Co Mai's Vietnamese Yogurt

Prep time: 40 minutes
Cook time: 8 hours (3 days)
Makes 10 servings

YOU WILL NEED:

• Electric yogurt maker (warmer) - Alternative: oven and glass oven dish
• Stove
• Pot
• Strainer
• Fine strainer or cheesecloth
• Large mixing bowl

INGREDIENTS:

• 1 cup plain yogurt
• 1/2 can sweetened condensed milk
• 1 liter milk (whole or 2%)

STEPS:

1. Pour 1 liter of milk and condensed milk (1/2 can) into a large pot
   
2. Warm on medium heat on the stove until the condensed milk is melted and the mixture is lukewarm (NOT boiling)
3. Take off the heat and let it cool to room temperature
4. Mix in 1 cup of plain yogurt to the cooled mixture (if warm, it will kill the yeast)
5. Using the large strainer, strain the mixture into a large bowl. Repeat a second time with the fine strainer (or a cheesecloth in the large strainer).
   
6. Pour into containers and place into the yogurt maker for 8 hours. If you do not have an electric yogurt maker, you can place them into a glass oven dish filled with warm water into the oven.
   
   
7. After 8 hours, place the yogurt into the fridge for 2 days.

Co Mai's Buon Suong (Shrimp Paste / Fake Palm Tree Worm)

Prep time: 45 minutes
Cook time: 45 minutes

YOU WILL NEED:

• 2 large pots
• Basket
• Food processor
• Soup strainer

INGREDIENTS:

• 2 lbs pork spare ribs (from Asian market), cut small
• 2 lbs frozen peeled deveined headless shrimp (small shrimp are cheaper), to be ground
• Vinegar
• Salt and pepper
• 1/3 cup fish sauce
• Potato starch
• Baking power
• Tamarind cooking concentrate
• Oil
• 1 bunch green onions
• Oil color
• One package dried bun (noodle)

STEPS:

1. Spare ribs 2lbs - clean and wash and boil with 2 tbsp of vinegar and half a tbsp of salt (to clean). After it boils for 1-2 minutes, strain and wash the bones.
2. Fill a large pot 2/3 full of water. Add 1/3 cup of fish sauce to the water. Megachef is our family's preferred brand. Add one heaping tsp of MSg (can substitute another sweetener, or eliminate if preferred.). Cover and bring to a boil.
3. Add the strained pork spare ribs back to the boiling pot. Strain out the foam on top of the soup. Simmer at medium heat uncovered for 1 hour to get the sweetness out of the bones for the soup base. Keep straining the scrum.
4. Defrost shrimp and put in food processor. Add 1 bunch chopped green onion, 2 tsp of potato starch/flour, 1/2 tsp of calumet baking powder, 1/2 tsp of salt, and 3-4 tsp of oil and grind, black pepper. Add oil color (if desired).
5. Bring a pot of water to boil. Add and boil bun noodles. Wait till soft but not mushy (5-7 minutes). Shock and Strain.
6. Add three small ladels of tamarind cooking concentrate to the pork bone broth at a boil. Add one small ladel of fish sauce to taste. Should taste sour and salty.
7. Take oil on hands and one spoon of shrimp paste and roll into long logs and put into soup. Leave to boil uncovered for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally and flipping the logs.
8. Take out and leave aside until serving, when you put on top of bun and ladel in soup. Serve with cabbage or salad.

Co Mai's Apple Roses

Prep time: 45 minutes
Cook time: 45 minutes

YOU WILL NEED:

• 2 small bowls
• Rolling Pin
• Knife
• Oven

INGREDIENTS:

• 1 lemon
• Nutmeg
• Cinnamon
• 2 apples
• Phyllo dough / puff pastry (flaky, not frozen)
• Fruit preserve (we used apricot)

STEPS:

1. Half and core apples. Slice thinly and add to cold water and lemon bath. This prevents the apples from browning. These are the "rose petals".
2. Mix three tablespoons apricot preserve and 2 tbsp water in a small bowl. Add a pinch of nutmeg and cinnamon.
   
3. Flour a hard  work surface to roll the phyllo dough out on. Cut into thirds and layer the apple slices over each other along one end. Fold other end back over to seal it and roll it up. Add to muffin tins or ramekins with parchment paper.
4. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Place tins in oven and bake for 45 minutes.

Co Mai's Soy-Sauce Baked Tofu

Prep time: 20 minutes (+ 6 hours inactive prep time)
Cook time: 3 hours

YOU WILL NEED:

• Baking pan
• Saran wrap

INGREDIENTS:

• Medium firm or firm tofu
• 2/3 cup light sodium soy sauce
• 2/3 cup cooking oil (olive oil is best)
• 1 dash of five star powder
• 1 tsp seasoning mushroom
• 2/3 cup water
• 1/8 tsp black pepper

STEPS:

1. Blanch tofu for 1 minute and drain. (Blanching = plunge into boiling water, remove after a short time interval, and plunge into iced water or placed under cold running water to halt the cooking process)
2. Slice and layer on bottom of baking pan.
3. Mix soy sauce, oil, five star, mushroom, water, and pepper.
4. Pour water mixture over the tofu and allow it to soak at least 6 hours in the fridge. Cover it with saran wrap. The longer you allow it to soak, the better. Make sure the tofu is submerged or keep basting.
5. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Bake the tofu until all the liquid has evaporated. Keep flipping the tofu so that it does not harden or yellow. Make sure both sides are even. (about 3 hours)

   

Co Mai’s Cai Lan Xao

Sautéed Chinese Broccoli

Makes 3-4 servings
Prep time: 5 minutes
Cook time: 15 minutes

INGREDIENTS:

• One bunch (~ 1 lb) of Chinese broccoli
• 1 Tbsp oyster sauce
• 3 slices of ginger, julienned
• 1 Tbsp oil
• 3 drops of vodka

STEPS:

1. Cut the Chinese broccoli pieces in half and wash all the pieces
2. Boil a pot of water and put the stems in first. After 1 minute, add the rest of the leafy parts. When the water begins to boil again, remove it and drain until cold water.
3. Put everything in a large bowl of ice water for 2-3 minutes, remove, and let dry.
4. Put the oil in a large sauté pan and add the ginger.
5. Add the Chinese broccoli and stir-fry with the oyster sauce and vodka for 1-2 minutes.

   

Co Mai’s Thit Nuong

Barbecue Pork

Makes 4 servings
Prep time: 20 minutes
Cook time: 40 minutes

YOU WILL NEED:

• Barbecue or a grill

INGREDIENTS:

• 1 lb pork shoulder butt (thit nac vai)
• 2 tsp nuoc mam (fish sauce)
• 1 tsp soy sauce (preferably Maggi)
• 1 tsp sugar
• 2 Tbsp water
• 2 Tbsp oil
• 1/4 cup milk
• 3 shallots
• 1/2 tsp black ground pepper

STEPS:

1. Wash the pork and cut into very thin slices (about ⅛ inch thick)
2. Cut the shallots into slices
3. Add all the ingredients together in a large bowl and let marinate (at least half an hour, overnight is best)
4. Barbecue or grill over low heat for about 10 minutes per side. While barbecuing, you can dip the meat back into the marinade for extra flavor.
5. If you are pressed for time, you can put the meat and marinade mixture in a toaster oven or an oven at 350° F for about ten minutes. This will decrease the grilling time.
6. Serve with rice for com thit nuong or with bun, nuoc mam (fish sauce), and rau thom (a fragrant Vietnamese vegetable mixture – see here) for bun thit nuong.