Beef Noodle Soup (Phở Bò)

My brother took me to a new phở place during my visit to Mesa, AZ. If you are in the Phoenix area, I would highly recommend a stop at unPHOgettable located at the new Asian shopping center called Mekong Plaza.  They have other Vietnamese fares as well. I can attest to the authencity and cleanliness of the restaurant.  Enjoy!

I’ll be posting a recipe for pho soon, so stay tune!

Below is a link to a story about the plaza:

http://www.eastvalleytribune.com/story/128861

Pho Bo, originally uploaded by simpleviet.

Fish with Sweet Tomato Sauce

This tomato sauce can be paired with most fish.  Today I came across some nice looking catfish filets.  It’s a simple Vietnamese tomato sauce that comes together quickly – great for weeknight meals.

Fish with Sweet Tomato Sauce

(Serves 4)

• 6 tbsp olive oil
• 1.5 lbs tomatoes, roughly chopped
• 2 chopped cloves of garlic
• 1/3 cup chopped onion
• 1 tsp salt
• black pepper to taste
• 2 tbsp fish sauce
• 1 tbsp sugar
• 4 filets of catfish or your choice of fish
• chopped chives or green onions for garnish

1.  Heat 2 tbsp oil in large frying pan on medium high heat and sautee the onions until translucent.  Add the garlic and give it a quick stir.  Add chopped tomatoes to the pan.  Salt and pepper the tomatoes.   Adjust heat to medium-low and simmer the tomatoes, occasionally stirring the pan until the mixture becomes a thick sauce with chunks of tomatoes – about 7-10 minutes.

2.  In a separate large frying pan, add the rest of the olive oil, and pan-fry two of the catfish filets at a time.  When the filets are golden brown on both sides, set aside.  Continue to pan-fry the rest of the catfish filets.

3.  To the thickened tomato sauce, add fish sauce and sugar.  Simmer for another 2-3 minutes to incorporate.

4.  Plate the pan-fried filet of fish and generously top with tomato sauce.   Garnish with chopped chives and serve immediately with rice.

Fish with Sweet Tomato Sauce, originally uploaded by simpleviet.

Lemongrass Chicken Stew

Traditionally, lemon grass chicken is a like a stir-fry.  My version is more like a stew because I love to have plenty of sauce to drizzle over a hot bowl of rice!  To accommodate those who do not like bones and yet have the benefit of flavor from chicken on the bone, I’ve used ½ a chicken and 2 boneless chicken breasts.  Of course you can use the whole chicken by taking the cleaver to the chicken.   I’ve kept the ingredients simple – you can add onion, shallots and/or sugar if you want a little more complexity.

Tip:  To save some chopping time, you can put the onion and roughly chopped lemongrass into a food process and give it a few pulses.  Also, I rinse the food- processing bowl with the 1cup water and then add it to the pan.

Lemongrass Chicken Stew (Ga Kho)

(Serves 4-6)

3 stalks lemongrass stalks, roughly chopped

3 cloves garlic

½ chicken, chopped into bite-sized pieces

2 boneless breast of chicken, sliced

1 tsp kosher salt

2 tbsp olive oil

½ tsp crushed black pepper

5 tbsp fish sauce

2-3 whole red chili peppers (optional)

1.5 cup water

 

1.  Pulse lemon grass and garlic in a food processor for until finely chopped.  Set aside.

2.  Place the chopped ½ chicken pieces skin side down into a hot frying pan, medium high heat.  Season the chicken lightly with salt and pepper.  Fry until each side is golden brown.  Set aside.

3.  Add sliced chicken breasts to the frying pan, lightly season with salt and pepper.  Stir-fry until no longer pink.   Set aside with the first batch of chicken.

4.  In a saucepan, heat the olive oil.  Stir-fry the lemon grass mixture and red chili peppers until fragrant, about 2-3 minutes.

5.  Placed the cooked chicken into the sauce pan and stir-fry for 5 minutes.

6.  Add the fish sauce and water to the pan, cover with lid.  Lower the heat and let simmer for 20-30 minutes, until the liquid is reduced and slightly thick.

7.  Serve with Jasmine white rice. 

Lemongrass Chicken Stew, originally uploaded by simpleviet.