Japanese Ginger Beef Rice Burger

Rice Burger

Burgers are pretty popular in Japan–one of many yoshoku (foods that originated outside Japan) that have been soundly embraced by Japanese consumers. Alongside global chains like Burger King and McD’s are some fabulous Japanese brands such as Mos Burger, Lotteria and Freshness Burger. These chains have developed the original American-style burger to suit local palates ... Read more »

Tori Meshi (Japanese Chicken & Rice Balls)

Tori Meshi (Onigiri)

Onigiri are to the Japanese what sandwiches are to Brits–of course, sandwiches are also available and popular in Japan, but far more ubquitous when it comes to convenience food are these often triangle-shaped balls of rice with fillings in the centre, or mixed through the rice. They are straightforward to make, easy to transport and ... Read more »

Konbini by Brendan Liew and Caryn Ng

Konbini: Cult recipes, stories and adventures from Japan’s iconic convenience stores by Brendan Liew and Caryn Ng

Like most visitors to Japan, on our first trip there many years ago, Pete and I were blown away by Konbini–Japanese convenience stores. The term comes from the English for “convenience store”, pronounced konbiniensu sutoru in Japanese and commonly shortened to konbini. These amazing shops, ubiquitous across Japan, are quite different from the little corner ... Read more »

BBQ Chicken Satay with Tamarind Peanut Sauce

BBQ Chicken Satay with Tamarind Peanut Sauce from Agak Agak

Mot people I know love a good chicken satay, but the offerings in restaurants can often be very one-dimensional in flavour, whereas if you’ve enjoyed the dish in South East Asia, you’ll know how complex the flavours in both marinade and sauce can be. This barbeque chicken satay with tamarind peanut sauce is from Shu ... Read more »

Fried Egg Tempra with Onions and Kecap Manis

Fried Eggs Tempra with Onions and Kecap Manis

As readers of my review of Good Eggs by Ed Smith will already know, I utterly adore eggs! If left to my own devices I might well eat eggs for breakfast, lunch and dinner every day, even though there are so many other delicious things to enjoy. This recipe is another from Shu Han Lee’s ... Read more »

Cucumber, Pineapple and Peanut Rojak (Salad) with Tamarind Dressing

Cucumber, Pineapple and Peanut Rojak (Salad) with Tamarind Dressing

This fabulous salad from Agak Agak: Everyday Recipes from Singapore is inspired by Singaporean rojak, an eclectic mix of crunchy fruit and vegetables in a punchy dressing. Author Shu Han Lee has kept all the elements she loves from that dish – crisp cucumber, soft and juicy pineapple and crunchy, salty roasted peanuts – and dressed ... Read more »

Agak Agak: Everyday Recipes from Singapore by Shu Han Lee

Agak Agak: Everyday Recipes from Singapore by Shu Han Lee

Singapore is widely recognised as one of the world’s best places for food lovers. I’ve never met a Singaporean yet who isn’t passionate about eating great food, and that’s reflected in the richness and diversity of the cuisine. Visitors are often amazed at the availability of delicious and very affordable  food from inexpensive hawker stalls ... Read more »

Pocha: Simple Korean Food From The Streets Of Seoul by Su Scott

Book cover for Pocha by Su Scott

Are you a fan of K-drama? Short for Korean Drama it’s the collective term for a huge body of television series created in Korea but with world-wide appeal, and a rapidly growing a global fan base of which Pete and I are members. Why am I mentioning this in a review of a Korean cookbook, ... Read more »

Made In Taiwan by Clarissa Wei with Ivy Chen

Made In Taiwan by Clarissa Wei with Ivy Chen

“Taiwanese food, that’s basically the same as Chinese, isn’t it?” That’s the refrain I heard from quite a few people when we planned our two holidays to Taiwan. The answer is “yes and no“, but that “no” is no small thing at all. Yes, a large swathe of Taiwanese cuisine has similarity to Chinese dishes ... Read more »