Into the Vietnamese Kitchen: Treasured Foodways, Modern Flavors
Into the Vietnamese Kitchen: Treasured Foodways, Modern Flavors
When author Andrea Nguyen's family was airlifted out of Saigon in 1975, one of the few belongings that her mother hurriedly packed for the journey was her small orange notebook of recipes. Thirty years later, Nguyen has written her own intimate collection of recipes, "Into the Vietnamese Kitchen", an ambitious debut cookbook that chronicles the food traditions of her native country. Robustly flavoured yet delicate, sophisticated yet simple, the recipes include steamy phonoodle soups infused with the aromas of fresh herbs and lime; rich clay-pot preparations of catfish, chicken, and pork; classic banh mi sandwiches; and an array of Vietnamese charcuterie. Nguyen helps readers shop for essential ingredients, master core cooking techniques, and prepare and serve satisfying meals, whether for two on a weeknight or 12 on a weekend.Product Details
Editorial Reviews
From Publishers Weekly
Vietnam-born Nguyen writes passionately and knowledgeably about the history and fundamentals of Vietnamese cuisine and offers more than 175 tempting and largely nonintimidating recipes, with the Vietnamese translation of the name beneath the English name and headnotes that provide excellent context and helpful tips. Chapters begin with alluring introductory text—the first set of recipes, for example, are the "Gifts to the Mouth," which the author explains is a translation of the Vietnamese phrase for snacking. The chapter includes such dishes as Beef and Jicama Hand Rolls, the Baguette Sandwich—the "one sandwich in the Vietnamese repertoire... a tour de force"—and Fried Shrimp Chips. Other chapters are Sacred Soups (Chicken Dumpling and Chrysanthemum Leaf Soup is one beautiful entry), Classic Meats (like Beef Flank and Ginger Simmered in Caramel Sauce), Vegetables Many Ways, and Delightful Sweets and Palate Refreshers, which features Grilled Bananas with Coconut Sticky Rice and Lemongrass Ice Cream. Chapters on noodles, poultry, fish and shellfish, and basic sauces, as well as guides to Vietnamese ingredients, round out this culturally rich culinary tour. (Nov.)
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From the Publisher
* A landmark collection of more than 175 classic Vietnamese recipes, framed by stories of one family’s home kitchen and a wealth of information on the regional cuisines, essential ingredients, and culinary traditions of the country. * Illustrated with more than 50 stunning color photographs, this is the first comprehensive full-color cookbook devoted to Vietnamese food in the English language. * One of the world’s most elegant cuisines is also one of the most healthful and easy to prepare. Many dishes take less than 45 minutes from prep to pan to table and require just a handful of ingredients.
About the Author
ANDREA NGUYEN is a food writer and teacher based in Santa Cruz, California. She founded the Viet World Kitchen website, the most comprehensive resource on the Internet devoted to the food and culture of Vietnam. She has written for Saveur, the Los Angeles Times, and the San Jose Mercury News. She recently led a tour of Little Saigon in Orange County for the Travel Channel/Epicurious TV.
Customer Reviews
disappointed
i saw that this had 20 5-star reviews so i felt confident, yet i was disappointed that this book did not contain several of my favorite vietnamese dishes (pho! spring rolls! etc). it also had very few pictures of recipes
I'm not impressed
I'm Vietnamese, I only went abroad 5 years ago to study but I went back home at least once a year so you can bet that I know how Vietnamese food should taste like!
Before leaving Vietnam, as many other students, I knew many famous food street vendors and I ate there quite often. When dinning out with parents, I went to upscale restaurants like Daewoo, Sofitel so I'm confident that I know how GOOD Vietnamese food should taste like!
However, I'm disappointed about this "Into the Vietnamese Kitchen" book. It's probably the worst investment I've ever made in cook books. The techniques are long and inefficient, the taste is really not good. I've never bought any other Vietnamese cook books so I can't say whether there's any better ones than this. But recently I discovered many good Vietnamese food blogs where people share their recipes with others. I've learned a lot more from those blogs than this book
The only reason I gave it 2 stars, not 1 is because the pictures are good. I can use it to find inspiration about which Vietnamese food I should cook.
It's in the family
So this is my sister's book so I can't comment on it personally since it would be biased, but I have give several dozen copies to friends and they have give positive feedback to me (maybe they just want to be nice). For many, the recipes were easy to duplicate and "tasty" in their representation. A number of my vietnamese friends use it daily in their kitchen as a resource guide to plan their daily meals.
I hope that everyone at least go to their public library or find a friend that has a copy and try one to two recipes out, then you can make up your own mind if :
1. Vietnamese cooking is for you
and
2. This cookbook is for you.
Happy cooking
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