Subtle Asian Recipe

Chinese Osmanthus Flower Jelly "桂花糕" is a traditional Chinese dessert jelly filled with the colors of autumn and delicately scented with the ethereal and floral perfume from the osmanthus flower and goji berries. Goju berries are bright orange in color and are also known as wolfberries packed with vitamins and minerals like Vitamin C, Fibre, Iron and Vitamin A. Osmanthus flowers are intricate beautiful golden flowers have health benefits that include supporting the respiratory system and lungs, reduce dampness in the body, aids in digestion and promotes smooth and radiant complexion.
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📸: .hazel "A fond memory of mine for this dish is the different tries I got with general jellies that I’ve made over the years with my mom using agar agar, it’s a plant based source that’s not gelatine. It can also be really fun with different moulds. I love all things sweet but wanted it healthy and thought what better way to include aspects of TCM into it :)"
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#2021 -share #桂花糕

Crispy ribbon cookies/biscuits is one of the traditional Chinese New Year snacks. These are easy to make at home from scratch and these can be sweet or savory. Ribbon cookies are crispy and delicious, its always everyone's favourite during Chinese New Year celebration.
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📸: “My fondest memories of Lunar New Year are gathering with extended family members at my grandparent's house to celebrate CNY reunion dinner, eating all the delicious home cooked food and receiving red packets from adults."
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#2021 -share

Yu Sheng or Yee Sang is a shredded veggie and fish dish that is a must have during Lunar New Year in Malaysia and Singapore. The signifigance of this dish lies behind the ""MIX and TOSS"" ritual that brings friends and family together. Everyone stands up to toss the yu sheng using chopsticks. This ritual is filled with lots of energy and the saying "huat ah" which translates to prosperity in Hokkien. It is believed that the highter the toss, the greather the prosperity the following year.
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📸: “My fondest memory is getting together with my extended family for a home cook dinner and of course with Yu Sheng! This dish always get us all excited and get the festivity started with the energetic toss and loud shouting of well wishes!”
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#2021 -share

P**n choi “盆菜” literally translates to “basin feast”, it is a traditional Cantonese festival meal crowded with overflowing of ingredients to signify abundance of wealth and prosperity. The choice of ingredients to be added is endless (also depending on how big your “basin” is!
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📸: “My fondest memory of LNY has to be gathering at my grandparents house. All the kids would lined up in front of our grandparents, say all the blessings and get red packets from then. The grownups playing mahjong and the kids would be running around the house, eating all day long. The celebration lasts for a week, so everyday we would go out and visit different friends. Its a festival full of people, laughters and foods.”
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#2021 #盆菜

Chinese New Year celebration is not complete without tong yuan "汤圆". It symbolizes togetherness and the gathering of families.These mochi-like balls are made from glutonious rice, usually served in a bowl of translucent, sugary soup and sometimes enhanced with ginger.
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📸: “My fondest memory is celebrating Chinese New Year with my family. My mother would make all the traditional lunar New Year dishes and I’ll never forget them!”
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What fillings do you like in your tong yuan?
Sesame or Peanut
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#2021 #汤圆

Thịt kho tàu is a popular pork belly and egg dish from South Vietnam. It's traditionally served around Lunar New Year. This dish is on the sweet side, has more sauce, often braised with fresh coconut juice, and big chunks of pork belly.
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📸: *trann “This dish was a staple of my childhood. Everytime my mum cooks this dish, the kitchen would be filled with the wonderful fragrance of braised pork and coconut juice. The key memories that stand out are having this dish as part of our annual CNY family reunion dinner. 🎋🧨🧧”
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The difference between Northern and Southern version of this dish:
Northern version is more on the salty side, has less sauce, the braising liquid can be plain water, and contains smaller chunks of pork belly.
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#2021 ̂́t #🇻🇳 #🧧

Bánh chưng is a traditional Vietnamese rice cake and is an essential Lunar New Years dish. These sticky rice cakes are made from glutinous rice, mung beans, pork belly and other ingredients. The shape and green color of the cake represents the Earth and the fillings represent the Earth's bountiful flora and fauna.
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📸: “My fondest memory of LNY is gathering at my grandparents house with my relatives! We would cook a huge feast and as a kid, you always got asked to set the tables and carry the food out from the kitchen. I remember salivating from all the food but not being allowed to eat them until everything was ready and everyone is sat at the table. Sometimes though, my mom would sneak me a little piece of something she was cooking and it made me so happy!”
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#2021 #🇻🇳

Salted Egg Yolk Cookies “咸蛋黄酥饼” are soft and buttery infused with salted egg yolks to give you a sweet, salty, and crumbly cookie. These treats are quite popular during Chinese New Year celebration.
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📸: “My fondest memory of LNY would probably be the huge dinners or "Asian parties" that I attended when I was a kid. There would be so much food and so many families in one place. The parents would play cards or mahjong while the kids would either watch TV or play games. The food was always so good as well and there was always an endless supply of spring rolls 😋”
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What are some interesting CNY snacks you like to eat?
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#2021
#咸蛋黄酥饼

Turnip Cake “lo bak go” is a traditional dish often served at dim sum and Chinese New Year’s Day. The common ingredients used are white radish, Chinese sausage, dried shrimp, and mushroom. This classic is has been passed down from one generation to the next!
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📸: .blog “One of my fondest memories was making these turnip cakes with my uncle and cousins for the whole family. We would spend the entire day just grating the turnips, playing with the flours and of course snacking on the turnip cakes. At the end I think we created more messes than actually helped.”
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What is Lo Bak Go’s nickname in English?
Robert Go 😂
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#2021

Kuih Loyang is a Malaysian Chinese New Year staple. These cookies are made by dipping a rosette shaped iron into batter and then deep-fried to achieve it’s thin and crunchy texture.
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📸: “As a kid, my favourite time of the year is Chinese New Year! Just imagine - new clothes, house hopping, family gatherings, fun games with cousins, good food all day long, and of course... the endless flow of New Year cookies. Due to the pandemic, I will be celebrating away from my Malaysian family. So I’ve decided to make this family favourite Beehive/Honeycomb Cookies to extend my tradition to my Australian friends and family❤️”
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How many names does this cookie have?
TOO MANY - Kuih rose, rosette, honeycomb, flower, beehive, etc!
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traditionalfood #2021

📸: made these cute steamed custard buns “🐂奶黄包” to kick off Lunar New Year!
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“My fondest memories of lunar new year is when all of my family members gather from all over the country to celebrate by eating all the delicious foods, pass out red envelopes 🧧, wish each other happiness and success, and then gamble all of the money away 😂”
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Do any these traits describe you?
People born in the year of the ox are grounded, loyal, gentle and trustworthy.
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#2021

🌟 will be here in less than 2 weeks, on February 12th! More than 20% of the world will be celebrating the year of the Ox. What kind of traditions do you follow?
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Some traditions include:
🧧putting up red/gold decorations around the house
🧧having family reunion dinner with traditional dishes on NYE
🧧watching firecrackers/fireworks and lion dance
🧧giving & receiving red envelopes with $$$
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🏷 with your favorite New Year’s dish!
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Taro tapioca with coconut milk is a creamy and delightful dessert soup that requires just a few ingredients to make. The best part about this delicacy is it can be eaten all year round! Taro is a root vegetable commonly used in Asian cuisine and is one of the stars of this soup, leaving a phenomenal nutty flavor that can’t be substituted with anything else. Tiny and translucent tapioca pearls completes this dessert, giving it a distinctive texture in every spoonful and of course, the coconut milk gives the soup the creaminess and flavors that leaves you craving for more!
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📸: @ “My fondest memory of this dessert soup is watching my now deceased mother make it for our family. Both of my parents are amazing cooks, but unlike my father, my mother possessed a sweet tooth like I do. She made us plenty of Asian desserts like taro tapioca, hovering over the stove to stir and check on the little pearls that easily stick to pots. Eating this delightful “soup,“ and many other Asian desserts, bring me back the greatest memories of my mom.”
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Longevity peach baos “寿桃包” is an old Chinese tradition that is commonly served at birthdays. Shòu means longevity and táo means peach, therefore, it is a symbol of long life. These buns are named after the Peaches of Immortality from Chinese legends, which bestows a long life to those that consume the mystical fruit. Have a birthday coming up? You might want to try these!
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📸: .creativespark “These were a classic for me since childhood and they are known as longevity buns because in ancient times, peaches were a sign of longevity so every year these are usually made for relatives for their birthdays to symbolize longevity 😜”
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#寿桃包

Chinese eggplant with garlic sauce is a well known favorite, it has a sweet and tangy taste and when cooked well each piece almost melts in your mouth. The taste of each dish can also differ depending on the type of eggplant you use. Chinese eggplant compared to the bulbous American eggplant are much thinner, longer and milder in taste. Give this dish a try if you are looking for a quick and simple recipe.
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📸: “My mum would make this dish around the time we were about to reach home from school and this fragrance cartelized soy sauce, and stir fry egg plant would fill up the house and lure us to the dining table almost immediately!”
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Steamed Pork Patty with Salted Duck Egg “咸蛋蒸肉餅” is a very tasty steamed dish in the Chinese cuisine. This homemade dish is something many of us grew up with. Since salted egg is an acquired taste, it is best served with white rice.
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📸: “My mom would make this dish every now and then for dinner when I was little. It’s a dish that reminds me of the times my family gathered around the table for a hearty home-cooked meal.”
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Lotus roots are one of the most popular vegetables in Chinese cooking. The lotus root has a crunchy texture when stir-fried, and soft and potato-like when boiled in a soup. The dish pictured is a simple stir fry made with soy sauce, black vinegar, sesame oil, dried chili peppers, and peppercorn.
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📸: “My fondest memory is eating this in China when visiting family—I would always have it as a side dish at the huge family reunions we would have at restaurants.”
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Soy Sauce Chicken Wings “紅燒雞翼” is a very popular within the Cantonese cuisine and is every child's favorite. In addition to that, it's super easy to make it at home. The taste of this dish is flavorful because of the soy sauce along with the rice wine, minced garlic and sesame oil.
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📸: “I am a huge fan of chicken wings and eat it on average once per week. This is one of my favorite recipes to use as it's simple and I can make them with basic ingredients that are available on my kitchen counter.”
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This dish is a spin on the classic fried shrimp balls commonly found at Chinese banquets and dimsum restaurants. It is usually served as a family style appetizer. It’s super crispy and crunchy. Best paired with a side of sweet and sour dipping sauce.
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📸: “I was inspired by how beautiful the dishes looked from Genshin Impact (an anime-style game). There are several dishes from the game that were inspired by Chinese cuisine and since I miss the taste of hot & fresh shrimp balls so much, I decided to make these for the recreation! It truly made me think of being at a Chinese banquet with my family eating fried shrimp balls and lobster whenever there was a special occasion.”
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Snow fungus dessert soup is a sweet Chinese-style soup which consist of dried longan, black dates, red dates, lotus seeds, goji berries and sweetened with rock sugar. This dessert soup has many health benefits such as healing dry cough, respiratory problems, anti-inflammatory properties and believed to boost collagen. It is often prepared for important celebrations such as Chinese New Year, weddings, birthdays, etc. to give blessings to a a sweet year.
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📸: “My fav memory of this dish is the day when I realised you actually have to remove the heart/bitter part of the lotus seed and sit down with my mum to do this. Then I asked why do we need to do this troublesome thing and received a lecture. Then it strikes me that mums or grannies never complain about having to spend hours preparing ingredients or making a certain food, such that sometimes we forget about the tedious work behind all these dishes that we enjoyed.”
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Hi SAR fam, it’s been awhile! Hope everyone is safe and healthy! This week, we are featuring your favorite Chinese dishes. Sit back and reminisce your childhood dishes with us.
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Kimbap “김밥” is a Korean seaweed rice roll jam packed with delicious savory ingredients and cut into bite sized pieces. It’s easy to eat and a great meal to pack on the go!
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📸: “I loved bringing kimbap on my hiking trips! Once we got to the top, we would unwrap the kimbap and start munching away to the beautiful view.”
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#김밥

Soondubu jjigae “순두부 찌개” is a Korean soft tofu stew. It is made with made with silken tofu, ripe kimchi and thinly sliced meat. Often times served with a raw egg to be cracked in to the boiling hot stew at the table. The egg adds richness to the stew. This is the perfect dish to have as the weather is getting colder.
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📸: “This is one of my favorite dishes because my mom made it for our family when I was a kid but I haven't had a chance to eat it recently. I was recently reminded of it when I saw it in itaewon class and knew I had to make it myself! It's such a homey and flavorful dish that always brings me back to my childhood in Korea.”
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#순두부 찌개

One of the most popular Korean summer dish are cold noodles, either mixed bibim-naengmyeon “비빔냉면”or in a soup Mul-naengmyeon “물냉면”. Both dishes are deliciously cleansing and refreshing. It is full of salty, sour pickle flavors and comes packed with nutty buckwheat noodles and a creamy boiled egg on top. Over the past few years, watermelon cold noodles (pictured) has been trending and is especially unique!
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📸: “2016 was the year watermelon cold noodles became a viral food trend in Korea, which was the same summer I studied abroad there. I remember the first time I ever tried naengmyeon, I didn’t know the scissors on the table were for cutting the noodles. (I grew up with noodles symbolizing longevity, so cutting them is pretty much a taboo.) When I took my first bite, the entire bundle was hanging off the ends, all tangled up. No matter how hard I pulled to break off the noodles, they did not budge. That was my second mistake: underestimating the chewiness of the noodles. I spent that whole meal wrestling with my bowl of noodles and needless to say, now I always cut my naengmyeon at least twice before I dig in.”
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#비빔냉면 #물냉면

Doenjang jjigae “된장찌개” is a staple stew in every Korean household. It is one of the most representative dishes of everyday home-cooked Korean meals. Depending on the ingredients added, you can make endless variations of the stew using fermented soybean. If you’re accustomed to the taste of fermented foods, you might want to give this dish a try!
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📸: “This is a new soup I learned from my local Korean restaurant, right before lockdown. I had gone to this family restaurant near my childhood home, unsure of what a COVID future would hold and wanted something comforting. I asked her to recommend a soup and she proudly told me about their doenjang jjigae. After taking the first sip, it oddly reminded me of miso soup but with way more flavor. I knew right away I had to learn to make it but it also inspired me to explore more about the Korean cuisine I loved to eat growing up but never learned how to cook myself.”
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#된장찌개

Bibimbap “비빔밥” is a traditional Korean rice dish that never ages. There are endless ways to make it depending on your personal preference. The word simply translates to “mixed rice and assorted veggies”. To elevate this dish, you must add an egg!
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📸: “This is a very colorful and healthy dish that gives me comfort and reminds me of the good times I had growing up in Korea. Just like this bibimbap, I love being different but at the same time, keeping my roots alive. Creating healthy and tasty meals for my family and friends from my home kitchen brings me the greatest joy!”
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#비빔밥

#🇰🇷 Who’s ready for a week-long of traditional Korean dishes? ⚠️ It’s going to be a blend of spicy, savory, sweet and sour flavors ⚠️ Tag or DM us with your favorite childhood dish so we can share your story!
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Squash soups are perfect for the season. The dish pictured is a Vietnamese favorite, called kabocha squash and shrimp soup. The squash is slightly sweet with an amazing creamy texture, eaten with either shrimp or delicious ground pork meatballs. It’s typically eaten as part of a larger meal, with rice, a meat and veggie dish. With minimal ingredients, you’ve got yourself the most cozy soup for the Fall.
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📸: “This soup is a very homey dish. In Vietnamese food, there is usually always a soup when eating a family meal. My fondest memory with the dish is just any ordinary day when I was a kid, eating my mom’s home-cooked meals.”
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Grilled pork with vermicelli noodles “bun thit nuong” is one of the most popular Vietnamese dishes. The pork is deliciously marinated and grilled then served in a bowl of cold vermicelli noodles with fresh veggies, crushed peanuts, fried shallots and dressed with some spicy garlicky fish sauce. And you can't forget the savory scallion oil spread on top as well. You can also add fried spring rolls to make this meal deluxe. It's everything you want in a bowl!
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📸: “The key ingredient in the pork marinade is chopped lemongrass which you can definitely smell as you grill the meat. Everytime I cook this the smell takes me back to the weekend parties at my house that my parents would host for their friends. This was often made and enjoyed by many! For my daughter's first birthday party my mom also made this exact meal for all of our guests so this is a very dear dish for me.”
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