Gingery Daikon and Carrot Pickle

Pickled daikon and carrot is very popular and famously used as one of the ingredients in Bahn Mi, a
well-known and tasty Vietnamese sandwich. The people I knew have had it and they loved it. Sadly, I have never tried once. What stopping me to try it? You might wonder. Well. Where should I start? I’m not normally eating sandwich. I remember having a tuna sandwich on whole wheat bread skipped the cheese at work for lunch from a nearby favorite lunch spot whenever I forgot to bring my lunch from home probably 3-4 time a month averagely. And I don’t even make a sandwich at home.   Not to mention a burger since I don’t eat beef.    

Vietnamese Bahn Mi sandwich usually use a big thick French baguette that hollowed out the middle and stuffed with the yummy and tasty ingredients. I have seen the size and it looks too heavy for me. I’d rather have whole wheat bread instead if I wanted to try one. Don’t give me wrong. I know the baguette is a tasty bread, especially the crispy one which I have quite often making bruschetta or crostini at home. But I just can’t imagine myself eating the whole sandwich with those thick bread. I probably have to try one but just half of it. That would work!

Anyway, daikon, carrot, and ginger are my favorite vegetables that I always have them at home, or I may say I can’t live without them, besides garlic! It’s the kind of a must-have items at home. Since I’ve been cutting my own “baby carrot” for snack, after a while I got bored snaking on plain carrot sticks and I thought, “Let’s pickle them then!”

If you look at the ingredients listed below, you might be curious about how much the ginger I have added to it. One cup of fresh sliced ginger is a whole lot, probably too much. But what can I say, I am just in love with ginger. If you are not a fan of ginger, reduce or skip it no big deal. My pickle came out with a strong spicy gingerly taste. Plus, the heat from jalapeno even make it even bolder and tastier. And I just love it.

What you need:

1 lb. daikon, sliced into matchsticks
1 lb. carrot, sliced into matchsticks
1 cup ginger, sliced into matchsticks
2 medium green jalapeno, cut crosswise
3 cups warm water
1 cup distilled vinegar
1/2 cup sugar + 1 tbsp.
2 tbsp. salt + 1 tsp

How to:

: In a large bowl, combine sliced daikon, carrot, and ginger, then Sprinkle 1 tablespoon sugar and 1 teaspoon of salt over and use your two hands give it a massage until the vegetables are soften for about 5 minutes. Then rinse with cold water and drain. Transfer the vegetables into the prepared jar and sliced jalapeno. Set aside.
: Mix together warm water, vinegar, sugar, and salt and stir until the sugar is dissolved. Add the vinegar mixture into the vegetable jar, close lid tight and keep it in the refrigerator
: It can be serve the next day, however, for the best result and better flavor, keep it for a 2-3 days before serving as a side dish or in sandwich (Bahn Mi) or whatever you like.

 

Enjoy!

 

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Yum Nua Yang / Thai Spicy Grilled Beef Salad

 

What’s grilling today?


If you have been following me for a while, you might want to know about how come I did not cook anything with beef.   That’s because I do not eat beef!   Why?    It’s just a personal reason and that I had stopped eating beef 20+ years ago and nothing more.    The hubby loves eating steaks and he would have his steak averagely 3 times a month, in which I cook for him quite often.   I usually cook it in the oven by pan searing on both sides first and put it in the oven under the broiler for 4 minutes each side for a medium rare.   I don’t mind cooking or smelling or touching a piece of steak but I just don’t eat it.  That’s all.   Besides, the hubby has never had Thai spicy grilled beet salad before since he only prefer a good cut of steak.

 

Today he brought home a big piece of flank steak which he planned for the easy grilled. Since I’ve never had anything cooking with beef on my blog, I told him that I would make a Thai spicy beef salad for him to try.    Would he say no to that?    Never!  


This Thai spicy grilled beef salad is one of the most popular dishes in Thai cuisine, and it’s the most popular dish among people from the North and the Northeast of Thailand.    Nowadays, the dish has become widely popular all over include international level.    And I am very proud of that.    
 

 

 

Flank steak is mostly used for this dish, but I think any part can also be used as well.  The steak is cooked as however you preferred (usually a medium rare) and the dressing can be mixed up with the basic ingredients that you can find at any Asian store and they can be substituted if you feel uncomfortable to use them, like use sea salt instead of fish sauce and omit the roasted rice powder. The dressing should have a balance of salty, sweet, and sour, however, there is no rule for that.  I’d say, there are two essential ingredients for the dressing – the roasted rice powder and mint leaves. Though you can omit the rice powder since sometime it can be hard to find but never forget the mint leaves.

And what the hubby said after?   “It’s very tasty.  It's good!”       That’s all I wanted to hear, really!


The dressing:

2 tbsp. fish sauce
2 tbsp. lime juice
1 tbsp. sugar
1 tbsp. dried chili flakes
1-2 tbsp. lemongrass, thinly sliced
1 tbsp. roasted rice powder *see notes below
2 tbsp. mint leaves, chiffonaded

>> Combine everything in a mixing bowl and whisk until the sugar is dissolved, set aside.

The salad:

8 oz. flank steak
2 small Persian cucumber, sliced
1/4 cup red onion, thinly sliced
Thai red chili – optional

*roasted rice powder can be bought at Asian supermarket. But it can also be made by using 1 cup of gluten rice roasted in a pan over medium-high heat, keeping stirring to prevent burn, and cook until the rice turn light golden. Using the coffee grinder (if available, or using food processor) to grind the roasted rice to powder. The rice powder can be kept in a tight lid jar for months.

How to:

- Grilled the steak to medium rare or as you preferred. Allow the meat to rest at least 5 minutes and then slice in thin strips across the grain of meat.

- In a medium bowl, add the steak, cucumber, red onion, the dressing, and toss together until well combined.
- Serve immediately with the garnish of Thai red chili and lettuce leaves and with steamed rice if desired. 

Enjoy!

 

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Gorgeous Green Lemonade with Gingered Syrup

The August's heat in L.A. has been so brutally hot for the past few days.   It’s humid. It’s sticky hot. And it’s reminding me a lot of the weather in Thailand.     The unbelievably heat is so intense that I can get a tan instantly just by walking out to the patio for only less than a mere minutes.   And forget about the cooking.   Who would want to cook with the sizzling weather like this?    I’ve even lost my appetite to make something to eat.   Only thing I can think of right now in the mid-afternoon is a cool refreshing drink like lemonade.     However, to make lemonade more fun to drink, I’ve blended a handful of baby spinach to give a lemonade a gorgeous green color with the stimulating hint of ginger that makes the drink even more interesting.   

What can I say? I’m just having a love affair with ginger!  

 

Even though it’s just a lemonade with a green color, but I feel very sophisticated drinking this lovely lemonade.

Add rum and crushed mint…and you will have a lovely green mojito!    Agree? 

 

 

 

 

 

What you need:

1 handful baby spinach
6 cups filtered water
1 1/4 cups fresh squeeze lemon juice
3/4 cup simple gingered syrup - *see notes below
1 lemon sliced

How to:

- Blend baby spinach with 1 cup of water in the blender for one minute until it turns very fine, then strain the juice through the fine sieve and scoop out the foam on top.
- Transfer the spinach juice into the pitcher and add another 5 cups of wat
- Stir in lemon juice and the syrup into the spinach water to mix well
- Add sliced lemon and keep it chill in the fridge until ready to serve

* make gingered syrup by use 1 cup of water, 1 cup of sugar and 5 or 6 thin sliced of fresh ginger. Bring them to a boil just until the sugar is dissolved, take off the heat and let it sit to cool down. For better stronger flavor, leave it overnight.

 

 

 

Enjoy and stay cool!

 

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