(This is from my old blog, 6 years ago.) The exam is just right around the corner, and I binged-watch Netflix yesterday, what was wrong with me??!!!! Yesterday, our 6-year-old was sent to Nonna to sleep over; though she did not volunteer, I think it's time she learned to sleep over at nonna. Little by little, she would get used to the idea that sometimes, it's necessary to sleep without mom and dad as we plan to send her to summer camp when she reaches the age of 8; kids will stay at some places without parents for one week, and we can choose "theme" for her to get used with new activities or hobbies, for example, theatre camp, music camp, sports camp, ... I think this type of activities is beneficial for small kids. Hopefully, they would be more independent and learn some survival skills. Back to us - parents, we had a wonderful dinner with Vietnamese bánh mỳ, followed by delicious gelatos, and watched 2 comedy shows of our favorite standup comedian on Netflix - Aziz Ansari. We have known him from the show Master of None and completely fell in love with him. :) I will share the recipe for Bánh mỳ we ate last night. If you have even come to Vietnam, you will find out Bánh mỳ is one of our famous breakfasts in every corner of Vietnam, from North to South, from East to West. However, the bánh mỳ has its variations, and depending on which region you go to, the taste would be a little sweeter and chillier, and the filling would be more decadent or simpler. :) I'm from Saigon - the South of Vietnam - the land of great and rich food (though I think everyone would talk about their hometown like this, but seriously, Saigon has the best food! :p ). Let's take a quick look at the definition of bánh mỳ in Vietnam. It's a type of panino or hamburger, usually consisting of meat/ham/canned sardine (YEs!)/ eggs - sunny-side-up or braised, tomatoes, cucumber, pickled carrots, onion, fresh chili, liver pate, mayonnaise, and fresh coriander. I love our bánh mỳ because it's comfortable, new, and so flavoury; all the ingredients combine so well and create a distinctive taste that I haven't found anything like this in American-style hamburger, Italian-style panino, or Eastern Kebab. There are 2 most popular types of bánh mỳ in Sài Gòn. 1) ham/meatball + pate +mayo + cucumber + tomatoes + onion + chilli + pickled carrots + corriander. This one is amazing; I can eat it every day. 2) It's less popular in some places but widespread in my neighborhood. The fillings should be grilled lemongrass meatballs, hoisin + srirachan sauce, cucumber, tomatoes, pickled carrots, and coriander.
Last night, we had the second type; my husband is so into this; he said it was his favorite bánh mỳ / panino.banh mi vietnam.JPG87.3 KB
Nguyên liệu
*For meatballs:
400 gr of minced pork + beef
3 tablespoon of finely chopped onion + garlic + lemongrass
1 tablespoon of fish sauce (optional)
salt, sugar, cooking oil and some black pepper
*For pickled carrot
Julienned carrots
2 tablespoon of sugar
2/3 cups of Vietnamese vinegar (if you have the other western type vinegar, the quantity should be reduced, since the other kinds are stronger than our traditional version, however Vietnamese or Chinese vinegar can be found easily in Asia market)
*For bánh mỳ
Thinny sliced cucumber
Thinny sliced tomatoes
Thinny sliced spring onion
Thinny sliced chilli
Mix of hoishin sauce and Srirachan (Srirachan can be omitted in case you dont like hot chilli taste)
Corriander
Baguette breads
Cách làm
Mix all the meatballs ingredients and let them rest for at least 2 hours.
Prepare your grill; make small and quite thin balls, and grill till the meat is cooked (I recommend small balls so that the meat can be cooked evenly, quickly and juicily)
Mix all the pickle ingredients and let them rest for at least 2 hours.
Spread a thin layer of hoisin on your bread, fill all the ingredients in. and ENJOY! :p
