Skip to content
LoginRegister
WhatToEat.Today
Recipes

All recipes

Vegetarian, or something you can't eat? Set your diet once and we'll hide recipes that don't fit.

277 recipes

Canh rau ngot with tofuKatuk leaf and tofu soup

Canh rau ngot is one of the plainest and most loved soups on a Vietnamese family table, served at dinner in Hanoi and the Mekong Delta alike, in a shared bowl beside rice, a braised dish and a dipping sauce. The leaves of the katuk shrub are bruised and simmered briefly until soft and sweet. It is usually made with minced pork or dried shrimp; this vegetarian version uses cubes of tofu and a little fried shallot for savouriness. Each bowl has about 110 kcal and roughly 10 g of protein, from the tofu, so it is a light side soup. Katuk can be found frozen in Asian shops; young spinach is the nearest stand-in. The common mistake is overcooking the leaves, which turn khaki and slimy. Chef's tip: rub the leaves between your palms before cooking; bruising them lets them release their sweetness in just a few minutes.

20 minVietnameseSoupsVeganGluten free
by KrazyBadal 0 views

Hoa quả dầm (Hanoi fruit cup with yoghurt and condensed milk)

On sticky summer afternoons, Hanoi's young people pack the little stools along streets near Hoàn Kiếm Lake for hoa quả dầm, a cup of diced fruit buried in crushed ice, plain yoghurt and condensed milk. The fruit follows the season, usually mango, papaya, jackfruit, dragon fruit and avocado, and the whole thing is stirred together before eating, so it turns cold, creamy, tangy and sweet at once. Serve it immediately, with a long spoon and toasted coconut on top if you like. No cooking and no egg here: condensed milk and yoghurt dress and bind the fruit, and the crushed ice chills it, so there is nothing to set. Chef's tip: dice everything to the same small size, about 1.5 cm, so each spoonful gets a mix; the common mistake is adding the ice too early, which melts and floods the cup before it reaches the table.

15 minVietnameseDessertsGluten free
by KrazyBadal 0 views

Chilcano de pescadoClear fish broth

In the fishermen's terminals of Chorrillos and Callao, chilcano is what you drink on a Sunday morning after a long night: a clear, gingery broth made from the heads and bones left over from cleaning fish for ceviche, with chunks of fish, red onion, chilli and a squeeze of lime in the bowl. It is light and warming, around 160 kcal a bowl, and still gives about 24 g of protein from the fish fillet and the broth. The common mistake is squeezing the lime into the pot while it boils, which turns it bitter; add it to each bowl at the table. Don't boil the bones for more than 30 minutes either, or the broth turns cloudy and harsh. Chef's tip: ask the fishmonger for heads and frames from mild white fish like sea bass or cod, and leave out oily fish such as mackerel, which makes the broth strong and fishy.

55 minPeruvianSoupsGluten freeSpicy
by KrazyBadal 0 views

Bông bí xào tỏiGarlic stir-fried pumpkin flowers

From the Mekong Delta to the market gardens outside Hanoi, pumpkin vines are picked for their flowers and tender shoots, and bông bí xào tỏi is the everyday way to cook them: a few minutes in a hot wok with lots of garlic, served beside rice and a bowl of soup at family dinners. The flowers are soft and sweet and the shoots slightly crunchy. Some cooks add a splash of fish sauce; this version is seasoned with salt and a little soy, so it is vegan. It is a light side with about 3 g of protein per portion. The common mistake is leaving the stamens and the stringy skin on the shoots: both make the dish bitter and tough. Courgette flowers work well instead. Chef's tip: put the shoots in first and the flowers only for the last 30 seconds, so the delicate petals don't collapse into mush.

20 minVietnameseSidesVegan
by KrazyBadal 0 views

Cá hấp gừngGinger steamed whole fish

Cá hấp gừng is a family dish across Vietnam, from Hanoi to the Mekong Delta, put in the middle of the table for a weekend lunch or a Tết dinner and shared with rice and greens. A whole fish is steamed over ginger, then heaped with ginger and spring onion shreds and dressed with sizzling oil and a light soy and fish sauce. The flesh comes out silky and delicate. A portion has about 25 g of protein from the fish. The common mistake is oversteaming: thin parts go dry and woolly. Take it off as soon as the flesh at the thickest point pulls cleanly from the bone. Chef's tip: score the fish to the bone on both sides so it cooks evenly and the sauce gets in.

30 minVietnameseFish
by KrazyBadal 0 views

Dau hu non hapSteamed silken tofu

Steamed silken tofu is a fast, gentle dish cooked in homes from Hanoi to Saigon, especially on vegetarian days at the start and middle of the lunar month, when many families eat chay. A whole block of silken tofu is steamed until wobbling and hot, then topped with sizzling spring onion oil, a light soy dressing, chilli and crisp fried shallots. It is soft and savoury, and goes with rice and a stir-fried green. Each portion has about 150 kcal and roughly 10 g of protein, from the silken tofu, so it is a light dish rather than a high-protein one. The common mistake is turning the block out roughly so it cracks; slide it gently onto the plate. Chef's tip: pour off the water that gathers on the plate after steaming, or it thins the sauce.

15 minVietnameseVegetarianVegan
by KrazyBadal 0 views

TopfengolatschenSweet quark puff pastry squares

A Topfengolatsche is what Viennese office workers grab from the bakery on the way in, and what grandparents order with a Melange in a coffee house on a Sunday afternoon. The corners of a puff pastry square are folded over a lemony, vanilla-scented filling of Topfen (Austrian quark) with plump raisins, and the top gets a thin white glaze. It is flaky, light and not too sweet. Raisins are sometimes soaked in rum; warm water or orange juice works just as well, and the recipe below is alcohol-free. Wet quark is the classic problem, because it turns the filling runny and it leaks out in the oven. Chef's tip: hang the quark in a sieve lined with a clean cloth for an hour, or squeeze it, until it is as thick as soft cream cheese.

57 minAustrianBaking
by KrazyBadal 0 views

Chicharrón de pescadoCrisp fried fish chunks

Up and down the Peruvian coast, from Chorrillos in Lima to the beaches of Piura, chicharrón de pescado is the crunchy plate ordered alongside ceviche at a long seafood lunch: bite-size chunks of firm white fish marinated briefly in garlic and lime, dusted in flour and fried, then served with fried cassava, salsa criolla and tartar or rocoto sauce. Using frozen peeled cassava keeps it to half an hour. The common mistake is leaving the fish in the lime too long: after about ten minutes the acid starts to 'cook' the outside and the coating slips off. Chef's tip: toss the floured pieces in a sieve to shake off every bit of loose flour; a thin coat fries crisp, a thick one turns pasty.

30 minPeruvianFish
by KrazyBadal 0 views

Tallarines rojosSpaghetti in red sauce with chicken

Tallarines rojos is the Sunday-lunch and weeknight pasta of homes all over Peru, from Lima to Arequipa: spaghetti in a sweet, deep-red sauce of blended tomato, onion and garlic with a little ají panca and oregano, often with pieces of chicken cooked right in it. Children love it, and it is served with a sprinkle of grated cheese and sometimes a spoon of huancaína on the side. The usual mistake is cooking the sauce too briefly, so it tastes of raw onion; let the blended tomato fry until it darkens and the oil shows at the edges. Chef's tip: a bay leaf and a spoon of ají panca paste give the sauce its Peruvian character; paprika will do if you can't find the paste.

30 minPeruvianPasta & Noodles
by KrazyBadal 0 views

Bánh mì ốp la (Vietnamese fried eggs with baguette)

All over Saigon and Hanoi, street stalls serve bánh mì ốp la for breakfast: two or three eggs fried in a little iron pan, brought to the table sizzling, with a split baguette for scooping and a splash of dark seasoning sauce on top. The whites go lacy and crisp at the edges while the yolks stay soft, and the cucumber and chilli on the side keep it fresh. The usual mistake is frying the eggs on a fierce heat until the bottoms burn before the whites on top have set; a medium heat and a lid fix that. For pregnant people, young children, older or vulnerable people, cook the yolks until fully set. Chef's tip: warm the baguette in a hot oven for 3 minutes first so the crust shatters the way it does at the stall.

10 minVietnameseBreakfast & Brunch
by KrazyBadal 0 views

Bò xào cần tây (beef and celery stir-fry)

Bò xào cần tây is a weeknight stir-fry found on family tables all over Vietnam: thin slices of beef, seasoned with fish sauce and pepper, flashed in a hot wok with crunchy celery, onion and plenty of garlic, then eaten with rice. The usual mistake is cooking the beef and celery together from the start, so the beef stews while the celery softens; sear the beef first, take it out, and add it back at the end. Chef's tip: slice the beef across the grain and as thin as you can, so it is tender after only a minute in the pan.

18 minVietnameseMeat
by KrazyBadal 0 views

Tôm rim (caramelised prawns)

Tôm rim is a homely dish cooked in kitchens from Hanoi to the Mekong Delta and eaten at the family rice tray with boiled greens and a clear soup: prawns simmered down in fish sauce, sugar and shallot until the liquid turns to a sticky, salty-sweet glaze. The mistake is walking away in the last few minutes, when the sauce goes from glaze to burnt very quickly. Chef's tip: leave the shells on if your prawns are small, as many Vietnamese cooks do; they turn crisp and caramelised and add flavour.

20 minVietnameseFishGluten free
by KrazyBadal 0 views

Fideos con mantecaButtered noodles with cheese

Ask anyone from Buenos Aires to Córdoba what they ate when they came home late or felt poorly as a child, and the answer is often fideos con manteca: short pasta tossed with butter and a snowfall of grated queso rallado. It is the plainest dish in the Argentine home kitchen and the one people cook for themselves on a tired weeknight. The mistake that ruins it is draining the pasta bone-dry and adding cold cheese to a hot empty pan, which leaves greasy strands and clumps; a splash of cooking water makes a light, creamy coating instead. Argentine reggianito and Parmesan are made with animal rennet, so use a vegetarian hard cheese if needed. Chef's tip: grate the cheese very finely, like dust, so it melts on contact.

15 minArgentinianPasta & Noodles
by KrazyBadal 0 views

Salpicón de aveCold chicken salad

Salpicón de ave is the cold supper of Argentine summers, made in Buenos Aires flats and on estancias alike when it is too hot to cook much, and a favourite way to use the chicken from a puchero or Sunday roast. Shredded chicken is mixed with diced pepper, tomato, spring onion, sweetcorn and boiled egg, bound with mayonnaise sharpened with lemon and mustard, and served chilled with crusty bread or on lettuce. The common mistake is dressing it while the chicken is still hot, which melts the mayonnaise into an oily puddle; let everything cool first. Chef's tip: dress the chicken with the lemon juice and a pinch of salt before the mayonnaise goes in, so the meat itself is seasoned, not just its coating.

30 minArgentinianSaladsGluten free
by KrazyBadal 0 views

Bò lúc lắc (Vietnamese shaking beef)

Bò lúc lắc, shaking beef, is a Saigon dish from the French-influenced south, ordered at family dinners and celebrations: cubes of tender steak seared in a smoking pan and shaken with garlic and onion, then tipped over peppery watercress and tomato with a lime, salt and pepper dip. The mistake almost everyone makes is crowding the pan, which boils the meat grey instead of searing it; cook in two batches. Chef's tip: let the cubes sit untouched for a full minute before the first shake to build a dark crust.

25 minVietnameseMeat
by KrazyBadal 0 views

Pejerrey arrebozadoBattered fish fillets with onion salsa

Pejerrey arrebozado is a Lima classic from the cevicherías and home kitchens of the coast, eaten at lunch on a plate with white rice, a heap of sharp salsa criolla and sometimes boiled potato. The pejerrey, a small silverside, is opened into butterflied fillets, dipped in a light egg-and-flour batter and fried golden. Outside Peru, use small fillets of whiting, sole, haddock or tilapia. The batter here uses sparkling water, not beer, so it is alcohol free. The common mistake is frying in oil that isn't hot enough: the batter drinks the oil and turns greasy, so test with a drop of batter first. Chef's tip: make the salsa criolla first and let the onion sit in lime for ten minutes; it softens its bite and turns a pretty pink.

25 minPeruvianFish
by KrazyBadal 0 views

Mì xào rau (Vietnamese stir-fried noodles with vegetables)

Mì xào rau is what Hanoi and Saigon households cook when there is a packet of egg noodles in the cupboard and a few greens in the fridge: a fast, smoky plate for a weeknight dinner or a late lunch. The noodles turn slightly crisp at the edges, the cabbage stays sweet and crunchy, and a light soy glaze holds it all together. The most common mistake is dumping everything into a lukewarm pan at once, which steams the vegetables and leaves the noodles soggy and clumped. Serve it with a dish of sliced chilli in soy sauce and a fried egg if you want more protein. Chef's tip: loosen the cooked noodles with a teaspoon of oil while they drain, so they hit the wok as separate strands instead of a block.

20 minVietnamesePasta & Noodles
by KrazyBadal 0 views

BizcochueloPlain whisked sponge cake

Nearly every Argentine birthday torta starts life as a bizcochuelo: a tall, plain sponge of eggs, sugar, flour and cornflour, with no butter and no baking powder, lifted only by long whisking. Grandmothers bake it on Sunday to split into three and fill with dulce de leche and whipped cream, or eat it plain in the afternoon with mate. The crumb is fine, dry-ish and airy, made to soak up syrup. Opening the oven in the first 20 minutes is the classic way to flatten it, so leave the door shut. Chef's tip: whisk until the mixture reaches 'punto letra', thick enough that a ribbon drawn on the surface holds its shape for a few seconds; that takes a good 8–10 minutes with an electric mixer, and warm eggs get there faster.

55 minArgentinianBaking
by KrazyBadal 0 views

Cháo thịt bằm cà rốt (pork and carrot congee)

Cháo thịt bằm, rice congee with minced pork, is the dish Vietnamese grandmothers cook when a baby starts on 'real' food, and carrot is the most common vegetable added, for colour and sweetness. For babies from about nine months it is cooked thick and mashed to soft lumps, without the fish sauce and pepper the rest of the family would stir in. It contains none of the common allergens (milk, egg, gluten, peanut, tree nuts, soya, sesame, fish). Chef's tip: toast the dry rice in the pan for a minute before adding water; Vietnamese cooks swear it gives a fragrant, creamier congee.

50 minVietnameseRice & GrainsGluten free
by KrazyBadal 0 views

Pumpkin congee for babies (cháo bí đỏ)

Vietnamese grandmothers often make a baby's early bowls of cháo with bí đỏ, the dense orange pumpkin sold in every market from Hà Nội to Cần Thơ. The rice is lightly toasted before simmering, a Vietnamese habit that gives the congee a faint nutty smell, and the pumpkin melts into it, turning it bright gold and naturally sweet. It is a weekday lunch for babies from six months, made without the fish sauce the rest of the family would add. No common allergens are in it (milk, egg, gluten, peanut, tree nuts, soya, sesame, fish). Chef's tip: choose a dry, dense pumpkin such as kabocha; watery squash makes a thin, bland congee.

55 minVietnameseRice & GrainsVeganGluten free
by KrazyBadal 0 views

Bánh bông lan (Vietnamese sponge cake)

Bánh bông lan is the soft, golden sponge sold in every Vietnamese bakery, eaten with coffee or as an after-school snack, and it is also the cake under the cream and fruit at most children's birthdays from Hanoi to Saigon. Made with oil instead of butter, it stays moist and springy for days and is free of milk. It contains egg and gluten. Chef's tip: whisk the whites in a spotlessly clean bowl; a trace of yolk or grease stops them rising.

55 minVietnameseBaking
by KrazyBadal 0 views

Bánh bò hấp (steamed honeycomb rice cake)

Bánh bò hấp are the soft, puffed rice cakes sold from glass-fronted carts in southern Vietnam, and children in the Mekong Delta pick them up in white, pink or pandan green on the way home from school. The yeasted rice-flour batter is steamed in small cups, so each cake splits open on top like a flower and is chewy and bouncy inside, with a gentle coconut flavour. The sugar here is a little lower than in market versions. None of the common allergens are in it. Chef's tip: steam over fierce, rolling boiling water; a gentle simmer gives flat, dense cakes that don't open.

40 minVietnameseDessertsVeganGluten free
by KrazyBadal 0 views

Sữa chua (Vietnamese set yogurt)

In Vietnamese homes, sữa chua is made in a row of small jars and kept in the fridge or freezer, and children in Hanoi and Saigon eat it after school straight from the cup, sometimes frozen hard like ice cream. The condensed milk gives it a mild caramel sweetness and a smooth, firm set that is less sharp than plain yogurt. It is sweetened, so this version uses less condensed milk than the street-stall kind. It contains milk. Chef's tip: keep the milk at blood heat, about 43 °C; hotter kills the yogurt culture and cooler sets slowly and sour.

25 minVietnameseDessertsGluten free
by KrazyBadal 0 views

Canh cua rau đayCrab and jute leaf soup

Through the sticky Hanoi summer, the cheapest and most loved soup is canh cua: tiny rice-field crabs pounded and strained so the sweet crab 'curds' float to the top of a broth of slippery jute leaves (rau đay) and luffa, eaten with rice and crunchy pickled aubergines. Away from the paddies, fresh crab meat gives the same soft curds; if you buy live crabs, cook only lively ones and discard any that are dead. Chef's tip: stir the broth only until it comes to a simmer, then leave it; keep stirring and the crab curds break into a cloudy mush.

40 minVietnameseSoupsGluten free
by KrazyBadal 0 views

Showing 24 of 277 recipes

Show more recipes

Page 1 of 12