Foodie Gifts to Bring Home from Vietnam

Wine-Knows is going to Vietnam for the second time in February 2016.  Several clients have inquired about what kinds of gifts are best to bring back for foodie friends at home.  All require little space and have relatively small weight when compared to other gift items that may tempt you.

Coffee:

                 Coffee is an art-form in Vietnam...they even have their own drip maker.

Some of you may be scratching your head on this one----coffee from Vietnam?   Trust me when I say, "trust me" on this one. Vietnam is one of the world's largest coffee producers (second only to Brazil).   Like French Roast?  You'll enjoy the Vietnamese version...no doubt strongly influenced by the French occupation of the country for nearly 100 years.  And, I know just the place to buy it.

Lotus tea:

                                                         One sip and you'll be hooked!                                               

A dear Vietnamese friend from California  (born in Saigon) came on my last trip to Vietnam.  One of her favorite things as a child was lotus tea.  It was love at first sip for me.  Actually, it was love at first smell.  This tea has an intense but delicate floral aroma and taste.  The petals of the lotus plant are picked in the early morning and dried for this tea.  It's a culinary masterpiece.

5 spice powder:

                      With just a tablespoon or so, these packets are easy for packing.

Some of the dishes prepared in cooking classes on our first trip were made with this intoxicating mixture.  Yes, one can buy 5 spice in the USA, but the Vietnamese version is more aromatic and complex in flavor.  I plan to bring home double the amount I did on the last trip.

Dried strawberries:

                  While there are many dried fruits in Vietnam, the strawberries were special.

Yes, you can occasionally find these in the USA, but they are not as intense as those in Vietnam.  These are a scrumptious delicacy that are sure to please even the most discerning gourmet.

Dried snow mushrooms:

              I rushed to the market to buy these immediately following our cooking class.

I fell in love with these in northern Vietnam's mountains where tea is grown on hillside terraces against a breathtaking backdrop of rural villages and lush landscapes.  These delectable edibles grow on trunks of trees and are used in a variety of salads and main dishes.   I intend to fill my suitcase with bags of them as they are nearly weightless.

We have two spots left in the upcoming trip to Vietnam in February 2016.    The trip is showcased at www.WineKnowsTravel.com.

Vietnam’s Five Spice

                                 A pungent melange of spices with star anise leading the show

I’m a lover of Vietnamese food.  Prior to moving to San Diego, every week in the Bay Area I would treat to an ethereal grilled chicken lunch at a Vietnamese restaurant near my office.  I never could figure out this dish’s spices, but when I went to Vietnam last year it finally hit me during a cooking class:  five spice powder!  While this mixture is used in Chinese restaurants, it is not used in households in China for daily cooking.   In contrast, it’s a standard in Vietnamese homes. 

Google “Vietnamese chicken with 5 spice” and you’ll be served up in a nano-second more than 1 million articles.  While chicken and five spice is a marriage made in heaven, the Vietnamese use this mélange of flavor to add zest and pungency to everything from their signature Pho soup, to noodles, or stir-fries, as well as a variety of sauces. 

What are the five spices?   While ingredients and proportions  may vary among producers (and from country to country), star anise creates the backbone for most Vietnamese preparations.  Cloves is the next note, followed by cinnamon, Sichuan peppers and finally fennel seeds.  Occasionally, ginger, nutmeg, turmeric, coriander or cardamom may be added to the blend in lieu of one of the other ingredients.

In Vietnam, every household seems to have a recipe for chicken cooked with five spices where is used in a marinade, or even as a rub.  

Christine Ha, MasterChef’s winner in 2013, stunned the television audience throughout the competition.  First, she was blind; second she was Vietnamese. Her masterpieces put Vietnam on the culinary map of many Americans who had not tasted this cuisine.  In her first book after the show, Recipes From My Home Kitchen, Christine uses homemade five spice in her “Mama’s chicken noodle soup.”  Her spice mixture was roasted star anise, coriander and cloves, along with charred ginger (“coaxing every bit of sweetness and flavor from the ingredients which translates to a more flavorful stock.”)

Here is my favorite recipe using five spice--- a tribute to the first Vietnamese dish I fell in love with in the Bay Area.  It can be used for any type of poultry or meat.

VIETNAMESE MARINADE FOR POULTRY OR MEAT

Mix all of the following together:

3 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 large shallot finely chopped
2 tablespoons soy sauce
3 tablespoons minced ginger
2 tablespoons minced garlic
2 tablespoons sugar
2 tablespoons of fish sauce (3 Crabs brand is the best!)
2 teaspoons ground turmeric
1 heaping teaspoon five-spice powder
1/2 tablespoon sea salt
4 whole star anise, lightly toasted for about 3 minutes and then pounded into a fine powder
Freshly ground black pepper

Put the meat or poultry into baggie with the marinate.  Refrigerate, turning it occasionally to ensure full coverage.  

Note:  it's critical to marinate chicken or meat for at least 8 hours. For the best results, do 24 hrs.