Vietnamese

Although I'm not Vietnamese, I grew up eating at plenty of the Vietnamese restaurants that surrounded my Houston neighborhood. But more than 20 years later, I have a confession: even for me, those menus — with their complicated spellings and manifold accent marks — can be pretty darn confusing!

But regardless of your familiarity with ethnic foods, absolutely don't let the foreign-looking ingredients and dishes deter you. Vietnamese food, which features everything from hearty sandwiches to noodle soups, is the ultimate comfort cuisine. Keep reading for a basic overview of some of our favorite dishes and the ingredients that comprise them.

To our delight, OnSugar blogger Fresh Tart has started a series on savory pancakes, and this week she made a scrumptious Vietnamese crepe.

Naturally gluten-free, bánh xèo are simple, savory crepes made from rice flour and coconut milk. Served warm and filled with cool, crisp vegetables, herbs, and drizzled with a spicy-salty sauce, they will blow your mind with flavor and texture achieved with very little effort.

Check out Fresh Tart for the recipe and even more savory pancake ideas! Love taking food photos? Submit yours to our Savory Sights group and we might just feature it!

What's for dinner? YumSugar member lauren decided the answer to that question is Spring rolls. Her healthy vegetable version found its way into the Savory Sights group in the YumSugar Community. Do you have an image of something delicious that you recently made or enjoyed? If so, be sure to upload it!Inspired by girlA's recipe, last night my husband and I made a delicious spring roll dinner. Yes it is time-consuming rolling up all of the spring rolls but well worth it. We made veggie spring rolls with rice noodles, avocado, carrots, bell pepper and bean sprouts! A little peanut sauce and also a secret concoction made by my husband of mirin, fish sauce and rice vinegar to add a little more zing. Spring rolls are the perfect summer dinner since they are light and full of flavor! Can't wait to make my next batch!

Traditionally, the classic Vietnamese sandwich that's known as banh mi has a pork filling. However, this clever update ditches the meat and replaces it with tofu, meaning the sandwich is vegetarian friendly. It's packed with tons of veggies and flavored with hot and soy sauces. It's a well-seasoned and provocative meal that's perfect for a night when you're on the go. It also doubles as a hearty lunch. Get the uncomplicated recipe when you read more

As it turns out, we're not the only ones who like to make our own Spring rolls. So does member orangek8, who posted this authentic recipe in our Kitchen Goddess group in the YumSugar Community.

This weekend, the theme for our Cooking Club was Tour of Asia. I was in charge of Vietnam, so I made Vietnamese Spring Rolls. It was my first time, but I've always wanted to try my hand at it! I adapted a recipe that I found on allrecipes.com.

To get the traditional Vietnamese recipe, read more.

This past weekend, San Francisco experienced a couple of the hottest days of the year. After a blistering morning walk around the city with out-of-town visitors, I invited my friends over for lunch. To keep things appropriately light, I served wine spritzers and made fresh Vietnamese-style Spring rolls.

Although they may look and sound labor-intensive, non-fried Spring rolls — or Summer rolls, as they're sometimes called — can make for an incredibly speedy meal. While this recipe calls for deli roast beef (an unusual filling for Spring rolls), you can use any protein you like; I later made rolls with roasted turkey, which tasted great as well. The versatility of the filling is part of the beauty of the dish. Learn how to roll your own when you read more