Asian Inspirations

Discover the authentic in Asian cuisine food

Vegetables

Radish and Sweet Potato Cake

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To Prep
Cover dried mushrooms with 2 cups of water in a medium sized bowl. Let them soak in the water until all mushrooms are soft.
Use a cheese grater to grate radish and put it in a large bowl. Add in ½ tbsp of salt, mix it all together and leave it for 15 mins.
After 15 minutes, squeeze out the excess water from radish and transfer dried radish into another bowl.
Add water into the bowl until it covers the radish and wash salt out the from radish by squeezing until dry and transferring it into another bowl.
Repeat washing with water to rinse out salt from radish another 2 times. Leave dried radish in a bowl.
Use cheese grater to grate sweet potato into the same bowl as the radish.
Squeeze out water from shiitake mushroom and chop the mushroom into very small pieces. Keep the water for further use.
Put frying pan on the stove and pour 3 tbsp of oil into the pan over medium high.
Wait until the oil is hot then add the red shallot and fry for about 30 secs. Add the chopped mushrooms and fry them for about 45 secs before adding the minced garlic and frying it all for about 1 min. Pour all of ingredients with the oil into a bowl. Put it aside.
In a large bowl combine the radish, sweet potato, and the mushroom mixture together.
Add the rice flour, tapioca flour, wheat starch, 2 tsp of salt, black pepper and sugar into the bowl.
Pour 1 cup of soaked mushroom water into the bowl. Mix all together until combined. If the mixture is a bit dry you can add a further ⅓ cup of soaked mushroom water. The mixture should be a thick paste (not very runny).

To Cook
Transfer the batter to a greased glass or stainless steel tray that will fit into your steamer.
Add water to the steamer and put on the gas top. Bring the water to a boil over high heat.
When the water is boiling put the mixture tray into the steamer and cover it with the lid.
Cook for about 30-45 mins until it is cooked through (test by using a toothpick inserted into the cake; it should come out clean).
For the dipping sauce, mix all the dipping sauce ingredients together and adjust the flavour as you like. Put it aside.
As soon as the cake has completely cooked, allow it to cool before cutting it or putting it into the fridge overnight.
Before eating, transfer the cake onto a chopping board and cut it into squares or triangles. Dust lightly with rice flour and cook them on a frying pan with a little bit of oil over medium heat. Do not crowd the pan and cook both sides until golden brown.
After cooking, drain all cakes with paper towels to remove excess oil.

To Serve
Place the cakes onto a plate, garnish with chopped spring onions and serve it with the dipping sauce. Enjoy!

Stir Fried Chicken with Ginger and Black Fungus

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To Prep
Mix sweet soy sauce, soy sauce and oyster sauce in a small bowl and set aside.

To Cook
Put the wok or fry pan over high heat. Add oil and wait until the oil has heated up. Once you see the smoke start coming up from the wok, put the chicken in.
Cook chicken until just cooked through or about 5 mins. Sprinkle chicken stock powder in the wok.
Add Chinese cooking wine or water and cook for about 1 min.
Add ginger and sauce mixtures. Cook for 1-2 more mins.
Add black fungus and mix until the sauce is well coated on to the black fungus and the fungus has heated through; add a little water if it looks a little dry.
Add spring onion and white pepper and give it a few stirs.

To Serve
Serve with jasmine rice, garnished with extra spring onion.

Asinan Betawi (Jakartan Pickled Salad with Spicy Lime Dressing and Mie Crackers)

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To Prep
In a saucepan, boil water with 2 tsp turmeric powder and add the tofu and cook until they begin to rise to the surface. Drain and then cut into cubes. Set aside.
Blanch the savoy cabbage in boiling water for 30 secs, drain and set aside. Repeat with the bean sprouts.

To Make Peanut Dressing
Dissolve the dark palm sugar in ¼ cup water and simmer on a stove top for 5 mins.
Heat oil in small fry pan over medium-high heat.
Stir fry garlic and chilli for 1 min. Add Lee Kum Kee Vegetarian Stir-fry Sauce and stir for a further min.
Add all other ingredients, except salt, sugar, extra water and lime juice. Bring to boil and lower heat. Simmer, stirring occasionally until slightly thickened.
Remove from heat and cool. When cool, blend until mostly smooth (you still want some chunks of peanut).
Add more water if needed, to make dressing a thick but somewhat runny custard-like consistency. Add lime juice.
Taste and add salt and sugar if needed. Serve warm over prepared salad.

To Make Asinan Salad:
Arrange lettuce leaves on plate. Mix all other vegetables together. Pile on top of lettuce. Tumble over turmeric tofu. Drizzle with Peanut Dressing.
Serve with Mie Crackers.

Vegan Jackfruit Baos

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To Prep Baos
Combine flour, instant yeast, sugar and salt in a bowl.
Add about ½ cup of warm water and 1½ tbsp of oil. Mix it together with a wooden spoon then start combining the dough with your hands. You will need to add another 2 or 3 tablespoons so it’s not too dry or too sticky, but do this a tablespoon at a time.
Knead it for 10 mins until elastic and smooth. Form the dough into a ball and rub a small amount of oil on the dough’s surface to prevent it from drying. Place in a clean bowl covered with a kitchen towel and place somewhere warm for about 1-2 hrs or until it doubles in size.

To Make the Filling
Open the can of jackfruit and drain it. Remove the firm pointy ends off each triangular piece of jackfruit and squash each piece of jackfruit gently so that it separates into individual strands and soaks up more of the cooking sauce. Set aside.
Heat up 2 tbsp of oil in a medium size pan. Fry spring onions until softened. Add chopped garlic and ginger and fry gently until soft and fragrant.
Mix in Chinese five spice and fry gently for 1 min.
Now add the remaining sauce ingredients: soy sauce, hoisin sauce, rice vinegar and sugar. Mix them around well and allow sugar to melt. Finally add in jackfruit and mix well to allow it to warm up and soak up the maximum amount of sauce.

To Make the Baos
After the dough has doubled in size, tip it out onto a lightly floured surface and press the air out with your fingertips. Divide the dough into 4 equal pieces and form small balls. Place the balls on a lightly floured surface, cover with a kitchen towel and leave for another 30 mins.
Using a rolling pin, roll the balls out into ½cm thick oval shapes. Fold each shape in half and insert bamboo steamer paper (you can buy these at the Asian grocers) or baking paper between the bun halves.
Line your bamboo steamer with bamboo steamer paper and place folded up buns inside for another 30 mins of proving. If your steamer is too small, rest the remaining buns on baking paper and lightly dusted tray until you are ready to steam. Fill a pot/wok (which the steamer can comfortably sit on) with water and place the steamer with the buns on top.
Turn heat to medium-high and let the water come to a simmer; don’t be tempted to peek inside or you will ruin the buns. Once you can hear the water simmering vigorously, put the timer on for 10 mins.
After the time is up, take the pot and steamer off the heat and rest the buns for another 5 mins.
After 5 mins, lift the lid off and remove the buns gently. Repeat the process to cook the other buns.

To Serve
Fill each bun with pulled jackfruit, pickled veggies, coriander, Sriracha and some extra hoisin sauce and crushed peanuts.

Mie Goreng Jawa (Javanese Fried Noodles)

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To Make the Flavouring Paste
Blend all ingredients until very finely chopped. Set aside.

To Cook the Mie Goreng
Heat 1 tbsp of oil in a non-stick pan or wok on high heat. Add prawns and stir fry until just cooked. Remove from pan.
Add chicken, stir fry until well cooked. Remove from pan.
Add more oil to the pan if necessary. Break eggs into the pan, let sit for a few seconds, then stir until cooked, but leave it in chunks.
Add 1 tbsp oil into the pan. Add in the Flavouring Paste, stir until fragrant and starting to dry (approx. 2 mins). Add beef balls, cabbage, carrots, water and stir until vegetables have softened and balls are warmed through.
Stir in tomatoes and pepper. Reduce heat to medium-low. Return the noodles, prawns and chicken to the pan and add in the sweet soy sauce, soy sauce and chilli sauce. Stir until well combined and warmed through.

To Serve
Sprinkle over fried shallots. Serve immediately.

Dubu Jorim

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To Cook
In a medium heated pan, pour the vegetable oil then fry tofu both sides until golden brown then set aside in a paper towel.
In a small bowl, dilute sweet soy sauce, vinegar, water, chilli powder, salt & pepper.
In a medium heated pan, saute spring onions & garlic until shiny but not burnt.
Add the diluted sauce mixture, then allow to it reduce.
Once the sauce is reduced and thickened, add snow beans and fried tofu.
Mix it well then transfer in a bowl, garnish with sesame seeds and sliced red chillies.

Thai Green Curry

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To Cook
Heat 2 tbsp of oil over medium-high heat in a pot or deep skillet. Add curry paste (additional garlic, ginger, and lemongrass can be added to paste for more flavour) and cook for 2 mins until paste dried out.
Add chicken broth, coconut milk, fish sauce and sugar. Mix to dissolve paste. Add kaffir lime leaves, stir and bring to a simmer.
Add chicken, stir, lower heat to gentle bubble and cook for 7 mins.
Add in and stir sliced carrots and cook for 6 mins.
Taste sauce. Add more fish sauce for saltiness or sugar for sweetness
Add snow peas and capsicum and cook for 2 mins. Then stir through Thai basil and lime juice before turning off the heat.

To Serve
Serve over jasmine rice and garnish with cilantro and red chillies!

Quorn & Asparagus in Mushroom XO Sauce

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To Make Mushroom Sauce
In a large pan, heat the vegetable oil on a low to medium heat. Add the shallots, Lee Kum Kee Chilli Garlic Sauce, red chilli and dried chilli flakes. Stirring until the shallots are tender.
Add the button, shiitake and re-hydrated shiitake mushrooms. Cook until the the moisture from the mushrooms has released and evaporated.
Pour in the Lee Kum Lee Premium Soy Sauce, balsamic vinegar and reserved shiitake mushroom liquid. Reduce heat and simmer until the liquid has almost evaporated and the sauce has thickened.
Remove from the stove, and allow to cool completely before storing in jar.

To Cook
Drizzle the Quorn fillets in a little oil and fry on a grill until lovely chargrill marks appear on both sides. Remove and slice. Set aside.
In a wok heat the vegetable oil and fry the shallots, garlic and ginger until soft and fragrant.
Toss in the button mushrooms, Quorn and asparagus. Stir until asparagus becomes a little tender.
Add the Mushroom XO Sauce and stir through well. Toss in the Enoki mushrooms and spring onion.
Mix the cornflour and water together in a small bowl before pouring into the wok. Stir to combine and to coat everything in the pan.

To Serve
Serve with traditional rice, konjac rice, cauliflower rice, traditional egg noodles or even konjac noodles. Garnish with a wedge of lime and spring onions. Enjoy!

Tofu & Okra Rendang with Asian Greens

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To Cook
Fry the tofu until crunchy.
Add the onion and okra and toss for 2 mins.
Add the rendang paste and coconut milk and cook a further 2 mins.
In a separate pan, throw in the water spinach with a few sprinkles of water and toss for a couple of mins until bright green.

To Serve
Remove from the heat, dish and pour sesame oil and sweet soy. Serve curry with fresh coriander, chilli and jasmine rice.

Bahn Mi Bowl

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To Make the Pickled Carrots
Whisk the rice vinegar, palm/brown sugar, sesame oil, and salt together. Soak the carrots in the mixture for 1 hr.

To Make the Meatballs
Mix all ingredients together. Roll into small meatballs with your hands.
Heat a little bit of olive oil over medium-high heat. Add the meatballs and fry until golden brown on the outside and fully cooked (not pink) inside.

To Serve
Layer the carrots and meatballs over quinoa, rice, or noodles.
Top with herbs, peanuts, sesame seeds, and/or spicy mayo. Sliced avocado is a nice addition.

Tofu Katsu Don

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To Cook
Cut the tofu into 4 large square steaks, place into a shallow dish, cover with 4 tbsp of soy and set aside.
Using a saucepan, bring vegetable oil to medium heat, then add in onions, cooking for 4-5 mins. Add in water, ginger, mirin, rice wine vinegar and soy. Bring to boil, then reduce to simmer for 10 mins.
In a container, mix together the water and cornstarch to make a slurry. In a separate container, add the panko crumbs.
Lightly coat a piece of tofu in the cornstarch, then cover in panko crumbs, ensuring the whole piece is coated well. Repeat for each piece of tofu.
In a fry pan, add in 1 cup vegetable oil over a medium heat. Shallow fry the tofu until golden brown (about 2-3 mins each side). Remove from the fry pan and drain on a wire rack.
Place S&B Golden Curry Sauce cubes into the water mixture, stirring constantly for 5 mins whilst the sauce starts to thicken.

To Serve
Divide rice between 4 bowls, sprinkle with furikake, add in curry, tofu, sliced radish and top with finely sliced spring onion.
Enjoy!

Everyday Veggie & Tofu Laksa

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To Cook
Heat oil in a large pot over a medium heat and add the laksa paste. Fry for 3-4 mins or until fragrant and it starts to split.
Add the coconut milk, chicken stock and water and bring to the boil. Then turn down and simmer for 5 mins.
Add the kaffir lime leaves and lime juice to the broth and continue to simmer for 10 mins.
Prepare the noodles according to packet instructions.

To Serve
Divide cooked noodles into 2 large bowls. Add the tofu and vegetables then ladle over the broth. Garnish with spring onions, coriander, bean sprouts and lime.