Vietnamese Menu Shopping List

Produce

2 underripe mangoes
1 small head Napa cabbage
5 medium carrots
1 English cucumber or 4 Persian cucumbers
1 bunch mint
1 bunch cilantro
1 bunch Thai or Italian basil
1 head garlic
2 Thai chiles or 1 serrano chile
6 scallions
One 2-inch piece ginger
2 limes

Protein

1 pound medium shell-on shrimp
One 1 1/2-pound flank steak

Specialty

2 baguettes
Sambal oelek (available at Asian markets, some supermarkets, and kalustyans.com)
Hoisin sauce
Vietnamese or Thai fish sauce (preferably Red Boat 40° N, available at surlatable.com)
Rice vinegar
6 ounces rice vermicelli (rice-stick noodles)
1 package spring-roll skins (banh trang; available at Asian markets and gourmetfoodworld.com)
One 20-ounce can lychees in heavy syrup
Domaine de Canton ginger liqueur (optional)
Sesame Willis Eagle sesame cookies (available at posharpstore.com)

Pantry

Roasted unsalted peanuts
Creamy peanut butter
Safflower oil
Tomato paste
Coarse salt
Black peppercorns
Granulated sugar

Prep Schedule

1 to 2 Weeks Before

Shop for pantry staples and look for items that may be hard to find (for sources, see Specialty list above).

2 Days Before

Shop for produce, beef, and shrimp.

Make peanut dipping sauce.

Prepare lychee juice and ginger syrup.

1 Day Before

Cook shrimp.

Soak and drain vermicelli.

Prep vegetables.

Make mango salad.

Make nuoc cham dipping sauce.

Buy baguettes.

The Day Of

Assemble platter of fixings for banh mi and summer rolls.

Crush ice in blender and return to freezer.

Just Before Guests Arrive

Grill beef and thread on skewers.

Cut and toast baguettes.

Bring dipping sauces to room temperature.

Get the Cool and Easy Vietnamese Menu