Flavors
of Asia
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There are not many Asian cuisines that can offer Crème Caramel, Steak Tartare, Satay, and Lemon Grass Soup as traditional foods on the same menu. Vietnamese is one, and it offers a great deal more. Located between Laos, Cambodia and China, Vietnamese cooking has been influenced by its neighbors, by its Chinese and French occupations and yet is distinctively its own. Fresh leaves are used to wrap cooked or raw mixtures. Fresh vegetables are added at the table to steaming bowls of hot noodle soup. Lemon grass and nuoc mam are more prevalent than soy sauce and cream. And French bread becomes a Vietnamese sandwich filled with a mixture of meat and pickled vegetables. It is easy to sample many of these dishes at local Vietnamese restaurants and nearly as easy to cook them at home. The Vietnamese Collection by Jackum Brown is one of several cookbooks available to help home chefs master the art of Vietnamese cooking. Filled with colorful photos, the book has easy-to-follow recipes using ingredients available at local Asian markets and many supermarkets. Crab and Asparagus Soup is a good example. When the French introduced asparagus to Vietnam it soon became part of everyday cooking. Here the asparagus is cooked in rich vegetable stock then combined with shiitake mushrooms and crab meat for a beautiful soup. Simple, easy and cooks in under 15 minutes. Duck with Yogurt Sauce shows another French influence on Vietnamese traditions where duck legs are marinated in nuoc mam (fish sauce) then roasted and finished with a yogurt sauce. Crab with Rice Noodles is a good example of Vietnamese fast food sold by street vendors and easy for the home chef to serve. Served on bright, green lettuce leaves, the dish combines a cooked crab mixture sprinkled with fresh basil, dill and coriander, and rice vermicelli. The Vietnamese Collection includes basic stocks, sauces and toppings as well as desserts including Coconut Crème Caramel. Published in 2000 by Octopus Publishing Group Ltd. its hard cover price is $24.95 and available locally at Half Price Books for $9.98. Reprinted in 2002 it is available at www.ecookbooks.com for $12.56. This is one of those cookbooks the non-cook will enjoy reading and the experienced cook will enjoy trying. (Reprinted from Asian Pages 11/15/03) |
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