This thit kho recipe is a braise so the meat is going to be reeeeally tender. You can use country style pork ribs but get the one with bones if you can find it. You can also use pork belly for this for a fattier broth with skin. Personally, only crispy skin moves me.

What you need:
-2.2 lbs. (1 kg) of country style pork ribs
-6 chicken eggs

-1/2 (6 oz.) can coconut soda
-1.5 tablespoons soy sauce
-1.5 tablespoons fish sauce
-2 teaspoons salt
-4 tablespoons sugar for the nuoc mau (caramel). This is add color and a hint of sweetness. Depending on how dark your sauce gets, you may not need all of it. If you don't want to make the nuoc mau, you can replace the soy sauce used with dark soy sauce for color.

Approximate prep time: 5 minutes
Approximate cook time: 2 hours 10 minutes

Get about 2-3 quarts of water boiling on high heat. You want enough to cover the pork when it is added.

Cut the pork into about 1" x 1.5" (2.5cm x 3.8cm) pieces.

After the pot of water is at a boil, add the pork for about 1-2 minutes to clean it of impurities on high heat. We're not trying to cook it all the way through here. Then, pour out the water and clean the pork and pot under running water. Use your hands! Then, pour out all the water.

Add to the pot: 1/2 a can coconut soda, 1.5 tablespoons soy sauce, 1.5 tablespoons fish sauce, 2 teaspoons salt.

Then fill up the pot until the water just covers the meat. Return to the stove on high heat. When it hits a boil, lower to about 50% heat and set the timer for 2 hours. Make the Nuoc Mau (caramel) and add to the pot.

Next, boil the eggs.

When they are ready, remove the shells, cool, and poke the eggs all over with a fork. About 8 times on each egg.

When there are about 60 minutes left on the timer, add the eggs. Eventually we want the liquid to reduce to half of the original. So when the timer shows 15 minutes left and you have too much liquid, turn the heat up to concentrate it faster.

Serve with rice.

When I was a kid, I used to mash up the yolk and mix it with the rice, then add some broth. Well...nothing has changed except now I put loads of freshly ground pepper on top =].

A note on the seasoning for this thit kho recipe: you can tinker with the soy sauce, fish sauce, and salt after the liquid has finished reducing, adding more to fit your taste buds.

What you need:
4 tablespoons sugar (enough for my thit kho recipe)
1/2 cup of warm water
silicone spatula (I like that it's non stick, but you can use anything, really. Just don't scratch up your pan.)

What to do:
Add sugar to the pan on 50% heat. 50% is low enough to control the process, but we will jump to the caramel stage of sugar quickly, so stay on your feet!

Constantly stir the sugar so it heats evenly. It will begin to clump.

Not dark enough yet! It will start to take the color of caramel, but we want it a bit darker. For Thit Heo Kho (Vietnamese Braised Pork with Egg), we are adding this to a pot of about 1-2 quarts of water so the color will be diluted. If you are unfortunate to have an electric stove like me, you can lift the pan off the heat to slow down the cooking process a bit and continue to stir until it reaches the desired darkness. Otherwise, just turn your flame down towards the end.

When it gets darker than caramel and just starts to smoke, you are done. Add the warm water to the sugar to halt the cooking process and stir until the sugar dissolves.

I came back! and steered clear of the nigiri. Yum. See the original post.

Wafu of Japan's cozy little bar.

Baked oysters.

Dragon Balls

Baked Mussels

Crab and avocado. I love how simple this is.

Samurai Burrito. This was really good! It's essentially made of the same stuff the dragon balls are, but I like this better.

This is the only place I've had fried ice cream. An airy ice cream would be useless. Luckily, they use a rich ice cream thats still super hard once served.

*Oct. 23, 2009 update*
What can I say, I can't get enough of Wafu. Oh yeah and because the GF loves it too.

Crab and Avocado v2

Spicy Tuna Jalapeno. Stuffed into tiny peppers!

Fried Calamari

"Spicy Albacore Booster" - a nice light albacore roll. It came with a mayo sauce garnish. Yumm.

Wafu of Japan
320 Bristol St Ste G
Costa Mesa, CA 92626
(714) 641-7321

Have you ever wondered how beer is made? or what kind of starch you should use to thicken soups? or why some foods like bread and meat brown when cooked?

There is no single book I refer to more than On Food and Cooking: The Science and Lore of the Kitchen by Harold McGee. He's an American author who writes columns, magazine articles and books, and even consults for restaurants and manufacturers.

This is my food encyclopedia. The first time I heard of it was through one of Alton Brown's books. I was unaware of the impact McGee had on the food world at the time, and was constantly shocked as to how much I would notice "Harold McGee" after this.

It's chock-full of nerd with culture, history, and science. To give you an idea, the bread section begins with "the evolution of bread", breaks down the bread into its ingredients, explains gluten plasticity and elasticity, and even tells you what temperature yeasts should be for a sourdough starter. Then it goes into detail about doughnuts, batter foods, crepes, and everything within the realm of bread.

I like to just flip through this thing because it's so fascinating. It's still the book I grab first when I want to learn something about a food. Shirley Corriher comes in a close 2nd. What are your most reached for food books?

Let me start off by saying The Tulsa Rib Company is the BEST rib restaurant I've had been to. Its astounding how some rib restaurants survive with dried out and slathered up ribs. I'm not really sure where the "Tulsa" part of this establishment comes in (fake cred?), but it has its roots in catering events in Orange County.

Everything about TRC is modest. A modestly sized restaurant in a modest location in modest Orange (+ Tustin boder). The dining room probably seats 35-40 tops. I get a real cozy, family owned kinda feel from this place. Big plus.

Combo meals come with an option of some sides including tabouli or coleslaw, and... it doesn't really matter since you should get the corn muffin and creamed corn anyways. And the Tulsa potatoes. Excellent starters!

I usually order the same dishes here (shown above) and these guys don't mess around. Quality here is always spot on. Pork baby back ribs are cooked to perfection. The large portions of tender, fall-off-the-bone baby piggy meat come lightly sauced with some extra on the side.

Don't leave without having some Tulsa potatoes. These deep-fried delectable little wavies are delicious! Nothing like I've seen before. But I'm certain it's the savory result of a potato chip, a french fry, and a pillow mating.

Oh yeah, when you split a combo you get double the sides for about $4.50 or else don't ask for a split. If you want good ribs and BEER, I don't know of any other alternatives nearby. Bring the party to Tulsa Rib Co.

The Tulsa Rib Company
954 N. Tustin Ave.
Orange, CA 92867
(714) 633-3760 (restaurant)
(714) 538-7211 (catering)