Best Ngow Num Recipes

CHINESE BRAISED OXTAILS

Steps:

• Clean the oxtails and pat them dry. Heat oil in a large skillet over medium high heat and brown them on all sides.
• Remove the oxtails and set aside on a plate. To the pot, add the ginger, garlic, star anise, cloves, and bay leaves. Cook for about 2 minutes.
• Now it's time to add cooking wine, dark soy sauce, light soy sauce, rock sugar, water, and salt (careful with the salt, as the soy sauce is already quite salty).
• Add the oxtails back to the pot, and bring to a boil. Once boiling, cover and reduce the heat to low. Simmer for 2 to 3 hours, depending on how tender you like your oxtails. Check halfway through and add more water if needed.
• Uncover, and continue simmering for another 30 minutes until the meat is tender and most of the liquid has evaporated. Stir occasionally, and add additional water if necessary to avoid sticking. Serve!

NEM NướNG (VIETNAMESE GRILLED PORK SKEWERS)

Steps:

• Blitz the garlic and shallots until fine.
• Add the mince into the food processor with the blitzed garlic and shallots and season with the chicken bouillon powder, salt, sugar, fish sauce and pepper.
• Blitz for 30 seconds or until it forms a paste. Take the paste out and put it in the freezer.
• Finely chop the pork fat.
• Combine 1 tsp sugar with the water and bring to a boil.
• Add the pork fat in and cook for 1 minute, then drain. Mix the pork fat with 1 tsp sugar until the sugar has dissolved.
• Heat up a saucepan on low heat and pour 4 tbsp oil in along with the annatto seeds. Cook for 3 miutes or until the oil has turned red, then drain and leave aside for later.Note: If you prefer a redder Nem Nướng, use more annatto seeds and oil.
• In the food processor, add the frozen mince along with the chicken bouillon powder, 1 tsp sugar, fish sauce, baking soda, potato starch and crushed ice cubes. Blitz for 1 minute or until it resembles a smooth paste.
• Add the first batch of blitzed mince in with the annatto seed oil and blitz for 2 minutes or until well combined, then transfer into a large mixing bowl.
• Combine the mixed paste with the pork fat.
• Make the glaze by mixing together the oil, honey, fish sauce and water. Set aside for later.
• Grab a small handful of Nem Nướng paste and squeeze it around a skewer until it is smooth and has covered 3/4 of its length from the tip down. Try to make them roughly 1 1/2 cm (0.6") thick, otherwise the center will take too long to cook.Tip: Use gloves lightly coated with oil so the mixture doesn't stick to your hands.
• If you're oven grilling the skewers, spread them out on an oven-safe tray lined with foil.
• Cook them on a grill, oven or an oiled pan for 10 minutes, then brush the glaze over them and cook for another 2 minutes or until completely cooked. Make sure to rotate each skewer for an even grill.
• Serve immediately as is with fresh salad and a Vietnamese dipping sauce!