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Uniquely “Americanized” Asian Dishes in the United States

admin — Sun, 28 Aug 2011 00:00:00 +0000

The culinary trends in the United States today, including Asian cuisine, have been part of the nation’s landscape since the 1800′s. Most dominant of these cuisines is Chinese which has been in the country for the longest time. Westernization of Chinese cuisine was necessary so that non Chinese customers would find this cuisine more palatable. Such dishes like Egg Foo Young, Egg Rolls, Chow Mein, Lo Mein, Sesame Chicken and Chop Suey have been part of Chinese restaurants for more than fifty years.

Depending what city and region in the United States, certain influences are present. For instance in San Francisco the influences are both Taiawnese and Cantonese. Other regions in China are represented, but mostly it is the California influence with access to many exotic fruits such as mangoes and other fresh green vegetables. In Hawaii Chinese cuisine has been infused with other Asian influences to make something truly unique. Mostly Chinese and other Asian cuisines have been Americanized so that they can be accessed by many American families on a culinary adventure.

In conclusion, the fusion of both Asian and American cuisines has been with the nation culturally for many years in the past and will continue to be in America for years to come. What better way to celebrate the New Year but with Chinese.

Asian Cuisine and Cooking Traditions Come to US

admin — Tue, 16 Aug 2011 00:00:00 +0000

Asian cuisine involves much more than Chinese food, though Chinese food was one of the first Asian cuisines that Americans were introduced to, the techniques brought over by Chinese laborers hired to help build the railroads in the 19th century. Many Asian dishes, however, are simplified or altered for the American palate. One of the main reasons for this is that some ingredients, like galangal or lime leaves, are difficult to find in America. Dairy, carrots and tomatoes are rarely used in traditional Chinese cooking, and Americans might find ingredients like pig uteri off-putting.The whole story can be found at http://blog.foodservicewarehouse.com/blog/2010/06/23/the-future-of-american-flavors/

After the long dominance of Chinese cuisine, where it seems there’s a Chinese take-out place on every corner of every major American city, other Asian cuisines are becoming popular. A Japanese restaurant’s menu might feature sushi and tempura, vegetables, meat and fish dipped in batter and deep fried, and cold or hot noodle dishes in dashi, a seaweed broth. Kedegeree, an aromatic saffron rice, might be served at an Indian establishment, and a Vietnamese vegetable stir fry might be served with its famous Nuoac Mam sauce. Pork Pho is a Thai dish where cubes of pork are served in a broth with rice noodles and fragrant star anise.

The Growing Popularity of Asian Cuisine in the US

admin — Mon, 01 Aug 2011 00:00:00 +0000

American’s today have been assaulted worldwide on their food choices and how it is affecting their overall health. Asian cuisine has added a new spark to our demanding palates. The exotic spices of ginger, lemongrass, and curry fill not only the void our taste buds have long waited to fill but invigorate our sense of smell, creeping into every crevice of our olfactory system.
Dishes from the east are also good for our health. Research has shown that turmeric, that spice responsible for the bright coloring, improves sugar levels, prevents intestinal problems and also helps decrease body fat as it helps increase muscle mass. What Asian dish has not included a form of pepper? Pepper has been found to provide energy and help in weight loss by speeding the breakdown of fat cells. Cinnamon has long been used for its antioxidant and antimicrobial properties, but did you know it can help lower cholesterol and level out your triglycerides and blood sugar. Cumin is good for your digestive system. The list can go on and on and we haven’t even gotten into the vitamin rich vegetables. Asian cuisine is a good way to incorporate flavor and health into your everyday life.

Tips for Making Pan-Asian at Home

admin — Thu, 09 Jun 2011 00:00:00 +0000

Cooking Asian food at home can be a daunting proposition, though it shouldn’t be! Korean, Chinese and Thai foods all have their roots in home cooking and Westerners need only familiarize themselves with a few simple tips and techniques to make the process easier:
Utensils – Before you begin your Asian experiment, get a wok and some tongs to ease the process. Woks are specifically designed to sear food in the middle at high heat then steam-cook food around the edges slowly…great for stir fries or noodle dishes. Tongs are excellent for tossing sauces and noodles together and if you’re feeling extra industrious, get some chop sticks for enjoying your creations!
Ingredients – Asian cuisine isn’t as heavy as American, but it does require a lot of oil. Make sure you’re stocked with sesame oil and vegetable oil and get plenty of sesame seeds as well as tamarind, fish sauce, and of course, soy sauce to have on hand. Asian grocery stores usually have plenty of fresh, unique produce available year round.
Preparation – Get your vent hood ready for a lot of smoke! Check with the home security companies you contract with to make sure your system won’t be set off by lots of smoke and open the windows before you begin. Asian food is fragrant, so prepare for your house to smell like cooking for a day or two!

Traditions of Asian Cuisine and Cooking

admin — Sun, 01 May 2011 00:00:00 +0000

One tradition of Asian food that is often overlooked in American styled cooking is the use of hot peppers. Traditional Asian food incorporates hot peppers and other local vegetables into most of their common dishes.

Asian peppers range in size, texture and taste. Many peppers are of the chili-flavored variety and provide a very zesty flavor to the dishes. Some places, such as Thailand, use dried hot peppers in their dishes. These dishes will also include ingredients such as coconut milk to balance the spice that the peppers add to the dish.

Unlike many Asian buffets that are filled with meat dishes, traditional Asian food is often vegetable based and include a type of seafood. Cabbage is a widely used vegetable, followed by sea vegetables like kelp. Mushrooms are also used in many Asian dishes because of their abundance and variety.

Curry is one of the most used spices in true Asian food. Curry can be either mild or spicy and the preference of which to use is up to the individual cook. The curry will lend a yellowish hue to the foods, but the taste is fabulous. Curried chicken or shrimp are considered a real delicacy in Asian countries.

Tired of Bland Every Day Food?

admin — Sat, 16 Apr 2011 00:00:00 +0000

Eating the same bland foods everyday can be tiring and ruin your appetite. Eating should be enjoyable and you should be able to savor the food. Even the most popular eating trends go out of style, remember the artichoke dip? One food trend that is sure to excite your pallet is Pan-Asian. Everywhere you look restaurants, fast food places, even in one’s own kitchen the trend is creeping in, and it does not look like it is going anywhere anytime soon. The spices and the flavor make this cuisine a hit, and something we are not apt to tire of quickly. The sheer options that come with cuisine make it an ever enjoyable taste. You can find hot foods, sweet foods, even sour foods. Every craving can be met and satisfied. Fast food places are serving Asian salad; wasabi is popping up on grocery shelves in larger selections; and snow peas rule the vegetable market.
Pan-Asian is slowly climbing and ready to pounce and take over the popular spot Italian foods have held in America for decades. Large selections, new twists on old dishes, and availability make this cuisine option the hottest trend in the market. Whether you are eating in, ordering take-out, or going to a restaurant you are sure to find these dishes on the menu.

Discover the Authentic Taste of Pan-Asian Cuisine

admin — Sat, 02 Apr 2011 00:00:00 +0000

Pan-Asian Cuisine uses a unique blend of spices from countries around Asia including Japan, Malaysia, China, Vietnam and Thailand. It is becoming a growing favorite among many Americans, only being surpassed by Italian and Mexican as the top ethnic cuisines, and can be in almost any restaurant in the U.S. today.
Asian foods are known to be very spicy, containing ingredients such as ground or paste hot chili peppers, ground black pepper, and sauces made from a combination of the two. Ginger is also another very common very common spice used. It is often used in dishes containing meat, often mixed in sauces with garlic. Some other common spices are coriander, mustard and fennel seed, turmeric, and cardamom. Most dishes associated with Pan-Asian cuisine contain some sort of noodles, rice, and vegetables.
Many Pan-Asian restaurants also use tools for cooking that are native that ethnic culture. The most popular, and most important is the wok. It is able to provide a wide range of cooking temperatures due to its defined rounded bottom, cutting out the need for several different pans to be used in one meal. Since chopping, dicing, crushing spices, and carving vegetables is a must in this type of cuisine, the cleaver is also a very handy tool.

Western Inspired Sushi

www.pacifictime.biz — Fri, 28 Jan 2011 00:00:00 +0000

It seems it all started back in the 1960s when California (specifically Los Angeles) became the major portal for sushi chefs coming to America to make their “American Dream” fortune through the country’s hungry restaurant community.Because the American visual appetite did not like seeing (or chewing) on the nori (edible seaweed) typically found on the outside of traditional Japanese sushi, the chefs quickly adapted and made a type of “inside-out” roll with the nori no longer being on the outside but still incorporating the highly desirable white, short-grained Japanese rice.This adaption quickly became known as the California Roll and can be attributed single-handedly as the major factor in the growing popularity of sushi that ensured, and continues to this day.Once the California Roll became a mainstay, sushi chefs were free to introduce western palates to more exotic options that often included the raw fish option of sashimi.Still, it seemed that the “roll was king” and blossomed into an arena of its own with offerings like the following (now common on most, if not all, American sushi menus):

Dynamite Roll which includes yellowtail tuna and/or prawn tempura and fillings like bean sprouts, carrots, avocado, cucumber, chili and spcicy mayonnaise.
Spider Roll which consists of fried soft shell crab and other fillings as mentioned above as well as daikon sprouts and roe.
Philadelphia Roll which includes raw or smoked salmon, softened cream cheese (usually the Philadelphia brand hence, the name), cucumber (or avocado) and possibly onion.

There are many other rolls, of course, with many regions and restaurants applying their own names to them as a form of unique identity; but the premise remains the same as that dating back to the 60s when eager and creative chefs presented their first inventive offering: the California Roll.

Some More “Go To” Cookbooks

www.pacifictime.biz — Wed, 20 Oct 2010 17:05:37 +0000

In an earlier post I provided three nifty books to tap into to help feed your Pan Asian cooking addiction, and thought I’d add a few more to keep the nourishment going.

Pan-Asian Express: Quick Fixes for Asian-Food Fans (Barbara Witt) is for anyone who loves Asian food, whether it’s Chinese, Thai, Indian, or Vietnamese this great book helps users to “grasp the generalities of Asian cooking” in a no-nonsense manner. There are over 100 recipes to peruse and the author showcases how Asian flavors can be used to add pizzazz to every day cuisine.
30 Minute Asian Meals: 250 Quick, Tasty & Healthy Recipes From Around Asia (Marie M. Wilson) contains over 250 recipes that take less than 30 minutes to prepare (which just so happens to be the same amount of time it typically takes to make rice)! Reviewers have commented that the cookbook’s promise of “quick and tasty meals” is definitely one that is lived up to.
Asian Dumplings: Mastering Gyoza, Spring Rolls, Samosas, and More (Andrea Nguyen) takes readers through dishes by dough type, including filled pastas, thin skins, stuffed buns, rich pastries and more. Japanese pork and shrimp pot stickers, Filipino chicken and egg buns, and spicy potato samosas whet the appetite and show the diversity of the offerings the author provides. Also showcased are dessert dumplings such as fried banana spring rolls, and milk dumplings in cardamom and saffron syrup. Also included are sections on sauces, seasonings, stocks, and key ingredients to round out a superb collection that reviewers call “frighteningly delicious.”

I would say “happy reading;” but I think “happy eating” is more in order!

Worth the Read: Three Great Cookbooks

www.pacifictime.biz — Mon, 18 Oct 2010 17:03:51 +0000

There are a ton of resources out there for you to tap into your pan-asian cooking quest. Following are three cookbooks that I consider my “go to” resources when I get the urge to cook something steamy, fragrant, and delicious.

The Complete Asian Cookbook (Charmaine Solomon) is considered by many to be the “perfect introduction to Asian food since the author tested every recipe (over 80-0 of them) before including them in her book to make sure that every step was easy to understand. Recipes that are included come from Thailand, Singapore, Malaysia and Korea and typically rate five-star comments from reviewers.
The Steamy Kitchen Cookbook: 101 Asian Recipes Simple Enough for Tonight’s Dinner (Jaden Hair) provides step-by-step photos and information to help you create perfect Vietnamese Spring Rolls, savory Brocolli Beef, or aromatic Thai Curry in a no-fuss manner. The cookbook is described as “real” by reviewers and expecially appreciated for it casual, conversational, and approachable style.
Honga’s Lotus Petal: Pan-Asian Cuisine (Honga Im Hopgood) offers recipes with delicious flavors from the author’s restaurant (in Telluride) and combines flavors from Thailand, Japan, Bali, Korea, China, Vietnam, India, and Polynesia to produce dishes that were organic and natural (and delicious!). Readers have commented that the recipes produce “mouth watering” delights that are outstanding creations.

There are more, of course, and subsequent posting will include them. I just thought these were a good place to start since they provide the broadest brushstrokes to either get you on your way if you’re a newbie or enhance your skills if you’ve already been in the Pan-Asian kitchen a time or two.