10/06/2024
RIDICULOUSLY LONG POST
Three weeks in Vietnam and Cambodia and now five weeks later, I write from Vanuatu.
It's hard to imagine how much one can pack into three weeks.
I am still coming back down to earth from this incredible trip. A trip specifically designed for chefs. What more could I ask for?
Last year, I was fortunate enough to be part of The Festival of the Lamb in the Clare Valley and the association that put that together was “Chef Outta Water”. The creators of this group are Chef Chris Holen from Astoria, USA and Simon Millcock, from Mintaro, South Australia.
We were a group of 13, five of us were professional chefs and the remaining seven foodies, friends, and cameramen.
The chefs that were part of the group were:
Chris Holen (Astoria, USA) www.nekstevent.com Chef Chris Holen
Michael Brine (Townsville, QLD, Australia) www.atouchofsalt.com.au Michael Brine
Kristvin Ϸór (Iceland) www.nielsenrestaurant.is Kristvin Þór Gautason
Úlfar Darri Þórsson (Iceland) www.nielsenrestaurant.is Úlfar Darri Þórsson
Me (Vanuatu/Poland/Australia)
And friends that came along were:
Simon Millcock (Mintaro, South Australia) Simon Millcock
Li Meng (Adelaide, South Australia) Li Meng
Susan Winterbourne (Portland, USA) Susan Winterbourne
Jeff & Morgan Battisti (Astoria, USA) Jeff Battisti Morgan Lovell Battisti
Warren Weaver (Portland, USA) Warren Weaver
Sean Besso (Portland, USA) Sean Besso
John Plaszynski (South Australia) John Plaszynski
The group toured four countries Singapore, Vietnam, Cambodia and Malaysia. I couldn’t go to Singapore or Malaysia due to time constraints, so it was organized to meet the rest of the group in Danang, Vietnam. From the moment we met the group to our last goodbyes in Siem Riep, Cambodia, every day was an absolute joy.
We visited my favourite place on earth, Hoian and were lucky enough to do The Original Taste of Hoi An Food Tour - Vietnam (www.tasteofhoian.com Five hours, 45 dishes, with walks to and from different restaurants, food stalls, markets, food carts.
It was so meaningful to me because this was the third time I had done this tour. The great man, Neville Dean who established and had run the business, unfortunately passed away last year. I still get choked up, knowing that I will never experience his cheekiness and his gregarious nature. San, an incredible woman who has been with Neville since day one of the business, recognised me as we started the tour and when I said how sorry I was that Neville is no longer with us, we both started crying and hugging each other.
Some people can leave such a mark on other humans. It's beautiful.
Chef Outta Water’s organisation was remarkable. Tour guides, buses, lunches, snacks, dinners, entry tickets etc were all organised prior to us leaving our prospective countries.
In Hoian we did a bicycle tour with Local Buddy Tours through rice fields, gardens. We learnt how to make rice paper and rice noodles, grass mattresses, saw wood carvings being made, visited the night market.
Us five chefs were also there to connect with an organisation called STREETS Internationalternational. A hospitality education organisation that teaches orphaned, disadvantaged, trafficked, out-of-school young kids all there is to know about the culinary world. (www.streetsinternational.org)
14 month course that provides them with housing, food, living needs, they learn English, front of house and cooking skills. After they graduate, there's a 90%+ rate of the students acquiring very good jobs, with some eventually taking managerial roles in five-star hotels.
The students don't pay for any of their education. So therefore, fundraisers, volunteers are always welcomed. We were privileged to attend a class where we spoke about our own journeys as chefs. Afterwards there was a bit of a Q & A session. Although very shy to ask questions some did build up the courage to do so.
They asked questions such as:
What do you like about Vietnam?
What foods do you like here?
How do you deal with stress in the kitchen?
How do you cope as a female in the kitchen?
Towards the end it became a very interactive and fun way to spend a morning.
That afternoon, our group were invited to be the students and the students be the teachers!
They taught to make rice paper, and then all the different types of noodles! It was so good! I loved listening to them speak because you could tell they had been practising like you would remember a poem or a song! A couple stumbled so they had to start from the beginning because that's how they remembered what to say.
It made our hearts full.
A few afternoons and evenings we could do our own thing so of course it was time to get some clothes made! (That is what Hoian is famous for; their tailoring service).
And of course, there's only ever one place to go and that's to Se Se Tailor! And why? Because a beautiful family owns that shop and in the three times I have been to Vietnam, I have formed a beautiful friendship with the whole family and especially with Suong Huynhnh Suong. She is like my sister from a Vietnamese mister. Had the privilege of having dinner in their home last time I was in Vietnam.
So, as you can imagine to see the whole family, was an absolute delight. We couldn't wipe the smile of our faces. We went out to dinner in a fantastic restaurant, with both her children and her sister. Oh my goodness I am in love with her kids!! They are so adorable.
I am trying to work out a way to bring them for a holiday to Australia. It must happen one day!!
I also had some clothes made, three pairs of linen shorts and couple of tops. She did such an amazing job on them. Thank You Se Se!
Hoian is a place like no other. At times it feels like a movie set. I must admit, there were a lot more tourists than two years ago. At times this can get overwhelming and so when that happens there's always meandering alleyway to hide into! This is what the magic of Hoian is. It's mysterious, colourful, interesting, historical and above all, it's filled with beautiful, local people.
I always feel at home when I am there.
Our next destination was Hue. The trip from Hoian to Hue is approximately 3.5 hours and we travelled there in a very comfortable bus. Once there we were privileged to be under the guidance of two incredible tour guides. Bích Duu who was informative, knowledgeable and well versed. And also Đại Quâni Quân, who was like a walking encyclopedia when it came to the history of his country.
Young, passionate people, social, respectful, and eager to show us their city.
My goodness this city is steeped in history. We made an early morning venture to see the Citadel, which lays on 520 hectares of land. It served as the capital of the Nguyen Dynasty, the last feudal dynasty in Vietnam, from 1802 to 1945. Temples, pagodas, mosaics, carvings, garden grounds, baths and very long pathways.
Weather-wise it was an extremely hot day so even walking was at times challenging.
However, we all persevered because the history was so much more important than how we were feeling.
In saying that I felt so sorry for the Icelandic Chefs. They had never experienced such heat and I think it was very hard for them. If we were struggling than imagine how much they would have hurt!
Everyone was such a sport though and we made up the effects of the heat by getting stuck into some local cold beers! My goodness, they tasted good after that heat!
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Of course, having such guides, allowed us to eat in amazing places. One of those places was Bánh Khoái Family Restaurant. They only serve two dishes.
A rice pancake dish and a grilled pork dish.
The first one was a crunchy rice paper sheet topped with slice of roast pork, slice of pork meat loaf, a prawn, bean sprouts, small piece of egg omelette and a quail egg. Herbs, pickled daikon & carrot, green mango strips and chilli sauce were all on the side to top your rice paper as you saw fit.
The second dish was pork mince wrapped around a lemongrass stalk and grilled. You placed this on rice paper, topped with whatever sides you liked, wrapped, and then dipped into a peanut/satay style sauce that was strong in black pepper flavour.
This was insane. I could have eaten about 20 of these. I think per person the entire meal worked out to be about A$7.00 each. And that includes the 29 beers we drank as a group!
After spending a couple of nights in Hue our next destination was Siem Reap, Cambodia.
A bucket list destination, Angkor Wat was the next day's itinerary. However, to see it in its very best splendour, the wakeup call was 3am and we were to be on the bus at 4:30 sharp. Why so early? To see the iconic temple at sunrise, where it feels like the sun is born from this incredible building. It's also a good idea to get there that early because you are guaranteed of a front row vista of the amazing phenomenon.
The colours of the sky as the sun rose! Oh my goodness!! Words, pictures cannot even begin to describe the sheer beauty of it all. It felt like magic. It felt like a rebirth of something new and wonderful. I couldn't help and stare and ponder about the beauty of this world, the wonder of our earth. It certainly humbled the mind.
The amount of photos I took was nuts! But you couldn't help yourself, it was almost like every minute it looked slightly different as the sun was slowly coming up.
When it finally rose and the daylight was in full swing, we started to explore. With another wonderful guide, Mr Samuth, we were able to learn the history, the meaning, and the stories behind Angkor Wat.
Pure astonishment how humans back then could create something so beautiful. The carvings in the stone walls were out of this world. They did all this by hand! In some places there were very steep steps, one such a place was called heaven because climbing those extremely steep steps felt like you were going to heaven! If you are thinking of visiting Angkor Wat and are on the fence whether to go or not, do not hesitate for one second! You must come and see this place. It has left such a wonderful memory in my heart.
I can't wait to go back.
We also visited Bayon Temple where there are multitude of serene and smiling stone faces of The Buddha.
I should point out that at this point the weather was getting hotter and hotter. It ended up being about 42 C that day, and in the full sun it felt like 48.
Still, we had the famous Ta Prohm Temple to see next. This is where Tomb Raider the movie, with Angelina Jolie was filmed. This is a kids paradise for an adult. So many passages, so many rocks to jump over, stairs to climb, it was like an obstacle course but with history and unbelievable carvings! So much fun!
There were magnificent trees growing out of these ruins, the photos just don't do them justice. The carvings on these stones, the intricacies of the detail in them were surreal. I am glad I haven't seen Tomb Raider yet. When I watch it I will hopefully recognise some of the scenes for real!
Visiting these temples, the ruins, is so interesting and such a great day to spend the day. Even though it was so unbearably hot (our poor Icelandic chefs!) each and every one of us loved it so much. We were weary when we got back to the bus but happy that we could have experienced such an amazing part of the world.
That afternoon, we had a cooking class organised! But not just any cooking class!
Let me introduce you to an incredible young man that lives in Siem Reap. A fellow chef, called Mengly Mork, with the help of his gorgeous wife Puthea, his amazing Mom who had taught him so much, he runs a restaurant called PinakPou Restaurant. However, not only that. He is also involved with a culinary organisation called SPOONS Cambodia Organization, (& Spoons Café and Restaurant) who is run by an incredible woman called Sophany Mao. Like what we saw in Vietnam with Streets, Spoons is a culinary school for kids who can't afford higher education or who are disadvantaged at a young life. Everything is provided for them. Food, shelter, education, inspiration.
We were taken to Cooking School and had an opportunity to go out into the gardens to see how they grow their herbs, vegetables, and fruit. We were also completely blown over but their ant trees! Yes, there are these special trees that the red ants love and the ants are then harvested and eaten. They are normally caught by placing a plastic bag over a flexible plastic tube at the bottom end of the tube and then the top of the tube is placed in the tree and shaken. The ants fall down this tube and into the plastic bag.
They are then washed and used for culinary purposes.
I had my first try of a red ant by picking one up from the ground, giving it a bit of a squeeze and straight in the mouth. Once chewed it gives off a lemony flavour, similar to our green ants in Australia but perhaps just little more subtle.
When we returned to do the cooking class, we used a whole bunch of these ants to make a dressing for a beef stir-fry that included a paste made out of garlic, galangal, lemongrass, shallot, turmeric and kaffir lime leaves.
After crushing the ingredients in a mortar and pestle we mixed this paste with red and green capsicum, onion, carrot, and chicken breast slices. We fried the mixture in vegetable oil, once it started cooking, a gorgeous deep golden colour started to appear as the turmeric started releasing its oils.
Then we added fish sauce, sugar, salt, chicken powder and a little water to create a delicious sauce. We finished the mixture with thai basil that we picked just before.
We also made a beef stir fry which included a paste made out of the red ants! It was so delicious!
Our last dish was pre roasted chicken with a dipping sauce that we learnt to make. It consisted of lime juice, heaps of black pepper, salt and sugar, chicken powder.
I must say that SE Asian cuisine relies a lot on chicken powder or msg. It is something that is very much part of their lives. I know us Westerns might be a little put off by that, as we have always been told how "synthetic" msg is. Whatever is right or wrong, I see it like this: it's not every day that you would eat food like this, so just embrace it all while you are here and when you get back home, eat clean for a bit to help the body, if you see fit. Of course, If I lived in SE Asia I would probably be a lot more cautious of eating too much of it but that's another subject all together!
When the class finished and it was now starting to get dark, we all sat down and had a meal of the dishes we had made. About 20 students had come to help, and while we were all eating our meal Mengly talked about the importance of having schools such as Spoons, to promote and educate and strengthen the future prospects of young people.
We applauded the young people standing before us and I felt incredibly proud to be there in the same room as them. It was also amazing to be with fellow chefs from all over the world to share this very special moment.
However, if I thought I couldn't be prouder than at that point, you wait till I tell you about the next day!!!
Another very cool thing that happened was meeting two girls who would be joining us on our Cambodian adventure. One was a social media guru who was asked by Chef Mengly to Instagram, tiktok etc all that was happening during the charity gigs and another girl who lives and works as a language teacher in the capital Phnom Penh (and speaks fluent Cambodian). You will not believe where they were both from? Poland! Ola (IG and Paula (IG nicetoeatyou__). It was so fantastic to speak Polish in Cambodia! And they were such amazing, talent, lovely women. Friends for life!
So again, the following day, was a 3am wake up call as we had to be at PinakPou restaurant at 4:30.
Today was a BIG event! We had all been given our uniforms....
We were hosting a breakfast charity event. We were making Nom Bahn Jok, which is a very famous Cambodian dish made from rice noodles, all sorts of herbs, banana flower, lilly stems, bean sprouts, cucumber slices, long bean, sliced white cabbage, all drowned in a very complex fish and coconut broth. There were two types of broths, a red and a yellow one. The red consisted of a red chilli paste, fish broth and coconut milk.
The yellow was heavily based on lemongrass and turmeric, with fish broth and coconut milk.
Each was super delicious.
After finishing all the prep (with so many students helping too) some of us went to the front of the restaurant, right on the footpath where tables had been set up so we could start selling these dishes and at the same time raise some much-needed funds for the local children’s hospital. Some of the other chefs sold the dishes from the inside of the restaurant. Mengly being in the know with many of the locals, had even organised Cambodian television to film the event. We were on the 6pm news that night! There were photographers, food bloggers, and plenty of social media opportunities! DerDaily ដើរដេលី Bayon TV News
We even had the privilege of serving a whole group of local monks this meal. They offered their blessings on the day, and we thanked them with flowers and food.
It was truly humbling.
Then we all went via tuk tuks to the local hospital to officially hand over the charity money. They were so grateful for it all. Emotionally, it was quite overwhelming.
Our charity work though, did not end there! We had a big day the following day, so after the hospital, the five chefs congregated together at Spoons to have some lunch and to talk about the BIG charity dinner we were doing the following night.
This was the most important event on our tour calendar.
Before arriving to Cambodia we had each been given a course to cook for this charity dinner. Anyone that's anyone would be there and all to raise funds for Spoons.
So the plan was this:
Amuse bouche was created by Chef Mengly Mork, the appetizer by Executive Chef Keo Vuthy, all with the help of the students.
Amuse Bouche
Khmer Pomelo citrus salad, crispy coconut rice cake
Appetizer
Tonle Sap whitefish ceviche
(lemongrass, galangal, bell pepper, lime leaf, mint, long chilli, peanut, crispy jasmine rice, Khmer lime vinaigrette)
Entree (Chef Chris Holen (USA) and Chef Kristvin Ϸór (Iceland))
Seafood soup – seared scallop, shrimp, salt cured salmon, pickled fiddlehead fern, fish consommé
Main course (Chef Michael Brine (Aus) and Chef Judyta Slupnicki (Poland, Australia, Vanuatu))
Lamb rack, sweet potato pierogi, native pickles, macadamia nuts, brown butter jus
Dessert (Chef Úlfar Darri Þórsson (Iceland))
Crème caramel, fermented black sticky rice
We had one day to prepare so we had to sit down and have an efficient prep list.
We had come up with our dish before we got to Cambodia so most of our ingredients were already there except for fresh vegetables.
Michael and I were using Australian lamb (rack) and as saltbush grows in abundance where Michael is from, we thought it would be a great way to showcase Australia. He also brought macadamia nuts, which we used as a crumb to sprinkle on the lamb.
I, of course wanted to make something Polish but also an influence from Vanuatu so our dish was:
Australian saltbush lamb rack, sweet potato pierogi, macadamia crumb, native pickles, brown butter jus.
I had never made sweet potato pierogi but they turned out so delicious! We baked sweet potato (kumala in Vanuatu) on oven trays lined with rock salt and when they were tender the students helped scoop out the flesh of the potatoes into a big bowl. I had previously fried finely chopped brown onions in butter and oil, seasoned, cooled, and then added to the mix. I added a few splashes of garlic oil, salt, pepper, nutmeg and a little more of extra virgin olive oil. We gave that a good mix and then we had about 15 students all folding the pierogi. My goodness, 300 pierogi did not take very long when you have so many helpers!
Our prep day was very busy and we did not stop for a second. At the same time, I got to know quite a lot of students and even though their language was limited I felt like I was amongst family. I really loved being there. I love those kids. I've never known young people so eager to work and learn. Mind blowing.
I wish I could live in a world where all I would do is volunteer every day of my life for institutions like these.
Sok Kuntheary, who is one of the head chefs at Spoons, is probably one of the best chefs I have had the privilege to work with. Nothing was too hard, she was accommodating, willing to get out of her comfort zone, she had a graceful spring in her step, yet she worked so hard. I did not see her have a break for even five minutes. She just needed to get the job done and she did it triumphantly. Very inspiring.
My partner in crime for the dinner, Michael Brine was an absolute pleasure to work with. We gelled from the word go and we had so much fun making that dish! He too, was not afraid of hard work and did it with a constant smile on his face. I love working with Chefs like him. Makes such a huge difference. I don't care if I have to do 16-hour days, every day; if I get to be around chefs like him and Sok. There's no stress, yes there is always anxiousness because you want everything to be perfect but it's chefs of their calibre that bring the calmness in those situations. So, I salute you Chefs! Thank you for an experience I will never forget.
Once the meals were served and dinner was over, we had to put the big hats on and parade a bit for the camera. The Cambodian television was there too. We had photos with all the students, us chefs, the organisers, the volunteers, it was so awesome!
Needless to say, a few rounds of ice cold beers were on the cards that night, especially since it had reached around 42°C that day. Probably 50°+ in the kitchen! The word is, that in the time we were there, Cambodia had not experienced such heat in 170 years! Crazy!
Before we left to go back to the hotel, I went back again into the kitchen to say goodbye to all the students and chefs. What happened next was so unexpected and so touching that even while I'm writing this, I am tearing up.
As I entered the kitchen and said Thank You to them all, one of the young students came up to me and said "Teacher can I hug you please"? I said Of course! I hugged and hugged her. Then another student said the same thing, and then another. Before I knew it, I had a group of students just hugging me, all together. I was very overwhelmed with it all because I was not expecting that. Then one of the students said "Teacher can I kiss you?" I said of course! And as she kissed me on the cheek a roar of cheer came from the other students. Then they all wanted to kiss me. It took every part of me not to start crying right there and then. We all walked towards the back of the building where more students were sitting so we waved goodbye to them all and then again they all wanted to hug us. Then some of them started saying Teacher Teacher! We will miss you!
And when one of the students started crying, well that was me done. I too started crying, hugging everybody, not wanting to let go of their beautiful souls. What an emotional rollercoaster!
When we finally said our goodbyes and walked back to the hotel, we couldn't wipe the smiles from our faces. So many of these students have very little yet they made me feel like the richest person in the world. I will forever be grateful for those moments, for those amazing humans and for the incredible country that Cambodia is.
At this point our group was splitting up. We were staying in Cambodia for a couple of extra nights and the rest were going to explore Malaysia. There were teary goodbyes, we had grown so fond of each other that it was like leaving family. I will never ever forget the time we had together and I thank each and every one of you….Susan, Lee, Morgan, Jeff, Michael, Simon, Chris, Uli, Kris, Sean, Warren and John.
The time we did have left we visited the Floating Markets on Tonle Sap Lake, we witnessed silk making, silver platter carving, ate delicious food and even saw an acrobatic show – Phare, The Cambodian Circus - Siem Reap. It was simply amazing and should definitely be on your to-do list when you are next in Siem Riep.
Sadly, we had to say goodbye to Cambodia and our hearts were heavy with sadness that our time had come to an end there. Will definitely be coming back and perhaps next time, hiring motorbikes and doing the country on two wheels. I think it is very doable and would be so exciting. Like Vietnam, the charisma, warmth and friendliness is what makes this country standout. Can’t wait to do it all again!
Next stop was a 1.5 hour flight back to Saigon. Here we had three nights before I headed back. The aim was to stay in District 2. I had never stayed there before and in the last couple of years this district has become the place to be, in Saigon. The hype about this place has been all over social media, as it claims to be one of the biggest urban development areas in Southeast Asia. It has been said that it is to become the new central business district of Saigon. Once arriving in District 2 you forget you are in Vietnam. The skyscrapers are huge and so many of them. All apartment living. There are playgrounds, basketball courts, walkways, manicured gardens, starbucks, kfc, burger king, German, Egyptian, Chicago, Korean restaurants, bars and clubs that look like they are straight out of a magazine, European-style day spas, should I keep going? Or should I ask, where is Vietnam? It was hard to find amongst all these foreign establishments. District 2 didn’t wow me the way I wanted it to. It is unlikely that I would ever stay there again. Something was lacking and that something is what I love the most about Vietnam…the authenticity of whom they are as a nation. It was a bit sad to see the huge influence the Western world is having on Vietnam, especially in District 2.
However, I had wanted to do a food tour of Saigon and I had heard about an American chef who lives in Saigon and does these tours (Yes Chef, with Chad Kubanoff IG chefchadkubanoff. And we were very fortunate that he had a free spot on one of the nights we were there. We met Chad and his lovely wife Thuy in District 4 (they live in District 7) around 16:30 and the tour would run for four hours. Both of them seemed lovely and as we walked and talked Chad was asking us what kind of food we like to eat. I said I would love to try as many dishes as possible that Westerns don’t get an opportunity to try. After finding out that I too, was a chef I think the floodgates opened to the possibility of eating some interesting foods.
And oh my goodness did we eat! We had sauces I had never tried before, fishy soup broth that was out of this world, rice paper salad in a plastic bag, all sorts of fermented pork sausage, full flavoured coconut offal broth (lungs, pancreas, intestines) with the lightest and crispiest bread roll I’ve every eaten, many chilli sauces, rice milk drinks, corn milk drinks, jellies & dates in drinks, sweet teas, yoghurt drinks, a craze in Vietnam of mozzarella strip on a stick, bbq’d then dressed in condensed milk and milo. Say what? My reaction exactly! Even though very sweet it was actually pretty tasty. Another one that was a bit strange but somehow very delicious was a sweet “spring roll”, pancake-texture rice paper stuffed with coconut wafer biscuits, grated coconut, condensed milk, black sesame seeds and nuts. It is then rolled up like a spring roll and you’re ready to eat. I liked the different textures in there but again it was really too sweet for me. One of the best things was a “crepe” made out of squashed cooked rice – the cooked rice is squashed and thinly spread out onto a wok (which is over a live fire) until it is toasted on the underside and still white on the inside. This requires extreme skill because it is so easy to not only burn the rice if not quick enough but also very high chance of burning your hands. It was served with a simple chilli, spring onion, crispy pork crackling soy-style sauce with a soft-boiled egg in it. The idea is to break some of the rice pancake and dip it in the chili sauce. This dish has a huge historical meaning as during the Vietnam War this rice dish is all the people could afford to cook.
We were so full at the end of our tour. We found out so much about Vietnam from Chad and Thuy and it was such an unforgettable evening. It was supposed to finish at 20:30 but we didn’t say our goodbyes till at least 22:00! I think it’s safe to say we have found two lovely friends in Saigon!
We took couple of Grab (like Uber) motorbikes back to District 2. The traffic was nuts! But so much fun. I could have sat at the back of that bike for another hour at least!
So as my story finally comes to an end, I cannot begin to tell you how much I have loved this trip. The things that we were able to do as a group, to help others, will forever be in my heart as one of the best things I have done.
The people along the way that I have met, have left such a huge impact on me and I am so grateful that I could have learnt, seen, heard, smelt, touched so many wonderful things that this beautiful earth has given us. In particular, Thank You , you are one very very special human. I will always treasure our time together.
I’ve returned to Vanuatu re-energized, driven, excited, happy and above all more grateful for this wonderful world that we live in. Without human connections we have nothing. Thank You again for all those that I have met and for all the ones that I am still to meet! Life is beautiful.
Judyta Slupnicki
Travelling, working, eating throughout the world. It's a chef's outlook
