pork), bi (sliced pork skin and pork), and nem nuong (sweet barbecued meatballs). The damage was $4.50—almost as cheap as Saigon.

Bánh mì sandwiches are perfectly portable meals that hold their shape surprisingly well even after being bruised and battered in a backpack. Overall, the sandwiches from Bánh Mì & Chè Cali were decent, but not fantastic. The baguettes were too thick and not ideally crisp, and the fillings were mostly so-so. With its strong lemongrass flavor, the thit nuong was our favorite of the three. The bi sandwich lacked scallion oil and tasted dry and bland as a result. I’ll have to try the sandwiches at the Alhambra branch before I write-off Bánh Mì & Chè Cali. A Chau is still tops in my book for bánh mì sandwiches.

The hike to Switzer Falls was beauteous. However, the falls turned out to be merely a trickle because California is deprived of rain. I didn’t mind.

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Bánh Mì & Chè Cali
135 S San Gabriel Blvd.
San Gabriel, CA 91776
Phone: 626-286-8728

Recipe

05 Jan 2009

Home-Cured Salmon (Gravlax)

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Last July, Girlie of Boots in the Oven posted about the simplicity of home-curing salmon. I mentally bookmarked the recipe for a later date because there was no salmon to speak of in Saigon. This past weekend, the fishmonger cut a fillet too large for a dish that The Astronomer was preparing, so I decided to “smoke” the leftover section. This simple method of preserving salmon is Scandinavian in origin and is called gravlax. Gravlax is similar to lox (cured salmon that has been cold smoked) and is sometimes referred to as Gravad lox.

I began with a skinless and boneless salmon fillet about five inches long, two inches wide and a half inch thick. Boots’ recipe calls for one part salt and one part sugar. Since I was only curing an itty bitty fillet, I went with one tablespoon of sugar and one tablespoon of salt. I poured the sugar and salt directly into a Ziploc bag and tossed in the fillet to coat (top photo).

After sealing up the bag, I stuck it in the refrigerator under the weight of five blocks of cream cheese (Boots used a baking sheet weighted down by miscellaneous foods for her much larger fillet). I jostled the bag every twelve hours or so to redistribute the juices. The bottom photo is what the salmon looked like after thirty-six hours of chilling in the fridge.

The salmon is ready for consumption after a full day in the fridge. The longer the salmon chills in the bag, the saltier it gets. After thirty-six hours, I removed the fillet from the bag, rinsed it under cold water and patted it dry.

Using a sharp knife, I cut the salmon into thin slices. The verdict? Really tasty. The gravlax tasted just like traditional smoked salmon. I seriously can’t believe how easy it is to make!

Gravlax tastes most excellent atop a toasted and schmeared bagel. For more ideas on how to prepare gravlax, check out Boots in the Oven and Cooking for Engineers.

Now Closed

04 Jan 2009

Wokcano – Los Angeles (Santa Monica)

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Before the holidays kicked into high gear, I received an invitation to a press dinner at Wokcano Restaurant & Bar, one of the fastest growing Asian fusion restaurants in Southern California. There is a Wokcano in our backyard of Pasadena, and also locations in West Hollywood, downtown Los Angeles, Burbank and Long Beach. The tasting was held on a Tuesday evening at the branch in Santa Monica.

Brothers Michael and Marcus Kwan are the masterminds behind this trendy chain of Asian-inspired eateries. Born in China, the Kwan brothers arrived in Los Angeles in 1989. They began their culinary careers bussing tables in Chinatown, but eventually climbed the ranks and opened their own restaurant in 1995—The Islands on 3rd Street. After six years, the brothers closed The Islands in order to reinvent the cuisine and to rethink the space. The first Wokcano opened for business in 2001 (in the same location as The Islands) offering modernized Chinese cuisine and inventive sushi.

Wokano in Santa Monica is big, really big. There are dining rooms on both the ground and second floors, a sushi bar, and an expansive outdoor lounge and patio. The dinner was held in a private dining room on the second floor. The evening started off with stiff martinis (the lychee one is killer) and casual banter with fellow attendees. Once the crowd had assembled, the real fun began.

The first course, salmon and hamachi with citrus ponzu, was the perfect starter. The fishes were fresh and adorned ever so lightly with scallions and ginger. The zesty ponzu melded well with the fish and its accoutrements. It’s important to note that since this was a press event, the portions were smaller than normal. This dish is priced $12 on the regular menu.

Next, we sampled the crispy pepper calamari, which was lightly battered and had a pleasantly spicy kick from fresh jalapenos and chilies. The calamari was accompanied by a creamy peppery sauce, which enhanced its flavor profile. This dish is priced $9 on the regular menu.

My favorite course of the evening was the trio of sushi rolls. The Spicy Crabmeat Tempura roll (left) was topped with chili sauce and smelt eggs. The Green Dragon Roll (center) was comprised of a spicy tuna roll topped with avocado, Tabasco sauce and spicy mayonnaise. The Golden Triangle (right) consisted of a triangular-shaped asparagus and avocado roll wrapped in soy paper with seared spicy tuna, mint and topped with black masago.

Each of the rolls was tasty and satisfied my sushi tooth, but The Golden Triangle was my absolute favorite for its unique combination of ingredients and smart incorporation of fresh herbs. On the menu, sushi rolls are priced between $4.50 and $15.

I was pleasantly full at this point in the meal, which was a bad sign considering the main courses had yet to make their appearance. The flurry of dishes that appeared next included grilled seabass, black pepper beef mignon, pad Thai, honey walnut shrimp and braised string beans. The seabass and beef were both solid, but the pad Thai wasn’t executed nearly as well. The noodles were gluey and the sauce lacked the tangy touch of tamarind that is essential to the dish.

The highlights of the entrees were the braised string beans and the honey walnut shrimp. The string beans brought just the right amount of savoriness, while the shimp were delicately crusted with a glossy sweetness. On the menu, entrees are priced between $9 and $25.

What’s great about tasting dinners is the opportunity to try a restaurant’s broad range of offerings in one comfortable sitting. While these types of meals hardly reflect a normal dining experience, they do provide me with a real sense of a kitchen’s passions and strengths. I’d definitely return to Wokcano for the cooling sushi starters, the lip-smackingly good honey walnut shrimp, and the minimalist, yet chic ambiance.

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Wokcano
1413 5th Street
Santa Monica, CA 90401
Phone: 310-458-3080