this last step is omitted, the noodles may become gluey.
Oyster sauce is a Chinese seasoning sauce that does not actually taste of oysters (and often doesn’t even contain them; check the label to see if you’re buying real oyster sauce and not “oyster-flavored” sauce) and has the ability to intensify the flavor of food. It is often splashed on to cooked vegetables, or added to marinades; it is more popular in areas with a large Chinese community.
Palm sugar is made from the boiled sap of several different types of palm, including the coconut and palmyra. The flavor can be like a mild butterscotch, similar to maple syrup, or quite strong, while the texture varies from soft palm sugar sold in jars and spooned out, to hard round cylinders and wide oval cakes. (The oval shape comes from the coconut shell into which the sugar syrup is poured to set.) Palm sugar is not as sweet as regular cane sugar and has a very pleasant aroma. Use soft brown sugar as a substitute, or if making palm sugar syrup, add a little maple syrup to the brown sugar syrup.
Pandanus leaf is a long wide blade; it is also called fragrant screwpine. The leaves grow up to about 20 in (50 cm) in length, but are often sold trimmed. Cooks throughout the region often rake a pandanus leaf with a fork, then tie it into a knot and add it to the pot when cooking rice; it adds a subtle fragrance that makes the rice taste like prized newly-harvested rice. Pandanus leaves are also used in some curries, but mainly in cakes and desserts. They can be deep-frozen. Pandanus essence is the best substitute.
Pickled ginger comprises slices of ginger pickled with salt and vinegar, either prepared at home, or bought in small amounts scooped out of big jars in local markets. Chinese and Japanese brands are usually readily available in Asian stores abroad. Pickled ginger is often shredded and added to sauces or salads.
Rice flour, made from plain rice and glutinous rice (sometimes labeled “sweet” or “sticky” rice flour, made from white glutinous rice) are both used in cakes and savories; they are not interchangeable.
Rice paddy herb, known as ngo om in Vietnam and ma om in Cambodia, is a distinctive herb with a fleshy pale stem with narrow light green leaves. It tastes a bit like very strong fresh coriander leaves (cilantro), which can be used as a substitute. Rice paddy herb is sometimes added to soups, served as part of a herb platter and also eaten with dips.
Rice paper wrappers is a wafer-thin disc made from a rice and water dough spread on woven bamboo trays to sun-dry (the disc retains the distinctive pattern of the tray when dried). Known in Vietnam as bahn trang, these discs are very brittle and need to be moistened in water to soften slightly before being used to roll up just about anything and everything Vietnamese. They are also filled and deep-fried to make the famous Vietnamese spring rolls. Packets of rice papers (often made in Thailand) are available in three forms: large discs about 8 in (20 cm) in diameter; smaller discs 5 to 6 in (12.5 to 15 cm) in diameter and wedges which have been cut from a large round rice paper. The last are preferable for making tiny deep-fried spring rolls. Advice on handling rice papers is given in recipes where these are required. They can be stored in a covered container in the cupboard for several months. Rice vinegar is mild and faintly fragrant and is the preferred vinegar throughout Southeast Asia. Inexpensive brands from China are usually readily available in the West (as well as in Southeast Asia). If buying a Japanese rice vinegar, make sure you do not buy what is labeled “sushi vinegar” as this has sweet rice wine, sugar and salt added. If you cannot obtain rice vinegar, use distilled white vinegar.
Sago, a starch extracted from the trunk of the sago palm, is sometimes eaten as a gluey staple in a few remote parts of Southeast Asia. However, it is more commonly dried to make tiny white balls known as dried pearl sago. These are not much bigger than a pin head and are mainly used in desserts and in a few soups. The balls soften and turn transparent when cooked and help thicken coconut milk or water with their gluey texture. Tapioca balls, made from the starch of the cassava root, are virtually indistinguishable in taste (there isn’t any!) and can be substituted for pearl sago. Some tapioca balls are the same size as pearl sago, although it is usually found in larger balls about the size of a tear drop.
Salam leaf is popular in Indonesian cooking. It is quite different to the Western bay leaf (or laurel), which is often incorrectly suggested as a substitute. Salam leaf grows on a large tree that is a member of the cassia family; it adds a distinctive aroma to food, even when used dried. If you can obtain fresh salam leaves, keep them in a bag in the freezer; otherwise, store dried leaves in an airtight container in the fridge for long keeping. There is no substitute for salam leaves.
Salted fish is a standby in many Southeast Asian homes. The type used in recipes in this book is thick fillets of salted fish, often sold as Mergui fish (named after the region in southern Burma reputed to produce some of the finest salted fish). Salted fish is not normally soaked before use; when thinly sliced and fried to a crisp, it makes a wonderful garnish (and, incidentally, a good substitute for crumbled bacon in Western salads).
Salted soybeans is richly flavored fermented soybean, known in Thailand by its Chinese name, dau jiao and in Vietnam as tuong cu da or tuong bac. The beans are fermented in thick liquid and sold in jars; they vary from dark brown to light golden in color and are sometimes labeled “yellow bean sauce.” The basic salted soybean paste contains only soybeans, water and salt. It is possible also to buy slightly sweetened versions, or those with added chili. The beans are usually mashed with the back of a spoon before being used.
Saw-tooth coriander, a long pungent blade with saw-tooth edges, tastes like a cross between coriander, mint and basil. It is known in Cambodia as chi bonla or chi ba-rang, prik chee farang in Thailand and ngo gai in Vietnam (elsewhere, it is sometimes referred to by its botanical name, eryngo). Sawtooth coriander is generally added to soups and served as part of a platter of fresh herbs with Vietnamese food. Fresh coriander leaves (cilantro) is the best substitute.
Sesame oil is made by extracting the oil from toasted sesame seeds, giving it a rich flavor and aroma that is lacking in Middle Eastern sesame oils, extracted from raw seeds. Sesame oil is used sparingly as a seasoning, not as a cooking medium. Look for a Chinese brand if possible.
Sesame seeds are tiny tear-drop shaped seeds, creamy white in color and rich in oil. In Southeast Asia (particularly Vietnam), they are generally toasted and used as a sprinkle on food, including desserts.
Shallots are small and purplish, each weighing about 1 /3 oz (10 g) and often preferred to larger onions for their sweetness and texture. If these are not available, the brown-skinned or “French” shallot (eschalot) can be substituted, taking into account any significant difference in size when measuring the quantity required for a recipe. Alternatively, use a red or brown skinned onion; a 3 to 3 1/2 oz (85–100 g) onion is roughly equivalent to eight shallots. In Vietnamese recipes, it’s fine to use the white portion of green onions (scallions) if shallots are not available. Shallots are frequently pounded and used to flavor and thicken sauces and curries, added raw to many salads and also deep-fried until crisp as a
