The House Special

Early on in our relationship I took Prof. Hubs through the labyrinthine side streets of NYC's china town to one of my favorite Vietnamese restaurants. It's called, iconically, PHO. (That was a joke-they're almost all called PHO, named after the hearty oxtail soup served for breakfast throughout Vietnam.) I think it's on Mulberry near Bayard, but I'm not even sure... I can only find it intuitively using my uncanny New York sense of inner North.

Before even opening the menu Prof. Hubs told me he was ordering 'the House Special.' I was not aware the restaurant even had a house special-nor was I aware that Prof. Hubs was a pro at ordering in Vietnamese restaurants. Surprisingly, Prof. Hubs was correct-they DID have a house special. According to him, every Vietnamese restaurant worldwide (or at least the ones he's patronized) offer it and it's always basically the same thing. Even more suprising was that it was, ironically, NOT Pho. It was, I have since learned, Bún, one of Prof. Hubs favorite dishes in the universe.

Though not actually a bread product at all, Bún is a deliciously refreshing rice vermicelli noodle dish. It's noodles, served room temperature, covered with a green mixture of shredded lettuce, carrot, basil, mint, cilantro, peanuts, lemongrass-marinated grilled meat, and a sweet dressing called Nuoc Cham, which is poured over all... It's sooooo good. It's a wonderful light dinner. Probably more suited for warm weather we balked at convention and made it tonight...and it was amazing. I was a bit intimidated by the long ingredient list and the amount of fish sauce involved (icky smell, no?) but it turned out to be a really simple meal to put together, with very little cooking involved, all coming together in under an hour. With a bit of practice one could probably make it in 30 minutes, which is always a bonus any time of year.

THE HOUSE SPECIAL (Vietnamese Bún)

NUOC CHAM DRESSING

1 large clove garlic, finely chopped

1 tsp sriracha or other chili sauce

2/3 cup hot water

1/4 cup sugar

1/4 cup fish sauce

juice of 1 lime

1 TBSP shredded carrot

Combine all ingredients, allow to cool.

VIETNAMESE LEMONGRASS-STYLE MARINATED CHICKEN

3 chicken breasts cut into strips

zest of 1 lemon

juice of 1 lemon

4 garlic cloves chopped

2 scallions, chopped

3 tsp brown sugar

2 Tbsp fish sauce

juice of 1 lime

squirt o sriracha sauce

Combine all ingredients and allow chicken to marinate as the rest of the Bún recipe is assembled.

ASSEMBLING BÚN

1 package rice vermicelli (or if you live in Midwestia like i do-Pad Thai noodles)

1/2 cup julienned carrots

1 romaine lettuce heart, shredded

4 Tbsp bean sprouts

4 Tbsp fresh mint, chopped

4 Tbsp fresh basil, chopped

1/4 cup chopped peanut

Nuoc Cham dressing

Lemongrass marinated Chicken

Cook noodles according to package directions, allow to cool as the rest of the recipe is assembled.

Shred/chop all veggie ingredients.

Cook chicken in grill pan or wok until cooked through. Allow to cool a bit, then chop into bite sized pieces.

Assembling salad: Noodles on plate topped with lettuce, carrots, beansprouts herbs, then chicken pieces, then peanuts, then dressing. mmmmm.....