Ha Noi snacks in Da Nang: nem chua rán, sữa chua nếp cẩm...

The world knows that that I'm a big fan of Hanoi cuisine. What always keep me wanting to revisit the capital are, without any doubt, my Hanoi friends and the fabulous local cuisine, especially Hanoi's street food. And sometimes I get annoyed because I cannot go to Hanoi more often. Luckily, I have recently discovered this place named "cô Thường Hà Nội" here in Danang that sells those Hanoi-signature-snacks that I am so in love with. And with this I can quite comfortably wait for my next trip to Hanoi with less grumpiness.

First of all let me tell you a bit about the place. It is an 'entertainment complex' that has everything to offer for high school students. The first floor is the shop that sells all these Hanoi wonderful snacks; the second floor is a PS3 video game store and the third floor is a karaoke place. Need I say more? This is like a true heaven for Vietnamese high school girls and boys.

Now back to the main topic, the menu of this shop covers a variety of yogurt, shakes, juices, ice cream, lemon tea, etc…Many of them are authentic Hanoi food that you do not usually find in Danang. While I have yet to tried all of them, I have 2 favourite dishes that outshine any other stuff offered by the shop and I find myself keep coming back to them: Nem chua ran and Sua chua nep cam.

Nem chua ran (deep fried fermented pork finger snack) is a popular snack among youngsters in Hanoi, you can read more about it in this post. Having fallen in love with this dish since the first try in Hanoi, I can say that Nem chua ran at this place tastes just like the original. Heck, I would even go as far as claiming that it tastes better than it does in Hanoi thanks to much more polite service and comfortable sitting (in Hanoi we had to sit on the street, or extremely narrow shops).

Nem chua rán - Deep fried fermented pork finger snack

Recipe #33 Bánh khoai mì nướng (Cassava Cake)

 

Cách làm Bánh khoai mì nướng Nguyên liệu- 1 gói khoai mì bào đông lạnh 400g - ½ chén ăn cơm đường (70g-100g tùy khẩu vị) - ¾ chén ăn cơm dừa sợi - 165ml nước cốt dừa - ¼ mcf muối - 1muỗng súp dầu ăn - ½ mcf vanilla Cách làm: 1. Bật lò nóng 180°C/350°F. 2. Rã đông, ép bỏ bớt nước trong khoai mì bào bằng khăn hoặc cái rây 3. Cho tất cả các nguyên liệu vào chung, trộn thật đều. 4. Thoa dầu cho khuôn. Đổ hỗn hợp vào. Trét phẳng bề mặt 5. Nướng 60 phút. 6. Để nguội hoàn toàn trước khi cắt.

How to make Cassava Cake Ingredients - 1 pack frozen grated cassava 400g - ⅓ or ½ cup sugar (70-100g adjust to your taste) - ¾ cup shredded coconut (can be bought frozen) - 165ml coconut milk ( 2/3 cup) - ¼ tsp salt - 1tbsp vegetable oil - 9g vanilla sugar (or 1 tsp vanilla extract) Directions: 1. Preheat oven 180°C/350°F. 2. Thaw and drain the cassava to remove excess water (with help of a strainer or cheesecloth). 3. Mix all ingredients until well combined. 4. Grease baking pan. Pour in the mixture and flatten the surface. 5. Bake about 60 mins or until golden. (When a toothpick inserted in the center of the cake comes out clean, it’s done). 6. Let the cake cool completely before cutting and serving.

Recipe, photos and video by Helen Le

Recipe #32 Bánh tiêu (Hollow bread/donut)

How to make hollow bread (hollow donut)  Ingredients: 400g all purpose flour (390g for the dough, 10g to dust the working surface (= total 2 ¾ cup) 210 ml luke warm water (=7.1 Fl. Oz) 70g sugar (1/3 cup) 1 tsp salt 1 tsp instant yeast 1 tsp baking powder 3tbsp sesame seeds Directions: Stir well 1tsp instant yeast and 1tbsp sugar into 210ml luke warm water. Leave for 5 míns. Mix sugar with baking powder, flour, salt. Mix the yeast mixture into the flour mixture, then add 1 tbsp vegetable oil. Knead into a soft dough (10mins on lowest speed with kitchen machine or 20mins by hand) Cover with plastic wrap and let the dough rest in a warm place (eg. in the oven with the oven light on.) for at least 1 hour until the dough double in size. Take the dough out and knead for one minute. Then divide the dough into 8 or 16 balls. Roll the ball in the sesame seeds. Cover with a slightly damp cloth and let it rest again for 20mins or longer. Roll the balls into round pieces, about ¼ inch thick (0.5cm). Heat a frying pan with enough oil to fry (at least 2 inches high). Slide a piece of flat dough into the oil and it will start to float. Gently flip it over continuously many times with chopstick and it should puff up. Keep flipping & frying until golden. Place on a rack or strainer to drain off the excess oil When the donut cools down, it may become flat. But when you tear it out, you see the big pocket inside. It is important that you let the dough rest long enough to get the puffing effect..

Cách làm bánh tiêu Nguyên liệu: - 400g bột mỳ đa dụng (390g để nhồi bột, 10g để rãi mặt bàn) - 210 ml nước hơi ấm tay - 1mcf men nổi màu nâu 5g - 70g đường (1/3 chén ăn cơm) - 1 muống súp dầu ăn - 1mcf muối - 1mcf bột nở (baking powder) - 5 muỗng súp hạt mè (vừng) - Dầu ăn để chiên Cách làm: Hòa 1muỗng súp đường, 1mcf men nổi màu nâu với 210ml nước ấm. Quậy đều. Trộn 390g bột mỳ với 70g đường, 1mcf muối, 1mcf bột nở. Trộn 2 hỗn hợp trên với nhau. Thêm 1ms dầu ăn Dùng máy nhồi 10 phút tốc độ thấp nhất (hoặc nhồi bằng tay 20 phút) thành cục bột dai. Lấy ra vo tròn, cho lại vào thau trộn. Bọc phủ nylon lại, để nơiấm (vd trong lò nướng nhưng chỉ bật đèn), ủ 1 giờ Sau khi ủ, bột sẽ nở to gấp đôi, khi kéo bột ra thấy có nhiều rễ. Rắc chút bột (~10g) ra mặt bàn, nhồi 1 phút. Chia bột thành 8 hoặc 16 (tùy muốn ăn bánh to hay nhỏ). Vo tròn từng viên bột và lăn qua mè (vừng). Đậy lại bằng một chiếc khăn hơi ẩm. Để bột nghỉ 20 phút Cán bột thành miếng tròn dày 1cm. Phủ khăn lại. Đổ dầu ngập cỡ 2 lóng tay. Đun nóng, khi thấy sủi bọt quanh cây đũa thì hạ lửa xuống medium. (dầu nóng 180°C). Thả bột vào chảo dầu sôi. Sau vài giây bánh nổi lên thì lật liên tục, bánh sẽ phồng đẹp. Khi hơi vàng thì gắp ra để ráo dầu rồi xơi :D.

Recipe, video and photos by Helen Le

Reference: Khai Tam's Blog

Gỏi cá Nam Ô - Nam O Fish Roll

How to eat (Don't know how to roll?)

Today I will take you far away from the city center, to a village called Nam O on the very outskirts of Da Nang. When I'm willing to travel 16km just for a dish, you know that it must be very special.

Nam O is a small village of Hoa Hiep Nam ward, Lien Chieu district, Da Nang. In the past it was locally famous for fish sauce and fire-cracker productions. Since the Vietnamese Government banned fire-cracker production, trade and use in 1995, Nam O has been known for its long-standing fish sauce industry and the extremely famous fish salad/fish rolls. 

To make this dish, the villagers'd pick the freshest herrings (or small anchovies), remove the heads and tails and fillet them. Then slightly press the fillets to extract some juice and marinade with ginger, galingale, minced garlic, lemon, vinegar... for about an hour until the fish meat becomes medium rare after absorbing all the acids and spices. After that the fish fillets are coated with roasted corn and peanut powder. The fish juice extracted, along with some other spices, would be used to make a special dipping sauce for the dish. Of course to make the final fish rolls, fresh greens and herbs are vital. What's different about eating rolls in Nam O is that the greens and herbs here are picked from the forests up on Hai Van pass. It is believed that wild forest vegetables can help eliminate the smell of raw fish.

Recipe #31 Bánh xèo (Vietnamese sizzling cakes)

• What is banh xeo and where to find it in Da Nang - Bài giới thiệu bánh xèo ở Đà Nẵng

 

How to make Banh xeo (Vietnamese pancake) Ingredients 400g rice flour (=14oz) 2tsp turmeric powder 500ml water (=2 ¼ cup) 250ml beer (or coconut milk) = 1 cup 3 stalk spring onion, chopped (=1/3 cup) 500g shrimp 300g pork belly Salt & pepper Mix the batter: -Mix 400g rice flour and 2 tsp turmeric powder (or 1 package Banh xeo flour) with 1 tsp salt and 500ml water. Stir until well combined. -Add 250ml beer( or coconut milk). Stir well again. -Add chopped onion and let the batter rest for 30 mins.