Bun thit nuong (Vietnamese grilled pork with noodles)

Welcome back

Here comes the recipe you've all been waiting for!  Mikey finally came back from Chicago, so I cooked his favorite Vietnamese dish.  A Vietnamese meal from his Vietnamese girlfriend :). Suffice it to say, Mikey enjoyed his welcome back meal.  The way to a man's heart really is through his stomach.

Canh rau muong (spinach soup)

Autumn

Happy Friday!!  It's the first day of fall, I finished my anesthesia test in 10 minutes, and Mikey is coming back from Chicago today!  It's gonna be a good day.  Remember, I'm cooking Mikey a special meal for tonight and I have been prepping for a few hours.  

Fried rice

Leftover remake #1

Good evening, my lovelies.  Remember when I said that I would spice this blog up by having themes and challenges?  Well, here's theme number one.  Every two weeks, I will post a recipe remaking leftovers.  I constantly have leftovers, and sometimes it is fun to change it into something else.  It's like I'm tricking myself into eating something new.  Yes, I am like a child and I need to trick myself into eating food.

Banh xeo (Vietnamese crepes)

Moving

It's been a crazy busy two weeks, but I'm finally back.  I've missed you guys! In the past two weeks, I moved, completely unpacked, intubated several patients, visited my momma, and visited Mikey in Chicago (pictures to come!).  It was the most stressful move EVER.  I won't go into details, but let's just say there were so many trips to and from my third floor apartment that my legs felt like jelly by the end of the two days it took me to move.  And the next day, I felt like I had run a marathon.  Did I tell you that I HATE MOVING?  This is the eighth time I've moved in eight years.  And I have to move in 10 months when I graduate. Boo. Note to self: hire movers next time. Or buy an elevator. Or make friends with some big burly men (but Mikey probably wouldn't like that :))

Indianapolis

The city of states

Howdy y'all!  How have you been?  I've been great, thanks.  Fortunately, I have pictures from Indianapolis, as promised.  Unfortunately, you're not going to get much more than pictures.  I have an exam tomorrow.. and I've been napping all day.  Oops.  But you're not here to read, right?  Well, actually you're here for recipes, but do you think you can settle with some pictures of food for now?  

Let's begin our mini journey through Indianapolis - so keep your hands and arms inside the carpet, we're outta here! (Get the Aladdin reference?)

Friday night, we went to a pizza joint called Bazbeaux.  Interesting name, interesting pizza (our pizza had dollops of ricotta cheese). We had garlic-cheese bread and 4 cheese-bacon-mushroom pizza.  You can't get any better than bacon and cheese. And that is all I have to say about that.

beer number one.

waiting patiently for dinner. i was really, really hungry.

cheese bread. it was bomb.

pizza. 

crispy bacon and gooey cheese.
are you salivating?
because i am.

mikey.

the view from outside the restaurant. that little lady on the corner dances.
her name is veronica.

 The next morning, we had brunch at Hoaglin To Go & Marketplace.  While their daily grind is fine catering, they make a mean brunch.  I had the best omelette ever.  Seriously, I died a little when I bit into it. It was fluffy and filled with applewood smoked bacon, sauteed red onions, sun-dried tomato pesto torte.  I'm not even sure what a sun-dried tomato pesto torte is, but I can tell you that it is good.


Mikey had a stack of red velvet pancakes. Dessert for breakfast?  Don't mind if I do.

best. omelette. ever. 

the magical filling.

red velvet pancakes.

Then we went to Starbucks, 'cause brunch made us sleepy.  Why the heck is Starbucks so expensive?!  I spent $5 on a tall skinny caramel macchiato with soymilk.  Secondly, why the heck are the names so long?

almost broke the bank on these babies. 

 Then, the Indiana State fair!  It was a glutton's dream.  There were so many places to get food that we almost got overwhelmed.  But no worries, we put our fat hats on and braved the crowds.  Despite the abundance of food, we didn't end up eating very much.  It was just nice walking around with Mikey. But I did give in and try a deep fried Snickers bar with him.  He really liked it.  I, on the other hand, thought that I could have gotten the same effect by popping a Snickers in the microwave for 30 seconds. I mean it was good, but not $4 good.

$15 and 7 darts later, mikey won a prize for me!
 i shall call him squishy, and he shall be mine, and he shall be my squishy.

i found a wand.
and.... 

magic! i've always wanted a unicorn.

yes. that is indeed a burger between two doughnuts.
(we didn't try this one)

deep fried butter? deep fried kool-aid?
only in the midwest, my friends

and here it is. deep fried snickers.

The last day that I was there, we went to a cute neighborhood called Broad Ripple. There was a strip of pubs, and we ended up choosing Broad Ripple Brewpub because there was a stout there that Mike liked.  I had the fish and chips.  Silly me thinking that fish would be lighter.  I ate about a third of it and promptly became sleepy afterwards.  

fish 'n chips

And that was my weekend.  It was like you were there, right?  


Now that I have mesmerized you with these pictures, I gotta break some bad news.  I'm taking a short break from blogging.  I am moving soon, and I have to eat the random food that is left in my pantry.  And I don't think that you want to hear about canned soup, tortilla chips, and Chef Boyardee.  I'll be back full force in September.  Promise.

we're funny.

xoxo <3
Nhu-Y

Ghetto lo mein

If ramen is wrong, then I don't want to be right

I know what you're thinking - "Ghetto lo mein?  What the H does that mean?  Is it from the hood?  Is Nhu-Y from the hood?"


Well let me answer those questions for you, my friends.  Ghetto lo mein is a concoction dreamt up by my kitchen-illiterate cuz.  I love her dearly, but she's no Julia Child.  So it is not from the hood, it's from a little asian girl from the 'burbs.  And no, I'm not from the hood either, but I lived pretty close to some not-so-reputable places when I was a kid (one time, I even wore my hair in cornrows - and that's hood).

Let me preface this recipe by saying that it is not lo mein. It's just what my cousin calls this dish.  In no way does this resemble lo mein, with the exception that it is composed of noodles and grease.  So if you are looking for something that you can get from your favorite Chinese restaurant, check back later.  But if you are looking for cheap eats, read on.  


Now, don't judge.  I know ramen is the fare of a college freshman.  But hey, I am a medical student in lotsa debt.  I can't always afford to eat foie gras, truffles and gold.  Besides, I haven't cooked in about a week, and I feel guilty not posting something that I didn't cook.  That's how much I like you guys - I feel guilty when I eat things like burgers, ice cream, and deep fried Snickers bars that I can't share with you :)

When my cousin makes this dish, it consists only of ground beef, ramen noodles, and ramen seasoning.  Yes, only 3 ingredients. Really, only 2 ingredients because the noodles and the seasoning come together. But surprisingly, it tastes good.  Maybe it's the pound of grease they pack into each tiny bag of ramen noodles.  Or maybe I can taste the memories from my good ol' college days, I'm not sure.  I did decide that this recipe was a little too ghetto for me, so I added some greenage in the form of scallions and broccoli. 


Try it, you'll like it.  And if you don't, you've spent a dollar - you probably have more money lost in your couch. 


Ghetto Lo Mein
Serves 4
Print this recipe


Ingredients
4 packages of beef flavored ramen noodles
1 pound of ground beef
1 tablespoon oil (optional)
If you want it fancy, add:
2 scallions, cut on the bias
1 large head of broccoli, cut into florets


Directions
1. Boil 2-3 quarts of water.
2. While waiting for the water to boil, brown the beef in the oil on medium-high heat (if you use a nonstick pan, some nonstick spray should do).  Break the beef up as well as you can. Drain the beef once it is cooked through.
3. Stir one package of the ramen seasoning into the beef and add the whites of the scallions.  Cook for an additional minute or two. Reduce heat to medium-low.
4. Once water boils, cook the broccoli for 3-5 minutes, depending on how crisp you like your broccoli.  Remove the broccoli from the water with tongs or a slotted spoon and add to the meat (leave water in the pot for the noodles).
5. Bring the water back up to a boil and cook noodles for 4 minutes (or 1 minute less than the directions on the package).  When noodles are cooked, drain and add to the beef and broccoli mixture.  Turn heat back up to medium-high and stir in 1.5 - 2 packages of ramen seasoning to taste.
6. Top with the greens of the scallions. 
7. Eat with a your hat cocked to the side, an oversize white tee, and some gold teeth.  


I promise a sophisticated recipe next time. Until then -- 


Peace out homies. 


xoxo <3
Nhu-Y

Me and my lovely cousin

Hiatus

Louers


I apologize for not posting in so long!  I spent the weekend in Indianapolis with Mikey, and I ate like a queen.  A hillbilly queen.  We went to the Indiana state fair and we had a corn dog, beef tips, and a fried Snickers bar.  Pictures to come.


I have a paper to write and it's due tomorrow, so I will have to post on my trip another time.  I was supposed to work on this paper at Mikey's, but the food was not conducive to studying.  What do you do after you eat a corn dog, beef tips, and fried Snickers?  Sleep.  And that's what we did.


So in lieu of a food post, I will post a picture of my pup, Louie.

Doesn't he look comfortable? He is napping next to me, and he is in doggy dream world.  He's squeaking/barking and making raspberry noises (you know, when you purse your lips and force air out).  I wonder what he's dreaming about.  Eating I bet.  My dog loves to eat, and I bet he gets it from his mama (me, not his biological mama).  Here's another two pictures for your to illustrate how much he loves to eat.

Standing up and trying very hard to balance himself with his knubby legs
 (imagine him flapping his little legs as he attempts to balance)

Finally balanced, and with his very best "look at how cute I am" face on

Louie is pretty smart and he does a lot of tricks, but his favorite thing to do is stand up.  He'll stand up for anything: if he wants to eat, if he wants to be pet, if he wants to hop on the couch, if he is jealous of another pet and wants attention - he's a needy dog.  And he does it because he knows that we looove it.  It's just so cute to see a dog with such short legs stand up.  It's a gravity defying stunt, I tell ya.  So of course, since he is defying gravity, we can't resist it and give him whatever he wants.  I'm a bad mama.  In this case, he wanted the (super cute) hot dog treat that I got for him from a cute shop on Mass Ave.  A hot dog eating a hot dog.  Wait, is that morbid?  Cannibalistic?  Oh well, it's too cute not to post. 

Ok loves, gotta go work on my paper.  Wish me luck.

xoxo <3

Nhu-Y

P.S. If you're wondering if Louie usually sleeps with a pillow and a blanket, the answer is yes and no.  He does love to prop his head on a pillow (I let him sleep with me every night and I think he thinks he's human sometimes), but I put the blanket on him.  His underside is fur-less, so his private puppy goods were showing.  It was a leeettle indecent, and I didn't want to flash my pup's goods to y'all.  That would make me a really bad mama.

P.P.S.  Louers is obviously Louie's nickname.  I add "ers" to many names to create nicknames - Mikers, puppers (another Louie nickname). My name rhymes with Louie, so sometimes Mikey calls me Nhuers.  Random, I know, but now you know how to pronounce my name and you are one step ahead of 99% of this world.