Mail Call: Easter with the Phams

Mail Call: Easter with the Phams - Viet World Kitchenwindow.fbAsyncInit = function() { FB.init( { apiKey: 'a279adbe87e2b3c505e777af99a5260d' } ); YAHOO.util.Event.onDOMReady( function() { FB.XFBML.parse(); } );};( function() { var e = document.createElement( 'script' ); e.async = true; e.src = document.location.protocol + '//connect.facebook.net/en_US/all.js'; document.getElementById( 'fb-root' ).appendChild( e );} )();Viet World KitchenHomeArchivesRecipe IndexVWK StoreClasses + EventsFavorite SitesAbout MePermission and CreditWelcome to Viet World Kitchen where I explore the culinary traditions of Vietnam and the rest of Asia. Join me to learn, create, and contribute!

Andrea Nguyen
Author & Teacher

Send a messageMy Books

Enhanced e-book with how-to videos now available!

Asian Dumplings
(Ten Speed Press, 2009)
Reviews & Press Release

Into the Vietnamese Kitchen
(Ten Speed Press, 2006)
Reviews & Press Release
E-book release: 5/11/2011

Recent PostsRed Wine and Fish Sauce Beef Jerky Recipe (Thit Kho Bo)Mail Call: Easter with the PhamsHoney and Rose Water Tapioca Pudding RecipeGiant Fried Jiaozi Dumplings RecipeChinese Peanut Cookies Recipe (Hua Sheng Bing)Pineapple and Pork Soup Recipe (Canh Dua Thit Heo)Bao Cooking Tips: Pleats up or down?Egg Custard Buns Recipe (Lai Wong Bao)Mail Call: Flight Deals to Vietnam and Travel SafetyJapanese Sweet Rice Dumplings with Brown Sugar Syrup Recipe (Shiratama Dango)Awards + Praise
James Beard Foundation
Award Finalist
2007 Best Asian Cookbook

IACP Awards Finalist
2010 Best Single Subject Cookbook
2007 Best First Book
2007 Best Int'l Cookbook

National Public Radio
Best 10 Cookbooks of 2009

Cooking Light Magazine
Oct. 2009 "Editors' Dozen" Top Picks
2010 Editors' Favorite Cookbooks

CHOW.com
Winter 2009 Gift Guide

Handy InfoAsian IngredientsAsian MarketsBasic Vietnamese KitchenBook Reviews + moreCooking Tips and ToolsEssentials: Fish SauceEssentials: NoodlesEssentials: Pho Noodle SoupEssentials: RiceEssentials: Rice PaperGardeningHow to Find Asian Markets & IngredientsMama SaysTet New Year CelebrationTravel« Honey and Rose Water Tapioca Pudding Recipe |Main| Red Wine and Fish Sauce Beef Jerky Recipe (Thit Kho Bo) »

April 24, 2011Mail Call: Easter with the Phams

A couple of weeks ago, Chaffee Pham sent a request to purchase signed copies of Into the Vietnamese Kitchen. She owned a copy and wanted to gift two books to her mother and aunt. (That's Chaffee and her mother above.) I don’t directly sell my work, but I do mail personalized notes as a way of “signing” their books.

After Chaffee received the notes, she sent this email:

Hi, Andrea-
I wanted to let you know that I received your personalized notes yesterday.  Thank you so much again.....they arrived at an opportune time. 

My mom made gio lua [Classic Silky Sausage] from your cookbook and invited my aunt over to try it.  They both loved it!  And when my aunt found out the recipe came from your book, she stole MY copy from my mom and is holding it hostage until she receives a copy for her birthday next week.  She wasn't willing to wait until Christmas.  :-)

My mom is basing Easter lunch this Sunday on recipes from your book.  So exciting!  It's so hard to find my mom a present that she'll really love and use, am so happy your cookbook fits the bill.

I was so flattered and bowled over by the Pham family response to Into the Vietnamese Kitchen that I asked Chaffee to snap some shots. She sent them this afternoon along with this note: 
Hi, Andrea-

I hope you had a wonderful holiday weekend. Here are my pics from Easter lunch with mom. [Above is Mrs. Pham and Eliza, Chaffee's sister.] She made the Banh Khuc (which we all loved, especially the pretty green color) and Bun Rieu.

 

My mom also made a sweet version of the Banh Khuc, but the savory ones were our favorites. She also made gio lua for us to take home, but it was frozen and not so pretty to photograph. :-)

Oh boy, banh khuc (first 2 photos above) are a terrific northern Vietnamese dumpling made of a sticky rice dough that’s tinted green with fresh leafy greens (in the US, that’s spinach!) and filled with a rich mung bean, fried shallot, and pork filling. The white little bits on the outside are grains of sticky rice. 

Bun rieu is a tangy-briny rice noodle soup traditionally made with little rice paddy crabs. There’s tomato and pungent fermented shrimp sauce (mam tom) and you eat it with squirts of lime juice and crunchy ribbons of lettuce. I just had dinner and am suddenly feeling hungry again as I type. Wow.

The banh khuc and bun rieu recipes are some of my family's favorites. (If you have the book, the recipes are on pages 256 and 215, respectively). It's so wonderful  to know that other people enjoye them just as much.

And freezing that gio lua -- Mrs. Pham sounds just like my mom, and perhaps yours too! Why not cook for people you love and send them home with a goodie bag too? That's literally feeding people with kindness.

A big cam on (thank you!) to having me as part of your 2011 Easter celebration!

Posted in From Cookbook Users, Vietnamese Family Stories | Permalink

Reblog (0) | | Digg This | |

Comments

You can follow this conversation by subscribing to the comment feed for this post.

Verify your Comment Previewing your CommentPosted by:  | 

This is only a preview. Your comment has not yet been posted.

Your comment could not be posted. Error type: Your comment has been posted. Post another comment The letters and numbers you entered did not match the image. Please try again.

As a final step before posting your comment, enter the letters and numbers you see in the image below. This prevents automated programs from posting comments.

Having trouble reading this image? View an alternate.

Post a comment Comment below or sign in with TypePad Facebook Twitter and more... You are currently signed in as (nobody). Sign Out (URLs automatically linked.)

Your Information

(Name and email address are required. Email address will not be displayed with the comment.)

Name is required to post a comment

Please enter a valid email address

Invalid URL

Be Connected Get news via RSS or email
 Get updates in Facebook
 Follow me on Twitter
Search VWK

Share Shots#flickr_badge_source_txt {padding:0; font: 11px Arial, Helvetica, Sans serif; color:#666666;}#flickr_badge_icon {display:block !important; margin:0 !important; border: 1px solid rgb(0, 0, 0) !important;}#flickr_icon_td {padding:0 5px 0 0 !important;}.flickr_badge_image {text-align:center !important;}.flickr_badge_image img {border: 0px solid black !important;}#flickr_badge_uber_wrapper {width:150px;}#flickr_www {display:block; text-align:center; padding:0 10px 0 10px !important; font: 11px Arial, Helvetica, Sans serif !important; color:#3993ff !important;}#flickr_badge_uber_wrapper a:hover,#flickr_badge_uber_wrapper a:link,#flickr_badge_uber_wrapper a:active,#flickr_badge_uber_wrapper a:visited {text-decoration:none !important; background:inherit !important;color:#3993ff;}#flickr_badge_wrapper {background-color:#ffffff;border: solid 1px #000000}#flickr_badge_source {padding:0 !important; font: 11px Arial, Helvetica, Sans serif !important; color:#666666 !important;}www.flickr.comMore in Viet World Kitchen pool. Add yours!RecipesAppetizer and Snack RecipesBanh (Crepes, dumplings, cakes, bread) RecipesBanh Mi Sandwich RecipesBasic Sauces, Stocks and Garnishes RecipesChile Sauce RecipesClaypot (Kho) RecipesDeep-Fried RecipesDessert and Sweets RecipesDipping Sauces RecipesDrink and Beverage RecipesGluten-Free RecipesGrilled RecipesMain Course RecipesMeat RecipesNoodles RecipesOne-Dish Meals RecipesPho RecipesPoultry and Egg RecipesRice RecipesSalad RecipesSeafood RecipesSoup RecipesStir-Fry RecipesStreet Food RecipesVegan RecipesVegetable Sides and Pickles RecipesVegetarian Recipes Vietnamese RecipesNon-Vietnamese RecipesViet World Kitchen | Copyright 2002-2011 by Andrea Nguyen | Privacy Policy document.write(unescape("%3Cscript src='" + (document.location.protocol == "https:" ? "https://sb" : "http://b") + ".scorecardresearch.com/beacon.js'%3E%3C/script%3E"));COMSCORE.beacon({ c1: 2, c2: "6035669", c3: "", c4: "http://www.vietworldkitchen.com/blog/2011/04/mail-call-easter-with-the-phams.html", c5: "", c6: "", c15: ""});

View the original article here