Some of my favorite places to travel are in Southeast Asia—Thailand, Laos, Vietnam. The people are very welcoming, the cultures ancient, the landscapes lush, the spas wonderful, the local textiles beautiful and the food absolutely fantastic. I love coconut-milk-based curries, sticky rice, laab, green papaya salad and all the exotic fruits. My mouth waters just thinking about it. The fresh herbs, bean sprouts, lettuce wraps and tangy fruits, and the classic combination of hot, sour, salty and sweet flavors, are to me the ultimate cuisine. So it will come as no surprise that my bible in this genre is Hot Sour Salty Sweet by Jeffrey Alford and Naomi Duguid. If you'd like to try making some of this food, I highly recommend it. Many of the recipes are from home cooks and street vendors and, while they may require some ingredients you might not normally have on hand, most of the techniques are fairly basic. We gave a dinner party this weekend and the menu featured dishes from all the countries mentioned above. And it tasted quite authentic, if I do say so myself. 
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The snow's gone but it's not exactly shirtsleeves weather. My idea of a good time is still hunkering down in front of the fire, or under a duvet. Soon I'll be donning my linen overalls and running up and down the aisles of Silver Heights Nursery buying scented geranium and heirloom tomato plants. But today I'm not above a good braise. Get 'em while it's cold. One last chance to slowly simmer and stew, to watch those lazy bubbles and that mesmerizing cloud of steam. So put aside thoughts of spring things for the moment and haul out your lovingly broken-in Le Cresuet, your stalwart Staub. You've just got time for one more stew before the mercury rises. Make it oxtail, the ultimate slow-cooker. Ick, you say. How can you eat a cow's tail? How can you not? I firmly believe you honor that cow more by making use of its every beefy bit.
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It's the day after and I'm a woman of few words. But I can't leave you hanging with all that turkey on your hands. Hopefully you did not, in a fit of weary pique, discard the carcass. There's soup in there! How about a delicious, soothing and very clean take on pho, the Vietnamese soup usually made with beef. Here's a winning recipe made with leftover turkey from WinnieAb on Food52. It does a body good.Or, check out my guest post for turkey tamales on UK site debate your plate. It's a great project for all those lazy, whining people you have hanging around your house. And the results are delicious!And last, but never least, here's Martha's recipe for turkey banh mi, full of crisp, refreshing vegetables and tangy, spicy flavors. What's with the ethnic theme? Guess I've had it up to here with classic American for the moment. Enjoy your naps...
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This seductive soup is pronounced "fuh," like the word for fire in French. I had wanted to post a gorgeous "pho"-to of a big, steaming bowl of it, but we ate the entire pot before I got the chance. So instead, here's one of a woman in the market in Saigon scarfing down this wonderful national dish. Pho is traditionally eaten for breakfast in Vietnam, but it goes down like a charm for lunch and dinner, too. It's great stuff for cold weather eating, but that doesn't prevent South East Asians from having it in the raging heat. A rich but clear beef broth, infused with star anise, clove, cinnamon and ginger, it is traditionally served with slices of raw sirloin, shallots, bean sprouts, cilantro, Thai basil, mint, lots of slippery, chewy rice noodles, a squeeze of lime and maybe some chile. It's not so complicated; mostly, it just takes time. I love how you char ginger and onions directly over the flame of your burner; it imparts just a hint of smokiness that is very reminiscent of outdoor cooking in Asia. As with all stocks, you make this ahead so you can skim off the fat, and it's quite a healthful and nourishing dish because of the good nutrition from bones. Of course, I urge you to make this with meat from a happy cow, please. For its sake, and for yours.
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