laocook

This small cold dish looks very clean and simple, and indeed it is.

The Pho Jelly is made with a clarified Pho Stock (you could call it a Pho Consommé). It is reduced quite a lot from its original volume, making the flavour more intensified. In its hot state it is sometimes served in small Espresso Cups with some chopped mint leaves.

Underneath is a creamy yet set Cauliflower Cream. The Fish Eggs add a smokey and crunchy texture.

We made one in a clear glass so that you could see the Cauliflower underneath.

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Other small dishes that we have been serving over the past week…

Wild Duck Rolls.

Wild Duck (shot on site) have been stewed in a mix of Sugar, Soy Sauce and Spices. The meat is more tougher than commercially available duck and that has an impact on our stewing time. The meat has a more gamey flavour and is much darker than its farm raised cousins.

Tuna and Goats Cheese makes a welcome return. This time we folded over the Tuna to make it easier to eat with chopsticks. The dressing has also been spiced up with a few drops of homemade Chilli Oil.

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We slowly warm through our sauces when an order comes in. Copper pans ensure that heat is distributed evenly. They are expensive and take looking after, but the quality of the sauces/foods prepared in them are well worth it.

I hate restaurants that resort to blasting their sauces in Microwaves. Taking shortcuts affect the quality of the finished product, and in my eyes, also cheats the customer. Controlled warming ensures that minimal flavour is lost, whilst blasting it only disrupts what Mother Nature kindly gave us to use.

Another crime that occurs way to often is overheating the sauce, or leaving it on the flame for too long. That just makes the sauce salty and unpleasant. Some restaurants warm their sauces at the start of their Service, which means that it is reducing throughout the night. At the beginning of the meal, the sauce would be marvelous, a few hours later it would be second standard.

Above you can see our Tomato Chutney for our “Ping Gai”, Lemongrass and Tamarind Sauce for our Pan Fried Fish and lastly our Peanut Sauce, which goes with our Satay´s.