Culinary Delights

The food we have eaten since we arrived in Vietnam has been wonderful. Hoi An, described as a culinary tour de force, seemed like the best place to take a cookery class complete with a visit to the local market to learn more about the ingredients.
We dawned the conical hats so we would fit in with the locals and set off to the bustling market with our guide. We started with a fruit stall and tasted delicious mangosteen and green oranges. Dragon fruit is very popular here although its taste doesn't quite equal the exciting look.
Herbs are so important in Vietnamese cooking including watercress, lemon basil, fish leaves, mint and Chinese coriander.
The fish stalls were full of tuna, red snapper and live crabs. While the meats were pork, beef and chicken - every part of the animal.
There were very few men at the market. Women are clearly the dominant force selling the goods and shopping twice a day! Selling must be done as early as possible as the price drops in the afternoon when the food is not as fresh. In Central Vietnam less than 10% of the population own a refrigerator so the food is bought regularly and eaten on the day.
Due to the popularity of the classes, the owner has just in the last week opened a cookery school and we walked back there from the market for our lesson!
On the ground floor they have recreated a street food market theme so you can visit different areas and taste some of the food sold on the street. There was sugar cane juice, Vietnamese pancakes, salad rolls and coconut candy.
The class was taken by the commanding Vy, who started cooking at the age of 10 and has clearly grown a bit of an empire with 4 restaurants, the cooking school and a hotel in Hoi An.
We were lucky enough to make 5 dishes ably helped by Vy's team of staff who bustled around our workstations clearing up after us and providing the next set of ingredients. Here's what we made:
- Cabbage leaf parcels with shrimp mousse in broth
- Rice paper rolls with pork and prawns
- BBQ chicken and lime leaf
- Crispy Hoi An pancakes
- Mango salad
Vy has written a book on her life and cooking so we will definitely seek out on our return home.
Hopefully you are all suitably hungry now! We'll maybe have another wee practice before we have our first Vietnamese dinner party!
(Fiona highjacking Matt's blog!)