Canh Chua Ca - Vietnamese Sour Soup with Salmon

Canh Chua Ca (Vietnamese Sour Soup with Fish)
This is one of my favorite traditional Vietnamese soup. It is loaded with tasty vegetables and fresh herbs. In Vietnam people usually use catfish in this soup, but I like to use either salmon or shrimp.

INGREDIENTS

2 1/2 tbsp tamarind paste
Rock Sugar, or granulated sugar
Fish sauce
2 stalks of lemongrass (Bruised and cut into 3 part length wise)
2 Tbsp minced garlic
2 Tbsp minced shallot
1 Tbsp vegetable oil
2 Tbsp vegetable oil
1 Medium size salmon filet or 2 small salmon steak
3 Celery stalks (peeled and cut 1 inch thick on a bias)
3 Roma tomatoes (cut into wedges)
2 Cups of fresh or canned pineapple (cut into chunks)
1/2 lb Okra
1 Medium size king oyster mushroom (peeled and cut 1 inch thick on a bias) - Optional
2 stalks of taro stem (peeled and cut 1 inch thick on a bias)
1 lb Bean sprout
1 Cup ngo om (coarsely chopped)- Ngo om is rice paddy herb
1/2 Cup ngo gai (coarsely chopped)- Ngo gai is sawtooth herb
2 Thai chili (think
3 Tbsp fried shallots - optional

DIRECTIONS

1. In a frying pan add 2 tablespoon of oil and fry salmon on medium-low heat until fish is completely cooked. Set fish aside.
2. In a stock pot heat up a tablespoon of cooking oil on low heat. Add minced garlic, shallot, tamarind paste, and lemongrass. Sautee everything for a couple of minutes until garlic and the shallot is slightly brown. 
3. Pour 2 quarts of water into the stock pot, add the pineapple, and bring stock to a boil.
4. Add tomato, taro stem, celery, oyster mushroom, and okra. Cook soup for 5-6 minutes or until vegetable are slightly soften.
5. Add fish sauce, sugar, and cooked salmon. Continue to cook soup for an additional 5 minutes, remove from heat then add bean sprout. 
6. Before serving top soup off with ngo om, ngo gai, fried shallots, and thai chili.

Oven Baked Chicken Drumstick

Ingredients

6 Chicken drumsticks (cleaned and patted dry)

10 cloves of garlic ( roughly chopped)

3 Shallot (roughly chopped)

1/2 Cup brown sugar

1/2 Soy sauce

2 Tablespoon oyster sauce

3 Tablespoon sesame oil

Direction

1 - In a bowl combine garlic, shallot, brown sugar, soy sauce, oyster sauce, and sesame oil. Stir to mix all ingredients.

2 - Place chicken in a baking dish, then pour the soy mixture over the drumstick. Cover baking dish with foil and let marinate in the refrigerator over night or atleast 6-8 hours before baking.

3 - Preheat over to 350 degree farenheit.

4 - Remove marinated chicken from fridge and place in oven with foil on, then bake for 1 hr.

5 -  Serve with rice and vegetable.

Sup Duoi Bo - Oxtail And Vegetable Soup

Ingredients

2lbs Oxtail par boiled (rinsed with cold water, patted dry)

2 Medium carrot ( peeled, cut into 1 inch pieces)

3 Potatoes ( peeled, quartered)

1/2 a head of cabbage ( cut into 1 inch pieces )

2 Cup celery ( cut on an angle, about 1 inch thick)

1 Can of tomato paste

3 Bay leaves

2 Can of beef broth

salt to taste

Method

In a large pot add oxtail, carrot, potatoes, tomato paste, bay leaves, and beef broth.

Then add enough water to cover all ingredients, and bring to a boiled. Once soup start boiling add cabbage, celery and salt to taste. Reduce heat to low, cover lid and let soup simmer for 1 hour.

Goi Xoai - Mango Salad

Ingredients

2 Medium green unripe mango
1 Small red onion
1 Cucumber
Juice of 1 lime
1/2 Cup coarsely chopped cilantro
1 Tbsp sugar
2 Tbsp fish sauce

Directions
1 - Peel and julienne mango, and cucumber
2 - Thinly slice red onion
3 - In a bowl combine, mango, cucumber, red onion, and cilantro. Then add sugar, lime juice, and fish sauce  mix ingredients until everything is evenly distributed.
4 - Serve mango salad as is or top salad with thinly sliced cooked pork belly, shrimp, roasted peanut, and dried shallot.