Saige's Journal: Food!: Ga Xao Bun Tau (or Chicken with Cellophane Noodles)

One of the things I've really enjoyed doing is learning to cook recipes from around the world. There are such a variety of tastes and textures and styles, that it seems a shame to limit myself to just what I grew up with and what I see around me. So I've purchased cookbooks and looked online to try and find things that are different. It turns out doing such things is also very addictive - the more I cook and try new things, the more I want to do it.

Here's a simple one from Vietnam I came across out of a cookbook, and have made quite a few times. It's rather simple, and it won't be that hard to get the ingredients, as long as you have some sort of market that has a significant amount of Asian ingredients. Yes, you won't find everything at just any market - fish sauce and cellophane noodles don't make common appearances on standard grocery store shelves. But they're worth hunting down for this dish.

You may find yourself tempted to not make the tomato and onion salad alongside - I know I was uncertain about it, as I expected it to be either too strong, or just not fit well. But it does - the bite of the vinegar and the freshness of the tomato and onion is a nice complement to the flavor of the chicken and noodles. I like to make the salad well before starting on the rest, and usually add in a bit more vinegar and salt, as I like the stronger flavor.

Make sure you have either a non-stick or a nicely seasoned wok. The cellophane noodles will stick pretty quickly, even with constant stirring. And if they do stick and start to burn on to a somewhat seasoned wok, you might have to scrub off the seasoning and start all over. (Not a good thing!)

Ga Xao Bun Tau
Chicken with Cellophane Noodles

Ingredients:

1 lb chicken meat (such as chicken breasts)
4 oz cellophane noodles
2 green onions (spring onions)
1 tablespoon oil
2 tablespoons fish sauce
1 tablespoon soy sauce
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
1/2 cup water

2 ripe tomatoes
2 white onions
sugar, salt, vinegar, pepper

Soak the cellophane noodles in hot water for about 10 minutes, and cut up into bite-sized pieces. Slice the green onions thinly. Cut the chicken into bite-sized bits. Slice/dice/chop the tomatoes and onions into bite-sized pieces. Add sugar, salt, pepper, and vinegar to taste.

Take a wok or skillet and heat. Add oil, swirling around to coat the inside, then add the chicken and green onions. Stir-fry for about 2 to 3 minutes, until the chicken is cooked. Then add the water, soy sauce, fish sauce, and pepper. Stir well, and heat until boiling. Reduce the heat, and simmer for three minutes. Toss in the noodles, and bring it back to a boil, stirring so the noodles don't stick. Cook for another three minutes.

Serve with the salad alongside, and eat with chopsticks.

-- Anyone have any Vietnamese recipes they'd like to share?

Well, if you like recipes from around the world...

[Ethelred Unraed]

...try this traditional German dish (one of my favorites).

Rinderrouladen

You will need to get flank steak specially cut at the butcher's for this, or else use a meat slicer yourself. Cut the steak into long, thin strips (as thin as possible without tearing) about 4" wide and 10-12" long.

Per serving:
1 slice flank steak
1 strip breakfast bacon
German yellow mustard or medium dijon mustard
1 small onion, finely chopped
1 small carrot or 1/2 large carrot
1 cup strong beef stock
White flour
Salt and pe