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Category Archives: Food
‘Tis Always the Season for Shortbread Cookies
In my family, Christmas just isn’t Christmas without shortbread cookies. Both my parents loved cooking and baking, but my father and I usually made the shortbreads, creaming pounds of butter, combining it with icing sugar, cornstarch and flour, and forming … Continue reading
Posted in Cooking, Food, Recipes
Tagged baking, Christmas, Faye Levy, flavourings, lavender, Shaker recipes, shortbread cookies
5 Comments
Cookbook review: Istanbul and Beyond
Istanbul and Beyond: Exploring the Diverse Cuisines of Turkey Robin Eckhardt, with photography by David Hagerman Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, $35 (352p) ISBN: 978-0-544-44431-7 *Note and disclaimer: When I originally posted this review, I somehow managed to leave the disclaimer out when I … Continue reading
Posted in Book reviews, Books, Cookbooks, Cooking, Food, Recipes
Tagged David Hagerman, Istanbul and Beyond, Robyn Eckhardt, Turkey, Turkish Food
18 Comments
P is for Preserves and my Favourite Vietnamese Chilli Paste
Viet cuisine is known for its fresh ingredients. At my mother-in-law’s table, greenery abounds, the fish and shrimp come from my sister-in-law’s family pond, and Mother buys fresh meat daily at the Đông Ba Market. Canned, bottled, and dry ingredients … Continue reading
Posted in A to Z, Cooking, Food, Recipes, Viet Nam
Tagged chilli paste, Huế, preserves, tương ớt, Vietnamese food
5 Comments
X is for Xửng…Mè Xửng
In the Việt kitchen, the letter X is tasty. I considered writing about xào, stir-frying, or xoài, mango, or perhaps xôi, sticky rice. Then my in-laws sent a huge package of goodies from Huế. Among the many local specialties were … Continue reading
N is for Nghệ / Turmeric
“After women give birth,” my Vietnamese mother-in-law explained, “they get coldness. Turmeric heats the body and protects against colds or flu. Also,” she said, “turmeric makes the skin soft and beautiful again. Any woman who just had a baby should apply a turmeric … Continue reading
Posted in A to Z, Cooking, Food, Viet Nam
Tagged Andrea Nguyen, Eating Asia, Kim Fay, Leela Punyaratabandhu, Nicole Routhier, She Simmers, Turmeric
9 Comments
V is for Vả Figs
We tend to think of Vietnamese cuisine as a single entity, but really it’s made up of many regional dishes and ingredients. The cooking of Huế features a variety of such foods, and a variety of locally grown fig is one … Continue reading
Sweet and Sour Tamarinds for Tết
Hard work. Peeling sour green tamarinds to make sweet and sour Tết preserves. My sister-in-law and I have already spent a couple of hours on this, and we still have hours to go. When tamarinds are ripe, the shells separate … Continue reading
Posted in A to Z, Cooking, Food, Viet Nam
Tagged dưa món, Huế, tamarind, Tết, Tết preserves, trái vả, Vietnamese food
7 Comments
T is for Tôm Chua (Sour Shrimp)
The cuisine of Việt Nam’s old imperial city of Huế features a number of local specialties that aren’t so well known in the rest of the country. The lightly fermented shrimp condiment called tôm chua, sour shrimp, is one of … Continue reading
Posted in A to Z, Food, Photos, Viet Nam
Tagged Huế, Shrimp, Tôm Chua, Viet Nam, Vietnamese food
7 Comments
M is for Mãng Cầu (Custard Apple)
It’s mãng cầu seaon in Huế right now. I spotted these ones next to a pile of bright pink dragon fruit at the market. My mother-in-law knows how much I like to eat them, and often buys them in threes just … Continue reading
Posted in A to Z, Food, Photos, Viet Nam
Tagged Custard apple, Huế, mãng cầu, Tết, Vietnamese food
11 Comments
Discovering Cơm Hến (Clam Rice) in Việt Nam
Feeling quite chuffed that my short essay about a lesser known specialty dish from Việt Nam (called cơm hến, clam rice) has been shortlisted for the Third Annual I Must Be Off! Travel Essay Contest. The essay, Discovering Hến Rice in … Continue reading