My 90-Day Vegetarian Challenge Day 44

Today was just another one of those days where I was called to come to Hollywood Hills to pick up my niece and nephew to babysit. Since tomorrow is the celebration of my grandma's life and the remembrance of her passing. There was a party to prepare for one day in advance and so I dropped them off at my cousin's house where preparations were taken place. Of course there werent anything that I could eat other than going to Mix Bowl, a Thai restaurant in the area. I ordered the tofu Pad Thai which was not good at all, the fried tofu were over proportionate and spongy which I hate. I also got the papaya salad and took out the shrimp so it's a vegetarian dish, it's was a lot better than the pad Thai.

Just a few more days I'll be driving up to Seattle where I will be calling it home due to my new job I got.

-Timothy Pham

My 90-Day Vegetarian Challenge Day 43

Another one of those days that I did not eat until past mid day. I was over at my cousin's house to have several of my jeans hemmed. I decided to stop by Pho Ha again after going there yesterday for lunch. I ordered the same plate which was the egg and tofu fried rice with two extra sunny side up eggs. I've also got the shaken tofu with vermicelli which was saved later for dinner. I'm somewhat of a stubborn guy. If i find something I like, I will try to stick with it for a few days or until I get sick of it.

I must say that even with the ova-lact vegetarian diet, I'm having difficulties trying to eat and get away from eggs and tofu once in awhile.

-Timothy Pham

My 90-Day Vegetarian Challenge Day 42

ipomoea aquatica (rau muong)

Credits to Theo Eva for the photo

"In Vietnam, ipomoea aquatica (known as rau muống) once served as a staple vegetable of the poor. In the south, the stems are julienned into thin strips and eaten with many kinds of noodles. It is used as a garnish as well. Ipomoea aquatica has become a common ingredient of Vietnamese cuisine." - Wiki

By far this is my favorite vegetable. I grew up eating this and I have honed the skill to prepare it just like how my mother. The thing that I love about rau muong is that it can be prepared and served in many different ways. You can stir fry it with meat, tofu or just by itself with some garlic or it can be used to make a variety of different soups and salads.

Tonight I took my mom over to one of her best friend's house to visit while waiting to pick another one of her best friends at LAX. Of course, my mom is still on the vegetarian diet for several more days. So her friend whipped up some vegetarian dishes. One of those were stir fry rau muong with garlic and tofu. I didn't bring my camera with me so I couldn't get you all a picture. I have been craving for rau muong ever since I started this challenge and finally today I was able to have it. With my normal diet, I would dip rau muong in fish sauce but instead she had out chili bean curds with soy sauce, mash them all together to dip in. It couldn't get any more traditional than that.

-Timothy Pham

My 90-Day Vegetarian Challenge Day 41

Tofu is not good, it's REALLY good!

Anyhow, has it been 41 days already? It seems like yesterday was the first day of this challenge. Looking at how the days have gone by so fast, I think I should not have any difficulties finishing this challenge. I'm enjoying the food I'm eating for the most part. Tofu has become my best friend. So this morning I went out with my mom and two aunts to Pho Ha, a Vietnamese pho restaurant that my entire Pham family has been dining there for the last 20 years. People here know us including the owner. So every time when I come here with my relatives, we get acknowledged. It was fun that all of us were eating vegetarian food. I had the egg fried rice while my mom and aunts had tofu dishes. The best dish was the shaken tofu (replacement of shaken beef). The distinct taste was butter with a special sauce that they add which makes the tofu bursts with an aromatic flavor in your mouth. This place has the reputation and loyalty from its customers. For dinner, I came over to one of my aunt's house where my mom is staying at to eat. It was simple, fried tofu cubes with stir fry edamame with spicy soy sauce. Thanks to my mom for plating the edamame because I was having trouble trying to work it.

-Timothy Pham

My 90-Day Vegetarian Challenge Day 40

Almost half way

Woke up this morning early and went to a local public library here in Ontario, Ca to reserve a study room for my Gallup phone interview. I was able to squeeze in a couple of hours prior to go over my notes and my answers to about 30 suspected questions that I wrote down. The phone interview was about an hour long and I felt that I did ok, the interviewer backed that up as well. All I'm waiting for is the person from Gallup forward my results and assessment to the company that I'm interviewing for.

With lack of energy in my system, I got home to my mom and aunt making a vegetarian vermicelli dish which I had made a month ago. I think the key to make this dish taste good is the soy sauce. High quality soy sauce is preferable, I believed my aunt used the Kikkoman sashimi & sushi soy sauce with a squeeze of lime and some red chili paste. Maggi on the other hand is a really high quality soy sauce brand as well, speaking from the one that is directly from France that sells around $22 for 1 pint. If you're looking to have soy sauce in your vegetarian dish, make sure to read the label for the ingredients on the back. Some of them use beef bones in powder form to make the sauce. In my case I have checked all of them and they seem to be free of animal product.

-Timothy Pham

My 90-Day Vegetarian Challenge Day 39

Woke up early to today and drove to the airport to pick up my mom. She's down here visiting the relatives and some friends. Turns out she's eating vegetarian food today so I stopped by one of her sister's in-law's house. My aunt had prepared some vegetarian dishes for her arrival. I had this sautéed vegetables that was really good. This mix included bitter melon, carrots, string beans, mushrooms, and bamboo shoots. I love anything stir fry or sautéed vegetables. Big day tomorrow I'm going to end this short.

-Timothy Pham

My 90-Day Vegetarian Challenge Day 38

Today is my lucky day!

After hours of spending at Starbucks sipping on my usual grande ice caramel macchiato studying for my Gallup interview. I decided to head over to Lee's Sandwiches in Chino, Ca to grab a vegetarian baguette for dinner. I took my place in line, ordered my baguette along with a side of flan. As soon I paid the cashier I heard this loud chime from the register. Looked confused, the cashier said "ooh look you're a winner!" You must be joking me right? I have never won anything by luck or chance. I looked at the customer right behind me and apologized to her for taking her place in line. I got my $5.29 back and on my receipt I kid you not, it says "winner ticket". I guess after all these months of visiting this Lee's Sandwiches in Chino, Ca and spent quite a few bucks on snacks. It's only fair that I became a winner and get appreciated. Imagine if I were to buy $30-40 worth of snacks here tonight. Would the cash register still pick me as a winner?

Their vegetarian baguette is really good. It is hard for me to describe what they put in there besides the usual vegetables fixing (cilantro, jalapeños, carrots, daikons, cucumbers). What seems to be an imitation of shredded pork had me give two thumbs up.

-Timothy Pham