Usually, when you look up a Vietnamese recipe, you end up encountering a list of specialty ingredients you may not find at your local grocery stores. Nguyen sought for a way to simplify without sacrificing the authenticity of the meal. She’s included a number of amazing recipes, including a shaking beef recipe, a glass noodle soup recipe, and sizzling rice crepes. Most mainstream Canadian grocers carry all the ingredients needed to make these. Now there’s no reason Vietnamese food cannot be a part of everyone’s repertoire of recipes and delights.
In the past, if you wanted to make authentic Vietnamese cuisine, you had to go for hacks and substitutions. For example, instead of rice flour to make steamed rice rolls, it was common for Vietnamese families to substitute cake flour. Pomegranate molasses made for a replacement on tamarind. Anchovy paste was sometimes selected over fermented shrimp sauce. Now though, things like white and brown rice capellini can be found in numerous grocery stores in large part due to interest from a generation of people looking at new, unique foods.
Pho is a great representation of being able to substitute ingredients as well as authentically prepared Vietnamese comfort food. Pho is all about the broth and everything else put in swirls around it. For example, some like chicken while others prefer beef, pork, tofu, egg, or an alternative protein source. You can choose your herbs and spices as needed as well. Things can change depending on the type of flavor profile you want. You can create a very traditional Vietnamese pho dish or you can make something entirely different.
Vietnamese Food Any Day contains some more amazing recipes including several which work well in an Instant Pot. A lot of Nguyen’s soups, stews, or pho can be made using an Instant Pot, which is great for busy families and young professionals who are limited on time. There’s even a recipe for banana-coconut bread-pudding cake which uses overripe bananas. To anyone with an interest in Vietnamese cooking from home, be sure to check out Andrea Nguyen’s latest!
Alternatively, if you want to pick up some Vietnamese food while you’re out on foot in Toronto or are looking for a great Toronto Vietnamese restaurant, please allow us to help. Toronto Pho has pho and various other Vietnamese dishes you are sure to love. If you’re out and about in Toronto, there’s no better comfort food that is still balanced and healthy than Toronto Pho’s.
