Vegetable platter includes: fresh lettuce, herbs, unripe fruits, raw vegetables. They are used for wrapping foods at the table and, of course, eaten by hand.
Lettuce: can be red leaf, green leaf, boston, Taiwanese long leaf...
Herbs: can be any combination of mint, perilla, spearmint, Vietnamese coriander leaves, basil ....
Unripe fruits: plantain, star fruit ...
Raw vegetables: cucumber, thinly sliced, fresh bean sprout
If you don't have access to star fruit, you can subtitute with sweet and sour carrot and daikon strips.
I want to further clarify that in this picture, it's pickled (sweet & sour) carrots and daikon that are shown, right chi. ? The reason why it's important to note this is because so many versions/recipes of Vietnamese spring roll, which this vegetable platter is part of, feature RAW carrots. That, to a Vietnamese like me, makes no sense. Raw carrots have a very distinctive flavor that clashes with everything in a spring roll. That's why if carrots appear, it's only in pickled form, or tossed into fishsauce as garnish, but traditionally never as a component in its raw, untreated form.
ReplyDeleteheh heh, cho xo^? tie^'ng Anh 1 chu't :-) tu.i my~ cu+' qua(ng ca` ro^'t so^'ng vo^ go?i cuo^'n la`m em ba^'t ma~n qua', chi. coi mo+'i ho^m nay mo+? ba'o ra, the^m 1 cha nu+~a ne` http://www.nytimes.com/2007/07/11/dining/11mini.htm
leave 1 comment kho^ng tha^'y chu? nha` le^n tie^'ng, tha?y the^m ti' lu+.u dda.n nghen
ReplyDeleteThe confusion about carrots might be due to one version of our Vietnamese Spring rolls, called bo` bi'a. This version has julienned carrots & jicamas sautee' briefly in a bit of oil, then we wrap that with lettuce, chinese sausages, shredded eggs, and carmelized dried shrimps. No raw carrots!
Heheh ....wow!
ReplyDeleteI've seen and had many fusion Vietnamese Spring/Summer rolls that have carrots in restaurant. I personally don't like them but I guess some people do.
My version of Viet Pohpia (bo` bi'a) doesn't have carrot neither. That's the version I grew up with and I love it. Just try to say ... there's not only one way to cook anything. But again, doesn't mean they're all good.
Chi. vo^'n di~ so^'ng ga^`n tru. so+? lie^n hie^.p quo^'c em a. ne^n ... kie^?u na`o cu~ng to^n tro.ng :)))