Fried fish in tomato sauce, grilled aubergines and Rao Ma

Fried Fish in Tomato Sauce

You can substitute the fish for another if you don't like this kind of fish (I don't) - hence the grilled aubergines for me!

INGREDIENTS:
Fish
Oil
Nguoc Mam
Salt
MSG
Garlic
1/2 Onion
1/2 Pepper
Spring Onions
4 medium tomatoes

Fry the fish on a medium heat to make it crispy. Finely chop the garlic and spring onions. Chop the tomatoes, onion and pepper into small chunks. Heat the oil and fry the garlic until slightly golden. Add the onions and cook until golden. Add the tomatoes and cook until they break down into a sauce. Season with nguoc mam, salt and MSG. Add the pepper and leave to simmer for about 5 minutes. Add the spring onions and fish when you are nearly ready to serve.

Grilled Aubergines

I like this dish because aubergines can be a little flavourless, but the enhanced (I don't what else I can call it as standard fish sauce has the same name as my mum's dipping sauce) nguoc mam adds a little va-va voom!

INGREDIENTS:
Aubergine
Garlic
Spring Onions
Nguoc Mam
Oil

Cut the aubergine lengthways into 1/2 inch slices. Pat some olive oil onto both sides of each slice and set aside. Finely chop the garlic and spring onions. In a pan heat some oil and then add the garlic and spring onions. Cook until the spring onions look wilted. On a grill pan cook the aubergines about 4mins on each side. Place on a dish and spread the cooked spring onions on top. When you are ready to serve pour the nguoc mam on top.

Rao Ma Canh

So "canh" is our version of soup. We eat canh with every meal, but rather than as a starter, we eat it usually at the end of the meal to cleanse the palate. There is no dinner with canh! Rao Ma is a leafy vegetable and looks similar to watercress (it also has the same bitterness). I don't know the English name for it but it looks like a four leaf clover in some ways!

INGREDIENTS:
Rao Ma
Shrimp/prawns

Wash the leaves and roughly chop. Mash or smash the prawns and then season with ab it of salt, MSG and soy sauce or nguoc mam. Boil a pot of water and when it comes to boiling add the shrimp. When the water re-boils add the leaves and simmer for about 5-8 mins.
Rao Ma