Red Lantern, Surry Hills, Sydney

Now, to the other end of the Vietnamese dining spectrum.

I’ve always intended to go to Red Lantern. But my resolve to actually dine in this much-lauded restaurant became even greater after my wife gifted me with Luke Nguyen’s (the restaurant’s owner/chef) Songs of Sapa for our 12^th anniversary.

Most Vietnamese restaurants I know are either in the city’s Chinatown or in the outer suburbs. Red Lantern, on the other hand, distinguishes itself by being situated in a converted Crown St terrace in the trendy Surry Hills area of Sydney.

The restaurant suggests you book at least 2 months in advance if you plan to have dinner there on a Friday or a Saturday night. I did not have that much notice to give. Dinner was definitely out of the question. So I booked lunch instead.

With my very good friends from Sydney in tow (thanks once again Lyndon and Carla, and Anthony, of course) we rock up one Wednesday to experience what Red Lantern has to offer.

No Asian kitsch in sight. The restaurant is tastefully decorated in mainly vermillion and black. It gives you the feeling of being in a well-to-do but traditional Vietnamese family home.

So as we do not miss anything I thought the best way was to go for their tasting menu. Unfortunately, with less than 4 adults in our party we were dissuaded from doing so. There was no other choice but to go a la carte.

We started with the following entrees:

Goi Du Du

Green papaya, Tiger prawns and Berkshire pork salad.

Chim Cut

Twice cooked quail stuffed with Kurubota pork served with salad of fennel in citrus and soy dressing.

Bo La Lot

Char grilled lemongrass beef wrapped in betel leaves with vermicelli, peanuts and shallot oil.

For mains we ordered:

Con Dom Hap

Mussels steamed with garlic, lemongrass and chilli. Finished with coconut milk.

Suon Nuong

Char grilled ‘Berkshire’ pork cutlets marinated in honey, lemongrass and shallot oil

Ca Hap La Chuoi

Curry marinated fish fillet wrapped in banana leaf and steamed

I can sum up the whole experience in one word: “underwhelming.” For a restaurant with such strict booking requirements I came with very high expectations. Red Lantern, I thought, would be a step above the best Vietnamese dining experiences I’ve had in the past. It all comes down to the flavours. They were all there but somehow muted. Rather than an explosion I only got a hint of this and a whiff of that.

As much as I love Luke’s book I’m afraid I can’t say the same for the restaurant. It promised so much but delivered so little.

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.

Baon – Banh Mi (Vietnamese Sandwich)

The one and only sandwich that truly hits the spot for me is the Vietnamese Banh Mi.

What is Banh Mi?

It is a sandwich composed of a light and crispy baguette (made using a combination of rice and wheat flour) filled with mayonnaise, liver pâté, chillies, coriander, cucumber, pickled carrot and your choice of protein (Vietnamese cold cuts, leftover roasts/barbecues, etc.).

It does sound a lot…because it is. But you only need small quantities of each to create this masterpiece of a sandwich.

For today’s lunch I’ve used leftover lechon (and Vietnamese pork roll) to give it a Pinoy touch and then some beetroot instead of pickled carrots to add a bit of an Aussie element to my sandwich.

Trang, West End

I love Vietnamese cuisine. I like the balance they have in their dishes. Fresh herbs and salad go together with rich soups and stews. But there’s a lot more to the Vietnamese gastronomy that I’m yet to explore. The rest would just have to wait when I get the opportunity to visit the country itself. For now I’m limited by restaurant offerings.

I Love Food Awards finalist

Whenever I get a hankering (7 days a week that is) for Vietnamese food I only go to one place, Trang at Brisbane’s West End. Among all the Vietnamese restaurants I’ve tried Trang stands out for several reasons:

Bun Bo Hue (Spicy Beef & Pork Soup)

1. Food is delicious & consistent

We tend to order almost always the same menu items. Naturally, we expect the food to taste like the last time. Otherwise, we might as well select something else.

It annoys me a whole lot when a dish tastes different from one day to the next depending on who’s manning the restaurant. This is never an issue at Trang where food is consistently delicious.

the classic pho (beef soup)

2. Food is authentic

A Vietnamese friend introduced me to Trang. That says a lot about the authenticity of the food on offer. You don’t get a “watered-down” version which is pretty commonplace in Australia.

com chien (fried rice)

3. Family Friendly

With four kids in tow it’s quite a challenge to find a restaurant where one feels “welcome”. Trang has established itself as a “family-friendly” restaurant where everyone goes away satisfied.

mi ga chien don (crispy fried chicken noodle soup)

4. Warm and friendly service

The staff are friendly but not in your face. As “regulars” we’ve done away with the menu as the staff know exactly what we want.

sam bo luong (mixed drink)

5. Price is reasonable

To top it all Trang’s prices are exceptionally reasonable. They’ve recently pushed them up but for what you get you’ll be willing to fork out more. A satisfying bowl of pho, for example, will still only set you back less than $10.

kem chien (deep fried ice-cream)

My original intention was to include Trang in my “cheap eats” series. But that would be doing them a disservice.

Lunch Club – Tramy’s Fried Chicken Wings (Canh Ga Chien)

If you’re tried of the usual fried chicken Tramy’s recipe is worth giving a go. The only twist to the usual Pinoy fried chicken recipe is the addition of garlic. Garlic might not be big in size but they sure make an impact!

It’s simple! It’s quick! But very satisfying!

We served it with fresh cucumber salad and some soy/chilli sauce.

Here’s her recipe.

Canh ga chien Fried chicken wings

Ingredients

1 kg Chicken wings cut into wingettes (separate the wing by cutting the joints then get rid of the pointy bit) for easy frying

Salt & pepper to taste

3-4 cloves chopped garlic

Lots of oil for deep frying

Procedure

1. Combine ingredients and marinate chicken for at least 1 hour

2. Heat oil over medium heat

3. Put all the chicken in the hot pan and cook the chicken until golden brown.

4. Serve hot with jasmine rice and some fresh salad.

Lunch Club - Dau Hu Nhoi Thit Sot Ca (Pan-Fired Stuffed Tofu with Fresh Tomato Sauce)

I’m beginning to realise how very similar Filipino and Vietnamese dishes are. There was the Pork Belly in Coconut Juice similar to the Pinoy Pork Adobo. And this week Tramy prepared a dish called Dau Hu Nhoi Thit Sot Ca (Pan-Fired Stuffed Tofu with Fresh Tomato Sauce) which is very similar to the Pinoy (Tagalog/Laguna region) Tokwa’t Baboy dish. Tokwa’t Baboy in San Pablo City, Laguna (where I grew up) is also cooked in fresh tomato sauce. I’ve always thought this was some sort of bastardised Spanish dish (with the use of tomatoes and all). Not anymore! It’s probably uniquely Asian. Come to think of it, it is actually similar to the Chinese Ma Po Tofu.



The main differences between the Vietnamese and the Filipino dishes are in the use of large tofu pieces (the Pinoy one uses half a domino size pieces that have been fried) and mince pork (rather than pork belly).



It tasted very familiar and has brought me back to my primary school days in Laguna.

Thanks Tramy!



Here’s her recipe:

Dau Hu Nhoi Thit Sot Ca (Pan-Fired Stuffed Tofu with Fresh Tomato Sauce)

Ingredients

4 large pieces of fried firm tofu (you can get this at any Asian shop)
200g pork mince
3 eschallots chopped (sibuyas Tagalog)
2 Spring onions chopped (use only the green part)
Fish sauce to taste
2 tablespoon sugar
Salt to taste
Black Pepper freshly ground
6 medium tomatoes chopped coarsely
2 tablespoon tomato sauce
2 cloves of garlic
1 tablespoon oil
1 cup water

Procedure

Put the pork mince into a large bowl.
Add the salt, pepper, chopped eschallots and mix well.
Cut the tofu in half. Create a pocket in the tofu by making a slit on the side but not cutting all the way through.
Stuff the mixed pork mince into tofu and set aside.
Heat up the oil in the pan then add the garlic.
Wait for the garlic to turn golden brown than add the remaining ingredients.
Cover and simmer for about ½ hr or until the fresh tomatoes are completely dissolved in the sauce with no chunks left.
Take it off the heat then add the spring onion.
Serve with freshly cooked jasmine rice

Lunch Club - Thit Heo Kho (Braised Pork Belly in Coconut Juice)

Pork belly would have to be my favourite cut of meat. I find it to be most versatile. You can roast it! You can barbecue it! You can braise it! You can cook it in whatever way you like! I like it because it has a lot of flavour thanks to the fat content of this cut of pork. It probably horrifies some health freaks out there but yes, I like FAT! I eat FAT! But I’m not FAT!

I always welcome new recipes that use pork belly. Thit Heo Kho (Vietnamese style Braised Pork with Egg) is new to me but it is well known to many Vietnamese for centuries!

There are a lot of similarities with the Filipino Pork Adobo. Both use the same cut of meat. A lot of garlic is used. The main points of difference are the addition of fish sauce, the use coconut juice/water instead of vinegar and lastly the addition of hard boiled eggs. The end product certainly looks very similar to the Adobo. But the gap is widened farther in the taste area. Thit Kho is more on the sweet/salty side. Adobo, on the other hand, is more on the salty/sour side. But both are very good!

Tramy served Thit Keo Kho with fresh salad leaves and some preserved mustard leaves (very similar to the Filipino "burong mustasa") to balance the richness of the dish.

Again, thanks to our miss from Saigon for introducing Lunch Club to another gem!
Here’s the recipe courtesy of Food Safari on SBS television:

Thit Heo Kho
1 kg pork belly (not too fatty), cut into 5 cm cubes

2 cloves garlic, finely chopped

4 shallots (small brown onion bulbs), finely chopped

3 tbsp fish sauce

3 tbsp light soy sauce

1½ tbsp dark soy sauce

4 star anise

½ tsp cracked black pepper

2 tbsp palm sugar or dark brown sugar

2 whole green shallots 1 tbsp vegetable oil

½ white onion, finely diced

3 cups (1 bag) young coconut juice (not milk or cream!)

1½ cups water

8 hard boiled, free range eggs, peeled

Jasmine rice and coriander, to serve

Combine pork belly, garlic, shallot, fish sauce, soy sauces, pepper, star anise and palm sugar. Use the whole shallot including roots. Lay on a chopping board and smash with the flat side of the knife then chop finely. Add to marinade. Marinate pork for at least 3 hours or overnight. Heat vegetable oil in heavy based pan and brown onion. Remove pork from marinade and add to the pan and seal over high heat. Add coconut juice, marinade and water. Bring pan to the boil and skim surface. Simmer for 1 hour on low heat (skimming occasionally) and then add eggs. Simmer for a further hour. Serve with steamed Jasmine rice and garnished with coriander.

Lunch Club – Tramy’s Vietnamese Pork Chops – FINALLY!

What can I say? Well, it was worth the wait!

a Lunch Club guest taking away his share

For lunch today Tramy served Vietnamese style pork chops with the lot! FINALLY! I’ve been hanging for it since Tramy promised to prepare when we launched Lunch Club.

my plate with all the trimmings

We’ve finally made full use of our new rice cooker (from David Jones, currently on special @ $29.95). The scent of cooking jasmine rice wafted all over our level. No one complained. Some wanted a piece of the action.

rice cooker from David Jones (on sale till 13 July or while stocks last)

Tramy went out of her way to make the meal authentic. She brought all the necessary condiments. We’ve got mo hanh (cooked spring onion/garlic), home made nuoc mam (some say nuoc nam, or nuoc cham, whatever…it was yummy!), and bi (pork skin salad). Vietnamese pork chop is normally served with fried egg. Of course, in the spirit of authenticity, Tramy has brought fresh eggs which we fried in the office (there’s nothing worse than hour’s old fried egg!) using our versatile sandwich press.

frying egg using a sandwich press...innovate or die!

Lunch Club – Tramy’s Vietnamese Pork Chops…NOT!

I was actually looking forward to the Vietnamese pork chops today as promised by our Vietnamese friend. But unfortunately no pork chop was on the menu. But she made up for it with a hell of a substitute!

A cut sandwich for lunch (or any other meal) does not really cut it for me. I get full for sure (after wolfing down half a dozen) but remain unsatisfied. Being full and being satisfied are two different beasts. You can be full and not be satisfied. Can you be satisfied though and not be full? Hmmm? *thinking*

Vietnamese Pork Roll served with fresh Lebanese cucumber salad (the chilli paste came in the "got balls?" bag...don't ask!)

For lunch today Tramy (not her real name to protect her identity) has brought Pork Rolls. No, they’re not spring rolls made from pork. They’re actually Vietnamese style pork cold cuts in French style baguettes. In short, a sandwich Vietnamese style. To a add a bit more Asian touch to the sandwich fresh coriander is included together with fresh Lebanese cucumber, pickled carrots and a bit of chilli paste.

Granny Smith apples for dessert

This is one sandwich that satisfies!