ASIAN CUISINE

Five Basic Condiments in Asian cuisine

These ingredients can be used as both condiments on the
table while eating or as condiments in the kitchen while
cooking
1) Extracts
2) Pastes
3) Marinades
4) Dipping Sauce
5) Garnishes
Extracts

Highly concentrated liquids taken from a single flavor

bearing ingredient
Examples : ginger extract for Chinese and Japanese food,
tamarind extract in South East Asian cuisine, Annato water
for coloring, coconut milk extracted from dessicated
coconuts.
 Pastes
Concentrates like extracts but instead of being liquid, they are thick,
silky or coarse, and often times contain another ingredient, many times
these pastes can be used as a marinade and added to sauces also
ex. Chinese Lotus Paste
Black Bean paste – black bean, water, sugar
Red Bean Paste – red bean, water, sugar
Miso- fermented soy bean paste
Lemongrass and Garlic pastes
Curry pastes, Shrimp Pastes
 Marinades

• Flavoured liquids to soak meat, fish and poultry

• Many Asian marinades give all five flavors –sweet,
salty, bitter, sour and spicy ( sugar, soysauce, lemon,
chilis, pepper)
• Marinades can also serve as basting liquids
• Marinating times are varied per item
Dipping sauces
• A Big part of the Asian meal
• Allows the diner to be part of the finished flavors of a
meal
• Example : soy and wasabi, vinegar , hoisin sauce with
pancakes and peking duck,
• Many dishes in Asian Cuisine are lightly flavored because
the dipping
sauce usually completes the taste
Garnishes
Leaves , Flowers and herbs added to visually enhance the meal and
lift it to its final flavor note and texture
• Unlike in Western cuisine where the garnish is simply for
decoration, the garnish in Asian cuisine many times is necessary for
its final flavor
• Ex. Fried shallots and garlic that top a dish
• Julienne of ginger
• Grated citrus zest and herbs added to soup
• Julienned Nori on rice
 Common Asian Ingredients and Products
Edible fruit resembling a long brown
bean. It is culti vated for its sour, yet
Slightly sweet pulp. Usually used for
savory dishes but is candied in the Phils
and Thailand.
Tamarind has a distinct flavor with no real
substitute although people use lemons or
limes
It can be bought also in pulp, packed
tightly in blocks and in concentrate
• EGGPLANT
Known also as aubergine or brinjal. this
vegetable is much smaller and thinner
throughout Asia than its Western
counterpart. Japanese eggplants are often
no more than about 4-8 in (10-20 cm)
long. The Thais also use a rather bitter
peasized eggplant and the apple variety.

• BEAN CURD
Widely used in Thai. Chinese. Malaysian.
and Japanese cuisines. The most common
variety is called "cotton" or momen tofu.
Use this unless otherwise specified.
"Cotton" bean curd is generally sold
packed in water in containers and is
firmer and easier to handle than fine-
textured "sillen" bean curd
BANANA BLOSSOM The
flower bud of the banana
plant. Slice finely and use
as garnish for noodle
soups or in salads.
BANANA LEAVES Used
primarily for wrapping
sweetmeats. sausages.
and pates before cooking.
Annato Seeds- reddish brown
seeds that is used for coloring
foods. The seeds are soaked in
water and the water squeezed out.
It is harvested from the seed of
the achiote plant. Common in the
Carribean and South Ameriuca and
grown in the Phils by the Spanish.
Salted Duck Eggs

A Chinese Speciality that is

also enjoyed all over South
East Asia, Made by soaking
the duck eggs in
brine
SEAWEED
Used extensively in Japan. Dark green
dried kelp or konbu is an essential
ingredient in basic stock or dashi. It is
sold in packets.
Wipe clean with a damp cloth but do not
soak before using. Other varieties include
a fine golden kelp (shiraita konbu),
mozuku, which are hair-like shreds, small
squares of salted dried kelp (shio-kobu).
and laver (nori). which is dried and sold
in very thin. dark green sheets. Wakame
is sold either dried or in salted form in
plastic bags. Reconstitute by soaking in
water.
SHRIMP PASTE
Known variously as kapi. trasi. and belacan.
A dense mixture of fermented. ground shrimp
used extensively in Southeast Asian cooking.
There are many different types. ranging in
color from pink to blackish-brown.
The former is good for curry pastes. the latter
for making dipping sauces. Shrimp paste
should be cooked before eating; if the recipe
you are using does not call for it to be fried
together with other ingredients. either grill or
dry-fry the shrimp paste before pounding. To
grill. wrap a piece of the paste in a piece of
foil and toast under a grill or dry-fry in a pan
for about 2 minutes on each side.
Fresh Tofu

• Firm, Medium Firm, Soft, Silken

• Pressed Tofu –
• Tofu Skins- flat, fresh, frozen or dried sheets.
The sheets can be used as springroll
wrappers. The sticks have to be soaked in
water until pliable before each recipe
Pandan leaves
Used in South East Asian Cuisine –
natural green color with a
butterscotch like flavor used for both
sweet and savory dishes.
A fragrant member of the pandanus
or screwpine family, pandan leaf is
used to wrap seasoned morsels of
chicken or pork, and added to
various cakes and desserts. Bottled
pandan essence can be used as a
substitute in sweets.
Noodles and papers
• Dried Rice vermicelli
• Dried Rice Sticks ( for phad thai)
• Dried Rice paper ( for vietnamese
spring rolls)
• Mung bean noodles
• Wheat vermicelli – Somen
• Buckwheat- Soba
• Cha Soba – Matcha green tea +
soba
• Ramen- Egg
• Spring roll wrapper and Wonton
wrappers
The Asian Kitchen
You do not need a range of exotic implements to cook Asian food.
Perhaps that is the most surprising aspect of Asian cooking-that often
sophisticated food is prepared with so few utensils.

Far more time is usually spent on the preparation of the ingredients,

which have to be peeled, chopped, grated, ground, and blended before
the cooking begins
COOKING IMPLEMENTS
•  Bamboo Steamers 
• Chopsticks
•  Cleavers
• Flat Strainers ( with Handle)
•  Mortar and Pestle
• Wok
• Saute pan
• Clay pot
WOK
Perhaps the most essential ingredient in the
Asian kitchen is the wok-known as a kuali in
Malaysia and Indonesia.

A deep, curved pan traditionally made of cast

iron and used for just about everything
except cooking rice: stir-frying, deep-frying,
braising, making sauces, steaming, and so on.

The shape of the wok distributes the heat

evenly, while its sloping sides ensure that
food falls back into the pan.
Kadai
In India, a large wok-like utensil, is used
for frying and sauteing.

The kadai is made of iron, brass or

aluminium, and slightly deeper than a
wok, but the latter makes an excellent
substitute.

For rice and curries, a flat-lidded,

straight-sided pan known as a degchi is
used, but a good heavybased pot will do.
Frying spatula and Perforated
Ladle
for lifting out deep-fried food, are useful. Chinese
cooks use a round-edged spatula for tossing stir-fried
ingredients in the wok. Indonesian cooks use an
assortment of wooden or coconut husk spoons for
stirring.

CHOPSTICKS
Chinese cooks also use a pair of long wooden
chopsticks for turning over food during deep-frying,
although this requires a certain dexterity, only
acquired with practice. You may be happier with tongs.
SAUCE PAN
Almost any saucepan can be used for cooking Asian dishes, but take
care to choose one that has a non-reactive lining, since many dishes
contain acid such as tamarind or lime juice.

Non-stick saucepans are ideal for Asian food as they avoid the problem
of spices sticking on the bottom and allow you to use less oil when
frying.
CLAYPOTS
Claypots of various shapes and
sizes, with a sandy outside and a
glazed interior, are used for slow
cooking and for making soups and
stocks.
These are attractive and
inexpensive, but any type of
saucepan can be used.
BAMBOO STEAMER
Steaming is a healthy method of
cooking in Asia, and a multi tiered
bamboo steamer with a plaited cover
to absorb any moisture (unlike a
metal cover where moisture
condenses and falls on the food) is
invaluable.

If you are using a multi-tiered metal

steamer, put a tea towel under the lid
to prevent moisture from dripping
back onto the food.
 CLEAVER

Just as indispensable as a wok is the

cleaver, which comes with either a
heavy rectangular blade about 3-4 in
(8-10 cm) deep, ideal for cutting
through bones, or a lighter weight
blade for chopping, slicing, mincing,
bruising garlic cloves and scooping up
food on the flat edge to carry to the
pan.
 MORTAR and PESTLE
If the thump-thump of the stone,
granite or porcelain mortar and
pestle is not for you, blenders, food
processors, and coffee grinders make
light work of the pounding, grinding,
and blending of spices and seeds. It's
essential that all the ingredients to be
made into a paste be finely chopped
before blending.
BANANA LEAF
The multi-purpose banana leaf is
often used in Southeast Asia to
wrap food in for grilling, steaming,
or placing directly onto hot coals
 BAMBOO BASKET

In Japan, bamboo baskets are used for

draining noodles (a colander or sieve
makes an adequate substitute).
Bamboo mats, available in speciality
Asian stores, are useful for rolling rice
inside wrappers of seaweed, rolling up
Japanese omelets and for squeezing the
liquid out of cooked vegetables
Cooking Techniques
 Stir-frying
The most common cooking method is probably stir-frying. which is fast cooking
over a high heat in oil. usually in a wok. Evenly sliced ingredients are tossed
about constantly; contact with the heat from the sides as well as the bottom of
the wok means that food cooks very rapidly. sealing in the juices and flavor.
Timing is absolutely crucial to the success of stir-frying.

Poaching
is carried out in water or stock that is barely simmering. The liquid should only
just cover the meat which must be fished out as soon as it is ready.

Blanch
bring a pot of water to a rolling boil and immerse the food-usually vegetables-
in small batches. Cook until they are tender but still crisp.
Deep-frying
involves cooking food by immersing it totally in heated oil. For best
results. cook the food in small amounts so that the temperature of the oil
does not drop too much.

Steaming
is a cooking technique much prized by the Chinese and Japanese. The
gentle cooking is an excellent method for showcasing the freshness of the
produce. since all the natural flavors are retained. Make sure the water
level in your steamer or wok is always topped up when you're steaming.
Grilling
is another popular cooking technique. and it is hard to imagine Indonesia.
Malaysia. and Singapore without their variations on satay. or Vietnam
without its sugar-cane prawns. The meat to be grilled is placed on skewers
(remember to soak the skewers in water beforehand to prevent them from
burning).

Braising
involves cooking food over a low heat in flavored liquid for a long time. and
is ideal for tougher cuts of meat and some vegetables. To red braise meat is
to cook it in dark and light soy sauces.
QUIZ on August 31 Mon
Types of Quiz (Enumeration,Identification and Multiple
Choice) 15 items x2 = 30pints