vietbaguette.net

We had a really good run at 14 Charlotte Place and we are  a little sad to be leaving.  Onwards and upwards though – due in part to the great reviews weve had and a loyal band of wonderful customers were looking for much bigger premises.  To answer what everyones been asking.  Yes it will be in the same area, cant say exactly where yet.  Yes you will be able to sit down – were having loads of little red stools and plastic tables just like in Vietnam, you can chill with a Bia Hanoi and some salty pumpkin seeds and enjoy some real street food snacks along with our classic banh mi.  Like Vietnamese summer rolls, ban cuon, and a range of other famous street food like Malaysian satay, Nasi Lemak and Roti Prathra.

For all the customers with menus on the wall, weve carefully taken them down.  You will be the VIPs at the next place!! and they will go up on the wall – hopefully with hundreds more!

Until then

Culinary Regards

The Viet baguette team.

…….Like our new bread recipe coming on next week, the only rice flour combo baguette in the UK. Secret supplier, secret recipe,  just like you get in Vietnam.  In addition, our banh mi xiu mai is made with our own meatballs from prime beef topside, something we learned in Vietnam, and its what we put in them so they stay juicy and succulent. The tomato sauce, seriously slow cooked, coaxes the sweetness out of the tomatoes until they are almost too sweet, yet silky smooth. We then add just a little lemongrass for extrs bite and knock it back with proper seasoning.  Ever seen those pork bellies hanging up in Chinatown? Amazing how they stay crispy for so long… its called “siew yoke” in Cantonese.  We were obsessed and weve finally cracked it, and its now on our menu from next week!  Some promotions for our customers to test their foody knowledge:

Whoever can tell us what “wolfberries” are and what they do wins an exta slice of perfectly braised pork belly!  Its for next weeks special.  Braised pork with chestnuts and chinese wolfberries on white rice.

The next promotion is for our new pork special : Tell us how you get the best crackling. The best one wins 5 pork specials.  Also, the first person to tell us what lye water is wins a secret streetfood recipe, one that we’ve had translated from Vietnamese.

This ones the beast, BBq Pork, Pâté, Pork Meatloaf, Pork Floss and all our other fresh ingredients (sweet pickled carrots and mooli, cucumber, spring onion, fresh chillies, coriander, house mayo, chilli sauce) We managed to cram it all in. The pork meatloaf or Cha Lua as it is called in Vietnam is made with pork that is finely pounded, seasoned with fish sauce and wrapped in banana leaves and boiled. We import our own pork floss, which is boiled pork which is shredded and wok fried with sugar and five spice powder until it is dry. It has a wonderful flavour and literally fizzes in the mouth. We compare it to candy floss, but with pork!

BBq Pork, Pâté, Pork Meatloaf, Pork Floss

This picture also shows our plum lemonade. Well its more of a lemon and limeade – but with a twist. A refreshing salted plum or ‘hua mui’ which gives it a real edge. The flavour slowly seeps out, its a trick that we learned in a hawker stall in Singapore.

What a great start Viet Baguette has had, and were getting better all the time. Weve added a delicious pâté recipe, with pork liver and cognac to our bbq pork and pâté banh mi. We had a few requests for something more offally from our customers and its gone down a treat.

With this winter weather kicking in we also added a hot lemongrass beef meatball special. Massive meatballs made from prime beef topside, seasoned with ginger, garlic, chilli, lemongrass and coriander in a silky tomato sauce, stuffed into our baguettes with all our other delicious ingredients. Not a lot of people know that meatballs are a very popular filling for banh mi in Vietnam. Its called banh mi xiu mai.

Why our banh mi are the best – To make the best banh mi, you have to get every component right, its something that when complete far exceeds the sum of its parts on the taste scale. Its a kind of culinary alchemy. So we researched banh mi right across Vietnam, comparing regional variations and delving into the history of Banh Mi. During colonial occupation, the French brought some of their favourite food with them, like mayonnaise, pate and terrine, and their famous baguettes. This all together with some crispy lettuce and maybe some ham makes the classic French combo but when the Vietnamese got hold of it they really made it their own adding their favourite ingredients like pickled carrots, green mango and mooli. Jazzing up the mayo with a bit of garlic and getting the burn going with some fresh sliced chilli. Refreshing spring onions, cucumber and coriander complete the garnishes. We saw such variety in the main ingredient all over Vietnam. Ranging from various porky delights, like crispy belly pork and Chinese char sui, to simple hams and terrines, to hot meatballs in tomato sauce right across to the hugely popular ‘laughing cow’ cheese with pork floss.