Canh Chua Vietnamese Sweet and Sour Shrimp Soup

Canh Chua Tom (Sweet and Sour Shrimp)
Taken By Susan Tran 

Serving: 4

Time: 40 minutes

Cost: $20 to $25

Beside pho, Vietnamese cuisine also has an amazing sour soup that can make the inside of your mouth pinch, yet, the brain is telling you to sip! Sip! Sip!

The Sour Soup is a flavorful and colorful soup that originated near the Mekong Delta River in South Vietnam. People in this region rely heavily on the river as their main food source, so people commonly use fresh fish to make this tasty soup.

The two main ingredients that are very popular and are used to prepare this soup, are shrimp and fish. I will also talk about why I prefer to use shrimp over fish.  

 Shrimp vs Fish

Live Shrimp By: LucyPB2urjelly

Shrimp is way faster to cook with! Peel, cut and cook! The broth and shrimp should be cooked in separate pots, because overcooking shrimp will cause it to shrink. Once the shrimp is done cooking you can set it aside until the broth is done. Another reason why we should add the shrimp  in last is because we don’t want to lose the sweet juicy flavor. TIP: For a better redder shrimp, you should leave the shell on and add a bit of water (just enough to cover the shrimps) along with a pinch of salt and seal it with a lid (Be careful of the overflow when the lid is on). (The shrimp should be fully cooked after 4 to 5 minutes at a high boiling temperature)

Live Catfish by C Simmons

Fish! The preparation for fish takes longer than shrimp!  I never like fish at all because during my childhood I choked on a fish bone and it was my worst nightmare. That wasn't the only bad part about it! If a fish isn't cleaned correctly, a foul smell will make it very hard for you to enjoy this delicious broth! Even though, it may take a lot of work people still prefer to eat this. If your main ingredient is fish, after cleaning the fish properly, you can just add it in along with your broth and veggies. Fish takes longer to cook! (Depending on the size of the fish. Is it whole? Sliced? chopped up?)

I love to use shrimp in most my of dishes because I haven't achieved the level of being able to prep a fish and leave it scentless. Another reason why is because shrimp are faster to cook and less work is needed. That is why I decide to use shrimp for this recipe. 

Beside the main ingredient (fish or shrimp), you will also need to add pineapple, tomato, beansprouts and a variety selection of healthy herbs such as Vietnamese taro stem and Vietnamese rice paddy herb (Optional: which I didn't use for this soup).

Vietnamese Taro Stem Taken by Susan Tran 

Sweet and Sour SHRIMP Soup Ingredients:

Ingredients for Sour Shrimp Soup Taken By Susan Tran

-          Peeled & Deveined shrimp

-          2 fresh chopped tomatoes 

-          1 can of chunk pineapple 

-          2 giant chicken broth can (save a lot of time but you can also review BBH blog if you want to start off from scratch)

-          1 Red/Green/Orange bell pepper sliced (any bell pepper will work; depending on your preference)

-          1 small bag of bean sprout

-          1 stick of sliced Vietnamese Taro Stem (Bac Ha)
- Steam Rice or Small rice Vermicelli noodle
- Chopped mints 

-          2 tablespoon of tamarind powder

  Tamarind Powder Taken by Susan Tran 

-          1 red Thai bird chili (optional: add a little spicy to the broth)

-          6 okra sliced

How do we eat this??

1.       Kick back and Hot Pot!   

Hot Pot, is the easiest and fastest way to enjoy this soup. Less work is needed for the kitchen host because all you need to do is prepare the broth and wash the veggies. After all ingredients are clean, you may set your table. It is best if you eat this with (small) rice vermicelli noodle!  

Instruction for hot pot!

Campbell's Can Broth Taken by Susan Tran 

The peeled and deveined shrimps can be added in along the veggies 

1.       Wash all veggies and set them on plate

2.       Set up the broth in the pot and add tamarind powder

3.       Turn on the fire and you can slowly add the ingredients into the pot. You may scoop it out after 8 minutes. 

2.       Family meal!

Just like any other typical Asian dinner, a soup is always a must! This means more work for the person in charge of cooking because when eating sour soup, it is best served with a bowl of steamed rice!

Instruction For family dinner way!

The shrimp should be cooked separately and added in last for this

1.       Set up the first pot for the shrimp and cook them. After 5 minutes with hot boiling water closed lid. Peel & devein them.

2.         You should wash all the herbs and then slice the veggies

3.       Set up the broth in the second pot and you can add the greens along with the tamarind powder and boil it for 8 minutes

4.       Add the beansprout and the shrimp into the second pot after it has boiling for 7 minutes

5.       Pour it out into a bowl

6.       Add a few chopped mint and sliced Thai chili as topping

Have you ever try this type of soup before? If yes, Let me know what you think of it.

Horrible, 
      Sincerely
          The person stuck proof reading this. 

Coming soon: Goi Buoi Tom Thit  Pomelo Salad with Shrimp and Roast Pork

The Ultimate Spicy Delicious Bun Bo Hue!

BUN BO HUE

Spicy Lemongrass Beef Soup

Taken by Susan Tran 

Time: 1 hour and 20 minutes

Cost: $25

Serving: 4 serving 

Are you suffering from a bad headache after your crazy late Friday night? Are you suffering from that nasty flu that blocks off your sinus from the rest of the world? The word Pho is blinking nonstop on your mind? I need to get some is all you can think of? We all have been there! It isn’t fun. But no worries! I am here to save you!

Hue City 

Bun Bo hue, originated from the Royalty Hue’s City, located in the northern part of Vietnam. People in this region can really handle their spices. Bun Bo Hue is a very spicy soup with a strong lemongrass aroma. Fresh lemongrass sticks are smashed flat and added into the broth. The soup I want to share with you is extremely good for flu season, bad hang overs and freezing cold weather. The lemongrass will clear out the nasal passages and the spices will make the sweats work as if we are in a sauna room.

Fully credited to quinn.anya

Ingredients - things we need to purchase:

-          2 large 32 quart pots

-          1.5 lbs pork bones

-          1.5 lbs beef bones (optional)

-          1.5 lbs chicken bones

-          1.5 lbs sliced ham hocks

-          1.5 lbs beef shank

-          2 pieces of pig feet cut (when purchase, you should ask them to cut it into 1 inch)

-          2 small yellow onion

-          1 small bag of beansprout

-          1 small cabbages or banana blossom

-          Mints (Vietnamese mint and Thai basil)

-          1 bunch of cilantro

-          1 bunch of green onions

-          1 lime

-          Oily chili ( if you don’t have them. You can buy chilli flakes and minced up lemongrass to prepare them at home)

-          1 table spoon of salt

-          1 table spoon of sugar

-          1 teaspoon of Shrimp paste

Are you ready to test it out for yourself? Let the magic begin!

ALWAYS START OFF with WARM OR HOT WATER so the ingredients will cook faster and we won’t have to waste the 3 minutes waiting for it to boil hot.

Beef shank Image credit to Ideas in Food

Prepping for the Special BROTH: POT NUMBER 1 (Time: 7 minutes)

*Before starting on the Broth itself all meats (listed below) must be cooked at high boiling temperature for 7 minutes. Why? Cooking like this can help you obtain clearer broth at the end. When cooking at this temperature an oily and brown cloudy substance will form at the top layer so it will be easier to scoop out.

*The beef bone is optional because beef bone tends to leave a brown broth which is not clear like the typical chicken broth.

2 large 32 quart pots

1.5 lbs pork bones

1.5 lbs beef bones (optional)

1.5 lbs chicken bones

1.5 lbs sliced ham hocks

1.5 lbs beef shank

2 pieces of pig feet cut (when purchased, you should ask them to cut it into 1 inch chunks)

AFTER 7 MINUTES.. Scoop out all ingredients, rinse it with cold water and transfer all solid ingredients into pot 2.

Full credit to Malcolm Morley

FINAL BROTH: (Time:1 hour)

After transferring the solid over, fill the pot with warm water so you can conserve more time.

Leave the pot on the stove with medium heat so there won’t be any bubbly bubble boiling. Too hot and boiling bubbly can ruin the broth.

-          Meat and bones from pot 1

-          Add in one peeled yellow onion

-          1 tablespoon of sugar

-          1 tablespoon of salt

-          Add the smashed lemongrass (You should be able to smell the fragrance of lemongrass)

30 MINS later you can scoop out the pork meat

1 hour later the beef should be good to go and ready to be slice.  

WHILE WAITING FOR THE BROTH TO COOK we can save time by jumping over to the sink and washing all the herbs and also prepare the noodles.

Taken by Susan Tran 

FRESH HERBS & SAUCE: (20 minutes)/(cost: 3 dollars)

While waiting for your soup, to conserve time, hop over to your sink and wash the veggies needed for the soup. The following herbs will need to be washed and set on your clean dry plate:

(It’s best if you wash the herbs and veggies and place them in a basket with a bowl underneath so your herbs and veggies will be dry by the time you set them on your plate)

-          Banana cabbages (sliced) if not regular slice cabbage would work too!

-          Fresh herbs mints wash

-          Bean Sprout wash (optional)

-          Wash and chop up yellow onion, green onion, and cilantro, mixed them together.

Taken by Susan Tran

Chili for the broth: dry chili flakes and frozen minced up lemongrass (could be purchase at the local market) heated (separated) on the pan for a quick 3 minutes and add in bowl together. Lastly, add cooking oil. 

                                                                    Alarm clock 
30 minutes is up!!

Scoop out the pork and slice them up, here we can also work on slicing up the fancy pork patty (cha lua)

1 Hour is up!!!

Check and see if the meat is fully cooked, if it is:

-          Slice up the final beef shank

-          Add in 1 teaspoon of shrimp paste into the broth ( we add it in now because the shrimp paste has a very strong scent and we don’t want the meat to soak it up and make it hard for the consumer to eat it)

-          Have the noodle in bowl, add the meat topping on and one teaspoon of chili

-          You may pour the soup in now and add the chopped cilantro, yellow and white onion topping on it. Don’t forget the chili!

Enjoy! Do you have a different simpler way of making bun bo hue? Did you have any memorable experience when you had your first bun bo hue?

Viet! Viet! Viet FOOD!

I love food! Who doesn’t? Growing up with the fact that my parents own a small Vietnamese restaurant that has been in business for twenty-one years, I have access to an unlimited number of authentic Vietnamese goodies twenty four- seven. I've been eating Vietnamese cuisine for almost twenty years, and I am still satisfied with the special, fresh, healthy herbs and spices used in almost every recipe. Mmmm! Just thinking of all the savory Vietnamese meals is making my blood rush all over my body.

   

Taken by Susan Tran   

 Bun Bo Xao Sa            

          Spicy Beef Lemongrass vermicelli noodle 

Vietnamese food isn’t only good for your belly, but it is also good for your body, especially, your Saturday hangover. The reason why I wanted to start this blog is because I want to help spread this amazing cuisine and put it out there for everyone else to enjoy. Sharing is caring right?

Taken by Susan Tran 

                                       
  Banh Khot   
Vietnamese Mini Crepe

Three years ago, cooking was my weakest area and I hated it, but when you’re new in the kitchen and in your hand is a recipe that looks like a crossword puzzle. One word! Confusing! Some recipes aren’t that straight forward and are extremely long. Just looking at the recipes is enough to turn you off! A recipe shouldn’t be like a manuscript. Standing in the kitchen holding a pot in one hand and a recipe in the other isn’t fun!

Crossword Picture fully Credit to Montclair Made

So, I am hoping my blog might come in handy to any kitchen fan out there. Ladies and gentlemen, if you are looking for some healthy Vietnamese recipes that are easy and quick to cook, here is your chance to impress that partner of yours!

Taken By Susan Tran 

Goi Cuon  Fresh pork and shrimp summer rolls

PHO! PHO! PHO! Is what the majority of customers always order when entering a Vietnamese restaurant! The SAME OLD PHO AND SPRING ROLLS is what they order every single time. Pho is good because the broth is very tasty and soothing and YES! It is the best cure for our Saturday hangover, but there are other soups that can leave you feeling refreshed and better.

SO NEXT TIME! When you walk into a Vietnamese restaurant, try something new because you might discover your new favorite dish!  Better yet! YELP the restaurant! Trust me, I know all of this because I been there. From sitting in a high chair observing to now running and serving special delicious Vietnamese dishes, I've seen it all.

Stay Tuned for my steamy soup! The best cure for a hangover! NOT PHO!

No more walking into dimly lit restaurants with sunglasses, so you can avoid attracting attention in that restaurant! There is no need to embarrass your self and let everyone know that you had a fun Friday night.