We love to learn new skills or find out more about the history and culture of a place. Read on for reviews of cookery classes, food and travel books, plus informative posts about the places we visit.

What is Korean Temple Food? Learning about Vegan Korean Food from Chef Ji Young Kim

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Korean Temple Food - Grilled Potato with Jujubes and Chestnuts

Chef Ji Young Kim is the head chef at Balwoo Gongyang, a Korean temple food restaurant in Seoul. Driven by the Buddhist tenets of temple food, the restaurant aims to promote Buddhist culture and the practice of balwoo gongyang, the act of eating as part of practicing Buddhism, and how to appreciate food using all five of the senses. Read on to learn more about this vegan cuisine, and how Chef Ji Young Kim achieved a Michelin-star. ... Read more »

An Authentic Taiwanese Pineapple Cake Recipe | 鳳梨酥

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Taiwanese pineapple cakes in serving dish, individual ones on plates, and tea and tea pot behind

Taiwanese pineapple cakes, a delicious treat popular in Taiwan throughout the year, are square-shaped crisp and crumbly pastries filled with delicious pineapple jam. I spent the day with regular contributor Diana Chan, as she shared her recipe to make these treats at home. A little time consuming, but not at all complicated, it’s hard to beat this authentic homemade version. ... Read more »

Recipe: Yuzu Cream, Rhubarb or Plums, and Pistachio Crumble

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Yuzu Cream, Rhubarb and Pistachio Crumble Recipe from The Japanese Larder by Luiz Hara | Bringing Japanese Ingredients Into Your Everyday Cooking

You may already have read my recent review of The Japanese Larder by chef, food writer and supperclub host Luiz Hara. The publishers have kindly given permission to share three great recipes from the book with you. The first two, for crispy and deeply savoury Marmite chicken and Japanese-style mabo dofu are already up. Here’s the third ... Read more »

Recipe: Japanese-Style Mabo Dofu (Tofu with Spicy Miso Pork Sauce)

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Japanese-style Mabo Dofu Recipe from The Japanese Larder by Luiz Hara | Bringing Japanese Ingredients Into Your Everyday Cooking

You may already have read my recent review of The Japanese Larder by chef, food writer and supperclub host Luiz Hara. The publishers have kindly given permission to share three great recipes from the book with you. The first, for crispy and deeply savoury Marmite Chicken, is already up. Here’s Luiz’ Japanese-style mabo dofu. And the third, ... Read more »

Recipe: Marmite Chicken (Crispy Chicken, Marmite and Soy Sauce with Sweet Cucumber and Wakame Pickle)

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Marmite Chicken Recipe from The Japanese Larder by Luiz Hara | Bringing Japanese Ingredients Into Your Everyday Cooking

This post contains Amazon affiliate links. Recently, I reviewed the The Japanese Larder , the second book by chef, food writer and supperclub host Luiz Hara. Good news: I have permission to share three great recipes from the book with my readers. Here’s the first, for Luiz’ Marmite chicken. Coming soon, Japanese style mabo dofu and Yuzu rhubarb crumble. This is one of ... Read more »

Recipe: Tamatar Ki Chutney | Tomato Chutney with Prunes and Apricots

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Recipe: Tamatar Ki Chutney | Tomato chutney with Prunes and Apricots

This post contains Amazon affiliate links. I hope you enjoyed reading my review of Asma Khan’s first cookery book, Asma’s Indian Kitchen. The book reflects Asma’s personal cooking heritage, and the food she has been sharing with thankful Londoners. Publishers, Pavilion have given permission for us to share three recipes from Asma’s book with you. Hyderabadi Tamatar Ka ... Read more »

The Japanese Larder by Luiz Hara | Bringing Japanese Ingredients Into Your Everyday Cooking

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Book Jacket for The Japanese Larder: Bringing Japanese Ingredients into Your Everyday Cooking by Luiz Hara

In his latest book, Nikkei food expert, writer and professional chef Luiz Hara introduces the reader to a range of Japanese ingredients and cooking techniques. Instead of presenting a list of traditional Japanese recipes, Hara encourages cooks to incorporate Japanese ingredients in every day cooking to bring a richness and depth of flavour to all manner of dishes. The book offers an eclectic mix of recipes that are sure to tempt. ... Read more »