• ethan_it6z0e on February 13, 2026

  If you buy this book for anything, it should be for the Pho broth recipe. It’s the first one I’ve found that was simple to follow, told me the exact ingredients to buy, and ended up with a product that was actually better than any I’d had from my local restaurants (and I live in Ottawa where the only food more popular that Pho is Shawarma.) Nini crushed her first book, and I can’t wait for another!

Notes about Recipes in this book

• Traditional dipping sauce (Nuoc mam cham)

  • meggan on September 09, 2024

    Really good but I almost used all of it for the noodle salad. I would quadruple this to use with other recipes because you will want to use a lot.

  • celeste_8ryupw on March 01, 2026

    This is the sauce! You can get away with lemons instead of limes, but you don’t want to. Also some thin sliced onions will work if you can’t do the garlic.

  • IdleExpatter on March 26, 2026

    So good. So, so good. Takes a little effort with the mortar and pestle but what a result!

• Ginger dipping sauce (Nuoc mam gung)

  • JennyCampisi on February 09, 2026

    I usually only add lemon to oysters, game changer. Instructions are spot on.

• Fish-sauce caramel

  • dmdmdmmm on January 16, 2026

    I made this for the chicken wings, i had a hard time making the caramel that I had to do this twice :( still, went well with the wings

  • matthew_jiod3h on April 05, 2026

    For wings

• Scallion oil (Mo hanh)

  • meggan on October 09, 2024

    Used on fried tofu. Definitely reduce oil for something more chunky.

• Ginger scallion sauce (Sot gung hanh)

  • dmdmdmmm on May 30, 2026

    Such a great sauce for fish! I’m sure this would be great in other dishes too.

• Roasted nuoc mam sauce

  • SpatulaCity on October 15, 2025

    Made the is to go with pork ribs, also in this book. Absolutely delicious sauce! Will go great with many things. Sauce needed more than a few minutes to reduce to the desired thickness. Also used half the chili because we’re wimps. So happy with the results.

  • chawkins on November 29, 2025

    Delicious sauce, I only used half of the red pepper flakes asked for and used it on the ribs the day the sauce was made and it was very, very spicy. However, the leftover ribs mellowed out overtime, so definitely make it days ahead of usage.

  • dmdmdmmm on January 16, 2026

    I LOVED this sauce! This came with the ribs but im sure this can pair well with other meats as well. So good!

  • Tessvssr on February 01, 2026

    This sauce was delicious as a glaze for roasted brussel sprouts! We used the amount of pepper flakes as stated in the book and was just right. Quite spicy yes, but the sweetness balanced it nicely. Can’t wait to pair it with meats next.

• Crispy fish-sauce caramel chicken wings (Canh ga chien nuoc mam)

  • dmdmdmmm on January 16, 2026

    I didn’t add chilli flakes to this because I want the kids to enjoy it and they did! I like the fact that it can be done super quick because the brine just takes like 30 minutes at most and the fish sauce caramel was fairly easy. Though I did burn the first batch that I made for this but once you got that out of the way, this was a good chicken wing recipe.

  • matthew_jiod3h on April 05, 2026

    Delish

• Vietnamese michelada

  • shelbstirr on April 07, 2026

    Far too much fish sauce for my taste

• Vietnamese-style egg rolls (Cha gio)

  • Lsblackburn1 on July 02, 2025

    These were excellent! I used shiitake mushrooms- closer to a cup and slightly more noodles. Fried up beautifully.

• Crispy noodle crackers with grilled meats (Banh hoi chien voi thit nuong)

  • eclairea on October 30, 2025

    I loved this! I had all the ingredients, including leftover pork belly in fish sauce from this book which I used as the protein for this dish. Loved how easily and lightning fast the noodle crackers puffed up, and I used less oil than the recipe called for. Would make again for sure for a party or just… for me to eat greedily on my own.

• Grilled rice paper (Banh trang nuong)

  • eclairea on February 22, 2026

    Used leftover crab sticks as my protein. Perfect way to use up rice paper!

• Rice salad with clams (Com hen)

  • eclairea on October 26, 2025

    Not bad, nice way to use the jar of roasted nuoc mam, but not sure I’d go out of my way to try it again unless I found myself with an excess of clams! Loved all the fresh elements.

• Chicken pho (Pho ga)

  • njpoirier on December 04, 2024

    This is hands down the best tasting recipe for chicken pho that I’ve come across after trying several. This is the only recipe that’s surpassed the pho I order from my favorite takeout spot. The flavor is incredible, and Nini gives excellent instructions. The broth has so much depth and is perfectly balanced. I crave pho year round but it was especially comforting to make with chillier temperatures approaching. Now I am even more eager to try other recipes from this book with this great first introduction!

  • SpatulaCity on October 16, 2025

    Wonderful pho recipe that actually tastes like pho! I think it has to do with the attention given to the spices, and calling for rock sugar. The subtle sweetness rounds out the flavor and adds a whole other dimension I feel has been missing from previous attempts. Measuring out 1/3 of a cup of rock sugar is not precise because they’re … well… rocks. I wish a weight had been provided for more accurate measuring. My soup was slightly sweeter than I’d like and I’d dial it back next time.

  • metacritic on January 07, 2026

    I initially found it flat but realized I had failed to add salt to the broth, jalapenos, and lime juice. Suddenly the flavors thrilled, and the broth had depth and zing. A terrific recipe, well worth the time it requires.

• Chicken pho dry style (Pho ga kho)

  • mlonigan on December 19, 2025

    The first time I made this I used half the soy sauce called for and it still overpowered the sweet pho-y shallotiness. I made it again with 1/4 of the soy, and liked the balance of flavors. I don't recall what soy sauce she uses, so that might be the difference? (I'm using Pearl River Bridge golden label light soy sauce.)

  • metacritic on January 08, 2026

    Excellent use of leftover pho broth and ingredients.

• Chicken & mushroom clear noodle soup (Mien ga)

  • hanachocho on April 12, 2025

    This was excellent. Threw in a couple of handfuls of dried shiitake mushrooms while cooking the broth, and ate those in place of the woodear mushrooms. So as not to over cook them, separated the breasts from the rest of the chicken and plucked them out after about 25 minutes. The broth was perfectly seasoned.

• Vermicelli noodle salad with grilled meat (Bun thit nuong)

  • meggan on September 09, 2024

    Delicious - the chicken was juicy and flavorful. Makes great leftovers as well.

  • Stephenn31 on August 25, 2025

    Quick marinate, and the chicken is juicy after being grilled. Easy to substitute veggies in the fridge. Great for a change from the normal summer BBQ.

  • IdleExpatter on March 26, 2026

    Delicious! And really quite easy. As the recipe notes, once you marinate the meat and if you do a little bit of chopping in advance, this comes together in about 15 minutes at the end. I made it for friends on a weeknight and it was awesome. My only recommendation is to make a double batch of the nuoc mam sauce, you'll want extra!

• Beef stewed in coconut water (Banh mi bo kho)

  • AngryButter on July 24, 2025

    Try subbing 4 pounds oxtails per cook like a local cookbook

  • eclairea on November 17, 2025

    Nice! Liked it and was pretty easy to make, mostly hands off, but not sure I liked it enough to make it again. Happy I tried it, though!

  • Lindacookscookbooks on January 25, 2026

    I used oxtail instead of chuck. Also added potatoes. Very good.

  • rachel_ywqstg on March 24, 2026

    Delicious and so easy to make! Mostly hands off, and recieved many compliments! Served with bread as reccomended in the recipe (I did not have a baguette so I used homemade sourdough) and it was lovely! I could see this easily paired with rice or noodles as well.

• Caramelized pork in fish sauce (Thit kho)

  • Lindacookscookbooks on July 05, 2025

    Added bamboo shoots at last 20 minutes of cooking

  • eclairea on October 26, 2025

    It was tasty, but mine blackened faster than the recipe instructions, think my gas stove runs hotter than normal - still good, though! But a pain in the butt to clean my Dutch oven after…!

• Ginger-braised chicken (Ga kho gung)

  • cdglamontagne on October 21, 2024

    This was so good!!! It needed a few extra minutes to simmer but once the liquid cooked down, it looked exactly like the picture and was really delicious. First recipe made from this book and makes me think others will be great too.

  • SpatulaCity on October 16, 2025

    I think there is an error in the recipe. After 25 minutes of simmering with the lid on, the chicken was drowning in juices. Needed a good amount of time cooking with the lid off to reduce and look more like the picture. Next time may remove the lid earlier, or let it cook without the lid at all. The resulting flavor though was delicious! Served with cilantro rice and appreciated the fresh herbal hit against the gingery sweet chicken.

  • alexandra_zpdtlt on January 14, 2026

    Found that the simmering takes longer than anticipated (often from overcrowding the pan with too much chicken) and really be patient with the caramelization in the beginning - it will make a difference down the road. And we also used less oil.

  • JuneHawk on January 19, 2026

    As others have noted, after the instructed cooking time, there was far too much liquid left and the chicken did not look anywhere as caramelized as in the book's picture. But that's not the worst. We found the fish sauce flavor overwhelming. I wonder if the amount given (3 tablespoons) was an error.

  • Tessvssr on February 01, 2026

    This was good but did not blow us away. I do agree with the other commenters, it needed around 10 extra minutes with the lid off for the liquid to reduce. We will make some tweaks for next time to make the flavours more bold.

• Char siu pork (Thit xa xiu)

  • rachel_ywqstg on May 09, 2026

    Delicious and simple instructions. Added a couple drops of red food coloring for color.

• Grilled lemongrass-marinated meat (Thit nuong sa)

  • celeste_8ryupw on March 01, 2026

    The marinade made the char taste especially good! Glad I found this one!

• Stir-fried chicken with lemongrass and chili (Ga xao sa ot)

  • cdglamontagne on March 02, 2026

    Really tasty and pretty easy once everything is chopped. The bottom of my pot (a thick le creuset) was black from the sugar after about 10 minutes so either expect that or don't crank the burner all the way up. Very tender and tasty though

• Shaking beef with watercress salad (Bo luc lac)

  • mlonigan on March 18, 2025

    She doesn't marinate the meat, so this recipe comes together quickly and made a great dinner with some rice. I only used half the vinegarette (but it did mix really nicely with the sauce on the beef and the watercress).

• Pork ribs glazed with roasted nuoc mam sauce (Suon nuong nuoc mam)

  • SpatulaCity on October 15, 2025

    Beyond delicious! Excellent recipe that yielded fantastic results and was mostly hands off.

  • chawkins on November 29, 2025

    These were delicious and healthier if you cooked it ahead of time and refrigerated overnight, the solidified fat could be removed resulting in a much less greasy rack of ribs. However, I thought the cooking was a bit too long and the ribs were a bit overcooked, the ribs kind of fell apart when cut into.

  • dmdmdmmm on January 16, 2026

    Love love LOVE these ribs, and this was the first time i’ve cooked ribs. They’re sticky, spicy and sweet without being “too much” and they also came out super tender. The sauce/glaze was superb and something you can def use for other roasted meats i feel like ??

  • eclairea on February 22, 2026

    Would absolutely make again. You just need to prepare ahead of time (made the sauce a few days before, cooked the ribs the night before and cooled overnight in fridge) so when it was time to make dinner, you’re 10 mins away from the best ribs ever.

• Ground meat with lemongrass (Thit bam xao sa)

  • Lsblackburn1 on July 02, 2025

    Very easy to make and tasty. I used ground pork and some fava beans that I needed to use. Couldn’t find lime leaves so used a squeeze of lime.

  • eclairea on October 16, 2025

    This was so fast and so good! Used frozen lemongrass which made this an even speedier dish. Made with ground pork, but will try with ground beef next time (there will be a next time) to compare and see what I like best. Loved getting to use the molasses that’s been hanging out in my pantry for a while. A winner!

  • hirsheys on November 12, 2025

    Easy and tasty, though for me this dish is more about its speed than its flavor.

  • hashi on January 03, 2026

    This was so fast, easy, and delicious. I used ground turkey because that’s what was available. Served it with brown rice. I’ll be making this again, for sure.

  • dmdmdmmm on January 16, 2026

    this was super easy to put together! Never worked with makrut lime leaves before so this was new cooking territory. I liked it a lot!

• Curry-blackened fish (Ca chien ca ri)

  • Stephenn31 on August 28, 2025

    Pretty good. Comes together quickly. A bit salty so don't overdo it on the fish sauce in the marinade.

• Steamed fish with ginger and scallions (Ca hap hanh gung)

  • dmdmdmmm on May 30, 2026

    Nice and simple, I wish it had a more flavorful soy sauce. The ginger scallion sauce was great tho!

• Cabbage and chicken salad (Goi ga)

  • SpatulaCity on October 16, 2025

    Delicious salad! I specially ordered the rau ram, but my palate wasn’t tuned in enough to decipher it from the cilantro and mint in the herb mix. I don’t think I’d go out of my way to find it again. Love how fresh, bright, funky and crunchy this salad was! Could see adding cucumber, red bell pepper, or shredded carrots next time as well.

• Sautéed Vietnamese squash, shrimp, and black pepper (Muop xao tom tuoi)

  • SarahL on October 08, 2025

    So simple and so flavorful!

  • dmdmdmmm on January 16, 2026

    It’s nice, but i made an edit and instead of using water, I made a quick shrimp broth with the discarded shells and heads and seasoned it with fish sauce, salt, and MSG. I crushed the shells while it was simmering and then strained that to the pan that had the sautéed onions and Vietnamese squash, and then added the shrimp. The cilantro adds a little Herby taste to it, which was nice. You may wanna go a bit heavy on the seasoning because the broth can taste very mild but I guess that’s just a me preference

• Green beans in shrimp paste (Dau ve xao gach tom)

  • SpatulaCity on October 15, 2025

    Incredible and beyond easy. Do not fear the shrimp paste! Adds amazing umami with just a flutter of sweetness. We inhaled every bite

  • eclairea on October 30, 2025

    So fast, so easy, so good. Shrimp paste was a great, flavourful touch!

  • dmdmdmmm on January 16, 2026

    Fast to prepare, typical sauteed veggies in shrimp paste.

• Cabbage charred with garlic (Bap cai xao toi)

  • Stephenn31 on August 28, 2025

    Delicious. Cut up as much cabbage as you can that will fill the cooking surface in one layer. More than that and it's hard to get a good char which is a big part of the charm of this dish. Simple and flavourful. I added too much fish sauce and it was too salty. It doesn't sound like much fish sauce for the amount of cabbage, but do not add more.

  • SpatulaCity on November 01, 2025

    So simple and so tasty!

• Grandma's pickled cabbage (Muoi dua bap cai chua ngot)

  • hirsheys on November 12, 2025

    Very yummy - addictive, even. I really like this stuff. Also very easy.

• Pickled carrot and daikon (Do chua)

  • eclairea on October 24, 2025

    Yum! Simple recipe, always great to have on hand to balance a dish or just to snack on.

  • hirsheys on November 12, 2025

    Easy, good version.

  • alexandra_zpdtlt on January 21, 2026

    Good, easy recipe. I’ll try upping the vinegar next time since I love my pickled veg on the more sour/acidic side

  • matthew_jiod3h on April 05, 2026

    Yum Agree with maybe increasing the vinegar

• Carrots in nuoc mam (Ca rot ngam nuoc mam)

  • jessica_8s3n6x on June 02, 2026

    Great taste, would definitely make again

• Pandan jelly in coconut milk (Che banh lot)

  • dmdmdmmm on January 16, 2026

    this was a letdown. process was fun to do tbh but there’s barely any pandan flavor. I used the McCormick’s brand of pandan extract and green food color bc the extract was clear. i’ve never really used extract before but when i was letting the jelly mixture sit, following the measurements, there was barely pandan flavor. I added a bit mre bc i wasnt sure if the flavors will be stronger when it cooks out but nope. Its basically eating jelly with barely any hint of pandan flavor and sweetened coconut milk. Im sad bc I really looked forward to this because we have a very similar dessert in the Philippines which is my fave