Ever had Gỏi?
Gỏi is a general term for “salads” in Vietnamese and can come in all forms using a variety of ingredients. Lately, my favorite Gỏi utilizes thinly sliced Banana Blossoms. I combine it with grilled proteins, pink grapefruit, creamy avocados, a ton of herbs and a healthy douse of Nước chấm “vinaigrette”. It’s absolutely delicious and epitomizes the balance in Vietnamese cuisines.
If you’ve never used Banana Blossoms before, they can be somewhat tricky the first time around. It’s best to remove the outer few petals as they’re quite tough (though you can save them as garnish), use a really sharp knife so you can get thin slices, and be sure to soak the cut blossoms in cold water that has been mixed with some type of acid-citrus juice or vinegar does the trick. The later helps removes some of that chalky flavor that the Banana Blossoms can sometimes have.
And although it sounds a bit laborious—it’s totally worth it and delicious!
And now to announce the winner of a fabulous Nambe Pasta Cradle Bowl—
Drum Roll please………….
CONGRATS Serena Kim who said she would serve Shrimp Pesto Pasta in the Nambé Bowl. Sounds yummy and will look gorgeous in your new bowl! Serena, we’ll be sending you an email shortly so we can get your new Nambé artwork shipped out.
THANK YOU to everyone who participated! And THANK YOU Nambé !
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Gỏi Bắp Chuối (Vietnamese Banana Blossom Salad) Serves 4-6
Ingredients: Nước chấm (Sauce): ¼ cup fish sauce ¼ cup fresh lime juice ¼ cup granulated sugar 2 tablespoons cold water 1 teaspoon fresh garlic, finely minced chili paste, to taste
Gỏi (Salad): 1½ cups chicken breast, grilled and shredded 1½ cups prawns, shelled and grilled 2 medium sized avocadoes, cubed 1 cup Ruby Red Grapefruit segments 4 cups banana blossoms, julienned ¼ cup loosely packed fresh Vietnamese Mint (rau răm), chopped 3 tablespoons fresh cilantro, chopped 1½ tablespoon fresh mint, chopped 1 cup rice wine vinegar ¼ cup fried shallots ¼ cup roasted peanuts, crushed cold water black pepper to taste
Prepare the sauce. In a medium sized bowl, stir the sugar and water together until completely dissolved. Add the remaining sauce ingredients and stir until combined. Set aside.
Fill a large bowl with cold water and add the rice wine vinegar. Peel off the dark colored and tough outer leaves of the banana blossom. Use a sharp knife or mandolin to julienne the blossoms. You can either discard the “baby bananas” or chop them up finely. Submerge the banana blossoms into the bowl of water/vinegar after they have been julienne. Allow the banana blossoms to sit in the vinegar water for 15-20 minutes.
In a large bowl, add the shredded chicken, prawns, avocados, herbs, and freshly cracked black pepper. Add a few spoonfuls of the sauce until the items are lightly coated. Drain the banana blossoms from the vinegar water and squeeze out any excess liquids. Add banana blossoms to the other ingredients and spoon in some additional sauce. Gently toss the salad with the fried shallots and plate. Sprinkle the top with crushed peanuts and serve.