Gang Jut Voom Sen
Spicy soup with cabbage, pork and bean verimicelli
Feeds 4-6
Note: Here in Thailand this dish is usually a main course served by itself or over rice and the portions above reflects this. Used as side dish it will feed considerably more.
In spite of the name this dish is not very spicy. Removing the red pepper powder from the recipe will not effect the taste very much; NamPla may be substituted for a lesser amount of Soy Sauce, also without effecting the taste very much. One thing I was not able to test was substituting "Angel Hair Pasta" for the "Bean Vermicelli" (Voon Sen), because pasta is very hard to find here, but excepting the change in texture, this also should make very little difference. Bean Vermicelli can be found in almost all Asian food shops and should be available in many regular supermarkets.
Ingredients
1 lbs. (appx. 1 1/2 cups) ground pork
6 oz. (2 packages) Bean Vermicelli
1/2 small head cabbage (appx. 5-6 cups chopped)
4 chicken bullion cubes or 2 cans chicken broth (up to 50 oz.)
2 pork bullion cubes
4 tbs. Nam Pla sauce or 3 tbs. Soy sauce
1 heaping tbs. Red Pepper powder
1/4 cup chopped spring (green) onions or shallots
1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley
3-4 cloves of garlic minced or pressed
Substitutions
Angel Hair pasta may be substituted for the Bean Vermicelli, however Bean Vermicelli absorbs a lot of water as it cooks and pasta does not. For this reason if you use pasta for this dish you will need to reduce the amount of water used below (2 liters instead of 2 1/2) and increase the amount of pasta to 8 ounces. Cook the pasta and drain thoroughly, but do not rinse with water (stops the cooking process). Add the pasta to the boiling water (see below) after about 10 minutes.
Preperation
Take the ground pork and form into small round balls about 1/2 to 3/4 inches across.
Take the Bean Vermicelli and soak it in cold water 5 - 10 minutes
Chop the cabbage into medium size pieces.
In a large pot bring 2 1/2 liters of water to a fast boil, if you are using chicken broth deduct the same amount from the water used. Add the NamPla, bullion cubes, red pepper powder, garlic and pork balls, reduce heat slightly and boil for 15 minutes. Reduce heat to minimum and add the Bean Vermicelli and cabbage. Remove from heat after 2-3 minutes and add the green onions and parsley. Let stand 10-15 minutes then serve immediately.
Note: Leftovers may be refrigerated up to 24 hrs or frozen (thaw first before reheating). Reheat over low heat or in a microwave, being sure sufficient water is present to cover the vermicelli during reheating and stir frequently to avoid burning.
Copyright 2001 / 2544 Dave Harris
Last Updated: 2 December 2001 / 2544
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