When Hai Le arrived in the United States at the age of 20, he brought along many memories of the restaurant his mother had in Vietnam for almost three decades. Six months ago, he brought those memories back to life when he opened Pho Kim’s at the corner of Bryan and Fitzhugh.
“I didn’t think people here knew what Vietnamese food really tastes like,” says Le, referring to the common local practice of mixing different kinds of Asian foods and spices – Chinese, Thai, etc.
“This is Vietnamese food.”
Daily specials include a variety of “hot pots” and treats such as green mussels in black bean sauce, a generous serving beautifully spiced and served with rice – order these as a meal rather than an appetizer, unless you’re dining with several mollusk-loving friends. The setting is casual (BYOB) but pristine – lots of light with washed pink walls and silk flowers. For information, call 214-821-1125.
IMPERIAL ROLLS (four servings)
The imperial rolls pictured above are accompanied by fried quail with green onion and butter.
2 oz. rice noodles
8-12 medium fresh shrimp
12 oz. boneless pork loin or 12 oz. boneless chicken breast
1 cup shredded lettuce
1 teaspoon sugar
8 12-inch rounds of edible rice paper (banh trang)
¼ c. mint leaves
16 chive sprigs, trimmed to 6 in. lengths
16-24 cilantro leaves
Fish sauce (nuoc cham)
Finely chopped roasted peanuts
Soak the noodles in warm water for 20 minutes. Drain. Boil the shrimp for three minutes. Drain, rinse with cold water, shell and cut in half lengthwise. Cook pork loin or chicken breast in boiling salted water for 20 minutes. Rinse under cold water and mince. Combine lettuce and sugar in bowl. Set aside 10 minutes. Moisten two rounds of rice paper at a time by spritzing with warm water and rubbing with your hand. Allow to stand on flat surface until softened. Place shredded lettuce over bottom third of each rice paper. Top with a tablespoon of noodles, a few pieces minced pork or chicken, and several mint leaves. Roll the paper up halfway into a cylinder. Fold the sides of the paper inward. Place two to three shrimp halves, cut side down, along crease. Tuck two chive sprigs under shrimp, so that about an inch will extend out of one end of the roll. Place two to three cilantro leaves next to the shrimp. Finish rolling the paper into a cylinder. Place completed roll on a plate covered with a damp towel while filling remaining wrappers. Serve with nuoc cham sauce sprinkled with peanuts.
NUOC CHAM SAUCE
Puree two cloves garlic, one seeded red chile and a tablespoon of sugar in a food processor or blender. Add two tablespoons lime juice, ¼ cup fish sauce (nuoc marn) and ¼ cup rice vinegar, blending well.
