How to Make Jackie M’s XXO Sauce

I remember when XO sauce started popping up in Chinatown menus as an option for your stir-fried Chinese dishes a couple of decades ago, and thinking it must refer to cognac. I eventually learned that it was in fact a condiment made with dried scallops, an ingredient that’s expensive enough that it would deter me from ever entertaining the thought » Read More

How to Make Khmer Red Ant Beef Salad

A Wok Around Asia Recipe by Chef Chanrith Van of Courtyard by Marriott Siem Reap Resort I can legitimately say that I’ve never looked at an ant (red or otherwise) and wondered what it would taste like. Nonetheless, I wasn’t about to pass up an opportunity to try it during my visit to Siem Reap, where it was served as part of a carpaccio-like rare » Read More

How to Make Sambal for Prawn Noodle Soup (Har Meen) (Low-Carb)

  If you've followed my Live Asian Kitchen broadcasts for any length of time, you would know that the term sambal belacan" (shrimp paste sambal) covers a number of different chilli dips - there's raw sambal belacan which consists of pounding chillies with toasted shrimp paste, some seasoning plus a dash of fresh lime juice - popular in » Read More

How to Render Duck Fat | How to Make Duck Crackling

The only time I’ll eat duck (or chicken) skin is when it’s crispy, so rather than discarding it, I decided to remove all the skin from the duck in this live broadcast, and render it to obtain duck fat. I also wanted to use up every last bit from this duck (I’m Asian, after all) so I made crackling from the skin. Removing the skin and fat also meant » Read More

How to Cook Duck Soup with Salted Vegetables

  I used the duck bones (with a generous amount of meat left on it) from the same duck in my last post, to make duck soup with salted vegetables, a well-loved Chinese homestyle soup that originated from the Fujian province in China. The duck soup segment begins about halfway through this live video -   Duck Soup with » Read More

How to Make Thai Crispy Fish and Apple Salad

I was inspired to attempt this dish after sampling Fresh Crispy Snapper + Mango Salad at Lao-Thai eatery Holy Basil in Canley Heights recently. The footnote in the menu said that when out of season, they substitute green mango with apple, which I thought was a brilliant idea since not many greengrocers outside of postcode 2166 (Cabramatta, Canley » Read More

How to Make Malaysian Popiah – 2017 Edition

I remember the time I was invited to Singapore to film a series of cooking videos for an online media company. I was quite happy with the results but for the fact that they described me on their portal as a "food blogger". Anybody can blog, but I'd bet my bottom dollar there aren't many Malaysian cooks in the world who can claim to know how to » Read More

How to Cook Vietnamese Barbecue Prawns with Papaya Salad – Asian BBQ Series

This Vietnamese-inspired barbecue prawn dish is served on a bed of shredded green papaya, but young mango would work just as well, and would add a nice tangy note to the dish. In the absence of either, I would suggest thinly shredded cabbage. Adapted from Luke Nguyen's "Indochine". INGREDIENTS: 600g prawns, peeled 2 Tbsps oyster sauce 1 » Read More

How to Cook Thai Crying Tiger (Seua Hay Rong) – Asian BBQ Series

One of my favourites to order when I dine out at Thai restaurants, I had the opportunity to attempt making this myself using my Ziggy barbecue unit. This recipe is based on David Thompson's "Thai Food", and is part of my series of Asian BBQ Recipes. FYI because I'm a bit of a wimp with chilli, the heat level in the sauce that accompanies the dish » Read More

How to Cook Thai Grilled Cuttlefish (Pla Meuk Yang) – Asian BBQ Series

A simple recipe for your barbecue - in this video, I used cuttlefish, though squid would work just as well. This is the third in my series of Asian BBQ Recipes, and it's adapted from David Thompson's Thai Food. INGREDIENTS: 200g cuttlefish or squid 1 Tbsp fish sauce 3 Tbsps coconut cream 1 Tbsp coriander leaves Sauce - 1 coriander » Read More