This variation of the French cake salé | savory cake infuses the flavors of a traditional Vietnamese chicken curry into a radiantly colored loaf. You’ll often find such savory cakes served alongside apéritifs during the cocktail hour. Given how easy they are to make and their versatility, they also make an ideal hors-d’œuvre for picnics or potlucks. They travel well and can be served warm, room temp or even cold.
Whipping up a satiating weeknight meal doesn’t have to be a complicated affair. Preparing these roasted chicken leg quarters with lemongrass and curry require minimal time and effort and only a few kitchen staples.
Bitter melon is a gnarly looking veggie with a pungent bitterness to match, which may deter the uninitiated palate. Nonetheless, I invite you fearless eaters out there to broaden your palate and test your palate’s threshold for bitterness.
One of my favorite ways to stay cool during this past summer’s heatwave is with this Vietnamese basil seed and malva nut drink. The basil seeds (hột é) look very similar to chia seeds, but they are slightly smaller and don’t need to soak for as long. The seeds are often paired with malva nuts (đười ươi), which puffs into an algae-looking blob. It, too, has a slightly gelatinous texture and imparts a subtly earthy flavor. Both seeds have a very mild flavor, so the drink needs a little bit of sugar to give it more body.
Dressed with a traditional nước mắm sauce, this simple yet zestful green papaya salad (gỏi đu đủ tôm thịt) topped with pork belly and shrimp will take your taste buds on an unforgettable flavor adventure that will have you begging for more once you empty your plate!
The ease and versatility of quiches make for a delicious Sunday afternoon lunch or a light weeknight meal. You can add virtually any combination of ingredients you like to them. For this quiche, roasting bell peppers brings out their sweetness, which complements the savoriness of the feta and sautéed leeks. Paired with a simple green salad, this roasted bell pepper and leek quiche will certainly satisfy just about any appetite!
When the inhabitants of China’s Hainan Province migrated to Southeast Asia, they brought with them one of the province’s most notable culinary exports, Hainanese chicken rice. The eponymous dish made a mark on essentially all cuisines in this region. In Vietnamese cuisine, this delectable chicken and rice dish is known as cơm gà hải nam. It’s such a simple dish composed of few ingredients, yet tastes exquisitely delicious.
What could possibly be cuter than transforming classic Easter deviled eggs into a mother hen and a flock of baby chicks? Making these Easter egg appetizers require a bit of dexterity and patience, but the final outcome will give you a good giggle! This family of chicks will no doubt add a bit of glee to your dining table and amuse your guests. Even the pickiest of eaters will have a hard time resisting these little cuties!
Hello there! PLATED PALATE is my personal collection of Vietnamese & French recipes that I’ve cooked up from my little kitchen in France. I hope that my recipes will inspire you to fire up your stove and to experiment with new flavor profiles in your kitchen.
