love bun rieu

sometimes you just crave some home cooking.  when it comes to my mom’s cooking, it is hands down the best!  it was on my agenda to come home to visit mes parents but i was super excited to find out my mom was cooking bun rieu!!!  i love, love bun rieu!

via tandeminlove.com

via tandeminlove.com

it’s chock full of flavor.  my mom sautéed the tomatoes {it’s hidden in her homemade broth…they were flavorful but i piled too much stuff on top of the noodles to see it in my bowl!}, she makes her own shrimp paste, it’s mixed with thick rice noodles, tofu, crab meatballs made from scratch, i added in shredded cabbage, sliced green onions, fish sauce, sriracha, red pepper flakes…oh em gee!

i couldn’t wait to eat.  it is so amazingly delicious!

she is the best cook ever.  amen.

best of both worlds

as you probably have read in my previous post, about my mom + her cooking and her mom duties of making sure her children are fed,  we had frozen some food she had us bring home the other week {a copious amount!}.  we were waiting for our schedules to align [a time where we are both home + an open dinner slot] and of course, not having this land on a friday [no meat lent friday!].

so that time was now.  i was very excited to break out the bánh bao {to die for!}.  it’s a favorite of mine, amongst a huge variety of other things my mom makes {honestly, everything is my ‘favorite’}.  hubby charming then created his own recipe for fried rice.  adding his own pizazz as he stir fried the white rice to perfection!  voila, a delicious meal created by my love, hubby charming, and my loving mother dearest!  it can’t get any better than that {right?}!!  it was the best of both worlds, combining their skills, and a damn good meal as a final result…yum, yum, yum.

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here’s a recipe for some yummy fried rice.  not exactly the one hc used {he improvised} but very close!  enjoy!

DIRECTIONS

*In a saucepan, combine rice and water. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat, cover, and simmer for 20 minutes. {hc says to use old rice, or let the rice sit for a day for best results!}
*In a small saucepan, boil carrots in water about 3 to 5 minutes. Drop peas into boiling water, and drain.
*Heat wok over high heat. Pour in oil, then stir in carrots and peas; cook about 30 seconds. Crack in eggs, stirring quickly to scramble eggs with vegetables. Stir in cooked rice. Shake in soy sauce, and toss rice to coat. Drizzle with sesame oil, and toss again.

 

happy vietnamese new year!

Chúc Mừng Năm Mới!

it’s the year of the snake!  best matches for the snake:  ox, rooster, and the dragon {moi}.

tết is a huge holiday in vietnam.  to grasp how big it is, think about how exciting it would be if new years, your birthday, and christmas was combined into one day?!  now that’s a whole lotta celebrating!!!

it’s all about a fresh start, newness, family, and lots of good luck!!

xoxo

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[fill the little red envelopes with moolah and gift them to children!  i received these as a child every year…such fond memories!]