Ensaladang Talong ala Beancounter (Asian Style Eggplant Salad)

This was one of the first things I learned to cook as a youngster. I remember being introduced to this by a friend, Nguyen Thi Bich Lieu aka Giao, who is a Vietnamese-Filipino. She was in primary school when her family left Vietnam and settled in the Philippines. After a few years, most of them moved to the west coast of Australia. She chose to stay.

I can recall this was served as a side to inihaw na tulingan (grilled bonito). It’s sweet, sour, salty, and spicy flavour was the perfect accompaniment to such a strong flavoured fish.

Thank you very much Giao! I have not forgotten it since. I have modified the recipe slightly but the essence I kept intact.

I don’t think this is “authentic” Vietnamese. Giao’s recipe had to make do with what’s available. That is probably why the herbs which are normally found in Vietnamese cooking are noticeably absent. Mint and coriander were not easy to come by then. Adding them creates another level of flavour.

Ensaladang Talong ala Beancounter

4 -6 Lebanese eggplants (shallow fried or grilled)
1-2 spring onions chopped
1-2 cloves garlic chopped
1-2 siling labuyo sliced (bird’s eye chillies)
2 teaspoons palm sugar (white sugar is an OK substitute)
1 tablespoon fish sauce
Juice of one lime (or two calamansi if you have them)
Mint and coriander (optional)


I actually prefer to grill my eggplants for the smoky flavour. You would not get this by frying. But because I needed to get dinner ready fairly quickly frying was the only way to go.

If you’re going to grill your eggplants make sure you keep them whole. Use low to medium fire/heat. Turn your eggplants regularly. The skin will blister and turn black but the insides will remain just right and moist. It’s better to do this outside the house if you can as the aroma lingers.

If you’re not so inclined frying could work just as well sans the smokiness. Cut the eggplants in half lengthwise before frying. Fry skin side first. Turn over after a couple of minutes and cook until golden brown.

Whatever method you use you need to remove the skin.

Combine all the salad ingredients together (except for the eggplant). Adjust the taste to your liking. Add the skinned eggplant. Serve with your favourite fish.

Thai Beef Salad (Yam Neua)

It is probably pretty obvious by now how fond I am of Thai cuisine. If you're not convinced yet here's another family favourite that you'll hopefully like as well.

Warm Thai Beef Salad was one of the dishes that got me hooked to Thai cuisine. My idea of what salad should be was totally turned upside down after trying Yam Neua. Salad, which I thought was supposed to be a cold and an unexciting, not very filling nor satisfying, side dish, is one of the main attractions in the Thai gastronomy and a great one at that!

Typical of Thai dishes, this salad also requires you to put together ingredients with very strong flavours of their own but when combined together contributes a nuance to the final taste that it can be pretty difficult to use substitutes.

Coriander root, for example, is a pretty unconventional ingredient that I think has no other alternative (apart from other parts of the coriander plant). Mint is another. Lemon is just not good enough as a stand-in for lemongrass.

Although a food processor can do a decent job in making the dressing I still suggest you acquire a proper mortar and pestle (if you haven’t got one yet) to do this dish. It is a worthwhile investment as you can use it to make all sorts of pastes to add to your cooking repertoire.

You do not have to stick to the selection of salad vegetables I’ve listed in my recipe. Feel free to add or take off ingredients to suit your taste. Also, the levels of sweetness, spiciness, sourness and saltiness can be adjusted to your liking by adding more or less of the dressing ingredients. The dressing can also be used as a marinade for other meats like lamb, pork, chicken or even fish.



Thai Beef Salad

A couple of steak pieces of your choice

Dressing
3-4 pieces coriander root
1 lemongrass - white part only chopped finely
6-8 mint leaves
2-3 cloves of garlic
2 birds eye chilies
Juice of 2 limes
2-3 tablespoons of palm sugar or white sugar
2-3 tablespoons fish sauce

Salad
Iceberg lettuce
Bean sprouts
Cucumber
Spanish onion
Snow peas
Coriander leaves
Mint leaves

1. Combine all the dry dressing ingredients in a mortar and pestle and pound until it turns to paste.
2. Add the remaining ingredients. Adjust the saltiness, sweetness, sourness and spiciness according to your taste.
3. Using some of the dressing marinate your steak for at least half an hour. Set aside the rest of the dressing.
3. In a large bowl combine all your salad ingredients.
4. Barbequing the meat adds more flavour to the final dish but pan frying can work just as well. Heat up a pan on very high heat. Rub the meat with a bit of oil before frying. You decide then how done you want your meat to be. Let your steak rest for a few minutes before slicing.
5. Place the sliced meat on top of your salad. Pour the remaining dressing over the salad. Enjoy on its own or serve with other barbequed meats.

Som Tam/Som Tum (Thai Green Papaya Salad)

EatingAsia has inspired me to purge my collection of cookbooks/food magazines. You see, my idea of bedtime reading is either a cookbook or a food magazine. Over the years I have accumulated quite a collection as a consequence.

During this purging I stumbled upon a Thai cookery book (Lemongrass & Sweet Basil by Khamtane Signavong) that I bought about a year ago but never read/used. In it was a recipe for Som Tam/Som Tum (Thai Green Papaya Salad) that I’ve been meaning to try to prepare at home.



I was never fond of ripe papaya. I find its green papaya more appealing and full of potential. There's the traditional Filipino green papaya pickle called achara. It is also the preferred ingredient for tinola rather than sayote. And no adobo sa gata (San Pablo, Laguna version using duck or water buffalo meat) would be complete without this versatile ingredient.


Anyway, before I get sidetracked, the focus of this post is Som Tam/Som Tum which I made for the first time a few nights ago. Green papaya is quite difficult to source Down under but thankfully my parents have couple of trees bursting with fruit in their tiny garden. The other ingredients needed for this dish are readily available in the typical Pinoy pantry.

This salad is good as an entree or as a side dish. For dinner that night we had it with lechon kawali (roast pork).

Som Tam/Som Tum - Green Papaya Salad (Lemongrass & Sweet basil – Khamtane Signavong)

3 cloves garlic
3 bird’s eye chillies
30g roasted peanuts
30g dried shrimps
8 cherry tomatoes
3 tablespoons fish sauce
2 teaspoons palm sugar
4 ½ tablespoons fresh lime juice
250g sliced green papaya
4 snake beans

1. Using a pestle and mortar, pound the garlic, chillies, peanuts and dried shrimps to a fine paste.
2. Mix the paste with the cherry tomatoes, fish sauce, palm sugar and lime juice.
3. Mix well then add the green beans and papaya. Stir to mix without breaking up the papaya.

4. Serve with some grilled or barbequed meat or fish.