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 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.

Bac Thoa’s Thit Rim (Thit Dua)

Coconut Pork

Makes 8 servings
Prep time: 50 minutes
Cook time: 45 minutes

YOU WILL NEED:

• A large, hard object to crack the coconut into pieces

INGREDIENTS:

• One coconut (should be a lightish brown color)
• 1-2 pounds of pork bellies (thit ba chi)
• Nuoc mau dua (coconut thin sauce), ~1 tsp, for color
• Nuoc mam (fish sauce), ~⅓ cup
• Ground black pepper, to taste
• Ginger, optional, to remove the pork smell, 1-2 tsp
• 1 cup water

STEPS:

1. Put the coconut on the flame (or stove) to roast the coconut to more easily crack it. All the sides of the coconut should turn brown or black, about 15-20 minutes.
2. Crack the coconut open into pieces and remove the meat from the hard shell. Cut off the soft skin of the coconut and slice the meat into thin slices.
3. Cut the pork into thin slices about 1-2 inches long and wash them.
4. Chop the ginger into small pieces and put the ginger, pork, and sliced coconut into a sauté pan.
5. Add the nuoc mau dua, nuoc mam, pepper, and water to the pan and stir-fry until all the liquid is gone (about 45 minutes). The pork should also be a nice caramel brown color with a little bit of burning on the edges.

   

Bac Thoa’s Thit Kho

Braised Pork with Eggs

Makes 8 servings
Prep time: 30 minutes
Cook time: 2-4 hours

YOU WILL NEED:

• A large pot
• A colander

INGREDIENTS:

• 2-3 pounds of boneless pork leg skin on (dui sau co da khong xuong)
• ~10-12 eggs
• Ginger, optional
• 2-3 cans Coco Rico
• Nuoc mau dua (coconut thin sauce), ~1-2 tsp, for color
• Salt, 1-2 large tsp or to taste

STEPS:

1. Cut the pork into 3-finger sized pieces. You should end up with about 10-12 pieces.
2. Put all the pork and the eggs into the large pot and fill with cold water. Everything should be submerged in the water.
3. Throw a few slices of ginger in the pot to remove the pork smell.
4. Cook for about 10-15 minutes until the eggs are hardboiled.
5. Wash the pork very well and peel all the hardboiled eggs.
6. Remove the ginger and wash the pot very well.
7. Put the eggs and pork back into the clean pot with the eggs on the bottom.
8. Put on the stove on high and add the nuoc mau dua, salt, and Coco Rico. You should have enough broth to just barely cover all of the contents. If not, add water or more Coco Rico until all the pork is covered.
9. When boiling, skim the fat off the top of the broth and turn the stove to low-medium for 2-4 hours with the lid on.

   

Bac Thoa’s Ca Kho

Catfish in a Clay Pot

Makes 8 servings
Prep time: 30 minutes
Cook time: 2-4 hours

YOU WILL NEED:

• Claypot

INGREDIENTS:

• 2 medium catfish (about 3 lbs each)
• Ginger, julienned
• 2 cans Coco Rico
• Nuoc mau dua (coconut thin sauce), ~1-2 tsp, for color
• Salt, 1 large tsp or to taste
• Whole black pepper, 1 tsp

STEPS:

1. Cut catfish width-wise into ~1.5 inch thick pieces
2. Remove the head and the tail (save for Canh Chua)
3. Wash the fish pieces very well with hot water, optionally with a little white vinegar
4. After cleaning, put a little bit of oil in the bottom of the clay pot and cover the bottom of the pot with the julienned ginger
5. Layer the fish on top of the ginger
6. Put on the stove on high and add the nuoc mau dua, salt, pepper, and Coco Rico. You should have enough broth to just barely cover all of the fish.
7. When boiling, skim the fat off the top of the broth and turn the stove to low-medium for 2-4 hours.
8. Toward the end, remove the lid off the clay pot to condense the broth further.