Notes about Recipes in this book

• Hainan chicken and rice with ginger-lime dipping sauce (Com ga; nuoc mam gung)

  • TwinMomJen on August 27, 2012

    A simple, classic Asian recipe. It doesn't get any more authentic than this. The ginger-lime dipping sauce is fresh, spicy, and a perfect complement to the simplicity of the poached chicken. I also added a little chopped cilantro for a delicious garnish.

• Chicken simmered in caramel sauce (Thit ga kho gung)

  • krusso119 on February 05, 2011

    Make double the sauce.

  • Kiyah on August 30, 2012

    Delicious and quick to make. If you don't tell them it has fish sauce, they'll never know. The suggestion to double the sauce is a good one.

• Shaking beef with purple onions and watercress (Bo luc lac)

  • Kiyah on August 30, 2012

    This is a keeper, great to eat for dinner on a hot summer night.

  • SACarlson on May 26, 2013

    I never get tired of this recipe. Agree with Kiyah that it is a great summer recipe. It appears on my table every time watercress appears in my organic veg box.

• Vietnamese meat loaf (Cha dum)

  • jdub1371 on December 05, 2020

    I really like this meatloaf made with pork. Turkey is ok, but it's just not as lush and tasty as the loaf made with pork. A nice fatty 80/20 ground beef might work, but I like the pork version so much I will probably stick with that. I love the inclusion of mushrooms, but I didn't like the mung bean threads in this. Considering how much fish sauces vary in saltiness, it is worth cooking up a little patty of the mixture to check for seasoning. The last loaf I made was just right with 2 Tbsp of Thai Kitchen fish sauce and no salt (I'm wondering if Vietnamese fish sauce is milder than Thai fish sauce...), but the one made with 2 Tbsp of A Taste of Thai fish sauce (also no salt) was way too salty. Chilled and sliced thin this makes a very tasty meatloaf sandwich!

• Hu tieu noodles with pork and shrimp, Saigon style (Hu tieu Saigon)

  • Aquila on April 05, 2011

    This was ok. It's kind of a noodle soup. It's fairly easy but you wind up with several bowls and pans to clean up. I needed a large and deep bowl for soaking the rice noodles. I wound up using a plastic storage container. I used low fat and low salt broth which probably explains the lack of oomph in the flavor.

• Rice noodles stir-fried with pork and shrimp (Hu tieu xao)

  • sideshoes on June 27, 2011

    Very salty. I suggest waiting and seeing how salty your soy sauce is before adding all the additional salt.