April 20, 2010
It was years ago. The concept of the food blog was in its infancy, Julie and Julia was yet to surface and a whole generation of eaters and cooks were still getting their lo-fi information from the library.
A buzzing, flickery hulk of a boxy crt took up most of my desks at home and work and don’t even get me started on the antiquated equipment foisted on us at university. People still used dial-up internet, landlines and the white pages. Apple’s renaissance had yet to occur. It was in these heady post Y2K times that I had my first introduction to American food. Now, I’ve never been to America and while I have rarely seen relatives from there I’d never eaten any of their food. With the internet newly bustling away, I, as a young failed cook, was suddenly exposed to the United States of Food. And it wasn’t pretty. On the mostly American internet in those days it was all recipes that involved a list of packaged ingredients, canned cheese, packet-mix cakes and what the hell is half-and-half? Well let me tell you where I’m from that’s a foamy mix of old and new.
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April 16, 2010
If I’ve learned anything in my few months in Hanoi, other than how to cross the road, it is this simple rule: when you’re out with Vietnamese friends leave the eating decisions up to them. So on a recent sight-seeing outing I was happy to go where the locals chose when it was decided that it was time for lunch. And by decided I mean when everyone got sick of me broadcasting my hunger level, from mild grumbling through extreme to ‘if I don’t eat now?!?!?!’. Apparently I get hungrier quicker, bad news when you’re hanging with the food unimpressed (I’m talking about my Western peers not the locals, of course). Luckily we made it to our lunch destination without me exploding in to a low-blood sugar rage, a sidewalk table was quickly assembled and food ordered.
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April 11, 2010
I came to Hanoi not because I like Vietnamese food but because it was the best option for me at the time. Friends in Australia were jealous of all the amazing food I’d have easy and inexpensive access to, something that I was excited about after the wallet emptying doldrum that is Sydney. Delicious, cheap and interesting eating is everywhere here, I discover new places all the time but I have to admit it, I’m getting sick of Vietnamese food. On holidays I attempt to eat the local food as much as possible but I’ve been here for almost 5 months, this isn’t a holiday now it’s life.
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April 7, 2010
Excuse me please, things have been a little bit crazy over here. Trying out loads of new food has been taking up some time (from ‘Vietnamese’ BBQ to frozen margaritas), there has been the farewelling of friends (you wouldn’t believe how difficult it is to send a dog to America from Hanoi), and now I’ve got a job. Employed, again after so many months of freedom and I think my new job title should be ‘Child Wrangler’. So please forgive me for allowing the occasion of my 200th post slip by unnoticed. It is not terribly unexpected though if you recall my 100th post. In some kind of strangely frightening symmetry my 101st post which celebrated just missing my century was published on April 7th, 2009, one year ago today, exactly. Spooky.
I’m not going to lie and tell you that these were celebratory brownies baked with this particular milestone in mind. Nuh uh. I made them really to see what all the fuss was about, I made them because good quality cocoa is relatively cheap here and I had a hankering for something chocolatey, chewy, sweet. There are plenty of Vietnamese desserts, Kem Xoi (pictured below) is sticky rice, ice cream and crunchy nutty toppings, a favourite, but sometimes chocolate is a necessity. So I baked Alice Medrich’s Cocoa Brownies and they did not disappoint.
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April 3, 2010
I just returned from a little side trip to Laos. I visited Vientiane, Phonsavanh and Luang Prabang and will be posting here about the best food that I ate while I was there. I am writing about my overall experience here and putting even more photos on flickr.
First stop: A muddled account of my most memorable meals in Vientiane.
Breakfast: Noodle Soup
I expect all noodle soups to be inferior reproductions of one of my least favourite Vietnamese dishes, pho. So it is a pleasant surprise when I sit down at this unsigned eatery and order one of whatever she’s having. Thin rice vermicelli noodles float in a mild beef broth topped with islands of chilli oil. A few tender fatty slices of long cooked beef jostle for space with thin pieces of fresh bamboo shoots. This unassuming vegetable, so often unappetisingly preserved is sweet and mild tasting with a pleasant vegetal texture. Paired with side plates of burstingly fresh herbs and vegetables, including carefully prepared twists of young fat beansprouts, this soup goes above and beyond a paltry pho knockoff.
Bamboo shoot and beef noodle soup 12,000 Kip ($1.50AU)
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Breakfast: Rice Soup
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