Asian Inspirations

Discover the authentic in Asian cuisine food

Vegetables

Japanese Dan Dan Noodles (Tantanmen Ramen)

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To Prep
To make the sauce for the dish, combine rice vinegar, soy sauce, sesame paste and chilli oil in a small mixing bowl.

To Cook
Fry the pork mince over a medium heat until there are no pieces that are still pink. Add in the sake, soy sauce, sweet bean paste and spicy chilli bean paste.
Continue to cook until the mince is well coated and the sauce has begun to thicken. Set aside.
In a pot, bring the chicken broth to a boil and then add in the soy milk. Return the mixture to almost a boil and then remove from the heat.

To Serve
Place half of the zasai, green onions and sauce into a serving bowl before pouring in some of the soy broth. Add the noodles, meat and vegetables, then garnish with green onion and toasted sesame seeds. Serve!

Thai Yellow Curry Fish

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To Prep
Marinate each fish fillet with 1 tsp of fish sauce and a dash of pepper. Set aside.

To Cook
Heat 1 tbsp of oil in a saucepan or pot over medium heat.
Reduce heat to low and add yellow curry paste. Cook for 5 mins, or until fragrant, stirring with a wooden spoon/spatula.
Add coconut milk and water, bring to the boil on medium-high heat.
Add in fish sauce, sugar and salt, adjust to taste, then reduce to low.
Add eggplants and beans and allow to simmer until almost thickened to desired consistency. If eggplants or beans are not cooked through, add some hot water and continue to simmer until cooked.
Stir in cherry tomatoes and remove from heat. Cover with a lid and set aside.
Heat 2 tbsp oil in a pan over medium heat. Add the snapper fillets skin side down and allow to cook for 2-3 mins, or until skin is crispy. Flip and continue to cook until fully cooked through. Remove from pan.
To serve, add jasmine rice to a plate or bowl. Spoon over yellow curry, then top with snapper fillet and garnish with coriander.

Vegan Thai Green Curry

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To Cook
In a large saucepan, heat oil over medium high and stir fry the curry paste until fragrant.
Add the Thai eggplants and stir for 2-3 mins, then pour in the coconut milk. Cover with lid and bring to boil. Then simmer covered on low heat for 10 mins.
Add in the butternut squash and pea eggplants and simmer for 8 mins.
Add in the snow peas, capsicums and baby corns and simmer for another 2 mins. Add the salt and stir to combine well.
Remove from heat and transfer to a serving dish. Garnish with basil leaves, chillies and coriander. Serve.

Thai Panang Chicken Curry

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To Cook
In a cooking pan, heat oil over medium heat, add the curry paste and stir fry until fragrant.
Add in the chicken pieces and stir for 1-2 mins.
Pour coconut milk into the saucepan and cook for 5 mins over medium low heat.
Add the capsicum, broccolini, fish sauce and brown sugar into the curry and simmer on low for 5 mins or until the chicken and vegetables are cooked.
Remove from heat and serve garnished with kaffir lime leaves and chillies.

Thai Yellow Curry Paste

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To Make Paste
Grind the white peppercorns, coriander seeds, cumin seeds and curry powder in a mortar and pestle. Set aside.
Pound the turmeric, ginger, lemongrass, galangal and salt into a paste.
Add in the dry spices and pound well, then add the chillies, garlic and shallots to pound into a paste.
Add in the shrimp paste and pound until well mixed.

Thai Panang Curry Paste

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To Make Paste
With a mortar and pestle, pound the chillies and salt into a paste. Add in the cumin, coriander seeds and white pepper and continue pounding.
Add in the galangal, coriander roots, lemongrass and kaffir lime leaves, pound into a paste.
Add in the shallots and garlic, pound well.
Throw in the peanuts and shrimp paste, pound until well mixed.

Thai Massaman Curry Paste

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To Make Paste
In a mortar and pestle, grind the dried chilli, then set aside.
Grind the white peppercorns, coriander seeds, cumin seeds, nutmeg, cardamom, cinnamon and cloves into a fine powder.
Combine with the ground dried chilli and set aside.

To Make Paste
Place galangal, lemongrass, coriander roots and salt into the mortar and pound until it turns into a paste.
Add the shallots and garlic and pound well. Then add in the dry spices powder gradually to absorb the moisture of the paste.
Add the shrimp paste, then pound until fine and well mixed.

Vegan Thai Green Curry Paste

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To Make Paste
Using a mortar and pestle, grind the toasted cumin seeds, coriander seeds and white peppercorns into a fine powder. Place in a bowl and set aside.
With a mortar and pestle, roughly pound the green chillies and salt, then add in the Thai basil leaves and pound until fine. Add in some ground spice powder to absorb excess moisture.
Add in the galangal, coriander roots, lemongrass and kaffir lime leaves, pound well.
Throw in the chopped shallots, garlic and remaining dry spices and pound until it turns into a fine paste.

Indonesian Vegetarian Skewers

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To Cook
Mix all marinade ingredients in a large bowl. Add eggplant and zucchini, marinate for 1 hr.
Mix dipping sauce ingredients in another bowl. Set aside.
Thread the vegetables onto skewers until all vegetables have been used.
Brush some oil on a hot griddle pan or barbeque, cook the skewers, basting occasionally.
Serve with dipping sauce and some crushed peanuts.

Chicken Yaki Udon (Fried Udon with Chicken)

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To Prep
Cook udon as per pack instruction. Drain and set aside.

To Cook
Heat a pan with oil over medium heat. Stir fry in chicken, cabbage, carrots and bean sprouts until cooked through.
Add in Hakubaku Organic Udon followed by Obento Tonkatsu Sauce. Stir fry until all ingredients are well coated.
Add spring onions and quickly stir fry until the spring onion is mixed in.
Plate the dish and garnish.

Pineapple Fried Rice

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To Cook
Preheat your fan forced oven to 130°C.
Cut pineapple in half along the length. Scoop out stringy core first and discard. Carefully scoop out almost all of the flesh, leaving shell intact with approx. 1-2cm widths around all edges.
Place open side up on an oven tray and gently warm through whilst cooking the fried rice – maximum 25 mins.
Whilst pineapple is in oven, dice remaining pineapple flesh into roughly 1.5cm cubes and set aside.
Heat ½ coconut oil in wok to high.
Stir-fry meat of choice and set aside.
Stir-fry onions, capsicum, garlic and curry paste until fragrant and slightly softened, then set aside.
Add remaining coconut oil in wok and allow returning to high heat before adding the rice. Stir while frying to ensure at least half the rice has a toasted texture and flavour.
Add meat, pineapple and vegetable mix and stir through to combine.
Add eggs, break up yolk and stir through. Cook for another 1-2 mins.
Fill the pineapple shells with fried rice, and serve with your choice of topping, chillies, coriander, crispy shallots and/or fresh lime.

Vegan Laksa

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To Prep
Add all of the paste ingredients in a food processor and process until a fine paste has formed.

To Cook
Heat up the oil in a large pan and fry the paste over a low heat for 10 mins, stirring frequently.
Add in the vegetable stock, salt and the green parts of the lemongrass and mix. Cover the pan with a lid and bring to a simmer.
After the broth has simmered for 30 mins, remove the lemongrass and then stir in the coconut milk.
Add the seitan and tofu puffs, then stir through and cook for 3 mins.
Add in the sugar and lime juice, and season to taste with salt.
To serve, arrange the noodles in a bowl and ladle over broth. Top with tofu puffs, seitan, bok choy, beansprouts and chilli, and serve with a lime wedge.