vietnamese cooking

Lily’s Savory and Geometrically Delicious Banh Gio!

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For Lily, many of these recipes bring back memories of eating after school meals with her grandmother. Nothing brings back more memories for her than Banh Gio.

This cone shaped savory rice dumpling filled with pork, onions, and wood ear mushrooms was something that Lily ate often when she was a little kid. The smell of them steaming was always a welcoming one when she got off of the school bus and entered her grandmother’s home.

Banh Gio is quite simple to make! The rolling and filling technique is a little tricky, but Lily will show you how to do it!

Once steamed, Banh Gio can be eaten plain or with a drizzle of soy sauce (Lily and Generoso’s preferred way to eat). Enjoy!

Music by Alexander Borodin’s String Quartet no. 2 in D

Lily’s Delicious Xoi Dau Xanh (Sweet Rice with Mung Beans)

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Xoi refers to the glutinous sweet rice dish with many forms in Vietnamese cooking. There are savory versions of xoi, and there are sweet versions of xoi. Lily will show you how to make Xoi Dau Xanh, which is a sweet version of xoi with mung beans that she grew up eating for breakfast. Xoi Dau Xanh is served with sesame sugar salt and is perfect when you need a midday snack. This is a super simple recipe that requires little preparation and more passive cooking time depending on the type of steamer you use.

Lily used Korean sweet rice here, but if you find Thai sweet rice, do go for it!

Enjoy! Let us know how it goes!

Music provided by Conradin Kreutzer’s Grand Septet Eb, Op, 62.

 

Lily Cooks Up Delicious Yu Choy and Oyster Sauce

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Yu Choy is similar to Chinese broccoli. Oddly, in the northeast, it is more readily available than broccoli. As a result, the Fierros eat it a lot.

The key component to this week’s dish, Yu Choy with Oyster Sauce, is the Mushroom Oyster Sauce that tops the Yu Choy. Lily will show you how to make the sauce and how to prepare the greens! This is one of her few one pot dishes, so it is a fast and simple recipe. Feel free to use the sauce for other dishes as well. It is a pretty tasty base sauce for egg noodles!

Enjoy!

Music courtesy of Antonin Dvořák, String Quartet no. 12 ‘American’, Op. 96 in F.