Banana flower braised with pepper, tomatoes, and galangal is a braised dish that is very rustic, appearing quite often in Vietnamese family meals. With its unique and familiar flavor, it would be a pity if your family hasn’t had the chance to enjoy it yet. Today, let’s get cooking and showcase our skills in making this incredibly appealing dish.
1. Braised Banana Flower with Pepper
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Preparation
20 minutes
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Cooking
15 minutes
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Difficulty
Easy
Ingredients for Braised Banana Flower with Pepper Serves 2
Banana flower 2 pieces (300gr) Shallot 1 clove Chili 2 pieces Lemon 1 piece Soy sauce 3 teaspoons Vegetarian seasoning 1 teaspoon Common spices a little (pepper/ sugar/ salt/ monosodium glutamate)
Ingredients Image
How to Cook Braised Banana Flower with Pepper
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Prepare the Ingredients
First, to prepare the banana flower, remove the old outer layers, cut it into 4 pieces, and soak it in a mixture of lemon juice and water for about 10 minutes.
Tip: To prevent the banana flower from turning black, soak it immediately in the lemon juice mixture after cutting.Wash the banana flower thoroughly and chop it into small pieces. Remove the stems from the chili peppers, wash them clean, and then slice them thinly.
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Marinate the banana flower
To marinate the banana flower, add 1/3 teaspoon of monosodium glutamate, 1/2 teaspoon of salt, 3 teaspoons of soy sauce, 2 teaspoons of sugar, 1/2 teaspoon of vegetarian seasoning, 1/2 teaspoon of pepper with 1/2 of the chopped onion.
Mix well and marinate the banana flower for 10 minutes.
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Banana Blossom Stew
Put a pot on the stove, add 1 tablespoon of cooking oil and 1 teaspoon of sugar, adjust to low heat and stir well until the sugar turns brown and caramelizes, then add the banana blossom.
Stir well and then add about 300ml of water, cook for 5 minutes. After 5 minutes, add 1/2 teaspoon of salt, 1/2 teaspoon of vegetarian seasoning, and 2 teaspoons of sugar, and continue to stew for another 3 minutes.
After 3 minutes, when the stew thickens, taste and adjust the seasoning to your family’s preference, sprinkle some scallions on top and turn off the heat.
To make the dish more fragrant and appealing, you can sprinkle a little soy sauce and chili on top.
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Final Product
The banana blossom stew after completion has a delightful aroma, the banana blossom is soft and fully infused with the spices, making it extremely tasty and very appealing.
You can enjoy this stir-fry dish with hot rice, which will be a perfect match and is sure to be a favorite dish for your family.
2. Banana Flower Stew with Tomatoes
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Preparation
15 minutes
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Cooking
20 minutes
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Difficulty
Easy
Ingredients for Banana Flower Stew with Tomatoes Serves 2
Banana flower 1 piece (400gr) Tomatoes 3 pieces Chili peppers 2 pieces Green onions 3 stalks Sugar 1 tablespoon Vegetarian seasoning 2 teaspoons Cooking oil 1 tablespoon Vegetarian fish sauce 1 tablespoon
How to Choose Fresh Tomatoes
- You should choose bright, shiny red tomatoes.
- Prioritize tomatoes that still have fresh green stems, tightly attached to the tomato body.
- Avoid choosing fruits that are bruised or have many unusual black spots on the surface.
How to Cook Banana Flower Stew with Tomatoes
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Prepare the Ingredients
Wash the banana flower thoroughly, cut it in half, then boil it for about 10 minutes. After 10 minutes, take it out and let it drain in a basket.
Tip: To prevent the banana flower from turning black, add a little lemon juice to the boiling water.Tomatoes wash clean, cut off the stem and then dice. After that, put them in a blender and puree.
Green onions cut off the yellow leaves and roots, wash clean and chop small.
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Make the Tomato Sauce
Place a pan on the stove, add 1 tablespoon of cooking oil, wait for the oil to heat up, then add green onions and chili. Next, add all the pureed tomatoes, season with 1 tablespoon of sugar, 2 teaspoons of vegetarian seasoning, and 1 tablespoon of vegetarian fish sauce.
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Banana Flower Stew
Boil for about 5 minutes until the sauce thickens and starts to boil, then gradually add the boiled banana flower and continue to stew on low heat.
After 15 minutes, the sauce will have reduced and the banana flower will be cooked; taste and adjust the seasoning to suit your family’s preference, then sprinkle some chopped green onions on top and turn off the heat.
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Final Product
The banana flower stew is incredibly appealing, with the banana flower soft and infused with spices and a rich sauce that is very fragrant. This is a very easy dish to prepare, suitable for vegetarian meals, helping your family to refresh their taste.
3. Ginger Banana Flower Stew
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Preparation
20 minutes
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Cooking
35 minutes
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Difficulty
Easy
Ingredients for Cooking Banana Flower with Galangal Serves 2 people
Young banana flower 300 gr Chicken thigh mushrooms 100 gr Galangal 100 gr Chili 1 piece Sugar 2 tablespoons Vegetarian seasoning 2 tablespoons Soy sauce 1 tablespoon Vegetarian fish sauce 2 tablespoons
How to Choose Fresh Ingredients
How to choose fresh chicken thigh mushrooms
- You should choose mushrooms that are bright in color, about 15cm long, as these are still slightly young but ensure good taste.
- The mushroom caps should be a light brown and shiny; choose those with intact caps, not bruised or broken.
- At the same time, they should feel firm in hand, not too soft and spongy inside.
How to choose fresh galangal
- You should select galangal roots that have few branches.
- Good galangal roots have a tight skin and are slightly muddy.
- Fresh galangal roots will feel very firm in hand, slightly hard, and when squeezed, they should not be soft or mushy.
How to Cook Banana Flower with Galangal
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Preparing the banana flower
To prevent the banana flower from turning black during preparation, boil a pot of water with a bit of salt. Once the water boils, add the banana flower and cook for about 20 minutes, then remove and soak in a bowl of cold water for another 20 minutes.
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Prepare the remaining ingredients
Clean the chicken thigh mushrooms thoroughly, then slice them diagonally into thin pieces.
Use a brush to scrub the dirt off the ginger skin, then slice it thinly.
Remove the stems from the chili peppers, wash them clean, and then cut them in half.
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Stew the banana flowers
Before stewing, take a pot and place the sliced ginger at the bottom of the pot. Next, layer the banana flowers on top and intersperse the mushrooms in the gaps of the banana flowers.
Season with 2 tablespoons of vegetarian seasoning, 2 tablespoons of vegetarian fish sauce, 1 tablespoon of caramel sauce, and 2 tablespoons of sugar.
Then, place the pot on the stove, add enough water to cover the surface of the banana flowers, place the chilies on top, adjust to medium heat, and stew for 30 minutes.
After 30 minutes, taste the stew and adjust the seasoning to suit your family’s preference, then turn off the heat.
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Final Product
Banana flower braised with galangal has a very unique flavor, salty, sweet, and fragrant with a strong aroma of galangal. If you are a fan of dishes made from galangal, this is a braised dish you cannot miss.
How to choose fresh and delicious banana flowers
- You should choose those banana flowers that are intact, not damaged or bruised.
- Fresh and delicious banana flowers usually have a bright red color, and the surface will have a layer of white powder.
- If you can hold them, you should choose fresh banana clusters that feel firm in hand, and when squeezed, they are hard, not soft or spongy.
With detailed instructions for 3 dishes of braised banana flower with pepper, eggplant and galangal that are incredibly simple yet appealing, you will surely make your family members swoon. Be quick to save the recipe and show off your skills right away.
*Refer to the recipes and images from the YouTube channel TÚ LÊ MIỀN TÂY, Bà Mẹ Quê and Diệu Pháp Âm.
