Soup Mang Cua

From: http://thuyancom.blogspot.ca/2009/03/sup.html

Sup Mang Cua - Crab and Asparagus Soup

You guessed it, Sup is the Vietnamese term for soup and it's usually serve as a starter. Our family usually eat sup for special occasions such as weddings, graduations, and holiday dinners. I prefer the texture of Vietnamese soup or even Chinese soup because it's thicker due to the cornstarch. My favorite is Sup Mang Cua because I love the flavor that the crab meat gives off, even though we usually use chicken broth the crab flavor always dominate. This dish can be unique to certain people depending on how they make it. My mom make fun of me at times because I put so much stuff in my sup that it doesn't seem like a sup anymore. My reasoning for it is I like to add some ingredients I persoanlly like and think will add more to the dish. I like Chinese Hot and Sour soup especially because of their bamboo shoot, so I add it to Sup Mang Cua for texture. I also love eating white fungus from Sup Nam Trang (White Fungus Soup) so in it goes.

My eggs was getting ready to expire pretty soon and I just hate wasting food no matter how little of it I have left. A friend and I got together to make dinner so sup would be nice starter. I pretty much had half the ingredients laying around already; chicken broth, eggs, and white fungus. This is my first time trying the white asparagus!


Soak white fungus in warm water until it soften.
You can use fresh crabs but I have always use canned crab from the local asian market. This time i went for the frozen crab meat and there really isn't a difference.


Ingredients:

4 can of chicken broth
1 bunch of asparagus cut into 1 in. pieces
1 small can of bamboo shoot cut into thin strips
1 cup of crab meat
2 cup of dried white fungus
4 eggs white (you can use the whole eggs if you like)
salt
pepper
sugar
fish sauce
water
cornstarch
cooking oil
1/2 tablespoon of mince garlic


1. Bring chicken broth to a boil and add more water into the pot, I usually add about another can 1/2 of water from the chicken broth can. Taste broth with salt, sugar, and fish sauce and let simmer for 10 minutes.

2. In a smaller pot, heat up cooking oil with the minced garlic. Stir fry the crab meat and taste it with sugar, fish sauce, and ground pepper. This should add more flavor to the crab meat.

3. Add crab meat to the chicken broth and let simmer for a 15 minutes.


4. Add bamboo shoot and asparagus and let simmer for another 15 minutes. Add white fungus.
5. In a bowl add about 1/2 cup of cold water 2 tablespoon of cornstarch. Stir until it becomes a mixture. Add the mixture into the broth and stir. The broth should become more thick.
6. Bring the pot to a boil and slowly stir in the egg whites. Turn off the stove.

Bo` Kho

http://vietspices.blogspot.ca/2011/11/bo-kho-vietnamese-beef-stew.html

Bò Kho (Vietnamese Beef Stew)

RECIPE: Bò Kho * Ingredients 2 pounds Beef Chuck (bắp vai bò), cut in 1 1/2 inch chunks 2 pounds Beef Flank (nạm), cut in 1 1/2 inch chunks 2 pounds Beef Shank (bò bắp), cut in 1 1/2 inch chunks 10 tablespoons Annatto Seeds, for Annatto Oil 1 cup Oil, for Annatto Oil 6 tablespoons chopped Ginger 12 tablespoons (2/3 cup) chopped Shallots (about 12 whole shallots) 6 tablespoons chopped Garlic (about 1 1/2 whole garlic) 18 cups Water 10-12 Lemongrass Stalks, lightly crushed with a meat tenderize or the flat side of a knife, cut each into 3 pieces 18 Whole Star Anise, toasted in the oven or on a fry pan over low heat 10 tablespoons Fish Sauce 2 tablespoons Salt 6 tablespoons Soy Sauce 6 tablespoon Sugar 6 tablespoons Curry Powder or Five Spice Powder 1 1/2 tablespoons Dried Chili 10 Carots, cut into big chunks 2-3 Sweet Onion, cut into big chunks 3 handful Basil Leaves, for the broth and garnish Cilantro, for garnish * Bring a pot of water and lemongrass to a boil. * Making Annatto Oil Heat the oil and annatto seeds in a sauce pan over low heat for about 2-3 minutes. As the temperature rises, the red color will leach from the annato seeds. Let it cool down for a few minutes, then strain and discard seeds. * Sauteing Beef Heat about 1/4 cup of annatto oil in a pan.  Add  ginger, half of garlic and half of shallots and stir until slightly golden brown.  Add the beef and stir until seared.  Sautee a couple batches if your pan isn't large enough for one batch.     Transfer seared meat into the boiling water pot. Add toasted star anise, fish sauce, soy sauce and sugar and bring to a boil.  Reduce the heat to a simmer.  Cook for about an hour or until the beef is tender.  Skim the foam floating on top occasionally.   * Making Curry Mixture Heat the remaining annatto oil in a small pan over medium heat.  Add the remaining shallot, garlic and stir until fragrant and slightly golden brown.  Add curry powder or five spice powder and dried chilies and stir until fragrant for about 15 seconds.  Set aside.   * Putting Stew Together Twenty minutes before the beef is done, add the carrots and onion.  Cook until carrots are tender.  Remove the star anise and lemongrass.  Add the curry mixture and stir it well.  Stir in 2/3 of the basil leaves.  Do the taste test by adding more fish sauce, soy sauce and sugar if necessary. * Making Pot Beef Stew Pie  In an oven safe bowl, add 2/3 bowl of beef stew. Place the puff pastry sheet over the top of the dish. Brush the top with beaten egg yolk and place in oven at the lower  rack. Bake at 350° until pastry puffs turn golden, about 15 minutes. * Presentation Ladle beef stew in a shadow soup bowl.  Garnish with cilantro and fresh basil leaves.  Serve with toasted bread or noodles (bún or bánh phở).   Bon Appetite! www.vietspices.blogspot.com

http://wanderingchopsticks.blogspot.ca/2009/01/bo-kho-vietnamese-beef-stew.html#.UK0YfmFQgZQ

Bo Kho (Vietnamese Beef Stew)

For a 6-quart pot, you'll need:
1 lb beef stew meat
1 lb oxtails, or substitute with 1 lb short ribs or another 1 lb of beef stew meat
1 tblsp annatto seeds
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
2 stalks lemongrass, bruised
2-inch knob ginger, cut into big slices
1 stick of cinnamon
3 star anise
1 bay leaf
2 tsp Chinese 5-spice powder
2 tsp Ca Ri Ni An Do (Vietnamese Indian Madras Curry Powder)
2 tblsp Nuoc Mam (Vietnamese Fish Sauce)
2 tsp salt
6-oz can tomato paste
2 carrots, cut into 2-inch chunks
3 potatoes or more, cut into 2 -inch chunks
1 cup pearl onions, or 1 large onion, cut into 2 inch chunks

You'll need about 1 lb beef stew meat and 1 lb oxtails. Wash and set aside.

Annatto seeds provide the deep rich red color and a slight sweetness to the stew.

In a large pot on high heat, add 1 tblsp of annatto seeds to 2 tblsp olive oil. The seeds will start releasing their color. Be careful! The seeds may pop in the oil. Keep stirring until the oil turns red. Scoop out the seeds and discard.

Sprinkle about 1/2 cup flour over the beef, making sure to coat each piece. Pan-fry the beef and oxtails until each side is brown. You may have to do this in batches. I just move the oxtails to one side of the pot and stack them on top of each other. When the beef is all browned, add any remaining flour to the pot. It'll help thicken the stew.

Add two bruised lemongrass stalks, ginger slices, a stick of cinnamon, and 3 star anise pods. Also add 1 bay leaf, 2 tsp Chinese 5-spice powder, 2 tsp Ca Ri Ni An Do (Vietnamese Indian Madras Curry Powder), 2 tblsp Nuoc Mam (Vietnamese Fish Sauce), 2 tsp salt, and a 6-oz can tomato paste.
Then fill your pot about 3/4 full with water. When the water boils, turn the heat down to medium and let simmer for an hour.

Meanwhile, prepare your other vegetables. I used pearl onions because I couldn't resist how beautiful they looked. You can dice a large onion instead. Chop up 2 carrots and 3 potatoes, or more if you wish. Keep the vegetable chunks at least several inches in size as they'll simmer for a while and you don't want them to become mushy or lose shape.

Add the vegetables after the stew has been simmering for an hour. Taste and add fish sauce or salt if necessary. Turn the heat down to medium-low and let it simmer for another hour.

After simmering for several hours, the beef stew meat and oxtails should be fall-apart tender. Fish out the ginger, lemongrass, cinnamon, and star anise.

Serve with Vietnamese French bread, rice, or rice noodles.

Enjoy!

Read more: http://wanderingchopsticks.blogspot.com/2009/01/bo-kho-vietnamese-beef-stew.html#ixzz2CskICeFE

Go?i Ngo' Sen

Goi ngo' sen:


- 2-3 hu? ngo' sen
- 2 cu? carrot
- 2 dua leo
- 1 ho^.p te'p ($10)
- 1 lbs na.c du`i, ba ro.i
- chanh, toi, nuoc mam, duong, muoi, rau ra(m
- hanh tay nga^m giam dduong

Ca'ch la`m:
---------------

- Ngo' sen ca('t ra, nga^m 1 muong soup dduong, de^? ngoai (30 min, 1 hour)
- Carrot cat cong cong, ngam dduong, tron de^`u, va('t ra'o.
- Dua leo , bo? ruot, cat lat' lat, keep vo?, nga^m dduong, tron de^`u, dde^?
ddo', sau la^'y va?i va('t ra'o.
- Giam dduong, cu? ha`nh, tieu, da^`u a(n ( 1 to^ pho?), chua ngot (chua nhieu
nhieu) (1hr)

- Va('t ra'o carrot, dua leo, ngo' sen tro^n chung voi giam dduong, bo? vo^ tu?
la.nh (1 hr)

-Luoc tep, luoc thit , xa('t ra.

- Nuoc tro^.n:
------------------
- 2 tep to?i, ba(`m nhuye^~n, 2 muo^?ng da^`u a(n, phi toi? just turn yellow and

take it out right away. Then bo? a little bot ga` nem vo.
- 3 muong nuoc mam ngon, 3 muong dduong, + 3 muong nuoc chanh va(t
- Add tieu? rau ra(m

Then:
-------
- Va('t ra'o a little nuoc giam dduong in tu lanh mixture.
- Tron half tep , thit + half rau ram into mixture
- Mix "nuoc tron" tu+` tu+` vo^ mixture
- Put half tep + thi.t on top.