Pho Bo - Vietnamese Beef Noodle Soup

Pho is one of the most iconic Vietnamese food. When you are in ho Chi Minh City, you will easily find the Pho shop in almost every street with many variety of taste and presentation. Most people like is this Pho Bo - noodle soup with sliced beef or beef balls or beef tendon being serve with the noodle and the broth; will invent the name of the pho itself. Pho Bo means pho with sliced beef, Pho Ga means pho with boiled chicken meat. Many variation like the pho soup served with chicken liver, beef liver, fish cake, fish balls, etc. Here I tried my own recipe of the soup. Relatively you just follow your wish to create your very own ingredients to serve your pho soup, but the taste of the broth should becoming an iconic of the dish. Please try this recipe bellow!

Makes about 6 servings

600 grams of fresh pho noodles

9 cups of pho broth

400 grams of thinly sliced beef tenderloin, black to rare

2 pieces of sliced bird’s eye chilies

black pepper powder to sprinkle

For the broth

1 kilogram of clean beef bone, quick blanched

2 inch of fresh grilled ginger, sliced

1 inch of fresh grilled galangal, sliced

3-4 pieces of dried star anise

4 pieces of dried cloves

salt and pepper to taste

1 piece of halved grilled onion

2 cloves of grilled garlic

¼ cup of fish sauce

1½ teaspoons of rock sugar

10 cups of beef stock

For the topping and garnishes

½ cup sliced onions

3 tablespoons of chopped spring onions

½ cup sliced coriander leaves

½ cup sliced saw leaves

½ cup picked anise basil leaves

1 cup of raw clean white bean sprouts

24 pieces of beef balls (optional)

To serve

6 sliced of lime wedges

4 tablespoons of black bean sauce

4 tablespoons of chili sauce

About the image above: pho broth being poured to the bowl

About the image above: a bowl of pho with beef, beef tendon and meat balls

To prepare the broth: in a pot, combine the blanched beef bones with the beef stock, ginger, galangal, dried star anise, dried cloves, onion, garlic and bring to the boil. As soon as start to boil, reduce the heat to simmering point.  Cook slowly the bones for about 1½ hours to make sure you get the maximum flavor of the beef. Skim the surface of the stock occasionally. Season the broth with the fish sauce, sugar, salt and pepper. Discard the bone and strain the broth. Check the seasonings and keep the broth warm for later use.

To assembly the pho noodle soup: In a pho bowl (medium large bowl), place the fresh pho cellophane noodles followed by the bean sprouts, sliced beef, sliced onions, spring onions and the herbs and the sliced bird’s eye chilies. Pour the very hot broth into the bowl of the noodle to ¾ of the volume of the noodle, so you can see the noodle and the garnishes on it. Sprinkle with some black pepper on it and serve with the lime wedges in one small bowl and the black bean sauce plus chili sauce in the other small bowl. Enjoy your amazing Vietnamese pho bo!

Marinade for Shawarma

3 kilograms yogurt

2 kilograms tahina

2 liters olive oil

½ liter white vinegar

½ kilogram lemon juice

1 kilogram orange juice

1 teaspoon clove powder

1 teaspoon cinnamon powder

4 kilograms onion, chopped

½ kilograms garlic, chopped

2 kilograms tomatoes

salt to taste

black pepper to taste

About the image above: Shawarma paste

In a pot or large container, combine all of the ingredients. Use a large hand blender to turn the ingredients into a very fine paste. Season the marinade with salt and black pepper.

Keep the marinade in a clean container covered in the fridge for 2-3 days. For smaller quantity you can use a blender to prepare the paste.

Kaasstengels

When one thinks about cookies, usually what comes to mind is a sweet-tasting small crisp cake. But for this particular cookie, it is something different and unique. The Kaasstengel is a cheesy cookie traditionally available during festive season. The word ‘Kaasstengel’  is a Dutch word which means, ‘kaass – cheese’ and ‘tengels – stick’.

This crisp cheese sticks cookies has been one of the most favorite cookies in Indonesia. We do not know exactly when this cookie was introduced to the East Indies region by the Dutch, but what we know is that this cheese sticks were served as accompaniment of soups or salads during dinner or at ‘rijstaffel’ gatherings in the earlier days of Batavia.

During the early introduction of this bread stick it looked like a puffy pastry cheese stick and later modifications were made on the recipes by the colonial chefs for the ‘meneer’ that has become the kind of recipes we found today.

The basic ingredient of this cookie is flour; combined with margarine, egg yolk, baking powder and Dutch cheese (Edam or other cheeses can be used, like Gouda, Cheddar and other hard cheeses). Then the texture is adjusted to produce crispier, tastier cookie with richer nutrients by adding some cream, corn starch, parmesan cheese and milk powder.

Today, many varieties of ‘kaasstengels’ are available in the market, sometimes with herbs, spices or other flavors in different forms and sizes with attractive packaging.

Kaasstengels Cheese Cookies Recipe

100 grams corn starch

100 grams milk powder

1400 grams flour

3½ teaspoons baking powder

900 grams margarine

6 pieces egg yolks

150 grams fresh cream

350 grated edam cheese

400 grams grated parmesan cheese

Additional

2 egg yolks, slightly beaten, to brush before baking

1 cup grated edam cheese to sprinkle

About the image above: kaastengels cookies

Combine the corn starch, milk powder, flour and baking powder and sieve, keep aside.

Beat the margarine until fluffy and pale color, add the egg yolk one at a time then combine the fresh cream and grated cheese.

Beat slowly while adding the flour mixture gradually, let the machine combine them well until the texture has become as smooth dough. Remove from the machine and start forming with the shape that you wish, round, stick, or a heart-shape cookie, it would be good also to use cookie shaper if you have them.

Place on a baking tray, brush them with egg yolks and sprinkle with the grated cheese.

Bake in the pre-heated oven at 150°C-160°C for 20 minutes and lower the heat to 100°C-110°C and continue to bake for another 20 minutes or until the cookies are cooked to golden crisp.

Take out from the oven and allow to cool and store the cookies in an air-tight container to keep them crisp.

Helpful Hints

• This cheese cookie is a little bit fragile because of the crispiness, so handle them gently, with extra care J
• You can prepare this cookie and keep for at least for two weeks in an air-tight containers.
• A great partner for your tea or coffee, during morning or afternoon breaks.

Turon of Banana, Bitter-Sweet Chocolate and Fresh Manggoes

4 pieces ripe bananas cut lengthwise

10 pieces spring roll’s wrappers

2 tablespoons brown sugar

2 pieces fresh sliced mangoes

10 pieces chocolate sticks

oil for frying

10 scoops of ice cream to serve

1 egg white to seal the wrappers

 

About the image above: Turon – fried banana of banana

bitter-sweet chocolate and fresh mangoes

On a clean plate or tray roll the banana and sliced mangoes into the brown sugar. Wrap them in a spring roll’s wrapper, seal with the white egg. Repeat this sequence until all of the ingredients rolled in the wrappers.

Meanwhile, prepare oil in a fryer to cook the banana. Cook them until golden brown and take out from the fryer. The fried turon will be much better when served with vanilla ice cream. Makes 10 pieces of turons

Helpful Hints

The original recipe is using banana saba and fresh jackfruit. If you like to have some sesame seeds is also good.

The fresh made turon taste much better.

To serve turon with some ice cream or caramel sauce is a compliment

Kahk Cookies

5 cups all purpose flour

1¼ cups milk

2-2 ½ cups ghee

2 tablespoons sugar

1 teaspoon clove powder

1 teaspoon cinnamon powder

1 teaspoon ginger powder

1 teaspoon yeast

2 tablespoons baking powder

Filling/Stuffing

2cups dates paste

1 cup chopped pistachio

 About the image above: Egyptian kahk cookies

Combine the flour, powdered spices and baking powder, sieve and keep aside.

In a pot put the ghee on the head until boiling and add the flour mixture slowly and stir continuously with a wooden spatula and it set.

Take out from the fire and cool a bit, when the mixture bit cool but still warm add the yeast and sugar and stir gently.

Form the dough into balls and stuff inside with nuts and dates paste. Arrange them on a baking tray. Cook in the oven for about 10 minutes at 350 degrees Fahrenheit.

Take out from the oven and allow cooling, sprinkle with sugar powder before serving. Makes about 60-80 pieces

Kushef

1 cup dry date of dates

1¼ liter milk

½ cup dried plum, roughly chopped

½ cup dried apricot, roughly chopped

¼ cup roasted almond, chopped

¼ cup roasted walnut, chopped

¼ cup roasted pistachio

¼ cup raisin, chopped

¼ cup shaved coconut or young coconut

3-4 tablespoons natural honey

About the image above: Egyptian style kushef

Soaked the dried date and clean up the skin. And roughly cut the date. In a clean bowl, combine the ingredients and soak it, and keep in the fridge to allow the kushef cooling and taste nice. Make about 3.5 liters

Dates Candy Balls

3 cups fresh ripe dates

¾ cups toasted ground walnuts

¾ cup toasted ground almonds

2teaspoon cinnamon powder

1 teaspoon cardamom powder

2/3 cup pure honey

About the image above: dates candy balls

‘Dates recipe has probably been developed since thousand of years. The original recipe was just the ripe dates fruits, honey and spices (cinnamon and cardamom), to be stored as ingredient to produce sweet dish, bread, cake or to be served as paste, just like jam. Recently add with some toasted ground nuts as just like to crumb.’

In food processor, turn the dates into paste with honey, cinnamon powder and cardamom powder. Store it in a clean bowl and keep in the fridge for about 1 hour to chill.

Meanwhile in a clean bowl, combine the toasted ground walnuts and toasted ground almonds.

Use glove on both hands, turn the date paste into balls then roll those balls into the toasted ground nuts mixtures. Better to serve these dates balls while they are cool. Makes about 30-36 pieces.

Helpful Hints

• You may prepare the candy earlier and keep them in your fridge.
• Put more honey if you like them sweeter.
• When you use the sweet dates, may need to put less honey.

Muhammara - Hot Pepper and Walnut Dip

3pieces red bell pepper

2-4 pieces hot red chilies

1 cup toasted walnuts, chopped

¼ cup freshly made white bread crumbs

¼ cup garlic cloves, sliced and sautéed

½ cup red onion, sliced and sautéed

1 ½ tablespoons molasses

½ cup extra virgin olive oil

1 tablespoon fresh squeezed lime juice

2 tablespoons fresh pomegranate juice

2 tablespoon fresh pomegranate fruit for garnish

About the image above: mohamara

Rub the pepper and the chilies with little oil and roast in the oven until it soft and take out from the oven. Allow cooling and peel the skin out as well as take out the the seeds of both chilies and peppers.

Combine the bell peppers, red chilies, toasted walnuts, white bread crumbs, sautéed garlic, sautéed onion, molasses, extra virgin olive oil, fresh lime juice and pomegranate juice. Turn the ingredients into a fine paste. Check the taste.

Chill the paste in the fridge before serving. Serve with bread or accompaniment for Arabic dishes. Makes about 3 cups

Helpful Hint

You can serve the dip as mezzah or accompaniment of Middle East dishes. If you like it hot, you will ne to increase the number of the hot chilies.

Vermicelli Rice - Roz bil Shaghria

1 cup long grain rice

2/3 cup dry broken vermicelli (ready in a package)

¼ cup olive oil

2 tablespoon butter

½ cup chopped red onions

1 tablespoon chopped garlic

2 ½ cups rich chicken stock

salt to taste

1-2 bay leaves (optional)

About the image above: vermicelli rice – roz bil shghria

In a pot, sauté the vermicelli to nearly golden brown and add chopped onion and garlic and continuously to sauté and add the rice in. Continue to sauté a little bit and add the stock to cook and the bay leaves. Add also some butter to make the taste tastier as well as some salt.

Cook the rice slowly over low heat and covered. Check the rice after 20 minutes or maybe you need to cook the rice a bit longer. When it is ready, serve the rice with other Arabic dishes. Make about 4 servings.

Helpful Hints

The just cooked rice will give more flavors then the old rice. I like my rice to be served with molokhia and nice grills items. It is a great rice dish for your special Middle East theme dinner.

Bamia - Stewed Okra in Tomato Gravy

1 cup of red tomatoes

1½ teaspoons of chopped garlic

½ cup of chopped red onions

2 thin slices of green lime

1 teaspoon of lime juice

1 tablespoon of finely chopped fresh parsley

1 ½ tablespoons of finely chopped fresh coriander leaves

½ teaspoon of crushed coriander seeds

dash of cardamom powder

ground black pepper to taste

salt to taste

4 cups of okra pods, clean

1 tablespoon of olive oil

About the image above: Egyptian bamia

Chop the tomatoes and place in a blender to make puree, keep aside. Meanwhile; put a pot over medium high heat and with the olive oil, sauté the red onion and chopped garlic until fragrant and add the crushed coriander seeds and then add in the tomato puree, chopped parsley, chopped coriander leaves and sliced green lime. Keep sautéing until the tomato cooked and add the okra. Cook until the okra becomes soft and season with salt, pepper, cardamom powder, and lime juice.

Take out from the heat and serve immediately with rice or vermicelli rice. Make about 4 servings

Helpful Hints

If the fresh okra is not available, you can replace with the package okra ready to cook.