Cabbage and Eggs: Poor Man's Viet Food

There are some days you want foie gras or $3 oysters and then there are days when you just want some down home poor man's Viet food. I grew up eating all different types of food. Sometimes it was American, sometimes Italian, but most of the time it was Vietnamese. My mom makes some of the best Vietnamese food I've ever tasted...naturally, but there were many days when it wasn't the fancy noodle soups or crepes that i wanted, but cabbage and eggs or fried tofu. Food really doesn't have to be complicated to be amazing. 

Here's a quick run down on two of my favorite dishes. Considered "poor man's food" because of the simple and cheap ingredients. Also, because it's easy to turn one dish into two. For example, the water you used to boil the cabbage, with a dash of salt and a crushed tomato, all of a sudden you have a soup! 

That's the thing about "family style" Vietnamese food... we have standard components to every meal. For example, you always have a protein of some sort along with a vegetable dish. It could be beef sauteed with tomatoes and onions, fried tofu or a fried catfish. However, if you have the protein, you also need a vegetable dish: one of my all time favorites is stir fried rau muống, known as water spinach in English. And to round out the meal, you also need a soup. It helps wash everything down. :)

Vietnamese meals are a lot of balance - or at least it was in my house growing up. Sometimes if we didn't have any real proteins my mom would just make an egg omelet so we could have something salty to go with our meal. So on the rare occasion these days when i make a "family style" dinner with rice and the whole shebang, these are two of my go-to recipes.

"Bắp cải luộc chấm trứng" (loosely translated as boiled cabbage and eggs.)

Ingredients: 

• Cabbage (whole or half depending on how many you're feeding)
• 1 Tomato
• Dash of Salt
• 4 cups water
• 3-4 eggs
• nước mắm (fish sauce - I prefer the squid brand)

Directions:

Lets start with the prep work.  Quarter your cabbage and rinse it thoroughly, making sure to remove any of the browned outer leaves. Break the quarters into smaller chunks and cut the larger pieces again in half to keep them all close to the same size. Once your cabbage is clean, add them into your pot of water. Rinse your tomato and toss that in there too with a dash of salt.Turn the stove to medium-high heat and let it come to a boil. (should take a little less than 10 minutes)

Here's where you have some options. If you'd like to cook everything in one pot, go ahead and drop your 3-4 eggs into the water as well (remember to do it before the water gets hot). After about 7 minutes, you can take the eggs out, peel them and keep them in a separate bowl. If you don't want to cook everything in one pot then just cook your eggs separately. 

Your cabbage will only take an additional 2-3 minutes to finish cooking after the water comes to a boil, but keep an eye on it. When the leaves darken in color and get tender is when they're finished. Fish out the cabbage and drain any excess water back into the pot. The remaining broth is your soup. When you pour the broth and tomato into the bowl just give the tomato a light crush and you'll have a deliciously simply yet sweet soup (known as Canh in Vietnamese) to go with your meal. 

Honestly, depending on how many people you're feeding, you'll only need 2 eggs. In a small bowl, quarter and cut your boiled eggs into small pieces. Add a tbsp of the soup broth and about 2 tbsp of fish sauce and mix it all together. This is the dipping sauce for your cabbage. It sounds odd, but I swear to you, i made this for one of my childhood friends - one of the whitest girls you'll ever meet - and she absolutely LOVED it. To this day, she asks for this dish all the time. Proof that you never know if you'll like something until you've tried it. 

"Đậu Hũ Chiên Tẩm Nước Mắm Hành" (translated as fried tofu dipped in fish sauce and green onions - I know, we're not very creative with our food names)

Ingredients: 

• 1 package firm tofu
• 1-2 stalks of green onion
• nước mắm (fish sauce)

Directions:

Take your firm tofu out from the packaging and cut it once horizontally down the middle and then vertically to create 12 "2x3" -ish sized pieces. See the photo to the right for reference. Unfortunately I'm not good with measurements, so really I'd say just cut it into even small pieces about half the size of a business card. Or a whole business card if you like it bigger.






Now would also be a good time to dice your green onions into small pieces about 1 cm wide. You're going to mix this with about 3-4 tbsp of fish sauce. Leave the mixture in a small bowl big enough to dip your tofu when you take them out of the hot oil.

 While prepping, you should be heating vegetable (or canola) oil in a small pot. A trick I learned from my mom to tell if your oil is hot enough: stick the end of a chopstick into the oil and if the tip creates little bubbles when you hit the bottom, then it's hot enough. Drop your tofu in for about 1 minute or so each until they turn a golden brown. As you take out each piece of tofu, drop it into your fish sauce/green onion mixture for about 5-10 seconds. When the tofu is hot like this it's incredibly absorbent. So don't soak it too long or it will be too salty. Just a few seconds will do. If you have fish sauce left after you've dipped all your tofu then  serve it with the tofu in case anyone wants more to dip their tofu again.

Voila! Finished product, ready to be served with your boiled cabbage and soup. A hearty, balanced meal worthy of any comfort seeking Vietnamese person. I know if you made this for me, I'd feel right at home. :)

* Photos today taken by yours truly. 

All around the world, I see golden arches

Bada Ba Ba Baaaaaaa. I'm lovin' it. :)

Have you heard? Vietnam is getting its very first McDonald's! Now I know, I know. There are plenty of nay sayers out there to discuss the ramifications of bringing in a fast food chain to a country who's healthcare system is broken beyond belief. But, after having spent a month in Vietnam, I can tell you that McDonald's is actually pretty late to the game.  KFC was probably the first to make its foray into Vietnam and these days, you'll find Burger King, Lotteria, Domino's, Pizza Hut... the list goes on. It's no wonder that McDonald's eventually made its way there as I know - at least my cousins - were waiting with anticipation. The ever growing and popular youth population is hard to deny when you look at it from a supply/demand point of view. I hear that McDonald's has a very serious vetting process when it comes to determining where they want to invest their franchises. I can speculate, but I wonder what really drove their final decision.

The biggest question is what will the menu look like? McDonald's - as with most international chains - adapt their menus to the locale.  The bff is constantly talking about some of the special items she remembered on the McDonald's menu in Hong Kong growing up. I was almost a little jealous I never got to experience any McDonald's "international" cuisine or anything special -- with the exception of the McRib that is.

So many questions. Not just what will be on the menu, but what will it look like? Maybe like the ones in Korea?

My, these are chic. Or maybe like the ones in Taiwan 

or check out this one in Batumi, Georgia.

We shall just have to wait and see. In the mean time, take a gander after the jump for some of the unique items you'll find around the world on McDonald's menus.

Fancy Ramen. Itadakimasu!

Tonkotsu Ramen from Umaido
*See more of what I eat at my tumblr: KikiandRhubarb. All photos and content are copyrighted and may not be used without permission 

Fancy ramen. An interesting concept which in college, meant i added spinach or bok choy, some hot dogs or spam and an egg to my package ramen. Today, fancy ramen is still what i've just described, but it can also be a mouth-watering rich and flavorful bowl of miso pork broth and hand pulled noodles with thick cuts of  char siu and a perfectly soft-boiled egg. I'm drooling as I sit here in this Caribou just thinking about it.  Don't judge me. I mean, who knew that the many years of my childhood thinking ramen only came in plastic packages were so wrong.

Ramen has always been a menu item on most Japanese restaurants including RuSans, believe it or not; but, only in the last 4-5 years has it really blossomed in Atlanta. And I say "blossomed" in the most conservative way. It's still easily found  on the menus of almost all of Atlanta's Japanese staples: Haru Ichiban, Nakato, Taka, Yakitori Jinbei, Sushi Yoko, Sushi Huku or it's offpsring Bishoku. None of which can really steer you wrong, but there are also the newer crop of ramen houses like the Korean owned Umaido or Raku, or the izakayas: Shoya Izakaya (pictured below) and most recently, Miso Izakaya.

Tan Tan Ramen at Shoya Izakaya

Interest in Asian foods and the mysterious trek up and down Buford Highway in general has grown exponentially in the last 5 years. White folk/city folk/suburbanites, whatever you wish to call them are now coming in droves to dim sum, tofu houses, phở  restaurants and many other treasures found along the International Village.  Thanks in large part to the adventurous and witty food writers in Atlanta who appreciate the hunt for authentic Asian cuisine rather than the overpriced fusion foods you find in midtown.


Rumored to be of Chinese origin, this delectable noodle soup somehow found its way to Japan and over the years evolved and grew in popularity to become the iconic dish it is today. I'll let you wiki the various theories on how exactly it came to Japan or how it became so popular, but here's what you need to understand: ramen is revered in the way we southerners love our pulled pork and barbecue. Some even consider it an art. They love it so much there's even a ramen museum in Yokohama. Though none of this should be surprising given the culture and what we know of their perspective on the art of sushi. [Side note, if you haven't seen the documentary, "Jiro dreams of sushi" then you need to immediately add it to your Netflix queue. It'll give you a whole new appreciation.]

Tonkotsu Ramen at Shoya Izakaya

It's no secret that I am noodle-obsessed. Some of my favorite Vietnamese foods are noodle dishes like   Bún Bò Huế,  Hủ Tiếu, Bún Thang and Bún Thịt Nướng to name a few. I grew up eating noodles and words cannot describe how elated I was to add ramen to my repertoire of favorites.
Phở,

Let's briefly talk about the basics. Ramen is generally made from a chicken or pork stock combined with a variety of ingredients from onions, shiitake mushrooms, niboshi (dried baby sardines) kombu (kelp) or Katsuobushi (skipjack tuna flakes) and flavored with salt, miso or soy sauce. It is found in all regions of Japan today with hundreds of variations including curry or even cheese, but there are really only four different styles of broth flavors you'll see here in the U.S.

TONKOTSU My personal favorite, tonkotsu ramen has a cloudy thick broth from boiling pork bones, fat and collagen - in many cases for more than 12 hours to give it that true rich, hearty pork flavor and creamy consistency. It's served with toppings like pickled ginger, char siu, bean sprouts, green onions and of course a soft boiled egg. It's a specialty of Kyushu and Fukuoka. 

SHOYU Soy sauce-based and tends to have a salty almost tangy taste to it, Shoyu is lighter than tonkotsu style broth. Often served with marinated bamboo shoots, green onions, fish cakes, bean sprouts, noti and of course a soft boiled egg. Some say this is the most common style. Its' a specialty of Tokyo.

MISO Uniquely Japanese, they say...Miso ramen has a robust, tangy flavor and combines miso (yes like the paste) with chicken or fish broth to create a nutty, slightly sweet but still hearty soup. Its toppings include butter and corn, leeks or onions, ground pork, cabbage, or even a spicy bean paste known as tobanjan. 

SHIO The oldest and the lightest ramen style, Shio broth is flavored with salt and any variety of chicken, vegetables, dried seafood and seaweed.  A specialty of Hakodate.

Tonkotsu Ramen (previously) offered only at lunch at Miso Izakaya 

Ramen is as much comfort food to me as a home-cooked bowl of phở by my mother or a thick juicy cheeseburger with house made pickles from Bocado. (Another post for another time). To me, good ramen -- from the first sip, warms my soul and brings an unmistakable deep and satisfied "mmmmm." Sometimes I feel great food can be (is quite often) better than sex. But I digress...

Not gonna lie, I wish he'd slice that pork belly,
but check out that beautiful soft boiled egg.

I've had my fair share of ramen all over the city, as you can see from just the slim selection of photos I've posted today... but places I used to love just don't do it for me anymore. I hate to say that my usual spots like Shoya and Umaido are less than mmmmmm-worthy these days. They'll do in a pinch but as of recently, I think one of the more satisfying ramen I've tasted is Guy Wong's (pictured above).  For some time now, his ramen was only available during lunch at Miso Izakaya down on Edgewood but as of last month, he ended the lunchtime ramen service to focus on one of his new ventures set to open in January of 2014: Ton Ton Ramen & Yakitori Bar.

At the end of the day, everyone's palate is different. So the next time you're out for Japanese or in the neighborhood of one of the aforementioned ramen spots, stop in. Take a chance and experience the phenomenon that's gripped so many in our fair city. Grab your chopsticks and brave the broth. If your first sip makes you go "mmmmmm," then by all means -- slurp your way to the bottom of that bowl.

Last, I leave you with this video on how to "orkin-ize" your Ramen. From Ivan Orkin himself -- the culinary genius behind IvanRamen  and IvanRamen plus in Tokyo and coming soon to NYC.

Oh! And before I forget, give thanks at the end of your meal by saying gochiso sama deshita."

Happy eating!

**All photos in today's post were taken by yours truly and not to be used without permission.

Brussels Sprouts: A love affair for the ages

       

                                          *Photo courtesy of my bff and her instagram

For a long time now, I've had a standing love affair with Brussels sprouts. So much so, that I even converted my best friend... as you can see by her photo above...and below. Unfortunately, per usual, i grow so consumed with preparing my meals, I don't always remember to capture photos. Lucky for me, the bff is a stealth and a pro with her iphone.

                   *Photo courtesy of the same bff over at Russian Desolation along with her modified recipe from Ina Garten

Needless to say, it nearly broke my heart to read the other day in the Atlanta Journal-Constitution that apparently, Brussels sprouts were a trend past their prime -- or so said some know-it-all out-of-towner. I can't say I don't agree with the sentiment that Atlanta does tend to be about 2 years behind most food trends but she's certainly trying. However, this is not a post to gripe on the Atlanta food scene, rather it's a bit of a love letter to these dear little edible leafy green buds.

Thought to have originated in Brussels (naturally), these little darlings grow on stalks and remind me of those old paddles with bells you would use for Christmas pageants.

They look like mini cabbages and tend to grow in cooler temperatures. The best season for Brussels sprouts is really September through February thanks to the weather, but in all honesty they're available year-round these days.

It was on a whim that I decided to try my hand at these baby cabbages so long ago. They're the type of food that children cringe over and spit back at you; but such is the case with most vegetables, right? Who knew that as an adult I would love not just Brussels sprouts, but eggplant, arugula, leeks and dare I say it, BEETS! But, my dears... that is another love story for another day. ;)

Brussels sprouts are actually super easy to prepare. When you pick them, make sure you choose the ones smallest in diameter, as those will taste the sweetest and frankly, the best. Avoid any yellowing leaves and make sure you select a batch that are similar in size so they cook evenly. If you don't plan to cook them right away, keep them stored in the coldest part of your fridge in a produce bag and they should last a couple weeks. To get the best taste though, you don't want to wait more than a couple of days as they'll start to develop an overwhelming and possibly unpleasant flavor that may or may not ruin your relationship.

Personally, I roast mine in the oven, but you could just as easily steam them or pan sear them as well. The trick? Simple seasoning: a bit of olive oil, salt and pepper. Brussels sprouts have a lot of vitamins and nutrients with great health benefits. With that said, it's up to you if you choose to boil, steam them, roast them, or slather them in butter and throw them in a pan. Just remember not to overcook them.

Here are the two ways I've prepared them:

Prep
The prep work is the same for both. Peel away any damaged, loose or yellowing leaves and wash the remaining sprouts throughly. Trim the stem and then half them vertically so they'll be easier to cook.

Sautéed (~15 minutes)

What you need:

• 1/2 clove garlic cut in thin slices

• Salt

• Pepper

• 3-4 Shallots minced

• Olive oil

Directions:

In a large pan, heat enough olive oil to lightly coat the bottom of the pan on medium to high heat. Layer your sprouts face down to brown them and give them a crisp edge. Toss in your garlic slices and shallots as the sprouts begin to caramelize and sauté.  You'll want to flip your sprouts so they cook evenly through and add salt and pepper to taste. After about 5 minutes, they'll turn an intense green color and voila! You're done. Be careful not to overcook them as the edges may burn and the sprouts will turn an olive green if overcooked rather than a beautiful shade of deep green. 

Oven Roasted (~ 40 minutes)

What you need: 

• Salt

• Pepper

• 1 tbsp butter

• olive oil

Directions: 

Preheat your oven to 400 degrees. 

When I roast my sprouts, i like to drizzle a little olive oil onto a roasting pan (or 9x9 glass casserole dish) and then layer the bottom with my sprouts flat side down so they can get a little crisp edge as they cook. Layer the rest of the sprouts atop and add a dash of salt and pepper to taste. If you wish, cut a tbsp of butter and break it into small chunks to toss in with the sprouts. 

Usually, I cover my dish or pan with tin foil for the first 20-25 minutes so the heat is trapped and cooks the sprouts all the way through so they're softened but still firm. Check on them to see if they've started to turn a deep intense green color. This is a good sign they've cooked properly. Remove the foil and shake your pan/dish to toss the sprouts ensuring they'll brown evenly. Then leave them in the oven for another 10-15 minutes so the loosened leaves and edges will continue to crisp. My motto is the crispier, the better! Once your final timer goes off, pierce a sprout with a fork to make sure it's cooked thoroughly, then plate and enjoy! 

There you have it. They'll be crispy on the edges but a soft core (not mushy - we want to avoid mushy). These little guys truly have my heart and have never let me down when i'm in a pinch and don't know what else to cook. Sometimes i'll add pancetta or thick pieces of bacon when I roast or sauté them to give it that little extra kick of protein but they're just as good without it. There are some nights where I settle down after a long day with a glass of wine, a cheesy movie and a bowl of my love: Brussels sprouts.

Think what you might, but don't knock it till you've tried it.  When cooked like this, even your 9 year-old-self would approve. ;)

Winner Winner, Chicken Dinner

Hello old friend...

My, it's been awhile. Should I tell you again how it's my personal goal to write more? Is it even worth it to mention that I'm really going to try and go through all these hundreds  of photos on my hard drive? How about if I mention I have an iphone now and will be able to post more pictures, quicker with shorter write-ups?

Does any of that make up for my painfully obvious lack of attention?

Clearly the only appropriate answer here is just to simply, "No excuses, just do better."

So here I am, rising from dead to tell you all about...

Drum roll please....

Chicken Wings. 

Yes. Tender, fat, juicy, with just the right crisp around the edges and smothered with just the right amount of sauce... buffalo chicken wings. 

It was like party in my mouth good. I mean... it could have  also been because it was 9:30 p.m. on a Thursday and I had just left the office from a string of meetings and was ready to eat my feelings.

Let's go with the former.

So when I retitled this blog, I wanted to take more of an "educational" format. I want to provide not just the food item, but a little history, a little culture and maybe even a little perspective. Last night, I attended Ira Glass's touring show where he spoke a lot about what makes news... news and why radio is such a great medium. Peppered with a few sound clips and a lot of humor. (I could listen to that man talk all day, he's such a great story teller.) One of my biggest takeaways from the evening was his insight that all great news stories have a plot and then a thought.  What makes This American Life and so many other radio programs great are the fact that they package these wonderful vignettes that build, keep you engaged and then make you think. According to Ira Glass, this structure is essentially a fool proof way of packaging any great story. 

But I digress. 

Jamal's Buffalo Chicken Wings is a tiny little shack in the parking lot of Papa Johns at the corner of MLK and Northside Drive on the Westside of Atlanta. Doing my due diligence for this post, I did a little googling research. Discovered a brief writeup by The Blissful Glutton back in 2008 both on her own blog and as a "Cheap Eats" mention in Creative Loafing.

From what I've gathered, Jamal's has been around for 20+ years and has the following you would expect of a hole-in-the-wall parking lot chicken wing shack. Lots of great reviews on Yelp, Urban Spoon and a number of other places. 

For me, the night started as any other: 

"Wanna eat?"

"Sure, where do you want to go?"

[insert monotonous string of usual restaurant suggestions]

"I really want wings" 

[with hesitancy] "Ok..."

Now I guess I should tell you, i'm constantly craving wings. And you'd think I'd be picky about it but I know so few places that serve good wings that i'm generally pretty easy to please. Lately though, I did find myself trekking up to  Cafe J in Gwinnett a lot. 

 

 

 

I mean, there are advantages. For one, a table. And two, the price. We got 30 wings for about $15 i think with the fries and everything else -- however, they are smaller wings. And of course... it's just. soooooo. far. 

So this night we (I) sought out alternatives. Yelp it was.  

Jamal's is so easy to miss. You turn right on MLK and SURPRISE! there it is. Didn't help that the Papa John's delivery truck hid it almost completely from view.

It looks smaller than a U-haul trailer you'd hitch to your pick-up truck (ya know, if you drove a pick-up truck) and has just enough space on the inside it looks like for a sink, fryer and standing room for  two people.

The ladies in the shack could not have been sweeter. They were talkative, cheerful and made it feel like I was about to get wings fresh from the fryer at a sunny Sunday picnic. We got 20 wings for $16.95 (double what BG quoted in '08) and I felt like it was still a pretty great deal. Half lemon pepper and half honey bbq.  The bestie wasn't fond of the strong lemon flavor but i was thrilled with it. Most of the time if I get lemon pepper it tastes like salt and pepper with a small lemon squeeze...but not these. No, these were fragrant, tangy, crispy deliciousness. 

The honey bbq was saucy, and just the right amount of sweet and tangy as well. Tack on $1+ for fries and we were set. The fries were shockingly crispy but not greasy/oily -- which was great. Actually i didn't think any of it was particularly oily or greasy like is typical of most chicken wings. 

And in true "shack food" spirit, we ate in the parking lot. Nothing fried or hot ever travels well so I insisted (much to my bff's dismay) that we sit in the parking lot (watching the late night Papa Johns foot traffic) and chow down on our 20 wings. 

I know, sounds like a hot date, right? 

Well I don't mind telling you... things got pretty steamy in my little Camry on that damp Thursday night. ;) 

Embrace that your car will smell like chicken wings for at least a week, bring cash, and go. 

Jamal's Buffalo Chicken Wings

10 Northside Drive, NW
Atlanta, GA 30314

*Photo courtesy of the bff, who's blog is found here. :)