Fish sauce. It's good stuff. Having just picked some up, it seems I hit it off fairly well with my first experimental use. It's very salty, with very strong odor (it smells like what it is), but the flavor besides being salty isn't particularly fishy. It adds a great savory note to cooking, and I really enjoy it. Someone (I think it was this guy) said that fish sauce is to Southeast Asia what soy sauce is to Japan. Believe it. And don't smell the stuff before you eat it if you're not feeling particularly brave. My first recipe using the stuff is at the end of this post.
Politics.
Etymology:
Poly, from the ancient Greek, meaning 'much' or 'many'.
Ticks, a bloodsucking parasite that often harbors disease.
This is pretty much my definition of politics and politicians. I tend to distrust politicians on general principle, as I rarely see one at the federal level that seems to have a principled bone in their body. Given that, I intend to register as a Republican and vote for Dr. Ron Paul in the Illinois primary. I agree with him on more things than I disagree with him on and he's not full of shit, unlike most of the other individuals in the Presidential Race. Dr. Paul's supporters tend to be a bit crazy, so if you google him, beware. These two links however, are fairly informative.
Spicy Southeast Asian Noodles
Chunks
1 pkg (6.75 ounces) rice sticks/rice vermicelli
Sesame oil
2 lb sliced beef
3 tbs coriander
1/2 C diced onion
1 can straw mushrooms, drained (1 cup sliced shiitake would probably be better.)
1 can baby corn, drained
2 C bean sprouts
Sauce
3 Tbs soy sauce
4 ounces chicken broth
3 Tbs rice wine vinegar
2 Tbs fish sauce
2 Tbs sugar
1 Tbs black pepper, ground
1 serrano chile, thinly sliced
8-15 japone chiles, dried, ground
1 Tbs ginger, grated
3 garlic cloves, minced
-Mix up all of the sauce ingredients and set aside.
-Prepare the rice sticks as per package instructions. Once done, rinse with cold water, and set aside to drain.
-Lightly salt the beef and stir fry in wok with sesame oil until almost done.
-Toss in the rest of the ingredients from the 'Chunks' list, and stir fry until everything is hot.
-Toss in the rice sticks and the sauce.
-Stir until everything is fairly mixed.
-Serve!
-Serve with lime wedges, black pepper, chile sauce, and fish sauce on the side.
The sugar in the sauce brings down the lip-burning chile spice, while retaining a little bit of burn, and great flavor.
Enjoy.
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