The reason for birth
If you are the first person to enjoy Mekong Delta cuisine, you will surely feel a little hesitant about the seemingly opposite duo: coconut milk and fish sauce. However, this liberal combination creates a explosive deliciousness for the banh tam bi xiu mai dish of the river region.
In the culinary culture of the Mekong Delta, coconut milk is not only used for sweet soup or cakes, but also a familiar spice for savory dishes. Because, when eating banh tam bi xiu mai, if you only use coconut milk, it is very greasy, and if you only pour it into sweet and sour fish sauce, it lacks the characteristic fattyness. Therefore, people in the Mekong Delta have combined both to enjoy.
Usually, coconut milk is thickened with a little salt, sugar and scallions. At this time, the natural fatty taste of coconut milk will embrace each strand of banh tam and the crispy pork skin. Fish sauce with garlic and chili is mixed more richly, slightly sour, spicy, helping the overall dish to be balanced.
Try cooking at home
If you are afraid that eateries will not suit your taste or have not had the opportunity to enjoy it, you can personally go to the kitchen with the simple recipe below.
1. Main ingredients
1kg of fresh cakes.
300g minced lean pork, 100g squeezed cassava root, minced shallots and garlic, annatto oil, seasoning.
choose ready-made type, about 250g (if you want to make it yourself at home, you can make it in the ratio of 200g of shredded pork skin, 200g of lean thigh meat, 4 tablespoons of rice powder, fried garlic)
- 300ml coconut milk, fish sauce, lemon, sugar, garlic chili, tapioca starch, scallions, green bean sprouts, cucumber, herbs.
2. Implementation steps
- Steaming banh tam: you should put them in the steamer for about 3 - 5 minutes to make the banh chung strands warm, soft, pliable and loose.
- Making xiu mai: mix minced meat, cassava root, scallions, garlic and spices; roll into balls and steam until cooked (keep the meat broth). Sauté scallions and garlic until fragrant with annatto oil, pour in the meat steam to season to taste, then add xiu mai and cook until absorbed.
- Pork skin: If it is homemade, marinate lean meat and then dip it until golden brown and shred it. Mix the shredded meat, shredded boiled pork skin, roasted rice powder and garlic until the skin is loose and porous.
- Coconut milk: Boil 300ml of coconut milk with 1/2 teaspoon of salt, 1 tablespoon of sugar and a little tapioca starch water over low heat until smooth, add scallions and turn off the heat.
Mix 2 tablespoons of fish sauce + 2 tablespoons of sugar + 1 tablespoon of lemon juice + 4 tablespoons of warm water, stir until dissolved, then add crushed garlic and chili.
3. Enjoy
Arrange bean sprouts and shredded cucumbers on a plate, add banh tam, pork skin and shumai on top. Pour evenly one spoon of coconut milk onto the surface of banh tam, then pour in a spoon of fish sauce, garlic, and chili. Use chopsticks to mix lightly to let these two sauces blend together and feel.
