Cha Ca w/ Nuoc Cham

Since I've been in my International Cuisines lab this quarter, I've been all about ethnic cuisines!  We started off with China last week and it was full of exciting new dishes - Chinese cuisine definitely goes beyond what you find at your local buffet =)

Anyway, one of my favorite Asian countries is Vietnam.  Most of the food is very humble in origin, but there is a lot of beauty and flavor in each dish.  Cha Ca is a traditional Hanoi-Style Fish w/ Dill.  The name means "braised fish" in Vietnamese.  The dish is so popular in Vietnam that there is a street in Hanoi that is named in it's honor!  Neat huh?

I think this is a great fall dish that is unique and full of flavor.  And the Nuoc Cham (one of the most popular condiments in Vietnam) is so good, you can practically put it on anything - from dipping egg rolls or dressing your salads - it's THAT good!

Ingredients:

For Marinade:
1 inch piece fresh ginger, peeled and chopped
2 jalapenos
1 tablespoon sugar
2 tablespoons fish sauce
4 tablespoons ground tumeric
4 tablespoons water
juice from 1 lemon

1 lb. catfish fillets
4 tablespoons olive oil
2 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
3/4 cup fresh dill
4 green onions, chopped
rice noodles, cooked, as needed
4 tablespoons peanuts, chopped

Nuoc Cham:
1/4 cup sugar
3 tablespoons water
1/4 cup plus 1 tablespoon fish sauce
1/2 cup lemon juice (can substitute lime juice for slightly different flavor profile)
1 garlic clove, minced

For the marinade, combine the ginger, jalapenos, and sugar in a mortar and pestle. Grind until a paste remains.  Add the fish sauce, tumeric, water, and lemon juice.  Stir until combined.

Cut the catfish into 1-inch pieces and place in a shallow dish.  Pour marinade over top and cover.  Refrigerate for at least 1 hour.

Heat the oil in a large saute pan under medium high heat.  Add the garlic and stir until fragrant.  Add the catfish and cook until fish is almost done, about 2-4 minutes.

Cut the dill into 1-inch pieces.  Add half of the dill and half of the green onions to the fish and cook until they are wilted.

To make the Nuoc Cham, combine the sugar, water, fish sauce, lemon juice, and garlic in a small bowl.  Mix until sugar is dissolved.

Place the rice noodles on the center of a serving platter.  Arrange remaining dill and green onions over top.  Top with catfish and chopped peanuts.  Serve along side Nuoc Cham.

This is definitely an interesting dish full of new flavors.  The Nuoc Cham is definitely not to be skipped, as I think it brings the whole dish together!

What's your favorite Vietnamese dish?

Vietnamese Banh Mi Burgers

I love a good burger. Big burgers, small burgers, thin, thick, whatever... as long as it's good, I'm down for it. I like this recipe because it takes a tradition Vietnamese Banh Mi sandwich (here's the Wikipedia article here) and converts it into a burger. Definitely makes the house smell pretty awesome too.

Ingredients:
Adapted from Food & Wine Nov 2009 Issue - "Vietnamese-Style Banh Mi Burgers"

2 carrots, shredded
1/4 cup rice vinegar
1 tablespoon sugar
1/2 cup mayonnaise
2 tablespoons Frank's Red Hot Sauce
2 teaspoons tomato paste
1 garlic clove, minced
salt and pepper
1 & 1/2 lbs ground beef
1 & 1/2 teaspoons curry powder
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
2 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened
4 ciabatta rolls
10 jalapeno slices (more or less depending on your like/hatred of spiciness)

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. In a small bowl, combine the carrots, jalapenos, rice vinegar, and sugar. Toss to combine and let sit for about 10 minutes. Drain, then set aside.

In another small bowl, mix the mayonnaise, tomato paste, hot sauce, garlic, salt, and pepper. Mix well and set aside.

Patty up the beef into 4 large burgers. You could go as thick or thin as you want, but I just quartered my ground beef and made a patty out of each one. It made for a decent size patty. Season each patty with curry powder, salt, and pepper. It's pretty simple seasoning here, but I think the curry powder really adds a depth of flavor.


In a large skillet, heat the oil under medium-high heat. Add the patties and cook until nicely browned on each side. Flip only once, took about 15 minutes or so, depending on how thick your patties are.

While the patties are cooking, you can start crisping up your ciabatta rolls. Cut each roll in half and spread butter on cut sides of bread. Set bread, cut side up, and bake for about 5 minutes so get a nice lightly toasted roll.


Spread spicy mayo on on side of roll, then place patty on roll, and top with pickled carrots and jalapenos.

These were definitely different, but still had a good flavor for a burger. The bread was crunchy. The burger was juicy. The toppings and condiments worked well with everything. Definitely a must try burger. Enjoy!