continued from …. YUMMRAJ eating out in Vietnam – part 1

Meal 3 –

The next interesting encounter with food was at the canteen of a shoe factory. The system in good Export factories is that they serve tasty & healthy food to workers & Managers – Same menu for all, same canteen, everyone stands in a queue & collects plates, bowls & chopsticks. I had seen this in China as well & from my previous experience, this usually turns out to b authentic & good.

This time around it was no different.

Sticky rice was the cereal.

In the sides were tofu & minced meat curry, sauteed beef, something like a prawn tempura & a mixed vegetable curry with chicken.

Tofu is somewhat similar to paneer. So I was slightly surprised (with my Indian mind) to see a combination of tofu & minced meat. The tofu was melt in the mouth & the minced meat was perfect. The sauces & peppers added to the dish made it tangy. Interestingly the tofu & minced meat made an outstanding combination & hence a marvellous dish. Am thinking of trying this combo at home.

Sauteed Beef was just too good. I wonder how it was so soft & juicy. Sauteed lamb in India is seldom that good – as they tend to b chewy / dry. The red pepper stood out in terms of looks but did not really drive tears out of our eyes. I hardly get such a simple yet supertasty Asian food here in India.

The prawn tempura look-alike was excellent too. Fresh prawns batter fried. The batter was quite a bit more spiced up than the Japanese tempura – cannot get better……….. & we r talking about factory food!!!

Two sausage slices served along with the tempura were heavenly.

The mixed veggie with chicken dish was big chunks of potatoes , carrots & onions with chicken pieces. The chicken is eaten ‘with the skin’ here. I ave not yet been able to appreciate that taste in curries. Though in a peking duck kind of food I super love the crispy skin.

They also served a soup in the beginning & an amazing citrus fruit as dessert.

More stories coming up soon…………..watch out