Author: Chuck
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Vietnamese Crispy Spring Rolls (Cha Gio)
Crispy spring rolls, egg rolls or imperial rolls, whatever you call them, it’s cha gio in Vietnamese. My mom’s cha gio was one of my favorite things to eat growing up. Nothing compares to my mom’s crispy spring rolls. I know I say that about all of her cooking, but I really mean it. When…
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Vietnamese Dipping Sauce (Nuoc Cham)
Anyway, every Vietnamese family has a dipping sauce recipe. The ingredients in nuoc cham are generally the same, but the proportions vary based on personal tastes and regions in Vietnam. According to Vietnamese cookbook author, Andrea Nguyen, “as you move south the sauce gets sweeter, hotter, and more garlicky.”
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Braised Chicken Curry with Yams
The tweaked braised chicken curry recipe is finally dialed into our tastes. It’s easy to make and it’s one-pot cooking. There’s a nice balance of heat and sweet from the yams and peas. Served over rice, it’s a very filling and satisfying dish. If you leave the sweet potatoes a little firm, they’ll retain their…
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Trader Joe’s One Clove Per Head Garlic
We recently discovered Trader Joe’s The Emperor’s New Cloves — one clove per head garlic. It’s super easy to peel and doesn’t have a sticky skin. I’m guesstimating one clove of this garlic is about five to six normal cloves of garlic. It’s sold in a little wicker basket and contains six cloves of garlic…
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Hawaiian Marinated Seared Chicken
The chicken is very flavorful and tender, because it’s marinated overnight in a citrus marinade. The marinade is a blend of strong flavors, particularly the Chinese five spice, fresh mint and mustard. I think the best part is the sauce created by deglazing the frying pan with some reserved marinade. The sauce contains all the…
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Blueberry Kuchen
Blueberry kuchen is really easy to make and only requires fifteen minutes of prep time and forty or so minutes of baking. Our kuchen turned out great with a nice golden crust and a not too sweet, jam-like blueberry filling. Blueberries are added on top of the filling and each bite of the kuchen lifts…
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Italian White Bean and Spinach Soup
I wanted a quick fix meal and opted for canned cannellini beans. Sometimes you just don’t want to presoak beans or simmer them for an hour. And instead of using the traditional pancetta or ham, I replaced it with healthier ground turkey. It’s a super simple recipe that can be made in thirty minutes or…
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Peanut Butter, Banana and Honey Sandwich
One of my favorite breakfast items is an open-faced peanut butter, banana and honey sandwich, a PBB&H if you will. It’s open-faced because I use a thick cinnamon swirl bread from Trader Joe’s. It’s a hearty wheat bread with a great cinnamon flavor. For breakfast, I usually toast a piece of bread, spread it with…
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Chocolate Macadamia Nut Torte
The torte was still good, with a nice nutty chocolate flavor. The texture is moist, dense and a little crunchy from the macadamia nuts. I will definitely make this torte again, but use a lower baking temperature of 350°F.
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Spicy Lemongrass Chicken (Ga Kho Xa Ot)
I love the dish for its simplicity and wonderful flavors. It has a great combination of salty and bittersweet from the fish sauce and caramel sauce. While the chicken simmers, the lovely aroma of lemongrass fills the kitchen. The spiciness from the chili peppers is critical and balances the sweetness of the dish.
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Sunday Nite Dinner 