Vietnamese Cooking

My friend, Hillary Nguyen Merritt, recently passed away at the young age of 23. We had met at the Arthur Murray Worcester Studio about 6 years ago when I first started and instantly became friends. A few years later, she became my roommate. When she moved out about a year later, she left behind a brand new wok and a cookbook "Vietnamese Cooking Made Easy". She told me to hang on to these items, as I would probably get more use out of them, and hang on to them I did, though I have yet to use the wok (it kinda scares me) and just recently dove into the cookbook.

I must say, there are several recipes within the book that are friendly to my diet (or easily substitutable). I figured it was a fitting occasion to celebrate the life of my little Vietnamese friend by cooking from the recipes she left behind several years back. Needless to say, the first recipe I tried was delicious and I can't wait to try more. I give you:

Cabbage Roll Soup

Serves 4-6

16 cabbage leaves, blanched in boiling water for 1 to 2 minutes until soft, the drained, for wrapping

16 spring onion greens, blanched in boiling water for 10 seconds until soft, then drained

6 C. chicken broth

1 tbsp. fish sauce

1 portion Fish Sauce Dip

Filing

8 oz. ground turkey (the recipe calls for pork, but any ground meat will do)

8 oz. fresh medium shrimp, peeled and deveined

16 spring onion bulbs

3 tsp. dried cilantro or coriander leaves (or 3 tbsp. fresh)

2 tsp. fish sauce

1/2 tsp. salt

1/2 tsp. grains of paradise (recipe calls for black pepper)

1/4 tsp. five spice powder

1. Prepare the fish sauce dip (recipe below)
2. Prepare the filling by grinding all ingredients to a smooth paste in a blender, set aside.
3. To make each cabbage roll, place 1 heaping tablespoon of the filling along one edge of a blanched cabbage leaf. Fold the leaf over the filling, then fold in the sides and roll up tightly. Tie the roll securely with a blanched spring onion green. Repeat with the remaining ingredients to make a total of 16 rolls.
4. Bring the chicken broth and fish sauce to a boil over high heat in a stockpot. Add the cabbage rolls and return to a boil. Reduce the heat to medium, cover and simmer for 5 to 10 minutes until cooked. Remove from heat.
5. Serve hot in individual serving bowls with a bowl of fish sauce dip on the side.

Fish Sauce Dip (yield 1 cup)
2-3 finger length chilies, deseeded and sliced
1/4 c. sugar
3 tbsp. freshly squeezed lime juice
1 tbsp. vinegar
3 tbsp. fish sauce
1/2 c. water
1/2 tsp. salt

Grind the chilies to a coarse paste in a mortar or blender, then combine with all the other ingredients and mix until the sugar is dissolved.

**Note: the fish sauce dip calls for 3 garlic cloves. While it tastes good without, I imagine it's great with them as well, if you're not allergic like me. Blend garlic with chilies and then follow directions as written.**