Banh Mi Boys

Fried Chicken Bao

Banh Mi Boys serves an electic style of “sandwiches”. There are three styles (i) Banh mi (Vietnamese influence), (ii) Taco (Mexican origins) and (ii) Bao (Chinese style).* Each of these are available in various fillings influenced by a global palate, such as North American style barbecue, Japanese panko and French duck confit. They also offer Kimchi fries which is an Asian inspired take on Quebec’s famous poutine.

Grilled Pork Banh Mi

The bao style sandwiches are my favourite.  Recently, I had their fried chicken bao. SO good! The fried chicken was crispy on the outside and inside the meat was juicy and tender. Fresh, colourful, lightly pickled carrots and cucumbers accompanied the chicken. The bao itself was soft, chewy and slightly sweet.  This made for a delicious flavour and texture explosion in my mouth.  All their Baos are under five dollars. For lunch, ideally I like two!

*When they first started, the Taco style sandwiches were not available.

Spicy Baked Eggplant

• 2 eggplants, sliced 1/4 inch thick
• olive oil (enough to brush each side of each eggplant piece)
• sea salt
• chili sauce (enough to brush on one side of each eggplant piece)
• parsley or green onion to garnish

1. Preheat oven to 425ºC.
2. Evenly brush each eggplant on both sides with olive oil.
3. Gently salt each side of each eggplant piece.
4. Place eggplant on a lined baking sheet (single layer).
5. Bake for 25 minutes.
6. Brush chili sauce onto one side of each eggplant piece.
7. Put back into oven and bake for an additional 15 minutes.
8. Take out of the oven. Place on a serving plate and garnish with parsley or green onions.

This recipe is inspired by GOOP.

Stirred-Fried Rice Noodle with Thai Flavours

• 250g thin rice noodles, soaked in boiling hot water until soft (about 10 minutes), rinse well then drain
• 3 sprigs of green onion, thinnly sliced
• red pepper, thinnly sliced*
• mushrooms, thinnly sliced*
• 1 small onion, thinnly sliced
• 1 tsp of ginger, minced
• 2 cloves of garlic, minced
• firm tofu, cut into bite size pieces
• 100g chicken breast**, cut into pieces, coated with baking soda and corn starch (this keeps the chicken from getting dry and also helps make it a bit crisp)
• 1tbsp fish sauce
• 2tbsp soy suace
• salt
• juice of 1 lime
• 1 tbsps canola oil
• 2 eggs, beaten
• 1 tbsp chili sauce
• 1tsp sugar

*of course, add any vegetables you like, such as bean sprouts, zuchinni, snow peas, etc.  Cut all vegetables into similar sizes.

**omit chicken if you want to make this a vegetarian dish.

1. Add oil to a hot wok. Keep the heat hot during the following steps.
2. Add chicken. Cook chicken on one side for about 2 minutes, then flip and cook for another 2 minutes. Avoid constantly stirring the chicken as this will prevent it from getting crisp.
3. Add onions, garlic, ginger, peppers, mushroom. Add a small sprinkle of salt. Cook until vegetables soften.
4. Add tofu, fish sauce, soy sauce (1tbsp), chili sauce, sugar and half the lime juice.
5. Once the tofu is cooked, make a well and add in the beaten eggs.
6. Once the eggs are semi cooked, add in noodles and soy sauce (1tbsp).
7. Add a few tbsps of water if the noodles are stiff. Once the noodles are soft, turn off heat.
8. Remove wok from heat and add spring onions and remaining lime juice.
9. Mix well and serve.