Inspired by California-Mediterranean cuisines and farmers markets, I cook healthy, flavorful dishes that are easy-to-prepare yet elegant. I write for Zester Daily, One for the Table, Luxury Travel Magazine, Huffington Post & New York Daily News. My latest Amazon eCookbook is 10 Delicious Holiday Recipes. My handcrafted chocolates are available at www.dchocolates.com.
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We're having a party. On July 4th we'll gather in the park opposite our local high school (Pali High) to eat, catch up and watch fireworks. Everyone will bring food and drinks to share and a sweater because when the sun goes down, it gets chilly.
We have been doing this for so many years, I'm not certain when we started. Sometimes the group grows to almost thirty. Sometimes a handful of friends shows up. We've noticed that when the 4th falls on a weekend, there isn't enough time to travel out of town, so our group swells. This year, the 4th is on Tuesday, so our group will be more intimate. Big or small, the gathering is fun.
Everyone is asked to bring a favorite food. Something special. This year I'm making fried chicken the way chef Wes Whitsell (Manuela DTLA) showed me for a cooking video we did last month. His fried chicken is crispy and moist. For the cooking demonstration he made wings, thighs and legs. He doesn't like breasts because they don't have enough flavor. I pretty much agree. For my pot luck contribution, I'm making cut apart wings and legs, the easiest parts to eat at a picnic.
I'll also make an Italian parsley salad with chopped vegetables and pitted olives and a Little Gem lettuce salad with carrot rounds and feta cheese, served with whole wheat lavash.
Only recently did I discover Little Gem lettuce. At Glatt, a kosher market, on Pico east of Robertson and then at the Wednesday Santa Monica Farmers Market at the Garden of Organic stand. At first I thought they were "baby" romaine lettuces. They have a cleaner, crisper flavor, with less water and more crunch. Wrapped in a damp kitchen towel and placed in a plastic bag, the heads will keep fresh in the refrigerator for three weeks.
Here's the recipe I'll use for the 4th (which is exactly the recipe I use when I make the salad at home except sometimes I'll trade out the feta for blue cheese).
Crispy Little Gem Lettuce Salad
When making the salad, leave the leaves whole so they don't wilt. For the olives, use any kind you enjoy. We like Castelvetrano Green olives, which can be found pitted for easy use, although olives taste best when not pitted.
Serves 4 Time to prepare: 20 minutes
Ingredients
2 heads Little Gem Lettuce, leaves removed whole, washed, pat dried
1 large carrot, washed, ends removed, peeled, cut into thin rounds
1 large tomato, stem end removed, washed, pat dried, cut into dime size pieces
1 cup pitted olives, roughly chopped
1 scallion, ends removed, washed, brown leaves discarded, cut into paper thin rounds (optional)
1/2 cup feta, pat dried, crumbled
1 medium avocado, washed, peeled, pit and any brown spots removed, cut into dime sized pieces
1/2 cup homemade croutons (optional)
2 tablespoons olive oil
1/4 cup balsamic vinegar, reduced over a low flame to 2 teaspoons, cooled
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
Directions
Lay the Little Gem leaves in the bottom of a serving bowl. Sprinkle on the carrots, tomatoes, olives, scallions (optional), feta, avocado and croutons (optional).
Just before serving, season with sea salt and black pepper, drizzle on olive oil and reduced balsamic vinegar.
The summertime debate is on. What is the easiest way to cook pork ribs? Boil, roast or grill? High heat, low heat, wet sauce or dry rub? I’ve tried them all. Now the question is settled, at least for me. Slow roasting with a dry rub. To avoid summer’s heat, I put the ribs in a 250 F oven before I go to bed. When I wake up, the ribs are moist with a bacon-thin, sweetened crust. And these best-ever ribs cooked while I was fast asleep.
My mother taught me to make pork ribs with a thick coating of sauce sweetened with brown sugar and raisins. Eating those finger-licking ribs was one of my favorite childhood memories.
Everything changed on a busy research trip to Abilene and Fort Worth, when I ate at 25 restaurants in 36 hours. I fell in love with West Texas BBQ.
At restaurant after restaurant, I watched grill masters lay bundles of mesquite into their subcompact-car-sized smokers. With the heavy metal doors open, the wood crackled as flames enveloped the logs The grill masters seasoned their racks of pork ribs with thick, grainy coats of brown sugar and spices rubbed onto the meat. Waves of dry heat radiated from the smokers. But the heat that would cook these ribs would come not from an open fire but from smoldering mesquite embers.
When the doors were closed, the blazing logs were starved of oxygen. The flames died and a delicate smoke filled the air. At that moment the grill masters loaded in the racks of ribs coated with sweetened dry rub. Hours later, the ribs were removed, their outer coating thickened to crispness, creating what grill masters call “bark.”
I loved those ribs even more than the ones from my childhood.
At home, without the benefit of a smoker, I experimented for years to duplicate that sweet-crispness. Nothing could ever recreate the wonderful mesquite smokiness but I did succeed in making ribs with bark as good as any I enjoyed in West Texas.
High heat versus slow cooking
Mix of kosher salt, black pepper, brown sugar, cumin, coriander and cayenne for dry rub slow roasted pork ribs. Credit: Copyright 2016 David Latt
Cooking with high heat is exciting. There is great pleasure in watching the pyrotechnics of an outdoor grill as sizzling fat catches fire. Roasting at low heat in the oven lacks that excitement.
And yet, what happens in an oven set at 250 F has its own kind of magic. In the darkness of the oven, the waves of steady heat melt the fat inside the rack, tenderizing the meat and gently fusing the dry rub to the outside of the ribs.
The best magic of all is that the oven does the work. No standing over a blazingly hot grill on a hot day. Once the oven door closes, there is nothing to be done.
Walk into the kitchen and a savory-sweet aroma scents the air. Pull the baking tray out of the oven and press a finger against the outside of the rack. The soft pliancy of the meat has been replaced by a jerky-like crust as sweet as a crème brulee topping.
Slow-Roasted, Dry-Rubbed Pork Ribs
Rack of pork ribs, trimmed. Credit: Copyright 2016 David Latt
Cooking time depends on the size and thickness of the rack.
Buy good quality pork. Asian and Latin markets are often a reliable source of fresh pork products. Unlike the ribs sold in upscale supermarkets, the ribs in these markets will most likely be untrimmed.
Above the actual ribs, the rack will have a top portion with boneless flap meat and a section with thick bones similar to country style ribs. Another smaller piece of flap meat will stretch across the back of the rib bones.
Requiring only a sharp filleting knife and a few minutes, removing the flap meat and the top portion is not difficult. The flap meat is excellent to use in stir fries, slow roasted in the oven or grilled on the BBQ.
A white membrane is attached to the outside of the flap meat. Use a sharp filleting knife to separate the meat from the membrane and discard.
The flap meat and country style bones can be prepared in the same manner as the ribs. They will cook more quickly and should be removed from the 250 F oven after a total of 2 to 3 hours depending on thickness.
While the rack of ribs does not have to be turned over, the flap meat and country style bones should be turned over after one hour for even cooking. After another hour, use kitchen shears to cut off a small piece of meat to test for doneness. Return to the oven if the meat is not yet tender.
To eat the country style ribs, have a sharp paring knife handy to help cut out those hard to reach tasty bits tucked between the bones.
The ribs can be cooked ahead and reheated. In which case, do not cut apart the ribs until ready to serve. Reheat in a 300 F oven for 15 minutes.
Prep time: 30 minutes
Cooking time: 6 to 8 hours
Resting time: 5 minutes
Total time: 6 hours, 35 minutes to 8 hours, 35 minutes
Yield: 4 servings
Ingredients
1 rack pork ribs, 4 to 5 pounds, washed, dried
3 cups brown sugar
2 tablespoons kosher salt
2 tablespoons freshly ground black pepper
¼ cup cumin
¼ cup coriander
½ teaspoon cayenne (optional)
Directions
1. Place a wire rack in the middle of the oven. Preheat to 250 F.
2. Select a baking pan or cookie sheet that is 2 inches longer than the rack of ribs. Cover the pan with aluminum foil for easy clean up. Place a wire rack on top of the aluminum foil.
3. Lay the rack of ribs on a cutting board, bone side up. Use a sharp filleting knife to remove the tough membrane on the bone side of the rack. Let the knife help you lift the membrane. Use your fingers to pull the skin off the bones and discard.
4. Do not cut off any fat.
5. In a bowl, mix together dry ingredients.
6. For easy cleanup, lay a sheet of plastic wrap on the cutting board. Place the rack on the cutting board. Layer a thick coat of the dry spices onto both sides, covering the meat and bones.
7. Reserve left-over dry rub in an air tight container and refrigerate for later use.
8. Carefully place the rack of ribs on the wire rack meat side up.
9. Put the baking sheet into the preheated oven.
10. Roast six hours. Remove from oven. Use kitchen shears to cut off a small piece and taste.
11. The outside should have a jerky-crispness. The meat inside should be moist and tender. The tapered end of the rack where the bones are small will cook faster than the rest of the ribs. Use the kitchen shears to cut off that section before returning the rack to the oven for another one-two hours. Be careful not to dry out the meat.
12. Once the ribs are cooked, remove from oven and let the meat rest five minutes.
13. Cut between the rib bones and chop into pieces any flap meat without bones. Serve hot with a green salad, Cole slaw, baked beans or freshly steamed vegetables.
Main photo: Dry rub pork ribs cut apart after slow roasting and ready for serving. Credit: Copyright 2016 David Latt.
What’s your favorite comfort food? Do you prefer savory or
sweet? Maybe a hot fudge sundae topped with whipped cream puts you in a Zen
state. Maybe it’s a fresh-out-of-the-oven chicken pot pie with wild mushrooms or
mac n’ cheese with extra cheddar. For Chef Mirko Paderno, a plate of freshly
made gnocchi reminds him of home in Northern Italy. In
his Vinotecaand Culina kitchen, he showed how to make gnocchi.
Often served in upscale restaurants as a fine dining dish,
gnocchi is as basic to Italian home cooking as pasta. The sauces may change and
the markings on the little “pillows” may differ depending on the region, but
gnocchi is made with three basic ingredients: potatoes, flour and (most often) an egg.
Although there are a variety of opinions about how to make
gnocchi, for Paderno if you can boil water and roll out
a pie crust, you can make gnocchi. No special kitchen tools are required.
And, he loves gnocchi because of it's versatility. Perfect in winter with a hearty
meat sauce or in summer with a light pesto or butter sauce.
Making gnocchi is his yoga
Rolling out the dough puts Paderno into a relaxed, Zen state. On rainy days, he enjoys making gnocchi with his teenaged daughter.
A James Beard Nominee and a seasoned veteran of kitchens in
Italy and Los Angeles, he began his culinary career at the Four Seasons Hotel
Milan. With his appointment as Executive Chef at Culina and Vinoteca, he has
come full circle, returning to the Four Seasons family. In between, he worked in
some of Los Angeles’ best restaurants. Piero Selvaggio’s Primi, Cecconi’s,
Oliverio at the Viceroy and DTLA’s Officine BRERA.
But when he
was a teenager, he wasn’t certain what he was going to do with his life. That’s
when he enrolled at the Cesare Ritz School in Marano. At the time, he wasn’t that focused
on cooking. One of his teachers, Abramo
Magnani saw talent in him. But Magnani told him point blank, if he didn’t
focus and apply himself, his talent would never amount to anything. In one of those wonderful
moments when a person’s life changes forever in a good way, Paderno accepted
the challenge.
At Vinoteca and Culina, that determination has paid off. His
reworking of the menus has created dishes that give local diners an authentic
experience with modern Italian food. Unlike many hotel restaurants, Paderno
makes changes to the menu depending upon the seasons, the availability of
quality ingredients and feedback from his diners. He combines the California love of seasonal food with
Italian regional touches.
Reflecting that dual vision, Paderno worked with
Sommelier Amanda Craig who created a wine cellar with a comprehensive selection
of wines from around the world but especially from Italy and California. In a tasting
flight I selected she paired an Arneis from Piedmont with one from Santa Inez
and a Vermentino from Liguria with one from Arroyo Secco in California. The
differences were marked. All were delicious.
Gnocchi Made with Cold Potatoes
For Paderno, two details are key to
making the best gnocchi. The potatoes must be steamed over salted boiling water
so the flesh does not become water-logged. And, the dough must be made with
cold cooked potatoes so less flour is needed.
By using cold potatoes, the dough can
be prepared before the meal, even the day before. But if hot potatoes are used,
when the egg and flour are added, the gnocchi must be cooked immediately to
avoid becoming soggy.
Paderno uses Idaho russet potatoes
because they have a neutral flavor, the better to work with a variety of
sauces. But he suggests using any potato you enjoy, even sweet potatoes or
purple potatoes.
Paderno uses “00” flour which blends
easily with the potato. If “00” is not available, use all-purpose (AP) flour.
The amount of flour used partly
depends on the moisture of the cooked potatoes. Getting the right density takes
a bit of practice. The gnocchi dough should be not too dry and not too damp.
Like pastry dough, with a dusting of flour, the gnocchi should roll out without
sticking on the work surface. Watch the video to see Paderno’s technique.
Serves 8
Time to prepare: 30 minutes
Time to cook: 30 minutes Total time: 60 minutes
Ingredients
2.2 lbs. Idaho russet potatoes, washed, skin on
14 ounces “00” or AP flour
2 tablespoons AP flour for dusting
1 extra large egg
2 teaspoons kosher salt
1 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
Directions
Place a steamer
on the bottom of a large pot. Add water only to the bottom of the steamer. Season
with 1 teaspoon kosher salt. Bring to a boil. Place potatoes in the pot.
Cover.
Depending on
the size of the potatoes, cook 20 minutes or until a paring knife can be inserted
into the potatoes easily. Add water as needed if more steaming is required. Remove
when the potatoes are soft but not mushy.
Allow
potatoes to cool. Peel and discard the skins or reserve to sauté for breakfast.
Run the cooked, peeled potatoes through a potato ricer or food mill using a
fine blade.
Sprinkle work
area with flour. Place potatoes on the work area. Create a “volcano,” the way
you do when making fresh pasta, with a depression in the middle of the mound.
Dust flour over the potato and place a raw egg into the center of
the volcano.
Using fingers,
work the egg, flour and potato together until all ingredients are combined.
Create a ball.
At this
point, the dough can be wrapped in plastic wrap or placed in an air-tight
container and refrigerated to use later or the next day.
Before cooking
the gnocchi, make a sauce. That can be as simple as a butter sauce with a
little pasta water or as complicated as a braised meat ragu.
Sprinkle the
work surface with flour. Work in batches. Cut off a cup of dough at a time.
Using both hands, fingers and palms, roll the potato dough back and forth until it
takes the shape of a dowel, about 1” in diameter.
The dough is
forgiving so if the dowel breaks apart, start over.
Once you have
made a uniform shape, create individual gnocchi using a pastry cutter or
chefs knife. The gnocchi should be approximately 1” long.
It is
important to mark each gnocchi using a fork, your finger or a gnocchi board. The
indentations will help the sauce stick to each gnocchi.
Fill a large
pot with water. Add 1 teaspoon of kosher salt. Bring to a boil.
The gnocchi
cook quickly, anywhere from 30-60 seconds. To determine how much time is needed,
place several test gnocchi into the water. If the first gnocchi breaks apart,
either the water is boiling too fast and/or the potato dough needs more flour, in
which case you can return to the work area, gather up the gnocchi, sprinkle with
flour, knead together, roll out and cut again.
If your
gnocchi hold their shape, after 30 seconds remove one to taste. Then after 45
seconds. And another after 60 seconds. Decide which you like and use that
timing to make the rest.
Working in
batches, carefully drop a dozen gnocchi at a time into the boiling, salted
water.
Using a wire
strainer, remove the gnocchi from the boiling water.
Drain and add
to the heated sauce, which can be as simple as sautéed San Marzano tomatoes with olive oil or a tablespoon or two of pasta water mixed with melted butter like Rodolphe Le Meunier’s salted French Beurre de
Baratte.
Serve each
plate of gnocchi hot, topped with freshly grated Parmesan cheese. Chef Mirko Paderno, Vinoteca and Culina, Four Seasons Hotel Los Angeles at Beverly Hills, 300 S. Doheny Drive, Los Angeles, CA 90048
Quarter-sized deviled eggs made with Italian parsley, anchovies and capers. Credit: Copyright 2015 David Latt
What’s Easter without Easter eggs? Hide them. Roll them. And, best of all, eat them. Of the many dishes associated with Easter, deviled eggs have always been high on the list. Traditional deviled eggs are delicious but with some adventuresome spices, all those left-over hardboiled Easter eggs become devilishly delicious.
Our fingers stained blue, red and yellow, my sister and I loved dyeing and decorating Easter eggs. Ultimately our mother turned our colored eggs into deviled eggs with a simple recipe: peel and slice open the eggs, chop up the yolks, add a bit of mayonnaise and season with salt and pepper, then spoon the mixture back onto the egg white halves.
When we were kids that seemed good enough. But for my adult palate, deviled eggs needed spicing up. With experimentation, I discovered that hard-boiled eggs are a great flavor delivery system because they provide a solid, neutral base of flavor to which exciting flavors can be added.
Doing something as simple as adding cayenne or Mexican chili ancho powder gives the mild-mannered eggs a mouth-pleasing heat. Sweeten the flavor up a notch by stirring in finely chopped currants or borrow from Indian cuisine and mix in curry powder that has first been dry roasted in a sauté pan.
Turn the eggs into an entrée by mixing in freshly cooked shellfish. Grill shrimp or steam a few Dungeness crab legs, finely chop the savory meat and add to the yolk mixture. The result is elegantly flavorful.
This year I’m using a Mediterranean approach. Capers add saltiness and Italian parsley adds freshness. Finely chopped and sautéed anchovy filets are the secret ingredient that takes deviled eggs to another level.
Cut into quarters or halves, the deviled eggs make a visually arresting presentation.
Caper and Anchovy Deviled Eggs
Always worth mentioning, using quality ingredients improves any dish. Nowhere is that more true than with deviled eggs. Use farmers market fresh eggs, quality capers preserved in brine and good anchovy filets.
The easiest way to fill the egg white sections is with a disposable pastry bag. If one is not available, use a spoon to scoop up filling and a fork to distribute it into each egg white half.
The eggs and filling can be prepared the day before or in the morning. To keep them fresh, the eggs should not be filled until just before serving.
If desired, add a touch of heat with a pinch of cayenne.
Prep time: 5 minutes
Cook time: 20 minutes
Assembly time: 15 minutes
Total time: 40 minutes
Yield: 4 servings
Ingredients
6 farm fresh eggs, large or extra large, washed
4 anchovy filets, finely chopped
1 tablespoon Italian parsley, washed, pat dried, finely chopped
1 teaspoon capers, finely chopped
2 tablespoons mayonnaise
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
Pinch cayenne (optional)
Directions
1. Submerge the eggs in an uncovered saucepan of cold water. Heat the uncovered pot on a medium-high flame. Bring to a simmer and boil five minutes. Turn off the flame, cover and leave the eggs in the hot water 10 minutes. Drain the hot water. Add cold water to cool the eggs.
2. While the eggs are cooking, heat a small sauté or nonstick frying pan over a medium flame. No need to add oil. Sauté the anchovy filets until lightly brown. Set aside.
3. Peel the eggs. Discard the shells. Wash and dry the eggs to remove any bits of shell. Using a sharp paring knife, carefully slice the eggs in half, lengthwise. Remove the yolks and place into a bowl. Set aside the egg white halves.
4. Using a fork, finely crumble the yolks. Add the Italian parsley, capers and sautéed anchovy bits. Stir together all the ingredients. Add mayonnaise and mix well until creamy.
5. Spoon the filling into a disposable pastry bag. If serving the next day or later in the morning, place the egg white halves into an air-tight container and the filled pastry bag into the refrigerator.
6. Prepare a serving dish. The deviled eggs can be served as quarters, halves or reformed as whole. If quarters, cut each halve in two lengthwise. Just before serving the eggs, cut off the tip of the pastry bag. Have a paring knife or fork in hand. Carefully squeeze a generous amount of the filling into each egg white piece. If needed, use the knife or fork to tidy up the filling on each egg. Any leftover filling should be eaten on crackers as a chef’s treat.
7. As the eggs are filled, place them on the serving dish and garnish with Italian parsley or arugula. Serve cold.
In the winter or spring farmers markets, you've passed them by with a disapproving look. Blemished fresh tomatoes. Discounted to a dollar or less, these unhappy looking suitors for your attention appear destined to become compost.
Occasionally you will see someone who has stopped at the bin looking through the misshapen mound and you probably think they are too poor to buy the perfectly red, perfectly shaped tomatoes grown in a hot house.
The truth is, there are treasures hidden there. Find tomatoes that are firm and only slightly blemished and you will have found diamonds in the rough. They lack summer's full-blasted brightness. but tomatoes grown during winter and spring's weaker sun grow thicker skins and develop a rich, deep umami flavor.
Oven roasted, these tomatoes find sweetness hidden deep within. The acid so prized in summer tomatoes is mellowed and sweetened in off-season farmers market tomatoes.
But treat these tomatoes with care. Brought home from the farmers market and left on the kitchen counter in the sun, they will quickly soften and turn bad. They are used to cold, so place them in the refrigerator and they will last days and even a week until you are ready to use them roasted as a side dish for braised meat, tossed with pasta, served on steamed rice or mixed into soups, stews and braises.
Roasted Winter/Spring Tomatoes
Check each tomato carefully. You want firm tomatoes. A few blemishes are ok because those can be easily removed with a sharp pairing knife. Heirloom tomatoes are especially flavorful. Summer tomatoes can be roasted with a similar but different result. Serves 4 Time to prepare: 10 minutes
Time to cook: 30 minutes
Total time: 40 minutes
Ingredients
3 pounds tomatoes
1 medium yellow onion, washed, skins, root and stem ends removed and discarded
1 tablespoon olive oil
1/4 teaspoon sea salt
Freshly ground black pepper to taste
1 tablespoon Italian parsley, leaves only, washed, finely chopped
Directions
Preheat oven to 400F.
Prepare a baking tray with a small lip (about 1/2"). Lay a Silpat (non-stick silicone) sheet or a piece of parchment paper onto the bottom of the baking tray.
Using a sharp pairing knife, remove the stem and spot on the bottom where the blossom was attached. Remove any dark blemishes and discard.
Cut into 1" slabs. Place slabs onto the prepared baking tray.
Cut onion in half, cutting from top to bottom. Cut thin slices by cutting from top to bottom. Place in mixing bowl. Season with olive oil, sea salt and freshly ground black pepper. Mix with Italian parsley.
Spread onion-parsley mixture over tomatoes.
Place baking tray into oven.
After 15 minutes, using a spatula or flipper, turn the slabs over. Keep onion-parsley mixture on top to brown. Return to oven.
Remove after 15 minutes.
The onion-parsley mixture should have lightly browned. Carefully remove the slabs which are now very delicate from the pan. Reserve the onion-parsley mixture and all of the liquid that has accumulated in the pan. This is full of tomato-essence
flavor.
To use as a side-dish, reheat and serve in a bowl. The roasted tomatoes are delicious when added to soups, stews and braises.
If not used immediately, keep the roasted tomatoes in an air-tight container. They will keep in the refrigerator for several days or in the freezer for a month.
Having written about Little Saigon over many years, I was looking at my last post from a year ago and realized I should update the entry. Many of my favorite restaurants have closed. To replace those, I have found others but I am sorry to see old friends depart from the Westminster culinary scene.
Certain foods cause people to become rhapsodic. Proust had his madeleines. I have pho ga. At Pho Vinh Ky, the large bowl of chicken soup and rice noodles arrives with a plate of fresh herbs and vegetables and a small bowl of dipping sauce.
Traditionally, the herbs and vegetables are added to the broth. Rau ram, ngo gai, bean sprouts, mint, Thai basil, purple perilla, a lime wedge and thick slices of serrano peppers add brightness to the flavors. I love the dipping sauce, nuoc cham gung, a mix of lime juice, dried pepper flakes, finely chopped fresh ginger and fish sauce. Everyone has their own way to eat pho. Mine is to eat the noodles first. Each spoonful flavored by the pungent, hot, salty dipping sauce.
If you haven't eaten Vietnamese food, you have missed out on one of the great Asian cuisines. Known primarily for their noodle soups, plates of barbecued meats piled high on mounds of broken rice or served in a bowl with vermicelli noodles and stir fries spiced with lemon grass, Vietnamese food has spread into the wider culinary community because of the popularity of pho (hot beef and chicken soups with noodles) and banh mi (crusty baguettes with spicy meats and pickled vegetables).With several large Vietnamese communities around the country, we are lucky to live close to Little Saigon in Orange County.
My trip to Little Saigon begins at Pho Vinh Ky with a large bowl of pho ga (chicken soup with noodles), only dark meat, and a Vietnamese iced coffee with milk. Arriving early in the morning, the restaurant is cold and mostly empty. The large window faces a small parking lot bordering busy Westminister Boulevard. A dozen Vietnamese men and women are also eating pho. Their heads bent low over the steaming bowls, chop sticks in one hand, a Chinese soup spoon in the other, they eat the more familiar, beef version of pho.
Because we live an hour away from Garden Grove and Westminster, the epicenter of Orange County's Vietnamese community, instead of eating several dishes at one restaurant, I'll eat one dish at each of my favorite restaurants, taking home what I don’t finish and moving on to the next one. If you hadn’t guessed, that means I bring freezer packs and a small cooler for take-away because the left overs are delicious for next day-breakfast and lunch.
In between meals, I'll hunt out the best bargains at the local supermarkets.
Here is the list of places I love going to in Little Saigon. Hope you have an afternoon to explore the area. A few weeks ago, I brought home two live Dungeness crabs from ABC (see below: a supermarket on Bolsa at Magnolia) for $5.99/lb. The shiitake mushrooms were also a bargain at $4.99/lb. at My Thuan.
RESTAURANTS
Many of the restaurants only take cash. Most of them open for breakfast and stay open until late (which can mean 7:30am - 11:00pm; but often it means 10am - 10pm).
Pho Vinh Ky
8512 Westminster Blvd, Suite F Westminister 92683 714/894-9309
Next to the Stater Brothers’ Market, west of Magnolia, east of Beach (Beach Blvd Exit on the Garden Grove/22 Fwy), Pho Vinh Ky has the best pho ga (chicken noodle soup) in the area. The light broth is clean tasting, the dark meat is sweet and the noodles are chewy. The interior is nondescript. The waitstaff is friendly even if they don't speak English. Besides the pho ga, the other dishes I would also recommend the spring rolls with shrimp and pork, crispy rice noodles with vegetables and tofu, BBQ pork with vermicelli, BBQ shrimp with vermicelli, the pork chop with broken rice and the BBQ pork with broken rice, topped with a fried egg.
Garlic & Chives by Kristin Mall of Fortune Mall 9892 Westminster Ave & Brookhurst Garden Grove, CA 92844 714/591-5196
An upscale Vietnamese restaurant with affordable prices and an extensive menu. There are many familiar dishes on the menu like bbq pork with vermicelli and fish filet on a sizzling platter. The difference is the quality of the ingredients and presentation. Fancy enough for date night but inexpensive enough to bring the family, Garlic & Chives is one of my favorites especially because my wife loves their Grilled Fish with Turmeric and Dill.
Dim Sum Located inside My Thuan Supermarket 8900 Westminster Blvd Westminster, CA 92683 www.mintleafoc.com
Visible through the glass doors leading into the north side of My Thuan Supermarket (see below), Dim Sum took over the space called Mint Leaf. The cafe serves a dozen dim sum as well as another dozen Chinese and Vietnamese dishes as varied as braised chicken feet and soy sauce noodles with vegetables. I always buy a serving or two of shrimp filled har gow, pork filled bao and shumai. I eat a few at one of the tables and bring the rest home for a taste treat that night.
Dim Sum - Giai Phat Food Co. 9550 Bolsa Ave. #123, 124, Westminster, CA 92683
In a mini-mall there are a dozen other restaurants including a Chinese take out restaurant serving inexpensive, well-made dim sum.
T.P. Banh Bao 2 13067 Euclid Street Garden Grove, CA 92843 714/539-4119
On the edge of the Vietnamese area of Garden Grove, just north of the 22 Freeway, T.P. Banh Bao 2 is tucked away in a corner of a mini-mall next to Dalat Supermarket (see below). There is usually a line of customers waiting to take home a package with a dozen bao. Serving freshly made bao with a dozen different fillings, the most popular bao is filled with ground pork. Delicious fresh, they freeze well. When re-heated, they taste almost as good as they did when they were first made.
On the eastern end of a mini-mall with half a dozen small restaurants there is a French-Vietnamese bakery/restaurant called Le Croissant Dore that sells good Vietnamese style French pastries. One of the specialties of the kitchen is a bœuf bourguignon that’s spicy with unexpected heat. Served with a freshly baked baguette, customers eat in a small dining room within sight of the bakery counter or outside at half a dozen tables which are usually occupied by circles of men, talking and reading newspapers. The Vietnamese iced coffee with sweetened condensed milk is delicious but very strong. Saigon’s Bakery 8940 Westminster Blvd Westminster, CA 92683 714/896-8782 http://saigonsbakery.com
A few doors from My Thuan (below), Saigon's Bakery sells breads, rolls and Vietnamese pastries, drinks and sweets, which, for most items, when you buy two, the third is free. People stand in line to buy the foot-long banh mi with a dozen different fillings. The baguettes are perfectly crisp on the outside, moist and chewy on the inside.
MARKETS
There are a great many supermarkets in Little Saigon as well as Korean Markets in Garden Grove. Each one is different although they carry many of the same products. The prices are also pretty much the same, but there are notable differences between them.
My Thuan Supermarket 8900 Westminster Blvd. Westminster CA 92683 714/899-0700
A large supermarket with excellent fresh produce, dried noodles and frozen seafood, My Thuan has better prices than most of the nearby markets. My wife loves charred octopus salad with potatoes. My Thuan sells both fresh baby octopus and large frozen octopus. The fresh seafood, poultry and meat counters have all the cuts familiar to anyone who shops in Asian markets. The quality is above average. The prices are very affordable. The fresh shiitake mushroom price is the lowest in the area.
MOM Supermarket 5111 W. Edinger Avenue (the entrance is on Euclid) Santa Ana 92704 714/839-3939
MOM has a good fish market but while they have live seafood, the prices are better at ABC; they have a fantastic dried and fresh noodle area and great selection of Asian sauces.
ABC Supermarket
8970 Bolsa Avenue at Magnolia Westminster 92683 714/379-6161
Great for live lobsters (usually $7.99-$8.99/lb) and Dungeness crab ($5.99-7.99/lb), they have a large selection of fish, some in live tanks, fresh and frozen. The produce section is excellent, with shiitake mushrooms, leafy vegetables, citrus, onions, aromatic herbs and garlic as well as fresh poultry (chicken and duck), beef and pork.
Bolsa BBQ 8938 Bolsa Avenue Westminster, CA 92683 714/903-2485
Sharing the parking lot with ABC Supermarket are a dozen other businesses, restaurants and bakeries. Bolsa BBQ sells freshly prepared whole pig, chickens, ducks and delicious bao with hardboiled egg & pork.
Dalat Supermarket 13075 Euclid Street at the intersection of Garden Grove Blvd & the 22 Garden Grove 92843 714/638-9900
The majority of dried noodles sold in Asian markets use lye. One of the few companies to avoid using lye in their noodles is found at Dalat: Twin Rabbit Vegetarian Noodles (Mi Chay Soi Lon) Product of Vietnam - dried wheat noodles: $1.19.
