Asian Inspirations

Discover the authentic in Asian cuisine food

Vegetables

Buddha Bowl with Panko Crumbed Tofu and Avocado Rose

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For Panko Crumbed Tofu
Combine the salt, garlic powder and black sesame seeds in the panko crumbs.
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.
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.

For Buddha Bowl
In a bowl, add rice wine vinegar and white and black sesame seeds to the cooked and cooled sushi rice. Incorporate well with rice.
Add on the lettuce, carrots, cucumbers, red bell pepper, panko crumbed tofu, radishes, green onion, and edamame beans. Thinly slice the pickled ginger and add to the bowl.
Carefully peel half of an (just ripe) avocado. Thinly slice it width wise using the tip of the knife (will help prevent it from stick to the blade). Shape the avocado into a rose and add to the bowl.
Make the dressing by combining together the Kewpie Sesame Dressing and Soy Sesame Dressing.
Pour the dressing over and serve.

Vietnamese Rice Paper Rolls

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To Prepare Rice Paper Rolls
In a pan with oil, fry tofu for a few minutes on both side until golden brown.
Meanwhile in a small bowl, combine all the dipping sauce ingredients together. Mix until the sugar is dissolved. Taste and adjust seasoning to your preference.
Place noodles in boiling water for about 3 mins. Loosen up noodles with tongs. Drain well and set aside.
Place warm water in a large bowl and stir through the coconut milk. Dip the rice paper in warm water and remove immediately. Place rice paper on a clean chopping board or plate.
Layer the tofu and prawns, lettuce, cucumber, herbs, carrot, cucumber and vermicelli at the end of the rice paper closest to you, bring the end of rice paper over ingredients, then fold the two sides of the rice paper into the middle to enclose the fillings and roll up the rice paper roll tightly.
Serve rice paper rolls with dipping sauce and crushed peanuts.

Thai Basil Tofu & Vegetables Stirfry

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To Make
Place tofu cubes into a deep bowl and coat with tapioca starch, salt and white pepper.
Heat up a frying pan with some cooking oil and pan fry tofu cubes till golden brown. Remove and set aside.https://asianinspirations.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/TBT-2-1.jpg
Mix all the sauce ingredients together. Set aside.
Using the same frying pan, heat up 2 tbsp of cooking oil and sauté minced garlic and grated ginger. Toss in the sliced capsicum and broccolini. Cook for 2-3 mins, add water and stir. Cover for 2 min.https://asianinspirations.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/TBT-3-1-1.jpg
Toss in fried tofu cubes, add in sauce mixture and stir till well coated for about 2 mins. Remove from heat.https://asianinspirations.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/TBT-4-1.jpg
Toss in the Thai basil leaves and give a good stir.https://asianinspirations.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/TBT-5-1-1.jpg
Serve by garnishing toasted sesame seeds, cilantro and extra Thai basil.

Chilli Cold Sweet Potato Noodles (Bibim Dangmyeon)

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To Make
Bring a large pot of water with ½ tbsp salt to a boil. Blanch carrots and garlic chives or spinach for 10 seconds. Cool them under cold water in a colander and drain thoroughly. Season with salt and set aside.
Blanch fried fish slices for 30 seconds in the same pot and drain in a colander. Set aside.
Mix all the sauce ingredients together in a small bowl and set aside.
Boil sweet potato noodles in the same pot according to packet instructions. Drain in a colander under cold running water. Drain thoroughly.
In a large bowl add 1 ½ tbsp sesame oil and a pinch of salt to the noodles and mix well.
Portion sweet potato noodles into 4 bowls. Top with carrots, garlic chives (or spinach), fried fish slices, pickled daikon (danmooji) and sauce. Mix before eating.

Kimchi Pancake (Kimchi Jeon)

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To Prep
In a bowl add plain flour, tempura mix and corn flour. Add water and mix well. Batter should have a thin pancake batter consistency.
Add kimchi, onions, green onions and chilli slices to the batter and mix well.
Mix all the dipping sauce ingredients together in a small bowl. Set aside.

To Cook
Heat a non-stick frying pan to medium heat and add 2 tbsp oil. Add 1/3 batter mixture to the pan and shape into a round circle.
Panfry pancakes for 2-3 minutes or until the bottom edges are crisp. Turn the pancake over and cook for another 2 minutes or until the other side is crisp.
Set aside onto a kitchen paper lined plate and repeat pan frying to make more pancakes.
Cut pancakes up for individual servings. Serve jeon (pancakes) with dipping sauce.

Gado Gado with Indonesian Peanut Sauce

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To Make Indonesian Peanut Sauce
Heat oil in a fry pan over medium heat. Add the garlic and cook for 1 minute. Add the fish sauce, coconut milk, water, peanut butter, soy sauce, sugar and chili. Stir well to combine and bring to the boil.
Reduce heat to a simmer, and simmer uncovered for 8-10 mins until the sauce reaches a creamy consistency, stirring regularly.
Add the lime juice and stir to combine. Pour into a ramekin and set aside.

To Make Gado Gado
In a pan, heat a little bit of oil and fry tofu until crispy and golden. Set aside to cool.
In a bowl, arrange the red onion, cucumber, carrots, wombok, bean shoots and green beans. Place alongside the tofu and hard-boiled eggs.
Garnish with coriander and roasted peanuts. Serve with a generous amount of the peanut sauce.

Avocado Lemon Ramen Salad

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To Make Sauce
Combine grated ginger, soy sauce, lemon juice, extra virgin olive oil, salt, and wasabi paste. Mix well and set aside.

To Make Salad
Peel and slice the avocado, chop the gourmet tomato, yellow cherry tomatoes, and sliced lemon.
Cook ramen noodles as per packet instructions. Drain and rinse in cold water.
Combine noodles, avocado, tomatoes, and lemon in a bowl, sprinkle green herbs, and pour over the sauce.

Bird Nest Noodles

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To Make
Hydrate the dried shiitake and wood ear fungus with hot water for at least 2 hours. Slice the hydrated shiitake mushroom thinly.
Cut the hydrated wood ear into bite sized pieces. Slice off the thick and pale parts as they are tough.
Cut the dirty roots off the enoki mushroom and wash. Break it up into smaller clumps.
Create the stir fry sauce by mixing the soy sauce, oyster sauce, sesame oil, sugar, corn starch and water. Use cold water and a gentle stirring motion to combine the cornstarch well.
Bring a pot of water to a rolling boil. Blanch the carrot and snow peas for 30-60 seconds. Drain and transfer to a bowl.
Put the noodles on a large plate and loosen the noodles until it is free of large clumps. Arrange the noodles into a flat disc that evenly covers the plate.
Pour 2-3cm of oil into a frypan and heat the oil to 200 degrees Celsius. Carefully slide the noodles in, preserving the disc shape. Fry the noodles until it is crunchy and holds together somewhat, about 60 seconds. To create the bird nest shape, transfer the noodles to a bowl and press the centre down with a ladle.
Reuse the frypan after pouring out the excess oil. Turn on medium heat. Fry the garlic and ginger until fragrant.
Mix the stir fry sauce again and pour it into the pan. Stir the sauce until it is thick and glossy.
Put the mushrooms and bean curd into the pan, followed by the blanched carrot and snow peas. Stir fry for 2 minutes.
Place the bird nest noodles on a plate and ladle the stir fry into the centre.

Biang Biang Noodles

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To Make
Mix flour, water and salt by hand or in a stand mixer with the dough hook. Knead until well combined and smooth. By hand it may take up to 10 minutes.
Divide dough into 8 equal portions, knead and shape into logs. Transfer to a plate and coat well in oil. Cover in glad wrap and let rest for 1 hour.
Heat up a wok or pot of water. While waiting, flatten the dough portions into rectangles with a rolling pin. When the water is boiling, quickly blanch the bok choy then drain and set aside.
For the dough, make an indent with a chopstick down the middle of the dough portions lengthwise. Gently hold both ends of the rectangle and pull until desired thickness is reached. Split the pulled dough in two long noodle strands.
Cook the noodles in the boiling water in two batches for 1 minute. While they are cooking, divide the soy sauce, black vinegar and bean sprouts into two bowls.
Once the noodles are cooked, drain and divide them into the bowls. Add the red pepper, garlic and green onion in a small pile on top of the noodles. Add the bok choy around the edges of the bowl.
In a saucepan, heat the rest of the vegetable oil over high heat until smoking. Carefully pour the oil into the bowls and over the noodles and ingredients so that they sizzle. Stir to coat the noodles evenly and enjoy with a sprinkle of sesame seeds.

Stir-Fried Eggplant, Potato and Capsicum (Di San Xian)

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To Make
Cut eggplants into chunks and soak with cold water for 10 mins. Place a plate on top while soaking as eggplants tend to float. Drain and dry eggplants with a paper towel.https://asianinspirations.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/R03071-Stir-Fried-Eggplant-Potato-and-Green-Capsicum-1.jpg
Next, sprinkle cornflour over eggplants and mix until well coated.
Heat up a frying pan with 2-3 tbsp of oil, and fry the potato chunks until all sides are brown. Remove from oil and place into a big plate without overlapping, set aside. https://asianinspirations.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/R03071-Stir-Fried-Eggplant-Potato-and-Green-Capsicum-2.jpg
Fry coated eggplants until all sides are slightly brown. Remove from oil and transfer to a dish with potatoes in a single layer. https://asianinspirations.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/R03071-Stir-Fried-Eggplant-Potato-and-Green-Capsicum-3.jpg
Remove excess oil leaving about 1 tbsp of oil in the frying pan, then sauté the minced garlic until fragrant. Toss in the green capsicum and stir for 20 secs.
Pour in the sauce and add in potatoes and eggplants and stir until well mixed. Transfer onto a plate and sprinkle with chopped spring onions. https://asianinspirations.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/R03071-Stir-Fried-Eggplant-Potato-and-Green-Capsicum-4.jpg

Summer Soba Noodle Salad

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To Make
Make the dressing by combining lime juice, oil, honey, salt, and ginger. Mix well and set aside.
Toast peanuts in a hot oven at 180°C until golden (around 5-10 mins, depending on your oven).
Chop the carrot into thin strips (or grate) and trim the ends off the snow peas.
Cook the edamame beans in a pot of water until soft. Remove from the heat and add snow peas to the same pot of water to lightly blanch. Drain.
Cook soba noodles according to packet instructions. Drain and rinse in cold water.
Combine noodles, snow peas, carrot, and edamame in a bowl and pour over the dressing. Mix well and sprinkle over toasted peanuts before serving. (Note – I decorated with rice balls using leftover sushi rice as little tiger faces).

Crispy Shredded Potato Pancake

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To Make
Prepare dipping sauce, mix all dipping sauce ingredients together and let it sit for an hour.
Prepare potato mixture, mix all main ingredients together.https://asianinspirations.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/PPC-1-Final.jpg
Heat up medium frying pan brushed with some oil. Scoop a soup spoon full of shredded potato mixture and spread out onto frying pan. Flatten with the back of a spoon and cook on medium heat till crispy and with light browning. Turn the potato pancake over and cook the other side.https://asianinspirations.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/PPC-2-Final.jpg
Cut into 6 and serve warm with dipping sauce.https://asianinspirations.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/PPC-6-Final.jpg