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« Cheater’s Guide to Little Saigons in America |Main| Soy Chicharron Recipe »
November 09, 2012Vietnamese-American Thanksgiving Salad Recipe
After my family fled Vietnam in 1975 and settled in California,we took in American holidays with gusto. My sisters and I studied recipes in cookbooks,magazines, and newspapers, trying to understand our new situation. My frugalmother clipped coupons and roasted free turkeys for years. One Thanksgiving,she admitted that she wasn’t fond of its dryish meat. Uh-oh, we were trying tofit in as best we could, despite the fish sauce vapors in our kitchen and my dadharvesting fresh banana leaves from the front yard with a machete.
To have Thanksgiving without turkey seemed un-American atthe time. But mom had had enough. She instead roasted big chickens stuffed withsticky rice seasoned by cognac, shiitake mushroom, thyme and butter (see therecipe in Into the Vietnamese Kitchen,the rice chapter). Roasted chestnutswith butter and cilantro was her go-to side.
We all gave her Viet-Franco-American approach the thumbs up,and thereafter, more Viet foods began appearing on our Thanksgiving menus. Forexample, charcuterie, salads and soups flavored with fish sauce preceded themain course. Tiny wedges of homemademoon cake, prepared for the Mid-Autumn Festival (an Asian harvestcelebration), were part of the closing parade of sweets.
When my siblings and I got married in the 1990s, we switchedto having traditional Thanksgiving meals with our own families or in-laws. Theday after, we gather at my parent’s home in San Clemente for a Vietnamese feast.My mother sets out old school favorites as well as modern dishes created here.We gobble it all up in gratitude for life’s many blessings.
This cabbage, fennel andcashew salad echoes the new traditions that we’ve carved outfor ourselves. A rendition of the recipe was included in Sunset magazine’s November 2012 issue as part of a collection of fusionThanksgiving foods. Online at the magazine’s site, my Vietnamese-American salad recipe is part of a post on 20cultural fusion dishes. Sunset's recipes are full of inventive ideas so check them out.
(Of course, you don't have to save this salad just for the holidays. It's easy and tasty, great with a sandwich or bowl of soup.)
Most of us havedeveloped non-traditional Thanksgiving traditions. What’s your culinary mash-up?
RECIPE
Vietnamese-American Thanksgiving Salad
Yield: Serves 4to 6
Ingredients
1 or2 Thai, Fresno or serrano chiles, chopped1 clove garlic, chopped1/2 teaspoon plus 1 teaspoon sugar1 pinch salt2 to 2 1/2 tablespoons fish sauce 5 tablespoons unseasoned Japanese rice vinegar1 carrot, cut into julienne or matchsticks 1 fennel bulb, cored and thinly sliced (1 cup / 115 g total)2 1/2 cups packed / 200 g shredded red cabbage2 to 3 tablespoons chopped fresh mint and/or basil (Thai or Italian) leaves 2/3 cup toasted cashew halves and piecesInstructions
Use a mortar and pestle to mash the chile, garlic, ½ teaspoon sugar, and salt intoan orange-red paste. Scrape it into a bowl and add the remaining teaspoon ofsugar, fish sauce and rice vinegar. Stir to dissolve the sugar and salt. Tasteand tweak to create a spicy, tart, savory, lightly garlicky dressing.In a large bowl, combine the carrot, fennel, cabbage, herb, and cashew. Pourthe dressing over the salad and toss well, either with tongs or better yet,with your hand in a gentle massaging motion. The vegetables will soften slightlybut remain a little crunchy. Taste and adjust the flavors to your liking,balancing the sour, sweet, salty, and spicy. Transfer to a serving plate,leaving any unabsorbed dressing behind, and serve.
Posted in Asian Food Culture, Recipes: All, Recipes: Fast and Easy, Recipes: Gluten-Free , Recipes: Salad, Recipes: Vietnamese | Permalink | |
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Comments Vietnamese-American Thanksgiving Salad Recipe
After my family fled Vietnam in 1975 and settled in California,we took in American holidays with gusto. My sisters and I studied recipes in cookbooks,magazines, and newspapers, trying to understand our new situation. My frugalmother clipped coupons and roasted free turkeys for years. One Thanksgiving,she admitted that she wasn’t fond of its dryish meat. Uh-oh, we were trying tofit in as best we could, despite the fish sauce vapors in our kitchen and my dadharvesting fresh banana leaves from the front yard with a machete.
To have Thanksgiving without turkey seemed un-American atthe time. But mom had had enough. She instead roasted big chickens stuffed withsticky rice seasoned by cognac, shiitake mushroom, thyme and butter (see therecipe in Into the Vietnamese Kitchen,the rice chapter). Roasted chestnutswith butter and cilantro was her go-to side.
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