Lately I've been feeling so nostalgic about Asia and dreaming so much about going back there again on another trip...To ease this yearning (and torture myself a little) I've been looking for the pictures from when I went to Thailand and Vietnam. This trips somehow changed my way of seeing, thinking and also... tasting. It is impossible to come back from these countries without a couple of good lessons learned, at all levels. Their landscapes are breathtaking but their people...what can I say about their marvellous people... always with a big smile on their face, incredibly nice, so generous and respectful. If apart from sightseeing you take the advatage of this trips to know better their culture and traditions you will quickly feel the peace and good energy aroung almost without realizing it.
Sightseeing apart, what enchanted me the most was of course their cuisine... their markets, rice fields and fruit trees, the coulours and fragrances everywhere... All those distinct flavours and combinations of sweet, spicy, savoury and sour... those perfect blends that are so different from ours. Fascinating, amazing and captivating is how I can describe the culinary experiencie in these countries. In fact South East Asian food became one of my favourites since then and started influencing my way of cooking a lot. I love making typical dishes or incorporating some of their ingredients to my recipes to add an exotic and distinct touch.
I've selected a few pictures among the thousands I made specially in the markets, so colourful, full of scents and sensations. So that way we can somehow travel there as I share this recipe of Pho Ga.
Pho is the most typical dish in Vietnam. While it looks simple it is a dish full of nuances and taste. Pho is a soup with a clear but intense broth, rice noodles and a mix of fresh herbs. And flavour, lots of flavour. There are many versions although Pho Bo (with beef) is the most typical I opted for the Pho Ga wich is with chicken. They say the key and all the flavour is in the broth that they leave simmering for hours with beef bones and other parts along with the herbs and spices. This time we will be making a chicken stock with spices and herbs that will be very tasty. I recommend using whole spices (not ground) to make the stock, as they have much more flavour and it is much easier to remove them afterwards.
It is typical in South-East Asia to serve various bowls aside with different condiments as fresh chopped chilies, chili sauce (as Sriracha or Sambal Oelek), fish sauce, lime wedges, fresh mint and cilantro leaves... so each person can season their soup as they like. As you may already know spicy food is very common in Asia and Vietnam cuisine is not an exception. I find this a good option as not everyone likes the same level of spicyness so it is perfect to avoid unpleasant surprises.
Fish sauce is as in Thai cuisine used to season all types of dishes instead of salt. Nuoc Mam is the Vietnamese sauce and Nam Pla theThai, either one can be used.
The only challenge to make some of these recipes can be finding all the ingredients. An Asian store or market would be ideal. If there is something that characterises the Vietnamese cuisine is the amount of condiments and ingredients they use. Some of them specially the fresh ones can be quite hard to find. For that reason I make a version with ingredients we can easily get and you will see we can get a delicious Pho Ga.
So here we go with the recipe of this yummy Vietnamese soup...
PHO GA CHICKEN NOODLE SOUP RECIPE
INGREDIENTS: (Serves 4)
- 500 gr. chicken, skinless
- 2 big pieces of fresh ginger, peeled
- 2 garlic cloves, unpeeled, smashed
- 1 medium onion, peeled
- 1/2 tsp. coriander seeds
- 1 cinnamon stick
- 2 star anise "stars"
- 1/2 tsp. black peppercorns
- 1 tsp. brown sugar
- 1/2 tbsp.lemongrass powder
- Soy bean sprouts (fresh or canned)
- Wide rice noodles (same as for Pad thai)
- Red chillies (fresh or dry)
- Fish sauce
- 1 L + 300 ml water
For seasoning:
ELABORATION:
- First of all we make the broth. Take a cooking pot and put the star anise, cinnamon, pepper, lemongrass and coriander and roast at medium-high for a few minutes (careful not to burn them).
- Add the chicken in big pieces, the ginger, the onion cut in two, the sugar, fish sauce , cover with the water and cook for about 30 minutes when it starts to boil. Then low the temperature and leave simmering. You can leave it as much time as you want, the more you leave it the more tasty it will be.
- Meanwhile we make the rice noodles following the package instruction, and reserve.
- Prepare the side seasonings: chop the spring onions,the cilantro and mint and the lime wedges.
- When the stock is done we remove the chicken pieces and cut them into strips. Strain the broth and keep the onion for another recipe (a soup or cream for example).
- Take a bowl and first serve de noodles then the chicken, some soy bean sprouts, spring onions, cilantro, mint... and pour the stock. Season with fish sauce, chillies, some lime drops...and enjoy!
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