How to Make Bitter Melon Less Bitter

Every few years, I attempt to eat Canh O/Kho Qua Nhoi Thit (Vietnamese Stuffed Bitter Melon Soup) again, hoping that this time, it'll grow on me. And every other time, the bitterness of bitter melon is just too much, but I keep trying because it's pretty much the only Vietnamese food that I can't eat.

So I thought I'd try to lessen the bitterness. Not remove it completely, but at least tone down it enough that I can eat it. I figured if I parboiled the bitter melon and dumped the bitter brew before making it into soup, that might reduce the bitterness a little.

I turned to my Wandering Chopsticks Facebook page to ask if any of my readers had tried that and whether it worked and received another tip to salt it as well. So here you go, two ways to lessen the bitterness of bitter melon.

How to Make Basic Turkey Stock

After Thanksgiving dinner was over and the turkey was picked almost clean, there's not much else to do except make stock. I'm not of the mindset that you need to doctor much to make a basic turkey stock. Onions, carrots, and celery are nice additions, but if I'm going to add them to soup, then I just turn the whole pot into Turkey Vegetable Soup.

I just add water and simmer the bones for an hour or two to make a basic stock. I don't add salt until the broth has been simmering for a while because the turkey is already seasoned, so additional salt may be unnecessary.

The only two things to keep in mind are to keep the heat on low to medium-low if you'd like a clear broth to make soups such as Bun Mang Ga Tay (Vietnamese Rice Vermicelli Noodle Soup with Bamboo Shoots and Turkey) and Mi Ga Tay Tiem (Vietnamese Egg Noodle Soup with Chinese 5-Spice Turkey), or at medium-high to high heat if you want a milky broth to make Shichimenchou (Japanese Turkey Bone) Ramen. That's it.

Of course, you can also add lemongrass or spices or any other seasonings you wish, but the key to a good broth is more about heat level for whichever type of broth you want and let it simmer for a while, and skim to remove scum and other impurities.

How to Julienne Carrots and Other Vegetables

During our lunch at Young Dong Tofu - San Gabriel, Pink Candles at Ridgemont High and I were talking about julienning vegetables. Was it when the Korean Cold Buckwheat Noodle Salad was brought out and we were admiring the artfully arranged platter? Or was it a discussion of cooking techniques in general?

In any case, I was telling her how I do it, and wondered whether I should blog such things. And she said I should since she didn't know. So, in case you'd like to slice your carrots or other vegetables like how I do mine, so you get something like this...

Kaffir Lime Leaves

I don't have much to say about kaffir lime leaves since I don't use it too much in my cooking. Kaffir lime leaves add a lovely citrus note to many curries and seasonings without making the food taste too sour. I associate the leaves mainly with Thai cuisine, although there's a random Vietnamese and Indonesian recipe thrown in as well.

The double leaves of the kaffir lime are a little thicker than normal lemon leaves, although in a pinch, I've used Meyer lemon leaves off my uncle's tree with no problems. The leaves can be left whole to stew in curries, or finely chiffonaded and added as a garnish.

How to Bake Crispy Egg Rolls That Taste Almost As Good As Fried

A while back, I got an email from one of my readers asking if she could bake egg rolls. She feared deep-frying anything after an oil splatter incident, she explained. Understandable.

I suggested a deep-fryer with a lid.

That idea was nixed too.

But, deep-frying egg rolls is far superior to baking them. The only time I've baked egg rolls is if I'm re-heating fried ones.

Obviously, you don't need me to write a whole blog post telling you to bake the usual recipe for egg rolls. Since I was making Cha Gio Cua Be (Vietnamese Crab Egg Rolls), I decided to set aside a few for experimenting. I wanted to replicate, as close to possible, the crispness of fried egg rolls, but by baking them. What these egg rolls needed was oil.

This isn't the healthy alternative to frying egg rolls. Maybe juuuust a smidge healthier, but really, I was after a baking alternative that didn't require you to stand over a pot of boiling oil. Think it worked? Do those egg rolls look like they were fried?

Dashi Kombu (Japanese Kelp Broth)

One of the ingredients I've been experimenting with in cooking Japanese food is dashi kombu (Japanese kelp).

I've been eating and enjoying seaweed forever. And like it wrapped in sushi, simply roasted, or as Canh Tao/Rong Bien (Vietnamese Seaweed Soup). Though my first two attempts with Shio (Japanese Salt) Ramen and Shichimenchou (Japanese Turkey Bone) Ramen were OK, I knew my broth needed an extra oomph.

The best way I could describe using kelp in soup stock is that it provides a natural savoriness without overpowering the broth.

Combine the kelp with shaved bonito flakes and you have the quintessential Japanese stock for ramen, miso soup, udon, or any other soups. Sometimes I add tiny dried anchovies too, but the kelp and bonito flakes are musts.

Dao Che Rau Muong (Vietnamese Water Spinach Splitter)

Do you know what this kitchen tool does?


The many spokes? The long pointy stem?

How to Season Black Steel Pans

Yay! I hardly ever win anything! I was sooo excited. Dinnerware sets, ice cream makers, Le Creuset, I couldn't decide on what to get when I won the $80 gift certificate to CSN Stores from Gourmet Pigs several months ago.

Half of the prize went toward the Cuisinart ice cream maker, which was also available on Amazon for a few dollars more, so I knew the price was good. Of course, I have to eat down my fridge before I have any room to try it out.

But what else could I get to fill my basket? I kept adding and deleting items. Le Creuset was tempting, but just too expensive when my non-brand name cast iron enamel works fine for me. When it came down to it, I really needed new frying pans. I have a Teflon-coated 10-inch one purchased right after I graduated from college, a 10-inch Lodge cast iron pan that gets a fair amount of use, and a 12-inch Circulon pan that is sometimes too big to be practical.

Which is when I stumbled upon these Paderno World Cuisine black steel pans, also available on Amazon for several dollars more, if you're so inclined. If you like the qualities of cast iron, but don't like the weight, then black steel pans are the way to go.

How to Flip a Roast Chicken With a Wooden Spoon

This tip might be obvious to some of you, or it might be a light bulb moment for others. As you know, I bake a lot of roast chicken. A lot. Really. Really. Really. A lot. And after making it enough times, I've become pretty good at flipping the bird (heheh) so that the skin stays mostly intact.

The trick is to use a wooden spoon. It's best to use a spoon with a wide mouth, like a wok bamboo wooden spoon, to stabilize the chicken while turning.

How to Prepare and Use Tamarind in Recipes

Me (Vietnamese Tamarind) is a common ingredient in several dishes for a slightly sweet-tart flavor. You can buy tamarind pods whole for a few bucks at the Asian or Mexican grocery store. I find the Asian tamarind of better quality than the Mexican tamarind in my area -- pods intact, fresher, sweeter tasting.

You can actually snack on these plain if you wish. They taste like chewy sweet-tart candy.

To prepare tamarind for recipes is pretty simple.

Ultimate Stir-Fry Sauce

The ultimate stir-fry sauce is about using the sauces in my pantry for a quick meal with lots of oomph in flavor. On the left are the umami flavors of Nuoc Mam (Vietnamese Fish Sauce) and Chinese oyster sauce. In the middle are the sweeter black sauces of Indonesian Kecap Manis and Chinese hoisin sauce. I've covered all the black sauces in my post: Chinese Black Bean, Hoisin, and Oyster Sauces and Indonesian Kecap Manis. Then on the far right is Huy Fong's Sriracha chili sauce.

Adjust according to your taste, but the perfect ratio for me is 2 tsp each of the fish, oyster, kecap manis, and hoisin sauces and 1 tsp of the chili sauce. I sometimes add 1 or 2 tsp of rice wine or vinegar.

Mix and add to any stir-fry or use as a quick marinade. Double or triple the recipe for larger batches.

I know it sounds simplistic, but that's why it works.

How to Cook Rice on the Stove Top

After I wrote my post about "How to Cook Jasmine Rice" years ago I figured that should suffice, but I've noticed a lot of hits from people searching for how to cook rice on the stove top. Since I made a pot on the stove in order to season my claypot, I might as well blog it. I mean, in case you really need that kind of help or you don't own a rice cooker.

How to Season and Care for a Chinese Clay Pot

I'm a big fan of low-tech kitchen equipment. There's something to be said about how the tried and true methods that have been popular for generations still work well today. And so after using regular pots to make Ca Kho To (Vietnamese Clay Pot-Braised Fish), I wanted a proper to (Vietnamese clay pot). Actually, it's a Chinese clay pot, but Vietnamese cook with it too. :)

The first step is choosing the right pot. I opted for a 9-inch clay pot since it was roughly the size of my 2-quart cast iron enameled tomato pot that I use quite often. This size can hold several fish filets or a couple of pounds of meat. I purchased mine for $6 at the San Gabriel Superstore, although any Asian grocery store should have it.

It goes without saying that you should select a pot with no visible cracks and as tight-fitting a lid as possible. My clay pot even came with brief instructions on how to care for it so I'll pass it along to you.

How to Devein Shrimp With a Toothpick

While lil' sis's best friend was occupied cooking Chinese Spare Ribs with Coke and Soy Sauce, he put her other friend to work peeling and deveining shrimp.

It was too "eww" and "squicky" a chore for lil' sis's fastidious other friend, he of the Alexander McQueen scarf incident.

So I showed him my ba noi (Vietnamese paternal grandmother)'s trick to devein shrimp quickly with a toothpick. After peeling the shrimp, just slide the point of a toothpick in the middle part of the shrimp (I do it after the third "section") underneath the vein. Then gently pull the vein out.

Banh Pho (Vietnamese Flat Thin Rice Noodles)

While most non-Vietnamese associate the word pho with Pho Bo (Vietnamese Beef Noodle Soup), banh pho actually refers to the flat, thin rice noodles. There are two types of banh pho noodles, which are sometimes called rice sticks (I have no idea why.).

Xi Muoi (Vietnamese Preserved Plums)

Not much to say about xi muoi (Vietnamese preserved plums). I used to treat them like candy, sucking on the puckering sour-sweetness until every last bit of flavor was extracted. Then I kept sucking on the seed until every last bit of flavor was gone from that too.

Cooking with them, however, I know of two uses: as a drink or as a plummy sweet and sour sauce. The flavor is so distinct that there really is no other substitute.

Hanh Dam (Vietnamese Vinegared Onions)

Hanh Dam (Vietnamese Vinegared Onions) is rather similar to Do Chua (Vietnamese Pickled Stuff ie. Carrots and Daikon). You can stuff it into sandwiches, mix it with salads, serve it on the side as edible garnish, or add it into a bowl of Pho Bo (Vietnamese Beef Noodle Soup).

How to Prepare Sturgeon

Sturgeon is a firm-fleshed white fish. To me, they taste similar to ca loc (Vietnamese snakehead fish). My mom likes to use sturgeon in cha ca (Vietnamese fish paste) because the meat is already firm so no worries about it turning mushy when it gets ground into a paste.


Sturgeon at Bonneville Hatchery, Cascade Locks, Oregon.
They are very large fish and if you find any in the store, it would probably be already filleted. But, on the off-chance that you have an oldest aunt like I have, who gives you a huge chunk of sturgeon every time you come home, you'll probably want to know what to do with it.

Banh Phong Tom (Vietnamese Shrimp Chips)

Not a recipe post but an FYI for people who aren't familiar with shrimp chips. Hmm. Who doesn't know what these are?

OK, you caught me. It's a lazy post.

Anyway, the shrimp chips above came from frying these poker-like chips below.

Hanh Phi (Vietnamese Fried Shallots)

Hanh phi (Vietnamese fried shallots) are used to top sticky rice (like in the photo above), added to salads, or cold noodle dishes. They taste milder than regular onions and lend a smokiness and crunch to many dishes. While you can buy them already fried and bagged at some Asian grocery stores, I usually make them fresh when I need them. You can also make larger batches and store them in the refrigerator.

When my aunts dug up shallots from the yard, they left behind a whole bunch of smaller ones. Not one to waste any food, I decided to fry them up.