Deliciously different recipes, simple enough for a busy weeknight meal. Bright, delicate and satisfying, the cuisine of Vietnam is absolutely delicious due to the wonderful contrasts this cuisine contains: sour favors are balanced by salty ones, and sweet notes are answered by a little heat from ground pepper and chillies. Nancie's easy and expert recipes will help cooks make an array of traditional dishes with widely available ingredients. There are speedy stir-fries, vibrant salads, and soothing soups, along with numerous recipes for cooking meat and seafood on the grill. Whether it's Curry Chicken with Sweet Potatoes and Lime-Pepper-Salt Dipping Sauce or Shaking Beef with Purple Onions and Watercress, or Speedy Shrimp in Caramel-Chili Sauce cooks will soon be enjoying an array of authentic and classic recipes that are fast enough to prepare during a busy work week. Delicate, rice-papered wrapped Summer Rolls with Shrimp and Mint can be party fare or the perfect lunch. And of course, no Vietnamese meal would be complete without Warm Banana-Coconut Pudding with Tapioca Pears finished with an iced Vietnamese Coffee. With extensive information on ingredients, substitutions, and time-saving techniques, along with suggested menus, anyone can cook simply sumptuous Vietnamese food in their home kitchen in no time. AUTHOR: Nancie McDermott is an expert on the food and culture of Thailand where she lived for 3 years as a Peace Corps volunteer. She has traveled extensively throughout Asia and has written 10 cookbooks, including '300 Best Stir-Fry Recipes'. She is a frequent guest chef on television and radio and also writes for newspapers and magazines and lives in Chapel Hill, North Carolina.