• 14Nov

    This is Where to Shop for Asian Groceries in Logan Circle!

    There’s a great relatively new Asian Market in the basement of Rice restaurant in Logan Circle about a block from the P Street Whole Foods. The people working in the market are friendly and helpful.

    I often see interesting produce like makrut limes, key limes, holy basil (tulsi), yuzu, Thai Basil, and Thai bird chilies in the market. They carry a variety of prepared foods (from the restaurant upstairs), dry goods including green, red, and black rice, and various types of noodles, condiments, and sauces. The selection is a bit random, with a different option for fish sauce being available on each of my visits. They have groceries from various countries in Asia including Thailand, Korea, China, and Indonesia. It’s a “go and see what they have today” kind of a shop.

    -JAY

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  • 27Aug

    Culture, Food, & Family Fun: VietFest 2015

    DSC01411

    National Organization for Vietnamese American Leadership – DC Chapter (NOVAL-DC) held it’s 4th Annual VietFest in the new Tysons Corner Plaza on the hottest of weekends, August 14-16, 2015. The summer heat didn’t deter this enthusiastic group of organizers. Their program was jam-packed with performances, beauty pageants, eating contests, scholarship awards, and more.

    DSC01417  DSC01414

    Crawfish Eating Contest

    Crawfish Eating Contest

    Bánh Bột Lọc Là (Shrimp Dumpling wrapped in Banana Leaf)

    Bánh Bột Lọc Là (Shrimp Dumplings in Banana Leaves)

     

     

     

     

     

     

    To me, the local restaurateurs and home cook vendors offering an array of cultural Vietnamese foods were the highlight of the event. The only downside, in my opinion, was the cost of food from the local vendors. When prices are set at a higher than normal price, it makes it hard for you to be able to sample a bit of everything from as many vendors as you can.

    The Festival had activities I associate with this type of event, such as food vendors, retail vendors selling unique items, and little children’s crafts, but I expected much more.  I felt that the festival was mostly focused on the stage activities such as the pageants and performances and not so much on the actual vendors. In my opinion, it could’ve been called VietShow instead of VietFest.  Still, it was very impressive that they had enough entertainment to showcase for 3 days straight.

    The eating contest was fun to watch.  Who doesn’t love watching people shoveling food in their mouths in state of a panic?  It’s like watching a live YouTube video.  But my favorite feature of the event was the food. There were mom and pop food stands selling home grown Vietnamese foods that made me miss my grandma’s home cooking and for those who were too afraid to try something different, I shake my head in sadness at you. Why? Because you missed out on the delicious chewiness of the Bánh Bột Lọc Là, which is a slightly spicy shrimp dumpling in a clear chewy tapioca shell wrapped in a banana leaf and seasoned with fish sauce.  To me anything wrapped in a fruit leaf is bound to be delicious because the ingredients inside soak in the flavors of the leaf.

    Overall, the VietFest was a great event.  It makes me proud to be Vietnamese and to see how this group is trying to keep Vietnamese Culture and tradition going into the next generation.  I can’t wait to see what’s in store for their 5th year.

    About Noval

    NOVAL-DC is a service-based nonprofit organization with a mission to develop sustainable leadership among Vietnamese Americans and to preserve and promote the Vietnamese cultural heritage. We are comprised of professionals and college students who are passionate and committed towards advancing the economic, social and political well-being of the Vietnamese American people.

    -ADT (Angie)

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  • 26Nov

    Chao Nan Gua

    I’d been perusing an old copy of Saveur in a waiting room at the doctor’s a while back and remembered seeing a recipe for a Taiwanese squash dish. This came to mind after finding a fresh kabocha at the farmers market the other week, and after some Googling,

    Kabocha02 by miltedflower

    Kabocha02 by miltedflower

    I located their recipe for Chao Nan Gua. Intrigued yet again, I set to work.

    Disorganized as usual, I didn’t actually have fresh ginger or white sugar on hand, and so I used what I had, and futzed with proportions both intentionally and by spilling some and making it up on the fly.

    I used:

    About 1.5 tbs. canola oil
    1 1/2 tsp. ground ginger (not the powder kind, the kind from a
    jar…fresh would be better)
    2 tsp. brown sugar
    A few pinches sea salt
    1/2 tsp. yuzu kosho*
    1 small kabocha, peeled and cubed
    Just under 1/2 cup water with a splash of rice vinegar

    I put the squash in the microwave for a couple minutes to soften it enough for my not-great knife to cut, and while it cooked I set out my mise-en-place. In the process I spilled the water twice, knocked over my jar of salt, and burned myself with spattering pre-heated oil. This before drinks, even! These steps I don’t recommend. I do recommend that when it’s softened a bit, you cut up the squash.

    So, as you may have guessed, I had preheated the oil over a high flame, and when it was hot added the ginger and yuzu kosho to toast a bit, then the squash, which I tossed in the spiced hot oil.

    Then I added the sugar and salt and tossed the squash around some more. After a few seconds to let a glaze form, I added the water-vinegar mix and covered the lot with a lid. On reduced heat, I let the mixture braise for about 10 minutes, stirring every now and again.

    The result was bloody delicious: sweet, nutty, and spicy!

    * A note on yuzu kosho: this is the best reason to visit your local Japanese market I can think of (besides MSG-enhanced mayo). A paste of yuzu (a citrus somewhere between lime and Meyer lemon) and chili, it is a fantastic condiment I now put on way too many things.

    -MAW

    [ad]

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