The life-changing magic of Vietnamese noodle bowls

It's Wednesday again and I can't think of anything we ate this week that was really noteworthy.



I blame KonMari, which has been slowly but surely taking over our house. Giggle all you want but I (and David!) have been delightfully surprised by how addicting it is to follow her method. (There's lots of stuff on the web about it but this was a favorite essay.)

Yes, I really need three mustard yellow scarves.

So far we've done clothes, books (gasp!), papers, and some komono.

In light of that, there hasn't been that much time for cooking, so I'll just share a regular standby that serves us well whenever we need a quick dinner. Sometime in our first year of marriage, we discovered our favorite Vietnamese noodle bowl at The Backdoor Kitchen on San Juan Island. We loved the bright, lime-y dressing (dressing is really too heavy of a word to describe what this is though) and we spent most of the meal (as we often do when we are out) dissecting the rest of the dish.



Normally I don't like places that do fusion, but I think that Northwest restaurants often do a good job of it. In fact despite the PNW being full of great Viet restaurants, the Backdoor's bún has been the best I've tasted, since most of the aforementioned Viet restaurants - though they serve a rockin' bowl of phó - often sweeten their nuoc cham to the point of cloying.

We love that this dish works well with any kind of leftover meat - rotisserie chicken from Costco or leftover steak - or even no meat at all.

Tofu works great, obvs, and in a pinch even hard-boiled eggs will do.

It can be simple or fancy but what we think makes it really special is when you make the effort to buy the herbs (especially mint) and roast peanuts fresh to serve on top. Here's an outline of a recipe.

Vietnamese Noodle Bowl

• For the dressing: Squeeze one lime into a bowl. Add 1-2 T of brown sugar and about 6-8 T of water. Stir and taste. You're looking for it to taste like a very dilute limeade. Then add one medium garlic clove, minced, and 1 fresh Thai chile, also minced, if you have it. Finally, add 2-3 T fish sauce. 
• Bring to boil a pot of water and cook 8 oz rice noodles (you want the cylindrical noodles often labeled "bun gao"). When they are tender (take one out and taste it, they can be deceptive), drain them and rinse them cold. If you want to be super fancy, you can lay them out on a dishtowel and get them really dry. David likes this method because it makes the dressing even more concentrated. I still go the lazy way and think it tastes just fine.
• Prep all your desired veggies. We usually do romaine, sliced thin. Cucumbers are a must. Carrots are great but I can feel lazy about making them pretty (the best would be to julienne them on a mandoline). Any other vegetables would be great; radish would be especially pretty. 
• For herbs, pick your favorite few from this list: green onions, cilantro, Thai basil, mint, dill
• Prep meat in bite-sized servings.
• Roast 1/2 cup peanuts and crush in a mortar and pestle.
• Let everyone make their own salad at the table and dress as they see fit.

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And now for the reason you even read this blog at all.

Theo

• is still 2 years old.
• replied, upon being asked by David if he wanted to go out with him on some errands, "No. Stay home. Eat food. Watch show." Boy after my own heart.
• used the word "combine" as a noun. I seriously did not know that word until high school when we had to read One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest. I'm still not sure I even know what they are now. 

How did my baby become a boy?

 Emilyn

• turns 20 weeks today.
• still loves to roll.
• has started to giggle more.
• is most definitely teething. There is lots of drool and she was even cranky this week. 
• slept before 9pm six out of seven nights this past weekend. W00t.

David and Lisa

• are still super enamored by The Life-changing Magic of Tidying Up. Want your life transformed? Apply: (1) the gospel, (2) Dave Ramsey, (3) KonMari. No joke. 

In which I tell you to read Francis Lam

Last week I acquired a box of "seconds" at the produce stand which included a ton of onions, chayote, and tomatoes, all for $3. I made the kids' favorite Vietnamese soup with the chayote and one onion but it still left me with a bunch of onions. Somehow my mind remembered koshary and I looked up the amazing Francis Lam's recipe and got to work. 

With all due respect because he is awesome at everything he does (his ratatouille is the best, and he's introduced the world to a Cantonese classic, ginger scallion sauce), I'm a little surprised that he tells you to use only two onions, and even then only if you love onions. I think that for this recipe three is a minimum, because if you're going to do the work of caramelizing them you may as well do a lot at once.

My three onions cooked down to fit into this Corelle cereal bowl.

I had many more onions that needed to be used up and could have done more but when I looked at my pile I thought, eh, that's enough. It wasn't. Trust me: don't lose heart as you're chopping. You're going to want more than two. The onions are the thesis to the dish.

I won't write much more about the recipe here because he does a much better job at it.

Once again, I'm writing about a not very photogenic dish. But this is why you need to read his recipe. Francis Lam's writing > picture of koshary. 

If, after reading the recipe, you still need some convincing to try the recipe, I invite you to study this lovely picture of pasta that has been fried a bit until it's crusty and chewy. #cornerpieceloversunite

With that, I commend this peasant-y dish to you. I also recommend pairing it with a cold, crisp green salad with a garlicky vinaigrette.

The recipe link one more time, for the lazy.

And now for a little update on the littles. 

Emilyn

• turns 19 weeks today.
• rolled over for the first time yesterday! I hadn't been pushing it at all (I think with second children you don't want them to go anywhere too quickly ;)). But after some recent pressure from some people (not naming anyone), I gave her some practice on Monday and then on Tuesday - like a ninja - she just did it without any fanfare. She's my lovely girl.
• is solidly down to three naps. I bit the bullet and I'm glad we did. We've also had three nights this week where she fell asleep for bedtime before 9pm. Hallelujah! Here's to the end of witching hour and to finally getting David through season 1 of FNL! (Stephie, you can do it!)

Theo

• is 123 weeks old. Oh, you're one of those people who doesn't like when people tell you how old their kids are in months once they are past the first year because it's so hard to divide by 12? Yeah, he's 28 months, or 2 years and 4 months old. 
• says the funniest things. If Netflix is taking a while on the Kindle fire, he'll quickly ask, "iPad work?" He corrects my naming of large construction machinery. Mama that's a "backhoe loader," not just any old excavator.
• loves his sister. He calls her "Emi baby" and almost every day goes up to her and snuggles next to her and says "Oppa, oppa!" I won't be surprised if that becomes her first word. :D

A slow conversion

As you already know, I’m not a big fan of sweets, definitely not sweets for breakfast, and most certainly not oatmeal for breakfast. But this recipe for steel cut oats kind of changed my life. Holly first introduced it to me in seminary and I think she tried to sell it to me by calling it “restaurant oatmeal” which of course I had no idea what that meant* because I would never order oatmeal at a restaurant. Corned beef hash eggs benedict? Yes, please!

But trying hers started me on a journey of slow conversion. 

I think at that point I would have said that I liked it but that I probably wouldn't go out of my way to make it myself. That was over six years ago (I cannot believe how time flies!) but I recently returned to the recipe because oatmeal is a known galactalogue that can support nursing. (Hopefully not TMI?) 

I think what I like most about this recipe (besides how it tastes) is the fact that you start the night before, committing you to what you’ll have in the morning. It feels amazingly accomplished to have a breakfast you had lovingly begun for yourself well before the coffee is started and in your system. It’s nourishing for your body and soul, really.

Oatmeal still won’t take the place of eggs benedict at a restaurant** anytime soon but I can definitely more than tolerate having this at home.

Sunday Morning Oatmeal

Adapted from the Amateur Gourmet

The original recipe is a great launching pad that I think most people will readily enjoy as written, but I think my reduced sugar approach lets it shine even more. I would say it’s pretty much the same recipe except that I don’t add any sweetener to the oatmeal itself but amp it up in the topping with the use of dates. The butter adds a nice boost and smoothness but also could be omitted if you’re needing something lighter. I forget it on some days and it doesn’t make a difference to me. But if you’re trying to convince someone to join the “restaurant oatmeal” train I would definitely include it.

3 cups liquid (I do 1 cup whole milk and 2 cups water)

1 cup steel cut oatmeal

1 cinnamon stick, broken in half

3-5 cardamom pods, slightly crushed by the side of a knife

a couple tablespoons of butter, maybe optional

optional: maple syrup, brown sugar, honey

Topping (mix all the following together)

walnut halves, lightly toasted and slightly crushed

dates, raisins, and craisins, chopped

a judicious** squeeze of honey

many shakes of ground cinnamon

a few crackles of salt and black pepper (more salt than pepper)

The night before, bring to boil your 3 cups of liquids (for me 1 milk and 2 water), cinnamon stick and cardamom pods, and a generous pinch of salt. Add 1 cup of oatmeal and let boil for one minute. Then turn off the heat, let it cool and refrigerate overnight. (Or you can be like us crazy Asians with stomachs of steel who don’t refrigerate things. Lol.)

The next morning, warm up the oatmeal on the stove, stirring it periodically to keep it from burning. I sometimes add more liquid (at this point or even the night before) because I like mine more soupy. Remove the spices (cardamom tastes good but not biting right into it).

When the texture is to your liking (slightly toothsome), stir in 1 or 2 tablespoons of butter. I omit the additional sweetener of honey/maple syrup/brown sugar at this point because I like the contrast of the sweeter topping, but others may like to sweeten the oatmeal itself. If so, you can do that here.

Serve with topping, which you put together from the ingredient list above. I've listed our favorite combination but feel free to modify as you see fit. Pecans would probably go really well. In my opinion the dates are critical, as is the coarse salt.

I believe this recipe adapts well to other milks. I have personally tried it with soy and I’m sure it’d be great with rice or almond milk as well. For an indulgent treat I made it once with full fat canned coconut milk (left over from making a Viet dessert to be posted later) and it was pretty much like eating dessert for breakfast. If you don’t keep whole milk on hand but want the creamy effect, you could probably increase your milk to 1.5 or even 2 cups.

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Oatmeal is pretty unphotogenic so instead I’ll leave you with a picture of my daughter and a tiny update.

She turns 18 weeks today. Not much to add from last week’s update. I think it’s too much for me to do regular weekly updates, but I’ll try to post things as it’s appropriate. 

I really want to note funny things Theo has been saying. He is pretty verbal for a boy, unafraid to try his tongue as speech, and will pretty much say anything you tell him to say. Yesterday David was playing a game with Theo and he said “it’s a bit tricky.” Without missing a beat, Theo repeated “a bit tricky,” almost with a little British accent. Insert laughing/crying emoji.

Finally, just some randoms I've been enjoying:

I just discovered the Otherhood podcast and LOVED IT.

A great episode on Longest Shortest Time. 

Love what these women are trying to accomplish here. 

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*This is where Kenny would probably say with a robotic voice, “ERROR. Cannot. Compute.”

**The other day David and I went a restaurant that let me order gyro meat, hashbrowns, and my poached eggs with hollandaise on top. The best parts of eggs benny (hollandaise) without the less desirable parts (Canadian bacon and soggy English muffins). What?!?!?

***I used the word “judicious” for David. What does judicious mean? We'll leave that up to you.

Emilyn is 17 weeks

I have always felt a little self conscious posting about my kids (or really anything about my family) on the internet. I think some amount of paranoia about Big Brother is warranted, but I'm trying to chill out just a little bit and figure out a good balance here. I've always enjoyed reading about other people kid's (even complete strangers) so I figure maybe it's not that weird for me to do this.

Again, writing these updates will provide one more layer of structure to this blog. I don't know if it's too ambitious of me to post weekly on Emilyn but changes happen by the week at this age, so I'll give it a shot. Some of my inspiration for the format comes from Val and Kelsey.

Lots of potentially boring details so feel free to skip these posts... Or just skim them for the photos :)

16 weeks summary (She turned 17 weeks on Wednesday when I wrote this)

WAKETIME/PLAYTIME
The previous week Emilyn was exploring the sound of her voice. We'd find her exploring different inflections, or as we'd like to call it, "singing." I'm a bit nervous that we have another chatterbox on our hands.

She is grabbing at toys, especially ones swinging above her like on her activity mat. She is giving lots of sweet smiles; I especially love when she looks up at me when nursing.

She's still not rolling over but she sure is trying really hard! She loves her big brother and is always watching what he is doing.

EATING
Nursing is still going pretty well. She has sped up to about 4 minutes a side and eats 6 times a day. I just decided to stretch her from a 3hr schedule with 4 naps to a 3.5hr schedule with 3 naps but trying to figure out if she needs that 6th feed or not. I think she's been able to do 3.5hrs for a long time but we had (and still have?) witching hour that was making it hard to drop the late evening feeding so I hadn't wanted to drop a daytime feeding until we could get rid of that.

TEETHING?
She started to drool the day she turned 17 weeks. I'm afraid that teething is just around the corner. She also clamped down when nursing the other day. I'm trying to tell her "No!" but she just looks up at me and smiles. I've given her a teether toy to chew on instead. Hopefully she will figure that out. :)

SCHEDULE
Roughly 90 minute waketimes most of the day for a good nap.

7:30 feed, and short waketime
8:15-11 nap
11 feed
12:30-2:30 nap
2:30 feed
4-6 nap
6 feed, longer waketime
8 feed and put down for "bed"
9 "dreamfeed" which she wakes up for, then down for the night (hopefully we can do away with this soon)

Princess Emilyn, ruler of the blue recliner

#ohrenee

I'm thinking of trying to post at least one recipe a week; this will give me a schedule to keep me writing. (And cooking, let's be honest.)

Lucky for me, Eunice visited this past weekend when David had to work, and brought a bag of clams from Taylor's*, along with Bon Appetit's recipe for Steamed Clams with Chickpeas and Green Garlic.

When Eunice first texted me the link I honestly didn't think it was going to be anything special (and worth the somewhat specialized ingredients**). And when I read the prescript calling this recipe "pure Erickson," I wondered "Who's Erickson?" Then later upon reading the article in its context I realized it was Renee Erickson, famous Seattle chef and owner of many restaurants. (Insert embarrassed emoji.) But by the time the meal was over I had forgotten all about "Who's Erickson?" and was all "Oh, Renee" with Eunice like I'm on a first-name basis with her.

I hope that's enough of a motivator to you to make this recipe. Eunice and I loved how flavorful the broth was and how surprisingly light it seemed, despite the heavy cream and creme fraiche. We used regular garlic instead of green garlic but other than that we followed the recipe as written. The tarragon and dill are delightful additions which we feel you shouldn't skimp on, and we also thought that if you wanted to stretch the meal more you could add another can of garbanzo beans.

Eunice and I polished off almost three pounds by ourselves. I was sorely tempted to "destroy the evidence" before David got home.

Thank you Eunice for bringing and making us dinner! You are a gem!

Here's a link again to the recipe so you don't have to scroll up.

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*plus a fresh loaf from Breadfarm, Meyer lemon bars, chocolate chip cookies, and all the other ingredients to make the dish. I was seriously wooed this weekend! Watch out, David!

**Eunice, on the other hand, thought this recipe looked rather simple and easy to put together. But that's because she's amazing. Like bringing us homemade chicken enchiladas with homemade sauce (think: roasting multiple types of chiles, etc.) after the baby was born. I am pretty much the laziest cook on earth compared to her. But really this recipe is pretty simple, once you have the ingredients together. Do it.