Paper Palate

A Vietnamese Kitchen: Treasured Family Recipes by Ha Roda, published by Hippocrene Books, New York, in 2005. Hardcover, $24.95.

Once a truly exotic culinary tradition to most Americans, Vietnamese food has become a part of the American scene. Banh mi, or spicy sandwiches on baguettes, are so close to the northeast’s tradition of subs (or hoagies or grinders, depending on where you’re from) that they are quickly becoming naturalized. Vietnamese food has a full complement of stir-fries and might strike one as Chinese food with fish sauce substituted for soy sauce as the basic condiment of choice. Some other differences from Chinese food (which is probably most Americans’ benchmark for Asian food) are the common use of rice noodles rather than wheat or egg noodles, and the more frequent use of beef. The Chinese influence is marked in Vietnamese food, but so is that of Vietnam’s former colonial occupier, France. Vietnam shares a border with Laos, which may be its closest culinary relative. There are also regional differences within Vietnam: food from the north is more closely related to Chinese food, while the south stretches into the tropical part of southeast Asia.

One factor that helped bring Vietnamese food to American shores was the influx of refugees that came to the U.S. after the end of the Vietnam War in 1975. Vietnamese people fleeing their home country brought their food traditions with them and soon found themselves in a situation where old recipes needed to be adapted to ingredients available in a new land. A certain amount of expedient fusion ensued, although it is easier to find Vietnamese ingredients than it used to be.

Ha Roda lived in Saigon until she was ten. In 1978, her family was sponsored by a church in Illinois and they moved to the U.S. to join her grandparents, who had emigrated a few years earlier. In an autobiographical note in the front of the book, Roda says, “I wrote this cookbook to bridge the Vietnamese and American cultures through food.”

Many of the recipes come from the author’s aunt, Kit Thi Nguyen or “Bac Kit” (”Aunt Kit”), as she is referred to in the book. Originally from North Vietnam, her family moved to Saigon and ran a convenience store and, later, a wholesale rice pancake factory. After the family’s arrival in the U.S., Nguyen went from being a cook for a local Holiday Inn to working as a private chef at a California estate. One of her recipes, “Chicken Burgundy,” won second place in a national competition for Holiday Inn chefs; the recipe is included in the book.

The book itself is a small hardcover. Most recipes are illustrated by black-and-white photos, but sometimes the images aren’t reproduced big enough to give a good impression of the dish. Although lack of color photos means the book isn’t as expensive as some other cookbooks, it means that the photos don’t always sell the food well, and that’s a shame. Imagining some of these photos in color is a mouth-watering proposition.

The recipe portion of the book is divided into these sections: Sauces and Condiments, Appetizers, Soup and Salad, Rice and Noodles, Stir-fries, Kho Dishes, Meat and Seafood, and Desserts. “Meat and Seafood” covers beef, pork, poultry, and seafood; this is in contrast to the many cookbooks that treat each as a separate category. Kho is a traditional Vietnamese technique of braising or stewing food in brine.

The recipes are simply and clearly written. A sidebar lists the ingredients. A brief introduction may give some background on a dish, suggest substitutions or variations, or recommend suitable accompanying dishes. Typical Vietnamese ingredients are listed (often with photos) in the glossary of ingredients in the back of the book; this should help orient those who are unfamiliar with this sort of cooking.

Other book sections include an introductory section on Vietnamese culture and the author’s family; “Meal Planning,” which has sample menus; an “Appendix” of photos showing how to assemble spring rolls and egg rolls, and prepare meat; a bibliography; and an index.

One somewhat off-putting thing is the reliance on bouillion cubes for recipes. It may be easier to find bouillon cubes for various Vietnamese broths than it is to find the ingredients that go into these broths and make them from scratch, but you’d probably have to go to an Asian market in either case. bouillon cubes are also used instead of more prosaic chicken and beef broths.

Readers looking for an “authentic” Vietnamese cookbook demonstrating Vietnamese food as it is cooked in its country of origin may be a little disappointed by this book. This book contains recipes from a family that left Vietnam for the United States. As a result, traditional recipes rub elbows with fusions such as “Bo’s Favorite Burger” and “Lemon Pepper Chicken.” Of course, Vietnamese food has been influenced by Chinese and French food as well, and those flavors are apparent in some recipes. The other side of the coin is that neophytes may find this a more approachable way to try cooking Vietnamese food. Those interested in the regional variations of Vietnamese food will find some brief comments on those aspects of the recipes, but one wishes for a little more context.

In sum, A Vietnamese Kitchen is a user-friendly place to start cooking Vietnamese food. Many of the recipes sound delicious, whether or not they happen to be traditional Vietnamese food.

Pros: With its easily followed recipes, this is a good starting point for those interested in cooking Vietnamese food.

Cons: The photos don’t always sell the dishes well; the use of bouillon cubes rather than stock in recipes; readers who want to delve deeply into Vietnam’s cuisine may find this book not comprehensive enough for their tastes.

Rating: 7 out of 10.