BLUE GINGER

Introduction

The first Vietnamese restaurant to open in India. Known for its attentive details to the cuisine and authentic interpretation of Vietnamese food, Blue Ginger brings a brand new experience of an unexplored land and culture to Bangalore. In Vietnam, Blue Ginger has hosted international celebrities ranging from President Clinton to other heads of state who patronize it for a true Vietnamese experience. Mr Oanh, the spokesperson for the Vietnamese chefs, Chef Loan and Chef Chuong says, the restaurant represents the people of Vietnam, and opens a stage for the two cultures to meet, an opportunity that may not have arisen otherwise.

This romantic Oriental tiled pavilion set amidst a pond became synonymous with “paradise” and evokes many emotional memories for Bangaloreans and visitors to the city. When Paradise Island, based on a similar structure of King Chulalongkorn’s palace wings, opened its doors in 1991, it offered the first taste of Thai food in all its regional nuances to the city. Blue Ginger continues the same tradition of offering an exotic Asian cuisine in an enchanting island with the bringing in of the Vietnamese Cuisine.

The restaurant has been refurbished with present day requirements and now incorporates:

· Show kitchen for a greater interactive experience; and an open bar counter.

· Interior designing done by David Winters.

· Mood lighting created by lighting expert, Mr Tony Corbett.

· Three musicians from Vietnam who perform live.

· Fire-torches for mood lighting within the restaurant and in the water body.

· Landscaped gardens in keeping with South East Asian traditions by Mr Michael White.

· Solid teak flooring with exotic South-East-Asian inspired floor tiles as accents.

· A water hyacinth pool surrounding the dining experience.

· Designer Chairs made from Water hyacinths.

· Specially designed furniture reflective of the regional style with water-hyacinth fibre chairs, leather ottomans, dark silk furnishing, and natural stone tables.

· Commissioned tableware in Vietnamese blue and white by well-known design house

· Artifacts and hanging lanterns sourced from Vietnam.

· Bose speakers and portable audio- system for performances.

· Cascading natural stone waterfall, with an additional party area by the water body.

Fact File

Restaurant Name: Blue Ginger

Hotel Name: Taj West End, Bangalore

Timings:

Ø Lunch - 12.30 – 15:00 Hrs (14:45 last order)

Ø Dinner - 19:30 – 00.00 Hrs (23:45 last order)

Date of Opening: 20^th February 2004

Cuisine: Vietnamese

Covers in Restaurant: 102 covers

Crockery: Minh Longi (Vietnam)

Glassware: Schott zwiesel & Amber (Water Goblets) Germany.

Cutlery: Oneida (India)

Upholstery: Kian (Vietnam)

Blue Ginger Staffing Hierarchy:

Restaurant Manager/Assistant Restaurant Manager (1)

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Supervisors [Captains] (3) - Hostesses (1)

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Associates [Stewards] (6)

Best Dishes at Blue Ginger.

Appetizers :

Fresh Rice Paper Roll with Shrimp and Chicken

Fresh Rice Paper Roll with Tofu and Vegetables

Shrimp Paste on Sugar cane Stick.

Butter Garlic Soft Shell Crab

Squids in Tamarind Sauce.

Grilled Mushrooms.

Vegetables with sesame Lemongrass and chilly.

Soups

Rice Noodle Soup with Vegetables/Tenderloin/Pork/ Chicken.(PHO)

Asparagus Crab Meat Soup.

Prawn Lemongrass soup.

Corn and Chicken Soup.

Salads

Raw Mango Salad

Raw Papaya Salad.

Lotus Stem and Cucumber Salad.

Main Course

Stir Fried Greens Garlic

Grilled Egg Plant with Basil/Scallion Sauce.

Grilled Lobster with sate sauce.

Stir fried Prawns with Tamarind sauce

Stewed Lamb Shanks

Stir fried Chicken with Lemongrass and chilly.

Rice/ Noodles

Steamed Sticky rice with Chicken/Vegetables.

Steamed Rice with Vegetables/ Chicken topping.

Pan fried Noodles with Vegetables/chicken.

Glass Noodles with vegetables/Crab Meat.

Dessert

Coconut Caramel Custard

Coffee and Chocolate Mousse.

Mung Bean Ice cream.

Vietnamese Cuisine

Vietnamese cuisine has been coming into its own in the world food scope with its reputation as a diverse, healthy, light and aromatic cuisine. Emphasis on fresh ingredients - vegetables, herbs, wheat and legumes, meat and seafood, minimal use of oil, and a blend and contrast of textures and flavors has earned Vietnamese food its reputation. No meal is complete without fresh vegetables and herbs, and a key platter on every table consists of cucumbers, bean threads, slices of hot pepper, and sprigs of basil, coriander, mint and related herbs found abundantly in South-East Asian markets.

History and geography has shaped Vietnam’s cuisine like any other. Its long, slender shape follows the coast from the southern delta to the mountainous north. Geographically, it consists of two great fertile river deltas separated by a belt of mountains. The Vietnamese describe their country as two great rice baskets hung on either end of a carrying pole! Surrounding Hanoi in the north is the Red River Delta, providing rice for North Vietnam; while the fertile Mekong Delta centered by

Ho Chi Minh City, formerly Saigon produces rice, vegetables and fruit for itself and Vietnam’s central region.

In the South, dishes reflect Indian influences; foods tend to include more chilies, herbs and spices – a result of their year- long availability and the region’s location on the crossroads of trade. It also has an abundance of seafood which is reflected in the cuisine. The North has fewer herbs and less favorable growing conditions, and hearty stews and soups are comforting in the harsher climate. The classic Pho bo beef soup is a native of this area. Due to its proximity to the Chinese border, it reflects more Chinese influence with its reliance on stir-frying and soy sauce. Central Vietnam, centered around the ancient imperial city of Hue, displays a sophisticated and complex royal cuisine with specialties like pork sausages and fancy rice cakes.

Vietnamese food is a historical blend that incorporates the food and styles of cooking of its former rulers. From the Chinese, they have learnt the use of chopsticks, wok and stir- fries, from Mongolia; it has incorporated beef, and from the French, developed a love of bread, butter and coffee. At Blue Ginger, for example, curries would be served with French baguettes, as they are in Vietnam, reflecting the French influence on dietary patterns. However, despite its colonized past, Vietnam retains its own distinct character. Essentially there are five sauces to flavor food – fish sauce (nouc mam), bean sauce, spicy lemon-grass sauce, Soya-lime sauce and ginger-lime sauce, with occasional additions like plum sauce. However, most sauces are served separately, instead of smothering the main ingredients allowing diners to control the flavors individually on the table. Other flavoring agents are ginger, lemon-grass and garlic.

Our Vietnamese chefs, Mr Quon from Central Vietnam and Mr Dong from Northern Vietnam have been specially trained by Blue Ginger in the State run Institute of Hospitality and Tourism, Vietnam. They, together with the talented musicians will bring Vietnam alive right in the heart of Bangalore!

VIETNAMESE CUISINE (part no 3)

Accompaniments: steamed rice and French baguette bread

Stir fried lamb or pork with lemongrass and chili

Slices of lamb/ pork stir fried with onions and bell peppers with lemon grass and dry chilli flakes. It is highly flavoured with lemongrass and is mildly spicy.

Preparation time: 20 minutes

Accompaniments: steamed rice

Stir fried tenderloin or pork in sate sauce

Slices of tenderloin/ pork stir fried with onions and bell peppers in a sate sauce. It is mildly spicy.

Preparation time: 20 minutes

Accompaniments: steamed rice

Stir fried tenderloin with trio of peppers

Slices of tenderloin stir fried with onions and bell peppers in a mildly spicy sauce.

Preparation time: 20 minutes

Accompaniments: steamed rice

Stir fried tenderloin with asparagus and mushroom in chili bean sauce

Slices of tenderloin stir fried with asparagus and button mushrooms in a chilli bean sauce. It is mildly spicy.

Preparation time: 20 minutes

Accompaniments: steamed rice

Stewed tenderloin in salted lime

Slices of tenderloin slowly cooked in a stew of salted lime. The stew is mildly sour and spiced.

Preparation time: 20 minutes

Accompaniments: steamed rice

Mini tenderloin steak in Saigon style with hot pepper sauce

Small sized portions of tenderloin steaks marinated in Saigon style and grilled. And topped off with a hot pepper sauce and garnished with fried onions.

Preparation time: 20 minutes

Accompaniments: steamed rice

Stir fried pork with bamboo shoot and mushroom in black bean sauce

Slices of pork stir fried with onions, bamboo shoots and button mushrooms in a black bean sauce. It is mildly spicy.

Preparation time: 20 minutes

Accompaniments: steamed rice

Stir fried pork in cari and scallion/ chili plum/ lemongrass and chili

Slices of pork stir fried with cari leaves and scallions. It is mildly spicy.

Or in a chilli plum sauce which is sweet and spicy or a lemongrass and chilli sauce which is spicy.

Preparation time: 20 minutes

Accompaniments: steamed rice

VEGETARIAN

Braised tofu and broccoli with black pepper and caramel sauce

Pieces of fried tofu and broccoli braised in a black pepper and caramel sauce.

It is mildly spiced.

Preparation time: 20 minutes

Accompaniments: steamed rice

Stir fried French beans and mushroom in halong sauce

French beans and mushroom stir fried in a sweet and mildly spiced sauce called halong sauce made from lemongrass, oyster sauce, jaggery, chillies.

Preparation time: 20 minutes

Accompaniments: steamed rice

Grilled eggplant with scallion and garlic sauce

Whole eggplant grilled and de skinned and topped with a scallion and garlic sauce.

This dish is very mild in flavour and should not be recommended to Indians who enjoy spicy food with lots of flavour.

Preparation time: 20 minutes

Accompaniments: steamed rice

Steamed tofu stuffed with vegetable mixture on glass noodle in yellow bean sauce

Mushrooms stuffed with a vegetable mixture flavoured with garlic and scallions, steamed on a bed of glass noodles and topped off with a very light yellow bean sauce. It is very mildly flavoured.

Preparation time: 20 minutes

Accompaniments: steamed rice

Stir fried haricot, oyster mushroom and broccoli in preserved bean curd sauce

Bulbs of broccoli stir fried with haricot beans and oyster mushroom in a preserved bean curd sauce. It has a strong fermented bean curd flavour and is non spicy.

Preparation time: 20 minutes

Accompaniments: steamed rice

Stir fried asparagus and baby corn in Saigon sauce

Asparagus and baby corn stir fried in a spicy Saigon sauce made with pounded chillies and garlic.

Preparation time: 20 minutes

Accompaniments: steamed rice

Stir fried broccoli, asparagus and baby corn with dry chili in black bean sauce

Bulbs of broccoli, asparagus and baby corn tossed with pounded dry chillies in a black bean sauce.

Preparation time: 20 minutes

Accompaniments: steamed rice

Stewed baby corn, baby carrot & asparagus in Saigon chili sauce

Baby corn, carrot and asparagus stewed in a spicy Saigon style sauce.

Preparation time: 20 minutes

Accompaniments: steamed rice

Baby carrot:

This member of the parsley family has lacy green foliage and long, slender, edible orange roots. Carrots have been renowned for over 2,000 years for their health-giving properties and high vitamin A content. They're available year-round, making them a highly popular vegetable. If buying carrots with their greenery, make sure the leaves are moist and bright green; the carrots should be firm and smooth. The best carrots are young and slender. Tiny baby carrots are very tender but, because of their lack of maturity, not as flavorful as their full-grown siblings.

Stewed tofu, mushroom and gluten in lemongrass chili yellow bean sauce

Tofu, mushroom and gluten stewed together in a lemongrass, chilli and yellow bean sauce.

It is slightly sweet and spiced with a strong lemongrass flavour.

Preparation time: 20 minutes

Accompaniments: steamed rice

Gluten:

Wheat and other cereals that are made into flour contain proteins, one of which is glutenin, commonly known as gluten . Viewed alone, gluten is a tough, elastic, grayish substance resembling chewing gum. It's the gluten in flour that, when dough is kneaded, helps hold in the gas bubbles formed by the leavening agent. Gas contained within dough or batter helps bread or other baked good rise, creating a light structure. Most (but not all) flours contain gluten in varying amounts. Bread (or hard wheat) flour has a high gluten content and is therefore good for yeast breads, which require an elastic framework. On the other hand, low-protein (and therefore low-gluten) cake flour has a softer, less elastic quality and is better suited for cakes.

Steamed tofu on glass noodle, wood ear mushroom in ginger onion yellow bean sauce

Pieces of fresh tofu on a bed of glass noodles with wood ear mushroom, in a ginger onion yellow bean sauce. It is very mildly spiced and sweet in flavour.

Preparation time: 20 minutes

Accompaniments: steamed rice

Wood ear mushroom:

A variety of mushroom also known as cloud ear, tree ear (the larger, thicker specimens) or silver ear (albinos). They have a slightly crunchy texture and delicate, almost bland flavor that more often than not absorbs the taste of the more strongly flavored ingredients with which they are cooked. They come in both fresh and dried varieties, the dried ones look like brownish-black, dried chips. Upon soaking in water they increase 5 to 6 times in size and resemble the shape of an ear. Wood ears are popular in STIR-FRIES and soups.

Lotus stem pancake with lemongrass chili or spicy tamarind sauce

Triangular paper thin slices of lotus stem deep fried until crisp and topped off with a lemongrass chilli which is spicy or a spicy and sweet tamarind sauce.

Preparation time: 20 minutes

Accompaniments: steamed rice

Stewed trio of mushroom with green pepper corn and caramel sauce

Oyster mushrooms, shitake mushrooms and button mushrooms stewed together in a green peppercorn and caramel sauce which is sweet and spicy in flavour.

Preparation time: 20 minutes

Accompaniments: steamed rice

Green pepper corn:

The green peppercorn is a soft, under ripe berry. It has a fresh flavor that's less pungent than the berry in its other forms. Black and white peppercorns are available whole, cracked and coarsely or finely ground. Whole peppercorns freshly ground with a pepper mill deliver more flavor than does pre-ground pepper, which loses its flavor fairly quickly. Whole dried peppercorns can be stored in a cool, dark place for about a year; ground pepper will keep its flavor for about 4 months.

Stir fried eggplant, bamboo shoot and tofu in sate sauce

Cubes of fried tofu, bamboo shoot and eggplant stir fried in a spicy sate sauce.

Preparation time: 20 minutes

Accompaniments: steamed rice

Baby corn, broccoli and bean curd in spicy red cari

A coconut based curry. It is moderately spicy and has a strong lemongrass flavour with baby corn, broccoli and bean curd with curry leaves. It is best accompanied with steamed rice or French baguette.

Preparation time: 20 minutes

Accompaniments: steamed rice or French baguette bread.

Shitake mushroom, sweet potato and eggplant yellow cari

A coconut based curry flavoured with spices. It is slightly sweet in taste due to the sweet potato. Cari with eggplant, sweet potato, shitake mushroom and curry leaves. It is best accompanied with steamed rice or French baguette.

Preparation time: 20 minutes

Accompaniments: steamed rice

Stir fried gluten in chili bean sauce

Cubed pieces of gluten stir fried with onions and bell peppers in a spicy chilli bean sauce.

Preparation time: 20 minutes

Accompaniments: steamed rice

Stir fried green vegetables with garlic

Assorted green vegetables such as pak choy, haricot, asparagus and broccoli stir fried in garlic.

It is bland and goes best as a side dish for any meats.

Preparation time: 20 minutes

Accompaniments: steamed rice

Steamed pak choy topped with shitake mushroom and sate sauce

Shitake mushrooms placed on a bed of pak choy, topped with a medium spicy sate sauce and steamed.

Preparation time: 20 minutes

Accompaniments: steamed rice.

GRILLS

VEGETARIAN

Grilled cottage cheese, okra and mushroom in preserved bean curd sauce

Assorted vegetables such as okra, cottage cheese and mushroom marinated in a preserved bean curd sauce and grilled.

Preparation time: 20 minutes

Accompaniments: steamed rice

Cottage cheese:
A fresh cheese made from whole, part-skimmed or skimmed cow's milk. It involves the addition of either an acidic element (lemon) or curd, to boiling milk. The cheese thus separates from the water and the resulting solid is cheese which needs to be drained. It has a rather mild (sometimes bland) flavor because the curds are washed to remove most of the cheese's natural acidity. The texture of cottage cheese is usually quite moist.

Grilled zucchini, squash and tofu in chili and preserved bean curd sauce

Assorted vegetables such as zucchini, squash and tofu in a chilli and preserved bean curd sauce.

It has a slightly spicy and fermented after taste.

Preparation time: 20 minutes

Accompaniments: steamed rice

Grilled cottage cheese and tofu in lemongrass and chili or dalat spices

Pieces of grilled cottage cheese and tofu marinated in lemongrass and chilli which is mildly spiced or in dalat spices which would be medium spicy.

Preparation time: 20 minutes

Accompaniments: steamed rice

Grilled okra and mushroom in Saigon chili marinade

Okra and mushroom marinated in Saigon chilli and grilled to perfection.

Preparation time: 20 minutes

Accompaniments: steamed rice

Assorted vegetable grills with lemongrass and chili marinade

Okra, mushroom, zucchini and tofu marinated in lemongrass and chilli and grilled to perfection.

Preparation time: 20 minutes

Accompaniments: steamed rice.

NON – VEGETARIAN

Grilled lobster in sate or halong sauce

Lobster marinated in sate (spicy) or halong sauce (sweet and spicy) and served in its shell.

It is a dry preparation.

Preparation time: 30 minutes

Accompaniments: steamed rice

Grilled prawns in lemongrass and chili marinade

Whole jumbo prawns marinated in lemongrass and chilli and grilled to perfection.

No. of pieces: 08

Preparation time: 20 minutes

Accompaniments: steamed rice

Grilled whole pomfret with Saigon and herb marinade/ halong sauce/ lemongrass and five spice

Whole pomfret marinated in Saigon and basil paste/ halong sauce/ lemongrass and five spice and grilled to perfection.

Preparation time: 45 minutes

Accompaniments: steamed rice

Five spice:

It is a seasoning in Chinese cuisine. It incorporates the five basic flavors of Chinese cooking — sweet, sour, bitter, savory, and salty. One common recipe includes tunghing or "Chinese cinnamon" (also known as rougui, the ground bark of the cassia tree, a close relative of true cinnamon), powdered cassia buds, powdered star anise and anise seed, ginger root, and ground cloves. Another recipe for the powder consists of huajiao (Sichuan pepper), bajiao (star anise), rougui (cassia), cloves, and fennel seeds. It is used in most recipes for Cantonese roasted duck, as well as beef stew. It is also used as a marinade for Vietnamese broiled chicken. The formulae are based on the Chinese philosophy of balancing the yin and yang in food.

Herb marinade:

Basil marination.

Grilled calamari in halong sauce

Calamari marinated in a mildly spiced halong sauce and grilled. It is a dry preparation.

No. of pieces: 12

Preparation time: 20 minutes

Accompaniments: steamed rice

Grilled chicken with basil in five spice

Boneless chicken marinated in basil and five spice and grilled to perfection. It is semi dry and very high in flavour and succulent.

Preparation time: 20 minutes

Accompaniments: steamed rice

Grilled chicken supreme in dalat spice/ orange honey/ lemongrass and chili/ preserved bean curd/ Saigon marinade

Boneless pieces of chicken marinated in dalat spice (medium spicy)/ orange honey (sweet)/ lemongrass and chilli/ preserved bean curd or Saigon marinade.

Preparation time: 20 minutes

Accompaniments: steamed rice

Dalat spice:

A marinade, consisting of four base ingredients. Basil, coriander, mint and chili. The resulting marinade is spicy and green in color.

Grilled New Zealand lamb chops in hoi sin and oyster sauce marinade

Lamb chops marinated in hoi sin and oyster sauce and grilled. It is a dry and slightly sweet preparation.

No. of pieces: 06

Preparation time: 20 minutes

Accompaniments: steamed rice

New Zealand lamb chops:

A chop of meat is a cut of meat cut perpendicularly to the spine, and usually containing a rib or part of a vertebra and served as an individual portion. The two main kinds of chop are pork and lamb, these being the most common.

A thin boneless chop, or one with only the rib bone, may be called a cutlet, though the difference is not always clear. The term "chop" is not usually used for beef, but a T-bone steak is essentially a loin chop, and a rib steak a rib chop.

Hoi sin:

Also called Peking sauce , this thick, reddish-brown sauce is sweet and spicy, and widely used in Chinese cooking. It's a mixture of soybeans, garlic, chili peppers and various spices. Hoi sin sauce is mainly used as a table condiment and as a flavoring agent for many meat, poultry and shellfish dishes.

Grilled tenderloin with tamarind and sesame oil

Tenderloin marinated in tamarind and sesame oil and grilled to perfection. It is slightly sweet and sour in flavour.

No. of pieces: 06

Preparation time: 20 minutes

Accompaniments: steamed rice

Sesame oil:

Expressed from SESAME SEED, sesame oil comes in two basic types. One is light in color and flavor and has a deliciously nutty nuance. It's excellent for everything from salad dressings to sautéing. The darker, Asian sesame oil has a much stronger flavor and fragrance and is used as a flavor accent for some Asian dishes. Sesame oil is high in polyunsaturated fats ranking fourth behind sunflower, soybean and corn oil. Its average SMOKE POINT is 420°F, making it excellent for frying.

Grilled tenderloin southern style or dalat spice

Grilled tenderloin marinated in southern style (sweet) or in a dalat spice (mildly spicy).

No. of pieces: 06

Preparation time: 20 minutes

Accompaniments: steamed rice

Southern style:

A marinade consisting of Garlic, light soya, sugar, salt and pepper.

Grilled pork chops in halong sauce or five spice and honey

Pork chops marinated in halong sauce or five spice and honey (sweet and spicy) and grilled to perfection.

No. of pieces: 06

Preparation time: 20 minutes

Accompaniments: steamed rice

Five spice rubbed pork chops with honey ginger glaze

Pork chops marinated in five spice with a final touch of honey and ginger (sweet and spicy) and grilled to perfection.

No. of pieces: 06

Preparation time: 20 minutes

Accompaniments: steamed rice

Grilled pork chops in lemongrass and chili marinade

Pork chops marinated in lemongrass and chilli (mildly spicy) and grilled to perfection.

No. of pieces: 06

Preparation time: 20 minutes

Accompaniments: steamed rice

RICE AND NOODLES

Stir fried vegetables/ scallop fried rice in sate sauce

Rice stir fried with vegetables/ scallop in a sate sauce. It would be a little spicy.

Preparation time: 20 minutes

Pan fried/ crispy/soft egg noodles with vegetables or mixed meat

Pan fried noodles as the base topped off with vegetables or mixed meat in a mildly flavoured sauce.

The noodles would be soft and crispy due to the pan frying of the noodles and due to the addition of the topping.

Preparation time: 20 minutes

Pan fried: soft egg noodles cooked and then pan fried so as to give it a crispy exterior.

Crispy: Broken threads of noodles deep fried until crisp.

Soft: Boiled egg noodles.

Egg noodles:

Mixed meat: chicken and lamb

Steamed sticky rice with vegetables or chicken and shitake mushroom

Sticky rice steamed and tossed with soy sauce, mixed vegetables/ chicken and mushroom. It is served wrapped in a lotus leaf and garnished with scallions.

Preparation time: 30 minutes

Sticky rice:

Glutinous rice is a type of short-grained Asian rice that is especially sticky when cooked. It is called glutinous in the sense of being glue-like or sticky and not in the sense of containing gluten. Glutinous rice does not contain dietary gluten (i.e. does not contain glutenin), and thus should be safe for gluten-free diets. What distinguishes it from other types of rice is having no (or negligible amounts of) amylose, and high amounts of amylopectin (those are the two components of starch). Amylopectin is responsible for the sticky quality of glutinous rice. The difference has been traced to a single mutation that was selected for by farmers

Stir fried rice with vegetables/ American corn and pineapple or crab meat/ mixed meat/ shrimp.

Steamed rice stir fried with vegetables/ American corn and pineapple or crab meat/ mixed meat.

Preparation time: 20 minutes

Steamed rice with vegetables/ chicken/ seafood and mushroom topping

Steamed rice served in a clay pot as the base topped off with vegetables/ chicken/ seafood and mushroom in a mildly flavoured sauce.

Preparation time: 20 minutes

Stir fried rice noodles with vegetables topped with plum sauce marinated grilled pork chops/ lamb chops/ chicken supreme

Soft rice noodles stir fried with vegetables and topped with your choice of plum sauce marinated meat.

Preparation time: 20 minutes

Stir fried rice noodles with vegetables in Saigon paste

Soft rice noodles stir fried with vegetables in a mildly spiced Saigon paste.

Preparation time: 20 minutes

Steamed rice vermicelli topped with vegetables and grilled tenderloin slices/ lamb chop/ pork chop

Steamed rice vermicelli noodles topped with vegetables and your choice of meat in a mildly spiced sauce.

Preparation time: 20 minutes

Sautéed glass noodles with vegetables/ crab meat

Glass noodles sautéed with vegetables/ egg and crab meat.

Preparation time: 20 minutes

BENTO MEAL:

It is a Vietnamese version of a Tiffin box with a variety of dishes. You start of with a soup, followed by starters and main course being served to you in small bowls arranged in a bento box. The main course would include rice, noodles, meat and vegetables. The perfect balanced meal. It is ideal for 2 people who want to try out a wider variety of dishes in smaller portions.

Bentō is a single-portion takeout or home-packed meal common in Japanese cuisine. A traditional bento consists of rice, fish or meat, and one or more cooked vegetables as a side dish. Containers range from disposable mass produced to hand crafted lacquerware.

DESSERT

Fried milk cake served with vanilla ice cream

No. of pieces:

Preparation time:

Accompaniments:

Fried milk cake:

Lemongrass scented coconut caramel custard

Preparation time: 6 minutes

Caramel custard:

It is custard consisting of eggs, sugar, vanilla and milk that has been baked in a caramel coated mold. When the chilled custard is turned out onto a serving plate it is automatically glazed and sauced with the caramel in the mold.

Seasonal homemade or diet ice cream

No. of scoops: 02

Preparation time: 6 minutes

Jelly with fresh fruits in sweetened milk

Cubed flavoured jelly with fresh cut fruits such as papaya and apple in sweetened milk.

Preparation time: 6 minutes

Choice of branded ice cream

Preparation time: 06 minutes

Chocolate coffee mousse

Preparation time: 06 minutes

Chocolate:

Chocolate comes from the tropical cocoa bean, Theobroma ("food of the gods") cacao. After the beans are removed from their pods they're fermented, dried, roasted and cracked, separating the nibs (which contain an average of 54 percent cocoa butter) from the shells. The nibs are ground to extract some of the COCOA BUTTER (a natural vegetable fat), leaving a thick, dark brown paste called chocolate liquor. Next, the chocolate liquor receives an initial refining. If additional cocoa butter is extracted from the chocolate liquor, the solid result is ground to produce unsweetened COCOA POWDER. If other ingredients are added (such as milk powder, sugar, etc.), the chocolate is refined again. The final step for most chocolate is conching, a process by which huge machines with rotating blades slowly blend the heated chocolate liquor, ridding it of residual moisture and volatile acids. The conching continues for 12 to 72 hours (depending on the type and quality of chocolate) while small amounts of cocoa butter and sometimes LECITHIN are added to give chocolate its voluptuously smooth texture.

Mousse:

A French term meaning "froth" or "foam," mousse is a rich, airy dish that can be either sweet or savory and hot or cold. Cold dessert mousses are usually made with fruit puree or a flavoring such as chocolate. Their fluffiness is due to the addition of whipped cream or beaten egg whites and they're often fortified with gelatin.

Black sesame banana beignets

Sliced banana tossed in a batter and fried until crisp on the outside dipped in sugarsyrup and honey and topped with black sesame seeds. Served hot with vanilla ice cream.

Preparation time: 15 minutes

Black sesame:

Sesame seeds grow widely in India and throughout the Orient. The seeds were brought to America by African slaves, and it subsequently became very popular in Southern cooking. These tiny, flat seeds come in shades of brown, red and black, but those most commonly found are a pale grayish-ivory. Sesame seed has a nutty, slightly sweet flavor that makes it versatile enough for use in baked goods such as breads, pastries, cakes and cookies.

Beignets:

A beignet , which is the French word for donut), in American English, refers to a pastry made from deep-fried dough and sprinkled with confectioner's sugar, is a kind of French doughnut.

Lemongrass and ginger crème brulee

Preparation time: 06 minutes

Accompaniments:

Crème brulee:

The literal translation of this rich dessert is "burnt cream." It describes chilled, stirred custard that, just before serving, is sprinkled with brown or granulated sugar. The sugar topping is quickly caramelized with a flame. The caramelized topping becomes brittle, creating a delicious flavor and textural contrast to the smooth, creamy custard beneath.

White chocolate passion fruit mousse

Preparation time: 06 minutes

White chocolate:

White chocolate is not true chocolate because it contains no chocolate liquor and, likewise, very little chocolate flavor. Instead, it's usually a mixture of sugar, cocoa butter, milk solids and vanilla.

Passion fruit:

This tropical fruit is said to be named not for the passionate propensity it promotes but because particular parts of the plant's flowers resemble different symbols of Christ's crucifixion, such as the crown of thorns. Though native to Brazil, passion fruit (also called granadilla ) is now also grown in Australia, California, Florida, Hawaii (where it's called lilikoi ) and New Zealand. The most common variety marketed in the United States is egg-shaped and about 3 inches long. When ripe, it has a dimpled, deep-purple skin and a soft, golden flesh generously punctuated with tiny, edible black seeds. The flavor is seductively sweet-tart and the fragrance tropical and perfumed.