5 Fantastic Asian Cuisine Recipes

May is Asian American & Pacific Islander month, so we would like to celebrate with great Asian cuisine recipes!

They’re sure to please your taste buds at the dinner table, so give these 5 recipes we’ve gathered a try to make at home!

 

Pad Kra Pao: Holy Basil Chicken Stir-Fry

Ingredients

• 5-10 Thai chilies, or to taste
• 5 cloves garlic
• 1 Thai chilies, chopped
• ½ cup long beans, cut into short pieces
• ½ small onion, diced
• 300g coarsely ground chicken
• 1 Tbsp oyster sauce
• 1 Tbsp soy sauce
• 2 tsp fish sauce
• 1½ tsp black soy sauce (If using dark soy sauce, reduce regular soy sauce to 2 tsp)
• 2 Tbsp water
• 1 ½ tsp sugar
• 1 ½  cup holy basil leaves, loosely packed (May be substituted with Thai or sweet Basil, if unavailable)
• Vegetable oil, as needed 
• Cooked Jasmine rice for serving
• Fried Egg
  • 2-3 eggs (1 per person)
  • Prik Nam Pla – optional (for seasoning the egg: Mix together some fish sauce, a squeeze of lime juice, chopped Thai chilies, and chopped garlic)

Instructions

1. Pound the Thai chilies into a fine paste
2. Add garlic and spur chilies into the paste and continue to pound until it becomes a rough paste.
3. Combine the oyster sauce, soy sauce, fish sauce, black soy sauce, water and sugar; stir until sugar is dissolved.
4. In a wok or a large skillet pan, sauté the garlic-chili paste with small amount of vegetable oil over medium high heat, until the garlic starts to golden.
5. Add the chicken and toss until they’re separated. Add the sauce and continue tossing until the chicken is almost cooked.
6. Add onions and long beans; toss until the chicken is fully cooked.
7. Remove from heat and stir in the holy basil.
8. Taste and adjust seasoning as needed.
9. Serve the stir-fry over cooked Jasmine rice, and top with fried egg*. Drizzle Prik Nam Pla over eggl

*For the fried egg:

1. Heat about 1 cm of vegetable oil in a small non-stick pan or a wok over medium high heat.
2. Once the oil is hot, crack the egg directly into the pan and let it fry until the edges are browned and bubbly.

 

Chinese BBQ Ribs

Ingredients

• 2 racks pork ribs – 1.5 lbs each (3 LB total)
• 6 Tbsp char siu sauce or hoisin sauce
• 2 Tbsp oyster sauce
• 1 Tbsp light soy sauce
• ½ tsp Chinese five-spice powder
• ½ tsp garlic powder or fine garlic paste
• 1 tsp ground chili (powdered dried chili pepper. May be substituted with cayenne powder, paprika, etc)
• Red food coloring (optional)
• 1 ginger, sliced
• 1 Tbsp honey

Instructions

1. Marinate
   1. Lay each rack of ribs on a large piece of aluminum foil, big enough to wrap around the ribs. Use two layers if foil is thin
   2. Tear off membrane from the back of the ribs
   3. In a medium sized bowl, mix the char siu or hoisin sauce, oyster sauce, light soy sauce, five-spice powder, garlic powder, ground chili, and food coloring (optional) until well combined.
   4. Generously brush the mixture over both sides of the ribs. Then place sliced ginger over the top of the ribs. Wrap each rack tightly with the foil.
   5. Leave to marinate in the fridge for at least 4 hours (Do not exceed 24 hours).
   6. Bring them back to room temperature 1 hour before you start the roasting process.
2. Option 1: Oven-Roasting
   1. Preheat the oven to 410°F
   2. Remove ribs from the foil, and discard the ginger. Place them onto a wire rack that sits inside a roasting tray.
   3. Add hot water to the tray, making sure it does not touch the ribs
   4. Roast ribs in oven for 35 minutes, checking periodically to watch water level. Add more water if water level decreases
   5. Remove form oven after 35 minutes, then brush a layer of honey over the topside of the ribs. Put the tray back into the oven, adding more water if necessary
   6. Increase the oven temperature to 425°F. Roast for another 10 minutes or until the ribs char a little on the edge.
3. Option 2: Air-Frying
   1. Preheat the air-fryer at 390°F for 3 minutes.
   2. Remove Ribs from foil , discard the ginger, and place the marinated ribs over the crisper tray without overlapping. Cook for 10 minutes.
   3. Brush honey over the top side of the ribs. Cook 2 more minutes until the ribs char a little.
4. Rest & serve
5. Allow the ribs to rest for 10 minutes. Separate each rib with a sharp knife and serve immediately.

 

Filipino Chicken Adobo Recipe

Ingredients

• 2 lbs chicken, big pieces sliced and cut up (breast, thighs, drumsticks)
• 3 pieces dried bay leaves
• 8 tablespoons soy sauce (dark soy sauce preferred)
• 4 tablespoons white vinegar
• 5 cloves garlic (sautéd or toasted)
• 1 1/2 cups water
• 3 tablespoons cooking oil
• 1 teaspoon sugar (optional)
• 1/4 teaspoon salt (optional)
• 1 teaspoon whole peppercorn (can be crushed or ground)

Instructions

1. Combine chicken, soy sauce, and garlic in a large bowl. Mix well. Marinate the chicken for at least 1 hour, up to 3 hours (marinate for longer for richer flavor)
2. Prepare the garlic by sautéing or toasting in a frying pan.
3. When ready to cook, in a cooking pot, add the cooking oil and heat up until hot.
4. When the oil is hot enough, pan-fry the marinated chicken for 2 minutes per side. Save the marinade.
5. Pour-in the remaining marinade, including the prepared garlic. Add water, then bring to a boil
6. Add the dried bay leaves and whole peppercorn. Simmer for 30 minutes or until the chicken is tender
7. Add vinegar. Stir and cook for 10 minutes.
8. Optionally, add the sugar, an/or salt to preferred taste. Stir, then remove from heat. Serve hot.

 

Classic Bulgogi Recipe (Korean BBQ Beef)

Ingredients

• 2 lb (900 g) beef sirloin or rib eye , thinly sliced, about 1/8-inch thick
• 1 Asian leek or 3 green onion, sliced

For Bulgogi Marinade 

• 1/2 large Asian pear, peeled and diced
• 1/4-1/2 kiwi, peeled and diced. 1/4 if marinating more than 4 hours. Use 1/2 if less than 4 hours.
• 1/2 large onion, diced
• 4 cloves garlic
• 5 Tbsp soy sauce
• 1 Tbsp Korean soup soy sauce (gukganjang)
• 2 Tbsp light brown sugar
• 2 Tbsp sweet rice wine (mirim/mirin)
• 2 Tbsp Korean plum extract (maeshil cheong), optional
• 1/2 tsp black pepper
• 1 Tbsp sesame oil
• 2 tsp toasted sesame seeds

Instructions

1. Marinate Beef
   1. Mix the pear, kiwi, onion, and garlic in a blender and process until very smooth
   2. Pour the onion/fruit puree into a large shallow pan (9×13-inch baking pan with lid)
   3. Add in the soy sauce, Koran soup soy sauce, brown sugar, rice wine, Korean plum extract (optional), pepper and sesame oil, then mix well.
   4. If making the marinade sauce ahead of time, store in refrigerator for up to 1 week.
   5. Dab the beef with a paper towel to remove extra liquid from package.
   6. Separate the beef slices and add them to the marinade sauce
   7. Toss gently by hand to combine everything with a slight massaging motion. Cover and marinate for at least 1 hour, or up to overnight.
2. Cooking the bulgogi
   1. Heat a skillet very hot over high heat. Do not add any oil.
   2. Add the beef. Add the sliced Asian leek or green onion on top. The beef should sizzle as soon as it touches the hot skillet. Let the meat cook in its own juice.
   3. Toss the meat around to cook evenly and thoroughly, about 2-3 minutes. It should cook very quickly.
   4. Sprinkle with sesame seeds and green onion to garnish. Serve warm with rice and a vegetable side dish.

 

Sapasui or Samoan Chop Suey

Ingredients:

• 1.5 lb (or 700 g) Meat of choice:
  • Beef (chuck or rump steak) or chicken (portions or boneless) or Pork.
• 2 packets Vermicelli Noodles
• 2 whole Garlic 
• 1 medium sized fresh Ginger
• 1 large onion
• Mushroom Soy Sauce or dark soy sauce (thick)
• 1/2 cup Canola Oil

Instructions:

1. Cut the meat of choice into bite size cubes
2. Rinse meat with water, strain, then add to a large pot.
3. Set stove to medium heat.
4. Add a cup of water into the pot, then cover. Steam the meat for 15 minutes
5. While meat is being steamed, soak the vermicelli in cold water in a large bowl to soften.
6. Peel and crush the 2 whole garlic (peel the skin off of the cloves, put all cloves in a plastic bag, then crush, for mess-free preparation)
7. Peel and crush half a ginger, then peel and slice 1 whole onion
8. Once vermicelli is softened, trim with cooking scissors in the water to shorten length
9. Stir the steamed meat, and drain most of the excess water.
10. Add cooking oil to meat, then stir until beef is evenly coated.
11. Add one at the time the sliced onions, crushed garlic, crushed ginger, stirring between each ingredient. Leave to cook uncovered for 5 minutes, stirring so that the beef does not stick to the bottom of the pan. Cover, and let settle for about 2 minutes.
12. Add enough soy sauce to cover the meat. Stir, and leave to cook for 2 to 3 minutes, covered.
13. Drain the water from Vermicelli, then add into the pot in portions, stirring each time, until all the Vermicelli has been added into the mixture
14. Stir until well mixed, until all vermicelli are covered in soy sauce mixture.
15. Add 1-2 cups of water, then leave to took, covered, for 5-6 minutes. (Add enough water to get the mixture moving – do not add to much that it becomes soup)
16. Serve with your favorite sides, such as rice, potato salad, or bread.

 

Hope you enjoyed these recipes! Be sure to create your shopping list and check out your nearest Market Basket for the ingredients!

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Credits and thank you’s to the following blogs for the wonderful recipes. Check out their pages for more dishes to try!

• Pad Kra Pao: Hot Thai Kitchen
• Chinese BBQ Ribs: Red House Spice
• Filipino Chicken Adobo: Panlasang Pinoy
• Bulgogi: Beyond Kimchee
• Sapasui: The Coconet TV