Pho Van

There are few things in life that I love more than a big steaming bowl of good pho. Luckily for me, there is almost no cuisine more rampant in California than Asian food! Besides Mexican food, the most readily available international dishes come from the Far East, and there's no shortage of hole-in-the-wall markets and restaurants filled with the chattery talk of the AZN Persuasion.

There are delicate differences in each bowl of pho, and they aren't always completely obvious to the pho newbie. You should expect to get a small side dish of optional additives such as lime, bean sprouts, and perhaps jalapenos or some other leafy herb. Most of the time they come with meat, noodles, broth, and some leaves or small spring onions, but there's a world of difference in each bowl. I love a good seafood pho, but few things beat the thinly sliced beef pho standby. Pho Van on El Cajon Boulevard in City Heights had an extensive and surprisingly cheap menu filled with pho and noodle dishes. It was obvious that pho was the main focus and as we were the only palefaces in the place, that was a good sign from the start. I got the somewhat off-putting meatball pho, in which the meat was not actually identified, but delicious nonetheless. Ashton got the mother of seafood phos, and with squid, shrimp, and god knows what else swimming around in there it was a delight to the palate. The large unidentifiable white chunks were a complete, albeit delicious, mystery.



Do I think Pho Van had the best pho around? Probably not. Was it a damn good place with fast and cheap service? Hell yes! Mr. Vo's still holds the title for (thus far in my San Diego pho travels) best pho, but Pho Van's innovation and menu put it right up there.

Zucchini Garlic Soup with Prosciutto-Feta Grilled Cheese

I discovered this recipe at the Kitchn today and it sounded delicious. Monday has become something of "soup and sandwich" night for Artur and I, so it fit the bill. I started out by heading to Aldi and picking up the only two ingredients I didn't already have (and i am not one with a well
stocked pantry...): Zucchini and Onions (I usually have onions, actually..)

Then I went to work. I started out by melting a hunk of butter and sweating 9 cloves of chopped garlic and 4 sliced shallots until soft. (the recipe does call for onions, but as we walking europeans know.. toting a 3 kilo bag of onions along with the rest of the shopping can do a number on your muscles. So I sprung for the much smaller bag of shallots).

Then, I grabbed my oh-so-handy "cucumber cutter" and mandolined all six zucchinis into the pot. Flew by like a breeze.

I let those babies cook away under cover and, in the meantime, boiled water in my Wasserkocher and dissolved two cubes of chicken boilloin. I really wish they sold cans of chicken broth in Germany!! But these fancy schmancy organic cubes did the trick just as well.

Once the Zucchini was soft, I let everything simmer and mingle for about 15 minutes. The recipe calls for 45...but I was HUNGRY! Then off to the blender in three batches and voilà!

While the soup was simmering, I assembled my sandwiches by thawing whole wheat Toastbrot and slicing my delicious chunk of marinated feta from our neighborhood "middle eastern market" and combining yellow tomatoes and prociutto.

Then off into the pan! I grilled the sandwiches (butter side out, like any good grilled cheese deserves) until toasty and plated everything up. The soup got an extra dose of "crema di balsamico" (my absolute favorite easy gourmet condiment) and fresh chives and dill. Absolutely delicious.