Two weeks ago, we played a little guessing game.

Here they are in all their roasted and nutty glory. My kids love this as a snack. Because it’s good for them, I let them have all they want. The only thing is even after handfuls of this stuff, they’re still asking for more. Know what it is?
Fresh chickpeas! (a.k.a. garbanzo beans, or the Italian ceci (che-chi) You can find these easily at Indian grocers and some Asian stores. Better yet, try to grow your own!
To roast fresh chickpeas, preheat your oven to …read more

And here it is, katsuo-bushi, the indispensable ingredient that gives life to Japanese dishes seasoned with or cooked in dashi.
Katsuo-bushi is made from the tuna-like skipjack (scientific name Katsuwonus pelamis), or bonito, a member of the mackerel family. The Japanese have been steaming/boiling and drying this fish since the fifteenth century and using it the way we do today. After processing, the fish looks like a piece of wood, and can then be shaved into flakes with the use of a katsuo-kezuri-ki, or “bonito shaver”. This is a bladed wooden utensil in the shape of …read more

Japanese dashi is one of the easiest things to learn to make, and one of the most important as well. Because it is the cornerstone of most Japanese soups and sauces, where it serves as both stock and seasoning, making a good pot of dashi is a must in every Japanese food enthusiast’s repertoire.
The two basic ingredients for making dashi is fish and seaweed, which is why it is sometimes called “sea stock”. A basic dashi is made by bringing some water and a piece of kombu just to the boil, at which point the kombu is removed. …read more

Warm Thai Pork Salad with Asian Ginger Dressing
Mushu Pork Lettuce Wrap
Chicken Soba Salad
Curried Chicken Salad
I’ve been following this rabbit trail all evening. Everytime I click I’m led to more and more Asian cuisine stuff. Five years ago, I would never have believed you if you had told me information would be this easily accessible online. (sigh) So many recipes, so little time. I better stop here and post a recipe next:).

I just found a treasury of Asian delights, from the Culinary Institute of America!
Worlds of Flavor: Savoring Asia is the CIA’s online coverage of the 2004 WOF Conference. Click on the link and you’ll find essays, recipes, videos, and all kinds of neat information on Asian food.
Some of my favorite features:

The video of Yoshi Tome explaining the different kinds of sake
Chef Hoang Trang’s demo of Banh Beo
a recipe for Hot and Numbing Beef (Sichuan section)

Go check it out!

“I eat only vegetables.” This is the phrase photographer and traveler Carl Weaver suggests you use if you’re a vegetarian traveling to Thailand. (Substitute “Pom” for “Dee Chan” if you’re a man.)
The more I learn about vegan and vegetarian diets, the more I appreciate Asian cuisine, particularly Thai. These people know how to eat vegetarian without compromising the least bit of flavor!

Linda Burum of the Los Angeles Times writes about

Harumi Kurihara, author of Harumi’s Japanese Cooking, is currently
in New York promoting her book. I’ve been waiting to get it, eager to compare with Elizabeth Andoh’s Washoku. Ms. Kurihara is a native of Japan, while Ms. Andoh is an American who has lived in Japan for many years and has married into a Japanese family. Ms. Andoh’s unique perspective comes from living with and learning from her mother-in-law. She shares the concept of Washoku — a set of 5 principles that characterize Japanese food preparation — in her book. Both women write about home cooking …read more