These came by way of Kimmy N. of Connecticut, USA! Thanks again! It’s rare these days that a new Vietnamese variety crosses my desk – always welcome of course! I know there’s quite a few that I’m not getting which bums me out. Definitely would love to try more of them. I’ve tried a ton of them in the past, but going forward I’d like to do a lot more of these reviews.
Crab is something I’ve liked for a while, although there’s a specific part of the crab I haven’t quite understood yet. While in Malaysia, our hosts took us to a floating seafood restaurant. Fresh steamed crab, mallets, the whole 9 yards.
I was advised to try the crab roe – the crab eggs that can be scooped out of the shell in a particular area. How could I say no; I’m all about trying new things. This was the taste of the sea; deep, strong and just not at all to my liking. I asked people about whether they’d tried it before. Asian people I asked said ‘oh yeah – Asians love this taste.’
I feel that I need to try more of this and understand why. I love Spaghettios, pizza and cheeseburgers and have tried to shed the cursed Western palate and have had a great time trying to do this, but a couple tastes really have eluded me – crab roe and sea urchin. Time will tell. Let’s give this one sent by a reader a try!
Binh Tay Mi Hai Cua Artificial Crab Flavored Instant Noodles – Vietnam
Here’s the back of the package (click to enlarge). Looks to be meat free but check for yourself. To prepare, put noodles and seasonings in a bowl. Add 400ml boiling water and cover for 3 minutes. Finally, stir and enjoy!
The noodle block.
Soup base powder.
A granular powder with flecks of vegetable matter.
An oil sachet.
A seasoned oil.
Finished (click to enlarge). Added crab stick, Salad Cosmo mung bean sprouts, coriander, fried onion and chilli flake. I really liked this one. The noodle hydrate well in the 3 minutes of time ad have a soft tooth and a nice gauge. There’s a decent amount of them as well. The broth has a nice buttery sweet crabby kind of deal to it. I found that the oil sachet had just enough to give the broth a good body – but not overly oily. I see why my readers like this one! 4.0 out of 5.0 stars. EAN bar code 8934566000674.
Lemongrass, Ginger and Mint Vietnamese Cookbook: Classic Vietnamese Street Food Made at Home
