Asian Inspirations

Discover the authentic in Asian cuisine food

Grill/BBQ

Spiced BBQ Chicken with Herb Rice Salad (Ayam Percik & Nasi Kerabu)

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To Prep
Blend all marinade ingredients into a paste and marinade the chicken in a bowl. Place in the fridge for at least an hour.

To Cook
Make sambal kelapa by dry frying the grated coconut over low heat until toasted. Remove from wok or pan and set aside.
Fry sardines over medium heat until dry and crumbly. Blend shallots, ginger, lemongrass, black pepper, salt and palm sugar into paste. Fry paste over medium heat for a few mins. Return sardines to wok and combine with paste. Reduce heat to low and continue to cook sardine/paste mixture until very dry and crumbly, about 10-15 mins. Add toasted coconut, mix until combined. Set aside.

To Make the Sambal Belacan
Pound chillies and belacan in mortar and pestle until combined. Add the juice of the 2 limes and palm sugar. Mix well and set aside.

To Make the Spiced Coconut Sauce
Blend the shallots, garlic, ginger and chillies together and add the oil over medium heat to wok or saucepan and stir fry the paste until fragrant.
Pour in coconut cream, chilli soaking liquid, fenugreek seeds, lemongrass, salt and palm sugar. Lower heat and reduce sauce until thick, about 10-15 mins.
Cook chicken over medium heat in a large saucepan with lid on until nearly cooked.
Transfer chicken to a hot grill and baste with the coconut sauce until nice and charred.

To Cook the Nasi Kerabu
Add lemongrass and kaffir lime leaves into the rice cooker.
Infuse warm water with blue butterfly pea flowers for 15 mins.
Strain blue butterfly pea water over rice.

To Assemble the Dish
Finely chop cabbage, snake beans, cucumber and mint. Combine with bean sprouts.
Add a small bowl of rice to the middle of your plate and arrange a chicken drumstick and thigh, sambal kelapa, bean sprout salad, salted eggs and fish crackers around the rice. Finish off with a bowl of sambal belacan and some warmed reserved spiced coconut sauce.

Chinese BBQ Chicken with Shredded Potato

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To Prep
Prepare the chicken by rubbing it with salt inside and out.
In a small bowl, combine Lee Kum Kee Premium Soy Sauce, dark soy sauce, Shaoxing cooking wine, sugar and the ginger juice. Stir well until sugar is dissolved.
Cut the butterfly chicken to lie flat then rub all over with marinade and refrigerate uncovered overnight to dry the skin.

To Cook
Preheat BBQ with indirect heat (using burners away from the flat plate) to medium/hot temperature.
Combine the julienned potato and potato marinate while the BBQ is warming up.
Dress the chicken with vegetable oil and place on the BBQ flat plate. Close the lid on the BBQ to begin cooking. (cook with lid down).
Cook for approximately 1 hr, checking occasionally to ensure it’s not overcooked. (Meat temperature near the bone should be 75℃)
Once ready, remove from the BBQ and rest for 10 to 15 mins.
After removing the chicken from the BBQ, drain the potato marinade and cook the potato on the BBQ hot plate while the chicken is resting. (BBQ lid up now)
For the dressing sauce, combine all dressing ingredients in a bowl and stir until sugar is dissolved.
Cut the chicken and serve with a drizzle of dressing, fresh coriander leaves and the shredded potato on the side.

Thai Beef Noodle Salad

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To Prep
Combine the lime juice, lemongrass, fish sauce, salad dressing, sugar, chilli and kaffir lime in a small bowl. Place in the fridge.
Soak noodles in warm water for 5 mins or until they are soft. Rinse under cold water and drain.

To Cook
Cook steak on a heated and oiled grill plate on medium-high heat. Cook steak for 3 mins each side or until cooked to your liking. Set aside to rest. Thinly slice the beef across the grain.
Combine the noodles, cucumber, coriander, mint, tomato, spring onion, basil leaves and bean sprouts in a large bowl.
Add the beef. Pour the salad mixture and toss to combine.
Divide noodles among serving bowls and top with roasted peanuts.

Vietnamese Grilled Pork Sausage Vermicelli Salad (Bun Nem Nuong with Nuoc Cham)

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To Prep
Mix the minced pork, sugar, fish sauce, soy sauce, minced garlic, ginger powder, roasted rice powder and red food colouring together.
Refrigerate and let the meat marinade for at least 30 mins.

To Cook
Take the meat out from the fridge to prepare your skewers and grill.
Mix all sauce ingredients together in a bowl and set aside until ready to serve.
To assemble, place the rice noodles in a bowl with the mix salad and cucumber.
Add in the skewers and garnish with crush peanuts. Serve with the dipping fish sauce.

Vietnamese Sticky Tofu with Rainbow Veggie Noodle Bowl

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To Prep
Combine all salad dressing ingredients except sesame oil. Stir until sugar is dissolved.
Add sesame oil, stir and set aside.
Combine all the sticky tofu marinade ingredients in large flat baking dish. Add pressed sliced tofu, cover tofu well with the marinade and leave for at least 10 mins.

To Cook
Heat a non-stick grill pan over medium heat, spray lightly with vegetable oil, add tofu slices and cook for 3-4 mins each side, or until the edges of the tofu turn golden brown.
Remove and repeat until all slices are grilled. Save any remaining marinade for the finished dish.
Put drained rice vermicelli into a bowl. Add salad dressing and toss gently.
Use a fork to pick up and twirl noodles into the middle of the serving bowls. Arrange 5 slices of tofu on one side section of the bowl, then continue around the rest of the bowl with groupings of the vegetables.
Sprinkle over the basil and mint leaves, chilli slices, sliced spring onion, toasted sesame seeds and chopped cashews.
If desired, drizzle any remaining tofu marinade over the dish, loosening with some water if needed. Serve and enjoy!

Korean BBQ Steak

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For the Korean BBQ Steak
Blend the pear, Yeo’s Pure Sesame Oil, Lee Kum Kee Premium Soy Sauce, garlic, brown sugar, black pepper and spring onions in a food processor until smooth to make the marinade.
Put the beef steaks into a glass bowl, mix, coat and cover with marinade. Cover with plastic wrap and leave to marinate for 30 mins, or overnight in the fridge. Prepare all other elements while marinating the meat.
Prepare the serving salad by tossing the oak leaf lettuce, thinly sliced pear and spring onion batons in 2 tsp each of rice wine vinegar and Yeo’s Pure Sesame Oil.
Arrange on a serving plate to put the cooked meat on and set aside.

For the Grilled Yeon-Geun (Lotus Root)
Using a small pot, bring 3 cups of water and ½ cup vinegar to the boil. Place in sliced lotus root and cook for 3 mins to soften.
Refresh under cold water then drain. Set aside and allow them to cool until required for cooking on the BBQ.
Combine salt, coarse Korean pepper powder and sesame seeds and set aside. This is to sprinkle onto lotus root once cooked on the BBQ.

For the Cucumber Kimchi (Oi Kimchi)
Cut cucumber into 5cm batons and stand them up on the cut side. Cross slit them into quarters ⅔ of the way down.
Spread the cucumber slits and sprinkle with sea salt allowing it to get right inside. Put in an air tight container on the bench for 1 hr to allow the salt to penetrate as the cucumbers come to room temperature.
Chop and combine the kimchi and spring onion then add the chives and mix together.
Rinse the cucumbers in cool water to remove salt and shake dry.
Fill the cucumber slits with the kimchi mixture, place into an air tight container and set aside until served with the rest of the meal.

Cooking the BBQ
Heat the BBQ grill to medium-high heat.
Lightly coat lotus roots in sesame oil and add to the grill first as they will take longer to cook. Cook for about 2 mins.
Carefully lie the steak flat on the grill so they will cook evenly. Cook for about 3 mins.
Turn over lotus roots followed by the steak, and cook for a further minute or so. The meat will have deliciously caramelised grill marks and be very tender and the lotus root will be crispy.
Serve the BBQ beef on the pear salad, then individual serves of meat on boiled rice, with oi kimchi and grilled lotus roots as a side.
Top all with a sprinkle of the Korean red pepper, salt and sesame seed mix.

Beef Bulgogi with Carrot and Daikon Pickle

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To Prep
Place the beef in the freezer for 1 hr – this will make it easier to slice thinly.
Combine the soy sauce, onion, nashi pear, sesame oil, ginger, brown sugar and garlic in a small ceramic or glass dish.
Remove the beef from the freezer, thinly slice, then add to the marinade and keep covered in the fridge for at least 2 hrs.

To Make Pickle
Place the rice wine vinegar and caster sugar in a saucepan and heat until combined. Pour over the carrot and daikon and leave to pickle for 2 hrs.

To Cook
Heat a BBQ or griddle pan on high heat. Grill the beef for less than 1 min each side or until just cooked.

To Serve
Serve the dish by placing the the grilled beef, lettuce leaves, steamed rice, pickled carrot and daikon, and fresh chilli and spring onion slices in the centre of the table and allow your guests to assemble.

Vietnamese BBQ Lemongrass Beef & Betel Leaf Rolls with Vermicelli Salad

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Lemongrass Beef
In a bowl, combine garlic, brown sugar, fish sauce, green chilli, lemongrass, lime juice and zest to make a marinade. Mix until sugar is dissolved.
Put the steaks into a glass bowl and coat evenly with the marinade, cover and put in the fridge to marinate for at least 30 mins (24 hrs is ideal).
Remove the steaks from the fridge and allow them to warm to room temperature.
Heat the grill to medium-high, remove the lemongrass chunks from the meat to prevent burning. Place steaks on the BBQ grill, cooking for approximately 4 minutes each side.
Once cooked, set the steaks aside for 5 mins to rest, then slice to 0.7cm thick and serve with the betel leaf rolls, vermicelli salad and accompanying sauces.

For the Betel Leaf rolls
In a large bowl, mix together: beef mince, lemongrass, spring onion, coriander roots, garlic, salt, five spice, white pepper and fish sauce. Mix well until all ingredients are thoroughly combined. Set aside for the flavours to infuse.
Make the Betel Leaf Roll Dipping Sauce in a small bowl by combining fish sauce, lime juice, orange juice, sugar, garlic, chilli. Mix until sugar has dissolved and set aside.
To construct the betel leaves, place a leaf in your hand, shiny side facing your palm. Place 1 tbsp of the mince mixture towards the stem of the leaf, in a sausage shape. Roll the leaf from the stem to the tip, ensuring that it is a cylindrical shape. Repeat until all mince mixture and betel leaves are used.
Once all of the betel leaf rolls are constructed, thread 3 rolls onto 2 skewers to hold them tight, continuing until all rolls are skewered.
Heat BBQ grill to medium heat and cook the betel leaves for approximately 3 minutes each side and remove from heat.
Serve with finely chopped chilli, crushed peanuts and dipping sauce.

For the Vermicelli Salad
Soak vermicelli in a bowl with boiling water until soft (about 5 mins). Drain and rinse in cold water to cool the noodles. Once cool, leave in colander to drain thoroughly.
To make the sauce, in a small bowl combine: water, fish sauce, lime juice, vinegar, sugar and garlic. Mix well until the sugar has dissolved. Add in the chilli and stir, set aside.
In a large bowl, mix together the vermicelli, cucumber, carrot, bean shoots, Vietnamese mint, mint, coriander and spring onion.
Place the vermicelli into a serving bowl, top with fried shallots, crushed peanuts, chilli and half of the sauce. Pour the remaining sauce into a bowl to serve with the salad.

Whole Bonito & Prawn Teppanyaki with Edamame & Pickled Daikon

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To Prep
Make the marinade by combining the Obento Mirin Seasoning, Lee Kum Kee Premium Soy Sauce and Obento Cooking Sake with brown sugar and grated ginger. Stir well until sugar is dissolved. Put one quarter aside to use as a dressing sauce and divide the remaining marinade into two bowls.
Pack the fish with sliced ginger and spring onions and cut the fish with 3 to 4 deep slits on each side.
Gently combine the fish with ½ of the marinade and refrigerate for 1-3 hrs.
Add prawns to skewers and combine with remaining marinade. Refrigerate for 1-3 hrs.
Using a small pot, prepare the pickling liquid by combining Obento Rice Wine Vinegar, white vinegar, water, sugar and salt, and heat until sugar is dissolved. Allow mixture to cool, then pour over daikon and carrot in a glass bowl. Allow to stand and infuse for at least 30 mins.
Prepare the edamame and watercress salad by tossing the ingredients gently with salad dressing. Set aside until ready to serve. Sprinkle with furikake and shichimi togarashi immediately before serving.

To Cook
When ready to BBQ, preheat a flat grill to medium temperature, and cook the fish, occasionally basting with the marinade, turning only once. (Approximately 4 mins per side).
Add the prawns to the grill and cook, occasionally basting with the marinade.
Serve the BBQ Bonito and Prawns with the pickled daikon and carrot salad, and edamame bean and watercress salad.
Drizzle reserved dressing over the fish and prawns, dress with finely sliced spring onion and sprinkle with shichimi togarashi to serve.

Grilled Miso Eggplant (Nasu Dengaku)

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To Cook
Preheat the oven to 180°C. Score the cut side of the eggplant and brush each half with a tablespoon of olive oil. Place in the oven and roast for 30 mins.
Meanwhile, make the miso glaze: whisk the miso, mirin, rice wine vinegar and honey together in a small bowl.
Remove the eggplants from the oven. Switch from the oven setting to the grill setting. Brush with a generous amount of the miso glaze.
Place the eggplants under the grill for 5 mins, or until the miso glaze has caramelised.
Serve scattered with spring onion, coriander, chilli, sesame seeds and a side of cooked rice.

Grilled Beef Tongue Rice Bowl (Gyutan Don)

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To Prep
Combine the marinade ingredients together in a container and add in the beef tongue slices. Make sure that the pieces have enough space so that they don’t overlap. Marinate the beef for about 30 minutes.

To Cook
Heat up a grill and cook the slices of tongue for about 2 minutes on each side.
To serve, place a serving of rice in to a bowl and fan out the slices of tongue around the rice. Garnish with spring onions, sesame seeds and pickled vegetable of your choice!

Grilled Offal Skewers (Kushiyaki)

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To Prep
Combine the marinade ingredients together in a large mixing bowl before dividing equally in to 4 smaller mixing bowls. Place the ingredients in to their bowls and allow to marinate for at least 30 minutes.
When the ingredients have marinated, skewer them and set aside.

To Cook
Heat up a charcoal grill and place the skewers on. Season them with a little salt and let them cook for about 10 minutes, moving the skewers around to avoid the fire from flaring up.
When the meat has cooked, remove the skewers from the grill and serve!