Viet World Kitchen

Moon Cakes: Love or Hate Them?

Sunday, September 11, 2011 has been a solemn occasion full of reflection on the past and future. During the past week, my husband and I watched several TV programs and read magazine and newspaper articles about the tragic events that happened a decade ago. Perhaps we overloaded ourselves with 9/11 but today, on the actual anniversary date of the attacks, I decided to switch gears to focus on tomorrow, Monday, September 12, 2011.

It’s going to be the Mid-Autumn Festival (Tet Trung Thu in Vietnamese, Zhong Qiu Jie in Mandarin). It’s also called the Moon Festival because the moon shines never fails to shine super big and bright. Referring to the festival legends behind the holiday, my mom once remarked, “It’s this time of the year that you can see the woman in the moon.” So tonight, I went into the backyard and looked up to see this moon:

The Mid-Autumn Festival is a harvest festival, a time for giving thanks for the plenty of the year that has past. We no longer lead agricultural lives but we can still pause to feel grateful for life’s bounty.

The festival is one of the most important holidays of its kind among those of Chinese, Taiwanese, and Vietnamese descent. People gather with friends and family to hang out and eat. I remember being in Hong Kong one year strolling along the Kowloon side of the harbor among throngs of people out to gaze at the moon. Kids carried colorful cellophane and wood lanterns to imitate the moon, reminding me of when I was a child in Vietnam.

Home Remedies for Winter Cough: Vick’s and Ginger Brew

Today is the first day in six (6) weeks that I haven’t had spasmodic coughing fits. I’ve been down with this winter’s nasty coughing virus. You may have heard of it – the one that starts with the gripping sore throat, maybe involves fever/congestion/body aches, and eventually settles into a long period of dry coughs. Some say it’s a resurgence of whooping cough. Children are suppose to get immunized.

All I know is that whenever there was a temperature change from warm to cold, I coughed as if my insides were about fly out of my mouth! It was hard to take in a full breath too, but I was basically functional.

By the time I went to my regular MD, she said I was pretty much fine but that I just had to wait for my body to recuperate. No antibiotics but she prescribed an inhaler, which helped a bit but not much. I used it for a few days but the coughing persisted.

My dad and friend Terrence suggested this home remedy: rubbing Vick’s VapoRub on the soles of your feet and wearing a pair of socks. My dad is 80 and Terrence is my contemporary. They both swore that the Vick’s-and-socks approach worked for them and would for me. It’s a remedy that’s been passed around the Internet for a couple of years. Some say it’s a hoax while others say it’s inconclusive. Nevertheless, it’s a topical thing so it’s not like you’re going to swallow it!

College Student Cooks Cast Caution to the Wind

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As a food writer I’m always trying to get all the nuanced instructions down in my recipes. I don’t want to go overboard but I do want cooks to succeed. Today, I was on the verge of overdoing it with fussy instructions but stopped myself. It’s because of an afternoon of cooking with a bunch of college students.

You may recall that I went to Yale last April. (They didn’t let me in as a student, but as an invited guest.) My niece Paulina made the arrangements for an Asian American food writers panel and I was among the speakers, along with Monica Bhide and Sunee Kim. We ended up cooking together, along her buddies from the Asian American Students Alliance. 

The students had committed to baking sweets for the reception before the panel discussion. I arrived around 11am and the panel was at 3:30pm. At 12:30pm, Paulina led me to the AASA student club house, which had a shared kitchen. None of the sweets had been made. I panicked but she was cool as a cucumber. “Don’t worry auntie, my friends are coming,” Paulina assured me.

Why Do We Cook?

Eating out has become both a necessity (you have to feed your family) and sport (you have to keep up with Jones) in America, but so has cooking at home. There are weekend warrior cooks like Seattle-based Quynh Nguyen of  Nha22.com, who told me that she's been working her way through Thomas Keller's amazing Ad Hoc cookbook and hosting weekly dinner parties. I head to my kitchen for many reasons, some of them visceral and others practical. Last year, food writer, cookbook author and acclaimed blogger Amy Sherman popped this question: Why do you cook, Andrea?

For months, I went about mulling over my responses, jotting down notes in a small spiral notebook. Over the weekend, I gathered them all up and sent them to Amy, who published my 13 reasons here:

Why do YOU cook, Andrea Nguyen? (on CookingwithAmy)

Take a read and share your reasons on why you cook. If you don't cook, tell us about why you don't! There's no shame in not cooking. Being a good eater is mighty fine too.

Amy has invited a number of food people to contribute to that series on her blog. Also check out what Michael Ruhlman and Judy Witts Francini has to say about why they cook. 

Worthy Causes: Charities Cook up Change in Vietnam

Spending Christmas or New Year’s in Vietnam is rather surreal. If you’re in Saigon, it’s hot but there are holiday decorations and Christmas music. I particularly love the fanfare on December 31 because Saigon locals come out for fun; Tet (Lunar New Year) is typically a quiet time for family. Vietnamese people love public celebrations like the one on New Year’s Eve, and the park in front of the Reunification Palace is a giant party and public performance area. Young families ride up on their motorbikes, 3 to 4 people on each, and they hang out, snacking and visiting with friends. It’s loud, colorful, and fun. Multiple stages are set up and you can choose from classical music performance, torch singers, and dance performances by cute young girls dressed up in frilly outfits with stage moms in tow. That night, the scene in the park reminds me of the crazy Asian variety shows that my parents watch on Vietnamese-American television channels.

Indeed, much has changed for the better in Vietnam in the past decade and people, especially young people, are full of optimism. But there is still much to be done to provide greater opportunity to more people. Lots of people visit Vietnam during this season and part of the experience is to understand the needs and potential of the country. We can help out with tourist dollars but you don't have to visit to contribute to change.

Here are three non-profits that are doing interesting work to help improve the lives of Vietnamese people, particularly in the kitchen: