New Ỷears in Hoian

It is a little inevitable that New Years anywhere in the world is the same. Fireworks, lots of noise and drunken people. I lasted little time and went to bed early. The riverside was the place to be with tourists wandering from resteraunt/bar to resteraunt/bar. There was a venue of sorts on the other side of the river that was pumping out vietnamese disco at ear damaging levels. ho hum.

The next morning saw me fronting up at 8am for Ms Vy's (Morning Glory) cooking class. It started with a market tour that was very interesting but not as good as Mr Rot's in Dalat. We learnt about the fruits used in cooking. Then it was off to the herb stalls to check out the wonderful selection. Then to the veggies and the fish market. Do you know they have Flathead, Brim and Snapper here! They also have fish that I have never seen before as well as Tuna, Mackeral and other pelagics. The size of some of the fish would worry an ethical fisherman but as Ms Vy says the smaller ones have soft bones that you can eat and Vietnamese people don't have milk products so these fish are thier main source of calcium (as well as morning glory!).

Back at the resteraunt it was upstairs to the school and into it. First there was a cabbage and prawn mouse soup. Even though I made it, it tasted like nectar from the gods (if in fact they existed which they do not). Next came a "fresh" spring roll with all the elements ; sweet, sour, hot, cold, crunchy and smooth/silky. Delicious. Then we prepared some chicken to be marinated for 20 mins. The marinade smelt fantastic. While the chicken was marinading we made a green mango salad dressed on top with corriander and dried fried shallots. The chicken was returned nicely barbecued and we consumed it and the salad with an accompaniament of stir fried morning glory with garlic. It was a great experience and I can't wait to get back to test it on my family at home. Ms Vy was a great teacher and she interspersed the instruction with lots and lots of information about the cultural aspects of cooking, the importance of freshnẻss and knowing where the food came from. Apparently this is the cornerstone of vietnamese cooking. They shop three times a day and are very discerning about quality.

At the end of the course Ms Vy handed out an envelope which contained the recipes and a special present of a vietnamese graiter.

I am in Hoian for one more day and then fly to Hanoi in the morning. The train was booked out unfortunately. Check out the photos of hoian.