Asian Inspirations

Discover the authentic in Asian cuisine food

Vegetables

Thai Sweet & Spicy Fried Sweet Potato Fingers

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To Cook
Prepare 3 bowls for the Sweet Potato coating.
On the first bowl, add flour, chilli powder, salt and pepper. On the second bowl, beat the egg. And on the third bowl, put the panko breadcrumbs.
Heat pan with oil in medium heat.
Dredge Sweet Potatoes in the flour mixture. Then dip it in egg wash and finally coat with panko.
Repeat with all the Sweet Potato Fingers then it’s ready to be fried. Fry for at least 5 mins or until golden brown.

To Serve
Serve with Sweet Chilli Sauce for the dipping.

Soba Soy Salad

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To Cook
Chop all the ingredients and cook the noodles as per the instructions on the packet, then combine.
To make the dressing, combine vegetable oil, sesame oil, and crushed red peppers in a small saucepan.
Whisk over heat for 3 mins, then add the honey and soy sauce, stir until combined and then allow to cool before dressing salad.

Dan Dan Tofu Noodles

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To Prep
To start the noodle sauce, in a bowl combine together 4 tbsp soy sauce and the sesame paste, stir until fully combined. Then add in vinegar, garlic, ginger, sugar and spring onions. Mix thoroughly.
Add the Lee Kum Kee Chiu Chow Chilli Oil, white pepper and Sichuan peppercorns to the sauce, stir until combined. Set aside.
Using a food processor, pulse king oyster mushrooms, 3 spring onions and garlic until finely chopped . Add in tofu pieces and pulse the mixture again, until all ingredients are finely chopped, (not a paste!).

To Cook
In a wok, add in vegetable oil until medium-high heat. Add in the Sichuan preserved vegetables and cook for 2 mins.
Reduce the heat, add the tofu and mushroom mixture, cooking for 2 mins, stirring very gently.
Pour 1½ tbsp LKK Premium soy and Shaoxing wine into the wok. Continue to cook for 7-8 mins, gently turning the mixture over so it does not stick to the pan. It should become lightly browned. Remove from heat and set aside.
Cook the fresh wheat noodles according to packet instructions. Place pak choi into boiling water for 30 secs.
In 4 separate bowls, divide the cooked noodles, then ¼ of the sesame noodle sauce mixture to each, stir through lightly to combine.
Top noodles with a generous spoonful of tofu mixture, then add pak choi, finely sliced spring onion and peanuts.

Nasu Chips

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To Cook
Prepare 3 bowls for Eggplant coating.
On the first bowl, add flour, chilli powder, salt & pepper. On the second bowl, beat the egg and on the third bowl, put the panko breadcrumbs.
Heat pan with oil in medium heat.
Dredge eggplant in the flour mixture. Then dip it in egg wash and finally coat with panko breadcrumbs.
Repeat with the rest of the Eggplant. Fry for at least 5 mins or until golden brown.

To Serve
Mix mayo, lime, salt and wasabi in a small bowl for the dip and serve together.

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.

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.

Panko Crumbed Tofu Salad

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To Prep
Combine the salt, pepper, garlic powder and black sesame seeds in the panko crumbs. Add a pinch of salt into the whisked egg.
Dip the tofu slices in the flour and remove the excess flour. Then dip the tofu slices into the egg wash and finally coat them in the seasoned panko crumbs. Put aside on a plate until all tofu slices have been coated.

To Cook
Heat some oil in a frying pan. Once your oil is hot, slowly put in the coated tofu.
Let each side of the tofu cook for about 1-2 mins. Do not stir or toss. Once the tofu is golden brown, remove from the pan and set aside on a paper towel.

To Cook
Assemble your salad bowl by mixing the salad components; lettuce, cucumber, onions, corn kernels, nori sheets and any additional ingredients of your choice.
Top the salad bowl with the crispy tofu and add in dressing of your choice; taste best with a roasted sesame Japanese dressing or a wasabi soy dipping sauce!

Veggie Tempura Tasting Plate with Spicy Dipping Sauce

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To Prep Sauce
Mix all of the sauce ingredients together. Taste and alter accordingly.

To Prep Vegetables
Top and tail vegetables if necessary. Cut capsicums, carrots and cucumbers into ½cm pieces.

To Cook the Vegetables
Mix cornflour, plain flour and baking soda with 2 chopsticks held together, in large bowl.
Mix egg yolk and soda water together till frothy.
Mix soda mixture and flour mixture together with chopsticks until all mixed; a few lumps don’t matter.
Place the bowl onto an ice bath to keep the batter cool during the cooking process.
Heat oil till it starts to slightly bubble.
Place veggies in batter one variety at a time and skim off the excess batter.
They should sizzle as soon as they enter. Let them cook till just golden, before taking out and placing on a paper towel. Repeat for the rest of the veggies.

To Serve
Plate the tempura on to a plate and add edible flowers, chilli and preserved Asian ginger to garnish. Enjoy!

Bun Ga Thom (Vietnamese Fragrant Chicken Vermicelli)

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To Prep
Prepare the marinade in a large bowl: Mix the marinade ingredients thoroughly to ensure the sugar has dissolved.
Add the chicken and mix well to fully coat with marinade. Set aside to marinate for a minimum of 1 hr, preferably longer if you have time. (For food safety, marinate in the fridge for longer periods).
After chicken has marinated, place the vermicelli into a bowl and pour over boiling water until it covers the noodles. Loosen the noodles with a fork and set aside for 5 mins. Rinse noodles under cold water and drain well. Divide noodles between 4 bowls.
In a small bowl, add in the sauce ingredients, continue stirring until the sugar has fully dissolved.

To Cook
Heat a large fry pan with oil to medium-high heat. Add chicken and cook until it is cooked through, it will start to caramelise (approximately 3 mins per side). Remove from the heat and set aside for a few mins to rest.
Prepare the chicken for serving by slicing into strips (about 1cm wide).
Prepare each bowl of vermicelli with a generous amount of mint and Thai basil leaves and Thai mint along with the vegetables. Add the sliced chicken, spoon over some of the sauce and finally top with peanuts, lime and chilli to taste.
Enjoy!

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.

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!