Ooh La La Du Du!

Com Tam

La Du Du in north west London is a Vietnamese restaurant clearly proud of its roots. The menu informed me that La Du Du means papaya leaf in Vietnamese. And did you know, proclaims a sign on the wall, that Vietnam is the second largest exporter of coffee in the world? Frankly, I didn't - and I'm not sure I needed to but hey ho!

We chose a range of starters: the cha gio (or spring rolls) were deep fried, stuffed with crispy pork, prawns and lettuce. Quite delicious but a smidgeon too oily; I actually wiped mine on a napkin before eating - and it left a massive smear. The muc don thit - stuffed baby calamari - were less familiar but much more tasty, plump with filling that spilled generously when you cut into it. Finallly, to refresh the palate, our final sharing starter was summer rolls (goi cuon) - rice paper wraps enfolding pork, prawns, vermicelli, cucumber, lettuce, coriander and mint. These were light and genuinely reminiscent of summer, setting a high standard for the main course to follow.
From the wide range of entrees, my companion opted for the com tam - pan fried marinated pork chops served with shredded pork skin with roasted rice powder, steamed crabmeat cake with a fried egg on top. Oh and don't forget the mountain of rice that accompanied the dish. And yes it was as mountainous as it sounds. My companion actually considered asking for a doggy bag! While the pork was lovely and tender, the shredded pork skin was disturbingly gelatinous and floppy and we just didn't like it. The crab cake was a real treat though - meaty and fresh and beautifully seasoned. I had the com da ga gion - twice cooked marinated crispy skin chicken with tomato rice. Although this was a bit more usual shall we say, the portion was equally garguantuan and I only ate about half of it, which was a shame as it was delicious - like the best roast chicken you've ever had at a family dinner on a Friday night.

By this point, we were so stuffed that we couldn't even contemplate dessert but we agreed that La Du Du would be a great first date venue as the food provided enough talking points to keep even the most nervous suitor articulate, while the prices were reasonable and the restaurant itself sophisticated enough without being too formal.

Learn more or make a reservation via www.ladudu.com

Plaintain two ways with mojito

Viva la Revolucion!

When you think of Cuba, you think of 1950's American cars, beautiful sandy beaches, honeymoons and salsa dancing. Food doesn't really come into it. What is Cuban cuisine? Anyone?

At Cubana - which is right next to Waterloo train station in London - I had the chance to find out. Doubling up as a music venue, this cosy restaurant required other guests to stand up so that we could get to our table. As the syncopated rhythms played in this colourful environment, troubles seemed to melt away as we perused the menu.

Pincho de gamas y mango

From some typically Caribbean fare such as fried plaintain and rice and peas, one sensed that the chefs had, like us, struggled to identify what Cuban food actually is, as we also choose chicken breast in tempura batter.

Perhaps this is because, as I later learned from a friend, the economic situation of Cuba means that there is inconsistent produce availability: one week the shops and restaurants serve chicken; the next week, they have only pork. As a result, it's difficult to nail down a typical Cuban meal. Even the tourist venues are not immune. That is slowly changing as international relations improve but for now, it remains an issue.

Croquetas de boniato y chorizo

In Cubana, however, the politics seemed a world away. Sipping from our happy hour jug of mojito, we munched on plaintain two ways: crispy chips and sweetly caramelised fried plaintain drizzled with lime to give it a bit of bite. To follow, we sampled the barbecued skewer of pincho de gambas y mango: grilled prawn kebabs with green peppers and mango marinated in a sweet sauce of guava, ginger, honey and lime.

My favourite dish, however, was the croquetas de boniato y chorizo con salsa: fried sweet potato croquettes mixed with chorizo. These are simply unmissable and it was worth going just for them as far as I'm concerned!

Cubana

As the evening wore on, the bar area started to get busier and eventually, the tables are cleared to make way for the expert salsa dancing we amateurishly imitated. The ambience was friendly, though, and we enjoyed every moment.

For a fun evening of food, drink and dance under one roof - or even if the weather permits, in the outside area - this is a great place to try. I have noticed that Cubana frequently hosts events such as a charity fundraiser for Children of the Andes as well as a salsa carnival; it's a lively, colourful and friendly place so come on down and bring your friends!

Find out more at http://www.cubana.co.uk/

A Jamaican/Nigerian Celebration

OK so it's not haute cuisine, and I didn't make it myself. But as I imagine most people have limited exposure to West African and Caribbean food, I figured the unusual and exotic nature of it might generate some curiosity.

I recently went to the wedding of a Nigerian/Jamaican couple. With over 200 of their extended family present, many of whom had travelled from the Caribbean and Africa, the event was by turns joyous, serious and humorous. But what did we eat? I hear you cry. The short answer is - a lot of food! Always a good start!

Although I live in London, righfully proud of being one of the cosmpolitan, multi-cultural capitals of the world, I have not eaten a lot of this kind of food so I was determined to try a bit of everthing.

From spicy curry goat (which was ever so slightly tough and chewy but instantly forgiven as it's also very tasty), I moved to caramelised, squishy sweet fried plaintain. Can you tell I adore plaintain?!

There were also two types of rice, which is typically fairly bland in the UK - but not here!
The traditional starchy, well-seasoned Jamaican rice and peas (despite the name, I've only ever seen it as rice and kidney beans although apparentlly the dish refers to any combination of rice and legume - anyone who knows why it's always called rice and peas regardless, please let me know!) was the more familiar. (see picture below)

However, I opted for the less well-known Nigerian Jollof rice (see picture above), which I am reliably informed was appropriated from neighboroughing Ghana (although are African national boundaries just a Western construct? A conversation for another time in another place...), and is also known as benachin, meaning "one pot" in the Wolof language. It is now a popular dish in many parts of West Africa, spread by the members of the Wolof ethnic group.

There are many variations of Jollof rice. The most common basic ingredients are rice, tomatoes and tomato paste, onion, salt, and red pepper. It is cooked by using oil to fry finely-chopped onions, tomatoes and ground pepper, combining with stock and cooking the rice in the stock so it becomes plump and flavoursome. The rice takes on a characteristic orange colour from the mixture.

There was also a choice of chicken: falling-off-the-bone chicken stew,made with thyme, garlic, pimento, scotch bonnet pepper and chicken stock or blackened Jamaican jerk chicken. Neither really need any further description except to say that the jerk had me reaching for my water glass! Almost tipped the balance from pleasantly tingly sensation into I-think-I've-just-killed-my-tastebuds - but not quite! I loved it!

There was also a Jamaica vs. Nigeria battle of the fish. Faced with a choice between Nigerian fish stew (fish seasoned with herbs and cooked with peppers, chilli, onions and tomatoes) or Jamaican Run Down (a mild fish curry cooked with herbs, spices and simmered in coconut milk), of course I had to try them both! I couldn't tell the type of fish used, except to say I suspect it was a white fish of more local origin, the sweet, delicate coconut milk won the day for me.

Overall verdict: spicy, sweet, robust. It's not fine dining, but it was a solid, satisfying and healthy meal and I can't wait to try it again.