Now that summer is here, I'm trying to incorporate more fresh vegetables into our meals. I came across these beautiful on-the-vine tomatoes at the grocery store (and they were on sale) and immediately thought about the Vietnamese dish called cà chua nhội thịt (stuffed tomatoes). Cà chua means tomatoes, and nhồi thịt means stuffed with … Continue reading Stuffed Tomatoes (Cà Chua Nhồi Thịt)

Who doesn't love pizza? Ever since I quit my job to spend more time with my son, we have made pizza from scratch at least twice a week....consistently. My son's diet rotates between rice (cơm) and pizza. Pizza is one of those dishes that you can pretty much dress it up with anything. So today … Continue reading Chinese Sausage Pizza

Who doesn't love a good steak? Especially now that grill season is here. But eating steak day in and day out can get old...at least for me. So when I saw ribeye steak on sale, I thought why not change it up a bit and use a marinade to make shaking beef? What is shaking … Continue reading Shaking Beef (Thịt Bò Lúc Lắc)

If you have the chance to visit Vietnam, you will see a lot of street food vendors selling all kinds of foods. One my favorite is thịt gà nướng. Thịt gà means chicken and nướng means grilled. So when it's put together thịt gà nướng translates to grilled chicken. Summer vacation has officially begun, which … Continue reading Grilled Chicken (Thịt Gà Nướng)

It has been a long time since I've had rau muống xào (a.k.a. sauteed water spinach). I didn't even think about it until I came across it at the Asian store. My mom made this dish all the time when I was growing up because it was inexpensive in Vietnam. Plus it was an easy … Continue reading Sauteed Water Spinach (Rau Muống Xào)

It is finally finished, the bánh mì (Vietnamese sandwich) recipe that has been requested by our dear friends, Josh & Steph. Thank you for patiently waiting. It was so nice to catch up with you guys. Bánh mì (Vietnamese sandwich) originated in Saigon in the 1950s. The word bánh mì in Vietnamese means "bread". Many … Continue reading Vietnamese Sandwich (Bánh Mì)

What do you think of when I say luffa? The sponge that people use in the shower? Or the vegetable that you eat? Depending on how mature the luffa is, it can either be used in cooking or to make sponges. Thịt bò xào mướp is a common Vietnamese dish that stir fries beef with … Continue reading Beef with Edible Luffa (Thịt Bò Xào Mướp)

Thịt bò rang, also known as caramelized ground beef is one of my favorite dishes growing up in Vietnam. My mom used to feed me this with Jasmine rice while I ran around and played in our front yard. It's normal to see young kids get feed by their parents while playing outside. Initially, I … Continue reading Caramelized Ground Beef (Thịt Bò Rang)

Lemongrass chicken is a dish that marinates chicken with minced lemongrass, soy sauce and aromatics. Lemongrass is a tropical, perennial type grass that is found throughout Southeast Asia. It comes in the form of stalks with a pale yellow bulb at the end, and green fibrous tops. Its texture is hard, woody and fibrous. Before … Continue reading Lemongrass Chicken (Thịt Gà Xào Xả)

Mì xào is stir fried noodles. Cải is a general term for any green leaf vegetable. In this particular dish, cải refers to baby bok choy. Noodles with baby bok choy reminds me of my late nights in college studying for exams. My friend and I would order take out from an Asian restaurant across … Continue reading Noodles with Baby Bok Choy (Mì Xào Cải)