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I was excited to see a recipe from Charles Phan of the Slanted Door in the Sept. issue of Food & Wine. I love Asian cuisine but I usually find it difficult to prepare at home. This dish on the other hand was extremely easy to make. One of the main ingredients was fish sauce. When Mike cracked open the bottle he made a funny face. This was our first time cooking with fish sauce and we were a bit worried about its pungent smell but it ended up tasting fantastic. After we finished eating Mike said, “I would make this again in a heartbeat.” It was that good. The sauce was sweet yet peppery and the cilantro gave it a fresh punch. Next time we fix this I might throw in some bean sprouts.
Tasty Tip: Make a little extra sauce – Mike and I had to duel over who would get the last spoonful!
Filed under: Main Dish, RECIPES | Tagged: asian, Caramelized Black Pepper Chicken, charles phan, cooking, food, food & wine magazine, RECIPES, slanted door |
Bay Area Foodie 
I have enjoyed eating at the Slanted Door on my trips to San Francisco, though I do believe it is overrated. You can get better and cheaper Vietnamese food in Chinatown.
That said, I made this recipe yesterday and it was easy and excellent. Perhaps just a bit too sweet, but you can cut down on the sugar a bit.
Most “carmelized” Vietnamese recipes have you first make a simple syrup, enhance it with fish sauce and then cook it down until it turns brown and carmel-ie. This recipe’s method doesn’t get you exactly the same result, tastewise, but is so much easier.
Thanks for the link.
Liz
No prob. Glad you liked it.