To Make
Toast dried chillies, coriander seeds, Sichuan peppercorns, cloves, star anise, cardamom and black peppercorns to release aroma. Set aside to cool.https://asianinspirations.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/NTSCS-1-1.jpg
Pound together toasted herbs until powdery and add together the galangal, lemongrass, shallots, Thai chilli and Thai shrimp paste with a mortar and pestle until you get a smooth paste.https://asianinspirations.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/NTSCS-2-1.jpg
Heat up a heavy bottom pot with oil and sauté the chilli paste until fragrant.https://asianinspirations.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/NTSCS-3-1.jpg
Add in chicken bones and meat and stir to cook. Add fish sauce and cook for 30 seconds.https://asianinspirations.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/NTSCS-5-1.jpg
Pour in water and let it come to a boil. Add in mushrooms and eggplants.https://asianinspirations.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/NTSCS-7-1.jpg
Add salt and dill fronds and serve hot.https://asianinspirations.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/NTSCS-8-1.jpg
Boil
Beef Curry Udon
Method
Cook noodles by following the instructions on the packet.
Place all dashi sauce ingredients in a pot and bring to a boil.
Pan fry onion, mushroom, carrot, and meat with a small amount of oil.
Once the ingredients are cooked through, add water/chicken stock and bring to boil.
Add curry roux to desired consistency.
Add noodles in a bowl, followed by soup, and curry sauce, then garnish.
Kake Soba with Fish Cake and Onsen Egg
To Make
Bring 1L water to a boil in a small heavy-bottomed saucepan. Turn off the heat and add 200ml cold water. Gently add eggs so they are fully submerged. Cover with a lid and leave for 12 minutes (13–14 minutes in winter). Remove eggs and let sit at room temperature for 3–4 minutes. Set aside.
Fill a saucepan with 4 cups of water and add kombu. Let sit for 10 minutes. Bring to a boil, then remove kombu just before boiling.
Add katsuobushi and let brew for at least 10 minutes or until it sinks.
Drain broth through a fine mesh or colander. Discard katsuobushi. You should have 3–3 1/3 cups of dashi broth.
Add soy sauce, mirin, and salt to the dashi and bring to a boil to evaporate the alcohol. Set aside and reheat when serving.
Bring water to a boil in a large pot. Cook soba according to packet instructions. Rinse with hot water and drain well.
In a bowl, add 1/2 the soba noodles and pour in 1/2 the broth. Gently crack an onsen egg into a small dish and slide onto the noodles. Top with 2 slices of kamaboko and spring onions. Repeat for the second serving.
Japanese Taro Beef Stew (Yamagata Imoni)
To Make
Tear konjac into small chunks and blanch for 2 mins. Strain and set aside.https://asianinspirations.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/Copy-of-JTB-1-1.jpg
Blanch taro for 5 mins, strain and set aside.https://asianinspirations.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/Copy-of-JTB-2-1.jpg
Fill a heavy bottom pot with dashi stock. Add in konjac and taro and bring it to a gentle boil.https://asianinspirations.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/Copy-of-JTB-3-1.jpg
Toss in fried tofu, shiitake mushrooms and ginger.
Once broth starts to bubble, pour in the rest of the broths ingredients.https://asianinspirations.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/Copy-of-JTB-4-1.jpg
Add in beef slices. Let broth boil for 2 mins and use a fine mesh strainer and scoop up any frothy impurities that float to the top.https://asianinspirations.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/Copy-of-JTB-5-1.jpg
Add in miso paste if desired by mixing some broth to loosen the paste. Let it boil for 10-15 mins until taro softens.https://asianinspirations.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/Copy-of-JTB-7-1.jpg
Toss in leek and let it cook for 2 mins. Serve hot.https://asianinspirations.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/Copy-of-JTB-8-1.jpg
Pork and Rice Soup (Dwaeji Gukbap)
To Make
Boil a pot of water and place pork shoulder in and let it comes to a boil and cook for 5 mins until all the scum floats up.https://asianinspirations.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/DG-1-1.jpg
Remove pork and wash over running water until clean. Set aside.
In a large pot, place pork in and fill with 3L of water. Add in all the broth ingredients and let it comes to a boil.https://asianinspirations.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/DG-2-1.jpg
Turn to low heat and simmer covered for 1.5 hours. Remove pork and fish out the rest of the ingredients and keep the broth liquid.https://asianinspirations.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/DG-3-1.jpg
Season the broth to taste.
Once pork has cooled down, slice it thinly.
To serve, place rice in bowls, enough soup to cover rice and topped with sliced pork, chives, salted shrimps and chilli paste.
Three Colour Rice Bowl (Sanshoku Don)
To Make
Mix all ingredients for scrambled eggs in a medium mixing bowl and beat until well combined.
Heat frying pan with some oil and cook scramble egg until egg is just cooked. Set aside.https://asianinspirations.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/TCRB-1-1-1.jpg
Mix chicken mince with grated ginger. Using same frying pan heat up some oil and fry minced chicken breaking them up to smaller clumps.
Add in light soy sauce, sake, mirin and sugar and cook until the liquid is absorbed into the meat. Set aside.https://asianinspirations.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/TCRB-2-2.jpg
Heat half a pot of water in a medium saucepan. Add salt and blanch spinach for 1 min.https://asianinspirations.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/TCRB-3-1.jpg
Strain and place in a bowl. Mix in light soy sauce, sesame oil, toasted sesame seeds and a pinch of sugar. Set aside.
To Assemble
Scoop steamed rice onto bowl and level the surface.
Scoop half of the chicken mince, scrambled egg and spinach over the rice by arranging them into 3 sections.
Finish the plating with 1 tbsp of benishoga in the centre.
Mitarashi Dango
To Prep
Mix joshinko and shiratamako flour in a mixing bowl. Pour boiling water over and mix with a pair of chopsticks until the flours are bind together. If too dry, add additional 5ml each time until you get a texture that is not too floury nor sticky.https://asianinspirations.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/MD-2-1.jpg
Using hands, roll into a dough ball. Knead the dough until smooth.
Divide into 15 equal portions using a scale and roll into smooth round balls.https://asianinspirations.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/MD-4-1.jpg
To Make
Heat up a pot of water and let it come to a boil. Drop all the balls in and cook until they float to the surface.https://asianinspirations.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/MD-5-1.jpg
Transfer them into a bowl of water fill with ice.https://asianinspirations.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/MD-6-2.jpg
Once the glutinous balls have cooled down, strain and place them onto a wet tray.
String 3 glutinous balls onto each bamboo skewers.https://asianinspirations.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/MD-7-1.jpg
To prepare the glaze, mix all the ingredients together in small saucepan and stir until well combined. Start the fire and kept stirring until the sauce is thicken. Transfer to a bowl.https://asianinspirations.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/MD-8-2.jpg
To serve, either to grill under the oven boiler or using a butane torch, sear the top of the dango.https://asianinspirations.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/MD-9-1.jpg
Coat the dango with the glaze before serving.
Indonesian Spicy Eggs (Telor Belado)
To Prep
Blend together all the sauce ingredients with a food processor into a watery paste. Set aside.
Heat up oil in a medium saucepan to 180°C.
Fry hard boiled eggs until surface is well blistered and slightly golden. Strain away the oil and set aside.https://asianinspirations.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/Copy-of-ISE-1-2.jpg
To Make
Take 2 tbsp of oil from saucepan and heat up in a wok.
Pour the tomato sauce and fry together with lemongrass and kaffir lime leaves until slightly thickened.https://asianinspirations.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/Copy-of-ISE-2-1.jpg
Add in fried eggs and cook a further 2-3 mins until eggs are well coated with sauce.https://asianinspirations.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/Copy-of-ISE-3-1.jpg
Serve hot with steamed white rice and cucumber slices.
Saliva Chicken
To Poach Chicken
In an appropriately sized saucepan, add the chicken maryland pieces along with the other poaching ingredients. Fill with water and bring to a boil.
After reaching a boil, lower the heat and let it simmer for an additional 5 minutes. Then, remove from heat while still covered for another 5 minutes.
To check for doneness, insert a skewer into the thickest part of the maryland; clear juices indicate proper cooking, while pink or red juices suggest more cooking is needed. No juices can indicate overcooking.
Once cooked to satisfaction, transfer the marylands to an ice bath to halt the cooking process and set aside.
Reserve at least ¼ cup of the strained poaching liquid for later use in the saliva sauce.
To Make Saliva Sauce
In a small blender, combine ginger, garlic, sesame paste, and ¼ cup of the reserved poaching broth, blending until smooth.
Transfer the blended mixture to a small bowl and incorporate the remaining sauce ingredients: soy sauce, black vinegar, sugar, Sichuan peppercorn powder, chili oil, Sichuan oil, and sesame seeds.
Mix thoroughly to ensure all ingredients are well combined, then set aside.
To Plate
Arrange cucumber batons in your chosen serving dish to create a base for the chicken.
Take the cooled chicken from the water bath and drain thoroughly. Use a cleaver to slice the chicken into approximately ½-inch pieces, ensuring the overall shape remains intact.
Gently place the sliced chicken on the cucumber bed. Stir the saliva sauce well and pour it over the chicken.
Garnish with fresh coriander and spring onions for added flavour.
Serve immediately and savour the dish!
Avocado Soba Noodle Salad with Ginger Soy Sauce Dressing
To Make
In a small bowl, whisk together all the dressing ingredients and set aside.
Cook the soba noodles according to the package instructions. Drain, then rinse under cold water for 15 seconds to stop the cooking process. Set aside.
Make an avocado rose with sliced avocado for garnish.
Divide the soba noodles between serving bowls and top with diced tofu.
Place an avocado rose in each bowl, then garnish with sliced radish, rocket, and fresh coriander.
Drizzle the dressing over just before serving.
Batchoy – Filipino Pork Noodle Soup
To Make
Marinate the pork loin with soy sauce and 1 tbsp minced garlic on the meat side only. Wrap the pork in foil, leaving the skin exposed, then place in the fridge to dry out the skin.
Blanch all the bones, including the pork speck (not the pork loin), by filling a big pot with water and bringing it to a rolling boil. Let them bubble for 10 minutes. Skim off any gunky gray foam floating on top. Drain everything, rinse the bones under running water, and give your pot a quick clean.
Put the clean bones back into the pot and cover them with fresh cold water, along with scallion ends and ginger. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to a gentle simmer. Cover and let simmer for 2 hours, skimming off any foam that appears.
Meanwhile, preheat oven to 240°C. Rub salt and olive oil on the pork loin skin and place in oven for 40 minutes until the skin crackles. Reduce the temperature to 180°C and cook for a further 30 minutes. Let rest loosely wrapped in foil. Set aside to slice later.
After two hours, pour the broth through a strainer. For a clearer broth, double strain if you have time. Pick off any meaty bits from the bones. Shred the meaty part of the pork speck and set aside. Scoop out the marrow from the beef bones and save it. You can discard the bones now.
Pour the strained broth back into the pot and bring to a boil. Add the pork liver and cook for 7-10 minutes (do not overcook). Let cool, then slice thinly. Set aside.
Add minced onion and garlic to the broth and cook for 2-3 minutes until soft. Stir in shrimp paste, fish sauce, palm sugar, then salt and white pepper to taste. Adjust seasoning as needed.
Prepare soft boiled eggs (for example, in an air fryer at 130°C for 9 minutes, then place in an ice bath). Set aside.
In a separate pot, bring water to a boil and blanch the choy sum for a couple of minutes. Set aside.
In the same boiling water, cook egg noodles according to packet instructions. Drain well.
In 4 large separate bowls, evenly pile sliced liver and shredded pork speck, followed by noodles. Ladle in hot broth, then add sliced pork loin and blanched choy sum. If desired, add some bone marrow.
Top with crushed chicharron, fried shallots or fried garlic bits, and chopped chives. Add a sliced soft boiled egg if using.
Serve extra hot broth on the side for refills and keep toppings within reach. Enjoy!
Spicy Miso Ramen with Sesame Chilli Prawns
To Make
Put two pots of hot water on to boil with one with enough water to cover an egg. Bring to a rolling boil. Once boiling turn down to a gentle simmer. Lower egg and boil for 6 1/2 mins for jammy egg or 7 for a little firmer. Set timer and remove to bowl of cold water to stop cooking once time is up.
In the second pot once boiling, prepare ramen noodles per package instructions, then drain.
Once your egg is in to boil, in a small bowl toss prawns in sesame oil and chili flakes. On high heat sear prawns in a non stick pan for 1-2 minutes per side. Set aside.
In a medium sized pot sauté garlic and ginger until fragrant. Stir in miso paste, soy sauce, and rice vinegar. Add broth of choice, water, coconut milk and sugar. Simmer for 5 minutes.
Peel and slice egg in half.
Divide noodles into bowls, ladle hot broth over, and top with prawns, half the egg, spring onions, sesame seeds & fresh chilli if using. Drizzle with chili oil before serving.