Bo Nhung Dam (Vietnamese Beef Dipped in Vinegar)

Before the Korean barbecue fest, there were 4 courses of beef. I know, not quite 7 courses of beef like in Vietnamese restaurants, but I don't much care for the steamed meatball and porridge anyway. I made bo luc lac (Vietnamese shaking beef), bo xao xa (Vietnamese beef sauteed with lemongrass), bo nhung dam (Vietnamese beef dipped in vinegar), and bo nuong la lot (Vietnamese beef wrapped in wild betel leaf). Bo nhung dam is just quickly dipped into vinegared broth, not really a hot pot per se. The vinegared water serves more to quickly cook the beef so it can be wrapped with herbs and rolled up in rice paper and then dipped with mam nem (Vietnamese fermented anchovy sauce). To serve this, you should have an herb plate of mint, lettuce, and cucumbers. You can also include cooked vermicelli rice noodles and shredded carrots if you wish. Include a bowl of water at the table for guests to wet the rice paper. Then it's simply a matter of dipping raw thinly sliced beef into the vinegared water until the beef cooks, and then wrapping it in rice paper with herbs. Bo Nhung Dam (Vietnamese Beef Dipped in Vinegar) For a 2-quart pot of broth, you'll need: Water 1/4 to 1/2 cup rice vinegar, depending on your taste A few slivers of sliced onion 1 lemongrass stalk, bruised to release fragrance As many fresh pineapple chunks as you'd like And as much very thinly sliced beef as you'd like. If you don't want to slice the beef yourself, you can ask your butcher to thinly slice eye round beef, or find it already sliced and labeled for hot pot or pho. Fill a 2-quart stock pot with water, 1 bruised stalk of lemongrass, a few slices of onion, and several chunks of fresh pineapple. I like foods pretty tart, but if you don't, start with about 1/4 cup vinegar and gradually increase until the broth is to your liking. Let the whole mixture come to a boil, and lower to simmer. If you have a burner or crock pot or fondue pot even, you can set the pot tableside for guests to cook and make their own rice paper wrappers. Serve with mam nem for dipping. Enjoy! ***** 1 year ago today, no-knead bread with whole wheat.