To Cook
Grind spice paste A ingredients together. Add in water to ⅓ of the height of the paste.
Heat the cooking oil and saute the paste A. Big bubbles will start to appear as the moisture evaporates. Keep stirring to prevent the paste from sticking to the sides of the wok or pan.
When the bubbles become smaller, add in all the vegetables, stir fry for 5 minutes.
Add in water and coconut milk. Bring this to a boil and add prawns, tofu, tempe and vermicelli bean thread. Boil for about 3 mins and serve hot.
Noodles
Tofu and Seaweed Udon
To Cook
Bring a pan of water to the boil. Add the tofu. Bring back to the boil. Immediately drain, then cut into small cubes.
In a small saucepan, combine the remaining Tofu ingredients, bring to the boil. Add the tofu cubes and simmer for 5 mins. Drain and discard the cooking liquid.
Cook the Udon noodles according to packet instructions. Put the spring onions in a small wire sieve. Dip them briefly into the boiling water. Refresh under cold running water and set aside. Drain the noodles, rinse and drain well.
Put the Noodle’s dashi broth and dark soy sauce into a saucepan. Add the light soy sauce, brown sugar and sake (or sherry). Bring to the boil. Season to taste with salt.
Arrange the noodles in serving bowls. Top with the tofu, spring onions and the nori sheets. Ladle in the hot broth and serve immediately.
Hiroshima style Okonomiyaki
To Prep
In a large bowl, mix mirin and water, then add the flour. Mix with a whisk until well combined.
To Cook
Heat up a frying pan over medium heat. With a ladle, pour in a little less than ½ of batter into the pan. Spread immediately from the center outwards in circular motion to about 20-23cm in diameter.
Sprinkle in bonito powder liberally and add half of the cabbage. Then add ½ of spring onions and bean shoots on top.
Place 3 slices of pork belly, without overlapping, over the vegetables.
Pour 1-2 tbsp of batter over the ingredients to bind them together.
Flip the okonomiyaki carefully to cook the meat with medium high heat until done, then reduce the heat to low.
Heat oil in another frying pan and stir-fry 1 packet of noodles with 1½ tbsp of okonomiyaki sauce, while shaping them to the size of the okonomiyaki. Transfer the okonomiyaki on top of the noodles with 2 spatulas.
In the empty frying pan, heat some oil and add 1 egg. Spread the egg immediately into a circle of the size of the okonomiyaki. Transfer the okonomiyaki, with noodle at the bottom, onto the egg.
Fry the egg until cooked and check that it is not sticking to the pan. Transfer the okonomiyaki to a serving plate by placing the plate on top of the okonomiyaki and flip over.
Add okonomiyaki sauce, mayonnaise and seaweed powder on top. Repeat to make the second okonomiyaki. Serve hot.
Korean Noodles in Black Bean Sauce (Jajangmyeon)
To Prep
Prepare the pork by cutting them into 2-3cm cubes. Marinate the pork with a tablespoon of rice wine (or mirin), ginger, salt and pepper. Set aside.
Cut the onion, cabbage and zucchini to 2-3cm cubes. Set aside.
To Cook
In a small saucepan, heat up 2 tbsp of oil then add the black bean paste, sugar, and oyster sauce. Fry it over medium heat for 2-3 mins, stirring constantly.
Heat a large pan over medium high heat with the remaining1 tbsp of oil. Add the pork and stir fry until cooked. Add the vegetables and cook until soft, stirring occasionally.
Stir in the black bean paste and mix everything thoroughly together until all the meat and vegetables are coated well with the paste.
Pour in the stock and bring it to a boil for 3-4 mins.
Place the potato or corn starch into a small bowl, dissolved in ¼ cup of water. Stir in to the pot of sauce and cook briefly until the sauce is thickened.
In a separate pot, heat water and add the noodles in the boiling water. Cook according to the package instructions and drain, the noodles should have a firm bite to them. Place a serving size of noodles in each bowl. Spoon the sauce over the noodles and garnish with the thinly julienned cucumber and carrot.
Korean Mix Vegetables and Seafood in Mustard Sauce (Yang Jang Pi)
To Cook
Bring a pot of water to boil and add yang jang pi noodle sheet. Cook for about 5 minutes or until the starch noodles are al dente. Drain noodles into a colander and rinse under running tap until the noodles are cool.
Season the noodles with ½ tbsp soy sauce, ½ tbsp. sugar, 2 tsp sesame oil and a pinch of salt in a small bowl and set aside.
Marinate pork using the pork marinade and set aside. Mix mustard sauce ingredients and set aside.
On a large round platter or plate, arrange squid, prawns, cucumber, capsicum, 5 shitake mushrooms and omelette in a circular arrangement and place yang jang pi noodles in the middle.
Heat up a wok with oil and add marinated pork. Saute pork over high heat and add onions, ¼ carrot and the remaining 2 shitake mushrooms and briefly saute. Add garlic chives and spring onions and quickly saute for about 15- 20 seconds.
Pour pork stir fry over the noodles in the middle. Serve yang jang pi with mustard sauce poured over.
Thai Leaf Wrapped Grilled Fish (Miang Pla Pao)
To Prep
Stuff 3 stalks of bruised lemongrass and 1 cup of basil leaves inside the fish. Then rub 2 tbsp salt all over the fish.
To Cook
Heat up the grill and cook the fish for 15-20 mins on each side.
Prepare the sauce while the fish is grilling. Combine all the ingredients for the spicy sauce in a food processor and blend until it becomes a thick paste. Spoon out and set aside.
To make the sweet sauce, add all ingredients to a saucepan and heat over low heat. Keep stirring until palm sugar is fully dissolved. Turn off the heat, add in crushed peanuts and stir to mix well.
The fish should be ready by now. Serve whole fish with fresh vegetables, rice noodles and sauces on the side. Simply peel off the skin and scales of the fish to reveal the moist and tender fish meat.
To enjoy, take a betel leaf, add some rice noodles, fish meat and other vegetables. Wrap it up and dip it into either sauce and shove it into your mouth!
Buddha’s Delight (Lo Hon Chai)
To Cook
Soak shitake mushrooms, black fungus, rice vermicelli/glass noodles, foo chook, lily bulbs for about 40 mins.
Heat oil in the large wok, add red fermented beancurd and stir fry briefly.
Add in water, followed by the fermented bean curd water, cabbage, fried beancurd, red dates, mushrooms, lily bulbs and black fungus. Bring to boil, lower heat and simmer for 10 mins.
Add carrot and fresh lotus seeds, let simmer for 5 mins. Season with salt and sugar according to taste.
Lastly, add rice vermicelli/glass noodles and simmer for 2 mins.
Instant Noodles in a Jar
To Cook
Prepare noodles according to instructions on package, then set aside to cool.
Add soy sauce, miso, red curry paste, chicken bouillon and ginger to the bottom of the jar. Stir to mix well.
Then, layer with carrot, broccoli, enoki mushrooms, edamame, noodles, shiitake mushroom, and garnish with coriander and spring onions.
Seal the jar and refrigerate up to 5 days. When you’re ready to eat, fill jar with boiling hot water and set aside to warm up for 30 secs. Then, squeeze lime over and enjoy!
Suki Dry Noodles (Suki Haeng)
To Cook
In a frying pan, heat sesame oil over medium heat and add the meat. Pan-fry until done.
Move the meat to a side and add the egg onto the empty side, scramble until done. Move the egg to the meat section.
Add in the bean thread noodles and ¼ cup water to cook. Add more water until noodles are soft and pliable.
Add suki sauce to the noodles and mix until even. Stir-fry the noodles with the meat and egg. Move to side.
Add mushrooms to the empty side and add 1-2 tbsp water at a time until almost cooked. Add bok choy and Chinese cabbage, cook until just wilted.
Toss everything together and serve with suki sauce for additional flavour.
Penang Assam Laksa
To Cook
Clean the fish. In a pot, bring 8 cups of water to boil. Add fish and boil for about 10 mins. Transfer the cooked fish into a bowl and let cool.
Strain the fish stock; add the peeled tamarind, ginger torch flower and the mint leaves, continue to boil on low heat. (Tip: put the ginger torch flower and mint leaves in a herb bag)
Pick the flesh of the fish. Break the fish meat into tiny pieces and put the fish back into the stock. Then, cover the pot with a lid and lower heat. Leave broth to continue simmering until fragrant.
Using a food processor or a pestle and mortar, grind or pound the spice paste until fine. Heat up a wok and saute the spice paste with cooking oil for about 6-8 minutes. Transfer the spice paste into the boiling stock.
In a bowl, mix tamarind paste with warm/hot water and add to the stock.
Add salt and sugar to taste. Discard the ginger torch flower and mint leaves from the laksa broth before serving.
In a serving bowl, add in the laksa noodles and pour the fish broth into the bowl. Garnish and serve immediately with a spoonful of prawn paste.
Hanoi Style Rice Vermicilli with Grilled Pork (Bun Cha Hanoi)
To Prep
For the pork marinade, combine water, sugar, fish sauce, garlic and shallot together in a small bowl.
Slice the pork shoulder into 2 inch by 2 inch pieces. Add half the marinade in the minced pork and the other half in the sliced pork shoulder.
For the ground pork, add the roasted rice powder and form into golf-ball size patties.
Marinate the pork for at least 30 min or overnight.
Cut the papaya, remove the seeds and slice thinly. Add salt to papaya and let it sit for 30 minutes. Then rinse the salt off under cold running water. Squeeze out the water in the papaya. Pat dry and set aside.
Mince garlic cloves and shallots.
Prepare the bean sprouts by cutting off heads and tails, mint, chillies deseeded and sliced.
Prepare vermicelli as per packet instructions.
Prepare the dipping sauce, combine the hot water and sugar. Mix until dissolved. Add lime, garlic, chillies, fish sauce, coconut soda.
To Cook
Grill the pork over charcoal fire for a more authentic taste. You can also bake them in the oven at 200 degrees for 10 min. Make sure to flip and rotate to evenly cook the pork. Let it rest for 10 min.
To Assemble
When you are ready to serve, add a single portion of meat to a small bowl. Ladle on the sweet papaya chili sauce on the meat. Then serve with a side of rice noodles and top it with fresh Vietnamese herbs.
Vietnamese Beef And Noodle Soup (Pho Bo)
For the Pho Broth
Place onions and ginger on cooking grate (on an open flame a gas stove) and let skin burn. Remove when fragrant. Under warm water, remove charred onion skin and discard blackened bits on the ginger with a knife.
Place bones in a stockpot, add water and bring to boil for a few mins. Dump bones and water into sink and rinse bones with warm water to remove impurities. Clean stockpot and return bones.
Add 6 litres of water to pot, bring to boil over high heat, then lower flame to gently simmer. Use ladle to skim any scum that rises to surface. Add remaining broth ingredients and cook meat, uncovered, for 1 1/2 hrs.
Remove cooked meat and place in bowl of cold water for 10 mins. After draining and cooling the meat, refrigerate it. Allow broth to continue simmering for around 3 hrs.
Strain the pho broth and use ladle to skim as much fat from top of the pho broth. Adjust flavour with additional salt, fish sauce and yellow rock sugar.
For the Noodles and Garnishing
Fill large saucepan with water and bring to boil. Blanch noodles for about 10-20 seconds and arrange into bowls.
Then, blanch bean sprouts for 30 seconds. Drain and add to the garnish plate.
Place slices of cooked meat atop noodles. Garnish with onion, scallion and chopped coriander.
Ladle in broth and serve.