One of the first American dish that my mom made after emigrating to the US from Vietnam was spaghetti. Since we didn’t know English, spaghetti sounded like superghetti and that’s what we have called this Vietnamese fusion pasta since then. My mom’s version of spaghetti has a lot of depth with traditional Vietnamese flavors, which takes this simple Italian American dish up a notch. It’s slightly savory, slightly sweet and filled with umami that makes it hard to just eat one serving.
Serving Size: 6 servings / Difficulty: Easy / Time: 30 minutes
Ingredients:
4 sausages of your choice
1 to 1.5 pounds of ground beef
1 jar (28 oz) of marinara sauce
2 cups of low sodium chicken stock
1 package (16 oz) of thin spaghetti or pasta of your choice
4 stalks of celery for about 1 and 1/2 cup diced celery. Peel the outer layer.
1/4 teaspoon of salt
2 tablespoons of sugar
1/4 teaspoon of ground black pepper
1 tablespoon of fish sauce
1/2 teaspoon of sesame oil
Yellow onion
- 3 tablespoons thinly sliced
- 1 cup of onion sliced approx. 2 inches width
OR just diced or cut the onion to your preference
Optional:
Tapioca starch water to thicken the sauce (2 tablespoons of tapioca starch mixed with 3 tablespoons of water. You can substitute tapioca starch with corn starch.)
Green onion for garnish
Directions:
Season the ground beef with 1 tablespoon of fish sauce, 2 tablespoons of sugar, 1/4 teaspoon of salt, 1/4 teaspoon of ground pepper and 2 tablespoons of sliced onion.
In a large pot, heat up 1 tablespoon of oil on medium high. Sautee 1 tablespoon of thinly sliced onion until translucent.
Add 4 sausages and brown evenly. This takes approximately 3 minutes. Remove from the pan and set aside.
Add the seasoned ground beef to the pan and brown the meat. Add a jar of marinara sauce. Mix well and let it come to a boil.
Once the marinara sauce starts to boil, add 2 cups of low sodium chicken stock.
While the sauce continues to cook, cut the sausage at a diagonal (it’s prettier to look at).
Peel the outer part of the celery and diced. This will give you approximately 1 and 1/2 cups.
Once the meat sauce reaches a roiling boil, add the sausages and turn the heat to simmer for 10 minutes.
After 10 minutes, add the celery and 1/2 teaspoon of sesame oil and simmer for another 2 minutes.
Next, add 1 cup of thickly sliced onion and tapioca starch water while stirring the sauce to thicken it. Let it simmer for another 3 minutes. Turn off the heat and serve.
Boil the spaghetti according to direction on the box.
- My mom likes to break the spaghetti in half before cooking the pasta to make it easier for kids to eat.
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La Vie Partagée 