Category Archives: Chef Debbie

Recipe: Bun Patty Nuong

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I normally don’t do food posts, however this recipe was too good to miss. (And I wanted to keep a record of it for myself in the future!)

Here’s my twist on a classic Vietnamese vermicelli dish that tasted so good, I inhaled most of it before I remembered to take a photo.

Try this heat-laden, kicky, crunchy herbal meal with New World Sauvignon Blanc, Prosecco, or a hoppy India Pale Ale!

Ingredients

  • 5 cloves garlic, minced
  • 3 large shallots, halved & sliced into tiny, thin strips
  • extra virgin olive oil or grapeseed oil
  • 6 veggie tempura patties (those fish cake-like things with the carrot bits and peas embedded within), cut into strips
  • 1 lb. bean sprouts, washed
  • approx. 250 g or 1/2 package rice vermicelli or Pho noodles (depending on your preference for thin / broad)
  • 2 carrots, julienned
  • 1/2 English long cucumber, julienned
  • 1/2 head Romaine lettuce, chiffonaded
  • 3 scallions, chopped
  • 1/2 cup (loose) cilantro, chopped
  • 1 cup (loose) mint leaves, chiffonaded
  • 1 cup (loose) Thai basil leaves, chiffonaded
  • 1 dried bird’s eye chili, ground into flakes (or 1 tsp. dried chili flakes)
  • 1 heaping tbsp. sugar
  • juice of 2 limes
  • 1/4 cup nam pla (fish sauce)
  • roasted peanuts, unsalted, lightly smashed

Directions

  • Place half of the minced garlic along with the ground dried chili flakes, sugar, limes and nam pla into a bowl. Stir to dissolve sugar, add a generous swirl of oil and set aside.
  • Coat the bottom of a saute pan with oil. Over medium heat, fry the shallots and remaining garlic until browned. Scoop them out into a bowl, reserving the oil in the pan. Briefly saute the tempura patty strips in the oil until heated through. Turn off heat and set aside.
  • Cook the vermicelli or Pho noodles in just-boiled water to the desired softness (note: this shouldn’t take long). Drain the noodles into a sieve or colander and run cold water over the noodles to decrease the heat and prevent them from sticking together in a giant clump. Save about 1/2 cup of the noodle water.
  • Add noodle water gradually into the nam pla mixture to dilute to taste. Sort of like chemistry, this step helps the sharp acids, sugar and salt of the mixture come into balance.
  • You are now ready to assemble your meal! In either a large, wide serving dish or individual dishes, layer the ingredients upward as follows: carrots, cucumber and romaine; bean sprouts and noodles; tempura strips; chopped herbs; fried garlic/shallot mixture; and finally the crumbled peanut topping.
  • Add spoonfuls of the nam pla sauce to taste. Mix together and enjoy!
  • Serves 4 – 6. Tastes great with extra dried chili oil.

Dr. Loosen Urziger Wurtzgarten Spatlese Riesling 2005

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I’d always been interested in experimenting with the aging and development of white wines, although my observations as a consumer inform me that there just aren’t too many examples of ageable whites available in my local market, at least not ones that can be found without some deep digging around liquor store shelves (and your wallet).

Fortunately, one can always count on cool-climate, quality appellation Riesling to offer some type of cellaring potential. Its abdundant phenolics (flavour compounds) and high natural acidity almost ensure that a good quality Riesling wine will continue to show plenty of deliciousness and refreshing qualities, not to mention added complexity, with a bit of maturity. Some prestige Rieslings have even been known to drink well decades following the vintage!

Some places where top-notch Rieslings come from include the Mosel, Rheingau, Rheinhessen and Nahe areas of Germany; Australia’s Clare and Eden Valleys; the Kamptal region of Austria; Marlborough, New Zealand; the famous area of Alsace, France; and the Finger Lakes region of New York.

Here’s two quick tasting notes on this Dr. Loosen Riesling from the Mosel, of which I had purchased two bottles five or six years ago at the Vancouver Playhouse International Wine Festival.

I opened the first one two Mother’s Days ago (2009), when I had Mom over for a simple but exquisite dinner of boiled lobsters with lemon tarragon dipping butter. (Mmmm…)

Bright yellow in colour, the nose was a zesty bouquet of lemon, grapefruit, lime, honey and chalky mineral. The slightly off-dry palate had a searing line of acidity which cut through the rich flavours of our dinner perfectly, albeit the wine was a bit fruity for the relatively neutral taste of delicately sweet lobster in butter.

I reckoned that there was still some time for this wine to develop, so I waited for another occasion to open the next bottle.

The second, I shared with my family at a Mother’s Day dinner I prepared last month with an armload of goodies from Granville Island Public Market – the highlights being a pot of Quadra Island scallops in coconut basil lemongrass broth and boiled BC spot prawns with a dip of bird’s eye chilis, cilantro, garlic and green onion in lemon juice.

This time, the aromatic wine was an even bigger success paired with the equally flavourful ingredients of my seafood dishes.

This is an image of the bottle opened May 2011 - the other one was downed far too quickly for me to remember my camera!

With two more years in storage, my wine had become more developed on the nose, with riper fruit notes and more honey and apricot scents; and the freshness of the mineral and lime aromas turned to a smokier smell of heated rocks and hints of spice.

In the mouth, the new scents echoed on the palate with a silkier mouthfeel – my mouth no longer puckered after each sip as it did with the first bottle. The off-dry character remained, yet tasted more integrated with these riper, verging on tropical fruit flavours and more balanced acidity.

Tasting both examples over the course of two years was a great experience I’ll be looking to try on another series of white wines again in the future. Stay tuned!

Wines to Get You In the Mood

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… for this year’s Vancouver Playhouse International Wine Festival, that is!

The 2011 theme region is Spain, which, if you’re like me and you enjoy high quality wines made in time-honoured, land-respecting methods at attractive prices, you’ll be over the moon for! (There, that was my elevator pitch for wines from Spain. Olé!)

One thing I really enjoy about winemaking in the land of the Pinta, the Niña and the Santa Maria (from the little that I know about Spanish winemaking) is its progressive stance.

Just as much as its great wines, such as Rioja and Sherry, are steeped in tradition, the new and emerging quality winemaking regions of note within this colourful country are embracing of forward-thinking industrial practices (i.e., irrigation, which many EU wine appellations do not allow) and the use of grapes not native to the region.

Here is a tasty pair of Spanish wines I tried recently – I hope they whet your palate for the bevy of bottles that will be showcased on the International Festival Tasting floor, March 30 – April 1!

Tickets for VPIWF are available online or via the phone box office (number is at the link above).

For the first time ever, I’ll be on the exhibitor’s side of the table this year… See you there!

Bodegas Ochoa Rosado de Lágrima Finca El Bosque Navarra DO 2009

50% Cabernet Sauvignon, 50% Garnacha. The region of Navarra is well known for producing rosé wines as well as wines labelled in the modern varietal manner. This wine from Bodegas Ochoa is a single vineyard creation from the winery’s Finca El Bosque plot. It’s named “Rose of Tears” after the saignée method of production, in which the crushed juice is left in contact with the skins for about 12 hours, during which time the colour bleeds out from the grape skins into the liquid that is to be fermented.

Dark salmon in colour verging on pale red, this coral stunner woos the nose with fresh rhubarb, spicy cherry, red currant and pomegranate aromas along with a hint of white pepper and dust. The palate is deliciously dry with some obvious tannins from the Cabernet, ample body and alcohol from the Garnacha – and oodles more red fruit and spice. It’s deceivingly lightweight in the mouth when well chilled – be careful how quick you imbibe! It didn’t take me long to finish my bottle. Get some now while you can; this is an $18 wine that’s currently $12. A fabulous recommendation from a fellow wine geek galpal! I paired this wine with vegan fajitas which worked quite well.

This animal-friendly dinner was brought to you by Tofu Chili, Soy Cheese, Julienned Beets, Bean Sprouts, Pinto Beans & Rice with Roasted Poblano Peppers, this awesome guac / Pico de Gallo mix that I got from IGA, homemade Aji Criollo and steamed authentic 100% Corn Tortillas.

Marqués de Cáceres Rioja Reserva DOC 2004

I haven’t had the fortune to try a lot of Riojas yet, so I was more than happy to take home the 2 – 3 glasses or so that remained of this bottle that was used in an ISG (International Sommelier Guild) training session in my work building!

On Rioja bottles, “Reserva” indicates that the wine has been aged for at least one year in oak and two in bottle prior to release, which by most commercial wine standards is quite a long time. Many say that because of these long aging standards that in Rioja, the producers have taken care of the wine’s maturation / cellaring for you. Personally, I find some Riojas overwhelmingly oaky upon or soon after release; most bottles could stand to benefit from further aging or certainly some time in the decanter.

85% Tempranillo, 15% Garnacha Tinta & Graciano. This deep, almost opaque crimson wine has a bloody (and bloody good) viscosity and mouthfeel. The aromas remind you of sweet forest and hearth smells – pinecones, vanilla, coconut, cinnamon and mulled wine come to mind, along with some ripe red fruits like currants, cherries and dried prunes. A rich mouthfeel envelops the palate with lingering spiciness, oak, Persian pomegranate molasses and fine grained tannins that form a fairly long finish. Solid deal at $30. As for a good food pairing, spicy lamb tagine comes to mind, as well as five spice beef. It would also do well with a Chinese braised pork belly recipe called Muy Choy Faa Laam [Ed.: Sorry, I don't know what this is called in English!] or Shanghainese braised pork hock – both dishes evoke a sweet, nutty piquant spice that would taste great with this wine, the tannins in which would also be a fantastic compliment to these fatty cuts of pork.