The Aulacese (Vietnamese)… they use herbs differently. […] Let me tell you a little about how to use them in general. If you don’t use herbs the right way, they won’t taste so good. […] For example, the vegan ham you gave me today should go with that herb, but you gave me the other instead. They don’t go well together. And there are some herbs that you can’t eat raw. They don’t taste good raw. That’s all – not good at all.
(Hallo, Master.) Wow! Such big working team. Where from? (Taichung.) Taichung. (Yes.) (All from Taichung.) Taichung. (Taichung.) And the others? (We are all from Taichung.) All of you are from Taichung? (Yes.) (Yes, it’s Taichung’s turn to work in the kitchen.) Is that so? (Yes.) Wow! So many people are needed for us to have food to eat! Thank you for your hard work. But it was easier today, wasn’t it? (Right.) It was a bit more urgent the day before yesterday – kind of pressing. Are you OK? (Yes.) I love you. (Thank You, Master.) Being able to have one look is good enough. (OK.) The Taiwanese (Formosans) see me often. (OK. Yes.) Master still has work to do. Otherwise, I could have stayed for dinner.
You guys cook well. Everyone says it’s delicious. (Thank You, Master.) Sometimes I leave a lot of food on the plate. It’s not because I don’t like your cooking. It’s just that sometimes I don’t feel like eating. It’s not that your cooking is not good. They were all praising you. You’re really good. They said, “Yum-yum! Delicious! Delicious!” Even my assistants said so. And foreigners said the same thing. I was worried that they wouldn’t get used to it. Because we are Chinese, and we’re in a remote place. We cook simply. That’s why I worried the Western assistants might not be used to it. But it turned out that even they said, “Wow! It’s pretty tasty! Delicious!” “Yum-yum!” Like that. Every day they said so. That made me very happy. Thank you very much.
The Aulacese (Vietnamese)… they use herbs differently. The way you use them is not quite right. Are there different herbs in the fridge now? Yes? (Yes.) Take them out, and I’ll show you. (Herbs. Go get the herbs.) Let me tell you a little about how to use them in general. If you don’t use herbs the right way, they won’t taste so good. (OK.) It’s my fault. I didn’t have time to tell you how. It’s not your fault. You Taiwanese (Formosans) don’t use herbs that often. But I saw you bought them, and you gave me some now and then. Yet you didn’t really use them the right way. Understand? For example, the vegan ham you gave me today should go with that herb, but you gave me the other instead. They don’t go well together. And there are some herbs that you can’t eat raw. They don’t taste good raw. That’s all – not good at all.
That’s not the only one. There are so many different kinds, not just one. Bring out whatever you have. You’ve only got those two kinds? OK, OK. Come, come! Give me whatever you have. Not many today, OK. Ah! Peppermint, OK. This one goes well with… (Peppermint.) Peppermint. This one will more or less go with anything, sort of. (Vegan) spring rolls… not (vegan) spring rolls. (Vegan) spring rolls are… not those deep-fried (vegan) rolls, but the raw ones. Those go well with it. ([Vegan] summer rolls.) (Vegan) summer rolls. Yes, they’ll go with this one, not that one. (Oh.) This one, this one. OK? (Vegan) spring rolls, (vegan) summer rolls. OK. Understand? (Understand.) It’ll also go with salads. Don’t put this one in this salad. (OK.)
This one goes well with… this one tastes best. This one tastes best. That Aulacese (Vietnamese) stuff, the white (vegan) ham, do you know it? (Yes.) It’s round like a cylinder and white in color. The one you cut into little chunks. Sometimes you cut it into halves – the semi-circular ones. (Yes.) Its original shape is round. The stuff you usually cut for Master, sometimes into semi-circular slices, that goes best with this. Serve this with that… Salt and… (Pepper.) Pepper, yes. Put that into that one, and then eat this one.
This is hard to use with other stuff. Or you can eat it with the… what do you call them? Vegan duck and vegan chicken… (Vegan duck.) Vegan duck. Vegan chicken and duck. Vegan duck and vegan chicken go well with this. If it’s uncooked, you taste more of its original flavor. Just eat this, and… a little salt and pepper will do.
And something like the smoke, smoke… (Peppermint.) Smoke. (Chinese basil. This one?) No, no. (Basil. Chinese toon.) There are some vegan meats like vegan chicken and vegan duck, but they’re smoked. They have a smoky flavor. (Smoked.) Smoked food. Then they use some lemon juice. Are you OK? (OK.) You may also sit here if you want. (It’s alright.) Sit here. You have to press it. (No need, no need.) OK. A little lemon juice and salt, and, what’s it called? Black pepper. Put this and that in a frying pan. Or add some of the uncooked oil and put them together to eat. OK?
Why did I say those things? (You were teaching us how to cook and what goes with what.) Ah. (How to use herbs for the best flavor.) Yes, yes. These are more special. This herb goes well with everything. (Right. OK, OK.) It tastes good raw and also tastes good when you cook it with other things. Put a little more to make the taste stronger, OK? Sometimes I had no appetite. But you gave me some herbs. I ate the unappetizing food with them. It was tasty as well.
And this one… it’s trickier. This one is trickier. It only goes well with vegan duck, vegan chicken, and the white Aulacese (Vietnamese) (vegan) Chả. (The [vegan] ham.) The white Aulacese (Vietnamese) (vegan) ham. That’s all. (This one has a spicy flavor.) Spicy. Yes, it’s kind of spicier and goes well with that. This doesn’t taste good with white tofu. It’s not appetizing. So you have to use them right to make the food tasty. If the ingredients don’t go well together, it’s just a waste of food. Some Aulacese (Vietnamese) things are not easy to use with other food. (Herbs.) There are a lot of different herbs that don’t go well. I’ll remind you if I see them.
I never say anything about what you give me. Never. I just eat or put aside what I don’t want – no need to criticize. That’s what I think. (Understand.) Even if I don’t want to eat it, it’s also good to have a look. How can you keep complaining when people serve you so sincerely? So, you prepare randomly, and I also have a random look. I don’t eat randomly. I just take a random look. Then I send it back. I’m not saying you’re not good or anything. It’s just that I’m not used to it.
Some spices only taste good when they’re cooked with soup. But this type of thing makes any soup tasty, even if you put a lot in. Yes? (Yes.) Try it, try it. (OK.) It’ll enhance the flavor. Try it. (OK.) We have plenty of this here in Taiwan (Formosa). (Right.) And it’s very cheap, OK? (OK.) Don’t use it so sparingly. It doesn’t cost much. Put some in for everybody to enjoy. I don’t know if you are used to the taste or not. (We like it.)
Did you like it when you tried it? (Yes.) Then why didn’t you use it? (We used a little, not a lot.) You barely used it at all. Don’t say a little. I only saw a couple of grains occasionally – not even a few shreds, just a couple of grains. That was it. You used it so sparingly, only a tiny little bit. Wow! It took me a long time to find it. “Where are you? I can’t see you.” I could smell it, but just couldn’t find it. This is very cheap, and it’s so harmless. (OK.) It’s one of those things that do little harm. So you can use more of it in different dishes, any dishes. (OK.) Strange. OK. (OK. Thank You, Master.) But I can’t do anything about it if you don’t want to use it. The power is in your hands. I can’t go in. I’ll get kicked out if I go sneaking around there. (No, You won’t.) “You! You don’t belong here.” (Thank You, Master.)
Only this one cannot be used everywhere. It doesn’t go well with salads. (OK.) As for this one, you can be creative. For example, cut it into tiny bits or very fine shreds with those chilies. (Chilies.) The little green peppers. (Oh.) Those tiny little ones. Teeny. The tiny but super hot ones. You can chop them all together. Then cut some green peppers. And cut some of the… let’s say apples. (OK.) Chop, chop, chop, and then add soy sauce. Then you can eat it with other dishes. Understand? (Understand.) That’s a good way to use it. But you can use it any time, any way you like. It’s also good raw. Cut it into tiny pieces to go well with those green peppers. Are they green peppers? The tiny ones. Then put some soy sauce in it. You can eat it just like that with other things. It’s simple and delicious anytime. Thank you. (Thank You, Master.)
OK. Take what I said today as the Buddhist sutras. It’s no big deal, OK? (OK. Thank You, Master.) It’s also alright if you don’t use it. Everybody will still eat. Maybe it’s just me who doesn’t have an appetite. My sense of taste has deteriorated. It may be old age. No good. That’s why striking flavors taste more delicious. Thank you. (Thank You, Master.) Thank you for your support and dedication. Thank you for your devoted heart. It’s unconditional, right? Is it conditional? (No!) If you know anybody who is here conditionally, ask them to go home. Ask them to leave. OK. Thank you. (OK. Thank You, Master.)
And one more thing. Back in the day… Now you make nice rice congee, not so thin like before. Congee is not supposed to be that thin; otherwise, it becomes like soup. Understand? If it’s too thin… We have working team here. They have to go out and work all day long. Especially since it was winter, I only criticized you once. In the wintertime, Chinese people prefer having congee. Lots of people liked it; they all ate it. But it was all water – lots of water with very little rice. They ate it like that and later on felt cold when they went out. It was windy outside, and soon their stomachs… (Hungry.) It was not good. Now the way you make congee is OK. It’s not too thin. (OK.) That’s it; everything else is fine. It’s better if you add herbs, but life still goes on if you don’t. (OK.) Thank you. (Thank You, Master.) 99.999% is OK. Only the herbs are not quite right. Because I’m old, I’m a bit picky. Chilies, maybe. But it’s just a one-time favor, only once a day, right? (Yes.) (No trouble at all. No.) (No.) OK. No, that’s good. OK. (Thank You, Master.) Buddha bless you. (OK. Master, take care.) Immense merits. (Thank You, Master.) Thank you. (Thank You, Master.) (Bye-bye, Master. See You.) (Bye-bye!)
Working team? (Are you a team member?) (An elderly person.) Can’t the elderly go inside for lectures? (No, they don’t go in.) Huh? (Because it’s not convenient for them to go to the toilet.) (Because of the toilet...) (So they can’t.) Oh, I see. Then I’ll go over and take a look at the elderly.
Hey, old people are coming to see an old person. That’s perfect. It’s good for you old people to look at an old person like me. Come, come! You may also stand. Just stand if it’s inconvenient for you to sit. It’s alright, just stand. (Stand.) It’s alright! (Stand. Stand.) It’s OK to stand. Come and stand together with everybody. In case you fall over, they’ll be there to support you. Come over. Come a little closer. (Come closer, closer.) Sit down, sit down. OK, OK. OK, OK! Don’t squeeze. Don’t take advantage of the occasion to squeeze in.
OK. Is that OK? (Yes!) (Thank You.) Run to the front if you can’t see. All the short ones, like me, come to the front. Come, those in the back. (OK.) Have a few more looks. You don’t have to sit down. It’s alright as long as you can stand comfortably. We’re old people, yes, can’t move around easily. I am also the same sometimes. When it rains too much, or it’s cold in winter, our knees complain right away.
Are you OK? (OK.) Is it better sitting here? (Yes.) It’s like watching the movies, right? (Yes.) Do you have clear translation? Do you have it, too? (Yes.) You have translation, yes? (Yes.) Can you hear it clearly? (Yes, very clear.) That’s great. Wonderful. We are very blessed in this era. (Thank You, Master. It’s so nice. Master, it’s so nice.) The old people, come here! To the front! You can’t see anything back there! Come here to the front if you can’t see. Don’t come if you’re shy.
