Bo Luc Lac ("Shaken" Beef)

Today, I bring you the recipe of bo luc lac. "Bo" means steak, and "luc lac" refers to the "shaking" method when preparing this steak. You can find this dish in almost every Vietnamese restaurant. It is usually served with steamed rice. However, I like to make this dish as a salad served on watercress and onion that has been tossed with a vinegar dressing. Nuoc mam cham (dipping fish sauce) is served on the side for those who prefer it more of salty taste.This recipe takes 20 minutes to prep and 10 minutes to cook. It is THAT easy.

INGREDIENTS:

Beef Marinade

• 1.5 lbs beef sirloin, cut into 1 inch cubes
• 1 white onion, sliced
• 2 cloves of garlic, minced
• 1 shallot, minced
• 1 tbs sugar
• 1 tbs honey
• 2 tbs oyster sauce
• 1 tsp soy sauce
• 1 tsp olive oil

Vinaigrette

• 1/2 cup rice vinegar
• 1.5 tbs sugar
• 1/2 tbs salt

Dipping Sauce

• Juice of 1 lime
• 2 tbs sugar (or to taste)
• 2 tbs fish sauce (or to taste)
• 1 cup of water
• 1 garlic, minced well
• 1 chili peppe, minced well

Salad

• 1 bunch of watercress
• 1 tomato, sliced (optional)

INSTRUCTIONS:

1. Combine the marinade ( garlic, shallot, sugar, honey, oyster sauce, soy sauce, and olive oil) with the beef cubes and refrigerate at least an hour before cooking. I always do it hours before to make sure the beef is well marinaded.

2. Prepare the vinegar dressing by combining the ingredients and toss the watercress. Put aside.

3. In a big wok, heat up 1 tbs of olive (or vegetable) oil over high heat. Add the sliced white onion when oil is hot. Then add in the beef and allow to sear for about 3 minutes.

4. Begin "shaking" to sear all the opposite sides of the cube for another 3 minutes.

5. Transfer the beef to a bed of watercress. You can add a layer of sliced tomatoes in between the watercress and the beef if you like.

6. Make the dipping sauce by adding all the ingredients listed and stir until all the ingredients are mixed nicely. Feel free to add more sugar/fish sauce/lime if you prefer a sweeter/saltier/sour taste.

7. Sprinkle ground black pepper on the beef before serving.

Cha Gio (Vietnamese Spring Rolls)

I am a huge fan of cha gio, Vietnamese spring rolls--not to be confused with goi cuon which are not fried and usually translated as garden rolls. I have tried numerous versions of spring rolls in Chinese restaurants, and to me, the Vietnamese interpretation is what spring rolls should be. I know, I'm a little biased. The filling is made of just the right amount of meat and vegetables. The most refreshing part about cha gio is that they can be served in a number of ways. You can eat wrap them with fresh lettuce leaves and other aromatic herbs such as mint leaves (my favorite) and dip in nuoc mam cham (dipping fish sauce). Or you can eat them with noodles (bun cha gio) or with rice.

INGREDIENTS:

• 1 lb ground pork

• 1/2 lb small shrimp, minced (optional)

• 4 oz crab meat, coarsely chopped (optional)

• 4 big carrots (~1 lb), shredded
• 1 big taro roots (~1 lb), julienne cut
• 
1 clove garlic, minced

• 1 shallot, minced

• 3 big dashes ground black pepper

• 1 teaspoon fish sauce

• Salt to taste

• 2 small eggs, lightly beaten
• 1 egg yolk 

• Spring rolls wrapper (see picture below for preferred brand)

INSTRUCTIONS:

1. In a large bowl, mix the ingredients (except the last 2 listed above) together to form a sticky filling. Since I'm an amateur cook, I always cook a spoon of the filling in the microwave to make sure I have seasoned it to taste.

2. To roll the cha gio, place a piece of rice paper on a clean flat surface (cutting board is great for this).

3. Place 1 heaped tablespoon of filling on the wrapper, tuck in the sides so that they meet in the middle, fold the wrapper over the filling and roll to form a cyclinder about 3 inches long.

4. Use the egg yolk as glue to seal the roll.

5. Heat oil over medium heat in a wok or a large frying pan. If you're fancy, you can buy a deep fryer. Or you can have your assistant does the frying while you blog. :)

6. Fry the cha gio slowly until they turn golden brown. Dish out and drain the excess oil by lining them over some paper towels.

7. Serve immediately with nuoc mam cham or roll it up with a fresh lettuce leaf and some aromatic herbs and then dip into the nuoc mam. Again, we didn't wait for pictures before diving in so I'll update the serving pic next time!