Viet Song!

These quintessentially Vietnamese dishes are simply delicious, and surprisingly easy to make.

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RICE PAPER ROLLS

Makes 6 18 sheets of 22cm rice paper 18 prawns, cooked and halved 1 red cabbage, shredded 1 carrot, grated 80g of rice vermicelli, cooked 6 sprigs coriander 18 mint leaves 3 limes, juice only

Put some hot water into a large bowl, take a sheet of rice paper and dip the sheet into the water to soften it. Place 2 half prawns horizontally and face down, about two-thirds of the way down the sheet. Top with red cabbage, carrot, noodles, coriander and mint, all aligned down the centre of the sheet. Garnish with the juice of half a lime. The roll should be about 2 inches in diameter, don’t overfill it or it will break. To form the roll, fold the sides into the centre over the filling. Then fold the bottom of the paper over and start rolling bottom to top. Tuck the filling under whilst rolling tightly. Serve with hoisin sauce.

BEEF PHO NOODLES

Serves 2 1l beef stock 1 large onion, quartered 2 thumb-sized pieces ginger 1 cinnamon stick 2 star anise 1tsp coriander seeds ½tsp cloves 1tsp palm sugar 1tbsp fish sauce 1½tbsp soy sauce 200g flat rice noodles 230g sirloin steak, sliced thin

Tip the beef stock along with 500ml of water into a large saucepan. Fry the onion and ginger in a frying pan over a high heat and char on all sides, before adding to the beef stock. In the same pan, toast the spices for 2-3 minutes and once they begin to smell fragrant, add them to the beef stock. Bring the stock to the boil, then simmer for 30 minutes before straining. Add the palm sugar, fish sauce and soy to the beef stock. Cook the noodles and split between two bowls, topping each with the sliced beef. Bring the stock to the boil and then pour into the bowls (the heat will cook the beef). Top each with a sprinkling of spring onions, chilli slices, Thai basil and coriander. Serve with lime wedges to squeeze over.