Enjoying a light and refreshing meal during Tet (Lunar New Year)

These dishes share a common advantage: they are light yet nutritious and appealing to the taste buds.

During Tet (Vietnamese Lunar New Year), not only at your home but everywhere you go, you'll find many dishes rich in protein and fat. If you don't want to lose weight or increase your cholesterol, try changing your menu with these light and healthy dishes, as guided by Ms. Do Kim Trung, a women's affairs consultant at the Vietnam Youth Union. Light yet nutritious and appealing to the taste buds are the common advantages of these dishes.

Wraps

Not only can you enjoy this dish at home, but you can also prepare it in advance to serve to guests. It's sure to be a hit. It's very simple; you just need to gather ingredients you already have at home to make these spring rolls.

Ingredients include: various fresh vegetables (lettuce, herbs), pickled shallots (thinly sliced ​​for better taste), pickled carrots and radishes, shrimp, meat (cut into bite-sized pieces); cooked and drained dried rice noodles, and rice paper wrappers. Combine the ingredients and roll into bite-sized, attractive rolls. Once rolled, place them in a plastic container with a tight-fitting lid and store in the refrigerator's vegetable compartment.

The dipping sauce can also be prepared in advance as follows: Combine fermented soybean paste with peanut butter, coconut milk, and young coconut water in a blender and blend until smooth. Then, cook on the stove and season to taste, adding a little cornstarch dissolved in cold water while cooking. The dipping sauce can be stored in the refrigerator for two days.

For those who don't like chili sauce, you can make your own dipping sauce by: Mixing two tablespoons of lemon juice, two tablespoons of sugar, 1-2 tablespoons of fish sauce, and four tablespoons of cooled boiled water. Finely chop garlic and chili peppers. Keep the garlic and chili mixture in separate containers; freeze the garlic and chili mixture and refrigerate the fish sauce mixture. When ready to eat, combine the two to make a complete dipping sauce.

Mushroom spring rolls

Finely chop the mushrooms, taro, wood ear mushrooms, and mash the bean sprouts; stir-fry this mixture briefly over high heat, and when almost cooked, add the vermicelli noodles, season to taste, and drain. Wrap this mixture in rice paper, and you can add steamed mung beans (optional). Store in the freezer; when ready to eat, take it out and fry until golden brown. It can be used throughout the Tet holiday month.

Cucumber salad

Remove the seeds from the cucumbers, slice them thinly (about 3mm thick), and mix with sugar (about 250g sugar for 1kg of cucumbers). Refrigerate until the cucumbers release some liquid, then drain well. Add vinegar (fermented) or lemon juice (adjust the sourness to your liking), sesame seeds, peanuts, shrimp, meat, and Vietnamese coriander. Prepare the dipping sauce for the salad according to the instructions above.

Chicken with mushrooms/bamboo shoots

Cut the chicken into bite-sized pieces and marinate with spices. Wash the shiitake mushrooms, soak them until softened, and reserve the soaking water. Sauté the chicken and mushrooms, add baby corn and carrots (cut into bite-sized pieces), and let them simmer for a while to absorb the flavors. Add coconut water (or boiled water), and the mushroom soaking water, then cook until tender. Keep the stems of the cilantro, wash them, tie them together, and add them to the chicken broth to enhance the aroma.

Chicken can also be stewed with dried bamboo shoots, which is very delicious and not at all bland. Soak and wash the dried bamboo shoots, tear them into bite-sized pieces, stir-fry them, and season to taste; chop the chicken into pieces, marinate it, and stir-fry it. Put the chicken and bamboo shoots into a pot and cook until they are tender and evenly seasoned. Add the soaked and washed wood ear mushrooms. Both ingredients can be frozen after stir-frying. When ready to eat, mix them together and cook until tender.

Snakehead fish can be used in hot pot or stew.

It's best to buy snakehead fish locally, watching them clean it to ensure freshness. Simply add seasonings and knead until smooth, then roll into balls. Prepare the broth beforehand. When serving, add the fish balls and bitter melon. If making a fish stew, add tomatoes and dill. For a more sour broth, add tamarind or star fruit.

Beef with onions

Cut the beef into bite-sized pieces, stir-fry until cooked through, season with spices, and let cool. Slice the onions thinly, stir-fry briefly, or marinate in vinegar and sugar, then mix with the vinaigrette dressing.

To make the vinaigrette dressing: mix one cup of vinegar with salt and sugar (to taste), 1-2 washed and finely chopped shallots, and 3 tablespoons of olive oil. Mix the beef with the shallots, add lettuce and cilantro, and you have a nutritious and delicious salad.

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