I was really excited for this assignment, not only because I love Asian food, but I felt like I was going to really enjoy cooking up these dishes. The cooking ended up covering two days, as there were plenty of things to prep the day before the…
Category: Asia
Assignment 94: Hong Kong
Hong Kong boasts a diverse culinary history, with influences ranging from China (their big neighbour to the north), to Portugal (the first European power to set foot in the region back in the 16th century), to Britain (Hong Kong was under British control until 1997).
Assignment 84: Brunei
Location: South Asia Population: 459, 500 Capital: Bandar Seri Begawan Geography: Two disconnected pieces of land on the island of Borneo, mostly covered with tropical rainforest Language: Malay Signature flavours: Seafood, shrimp paste, chilli peppers, coconut, garlic, tamarind, ambulung, pandan The Menu Sayur Lodeh: A vegetable and shrimp curry with cabbage, carrot, and green beans,…
Assignment 78: Russia
Location: Northern Europe and Asia Population: 146.8 million Capital: Moscow Geography: Varied mountain, steppe, tundra, forest, and coastal ecosystems across the largest country in the world Language: Russian Signature flavours: Dairy, pork, dill, cucumber, beet, hazelnut, beef, fish, mushrooms The Menu Eric’s parents met and married while studying abroad at university in Moscow (in what…
Assignment 77: Myanmar
Location: Southeast Asia Population: 53.6 million Capital: Napyidaw Geography: A country of lowlands and coastal mountains, with a tropical climate Language: Burmese Signature flavours: Seafood, rice, lemongrass, garlic, ginger, lime, pandan, coconut, chilli peppers, onion, shallot The Menu When we first began the Wooden Spoon Wanderer blog (way back in Bhutan…remember that?), we relied almost…
Assignment 76: Tibet
Location: Central Asia Population: 3.2 million Capital: Lhasa Geography: Extremely mountainous and receiving little precipitation, and host to the sources of several of Asia’s major rivers Language: Tibetan Signature flavours: Barley, beef, garlic, szechuan peppercorns (also called prickly ash), blue cheese, daikon, dumplings, scallions The Menu Eric and I fondly remember our trip to New…
Assignment 73: Georgia
Location: Western Asia, between Russia and Turkey Population: 3.7 million Capital: Tblisi Geography: Mountainous, with areas of fertile valleys Language: Georgian, Abkhazian Signature flavours: Dairy, lamb, beef, tarragon, egg, nuts, shallot, plum The Menu Georgia’s culinary tradition tells the story of its geography: nestled at the crossroads of Europe, Asia, and the Middle East. This…
Assignment 71: Saudi Arabia
Location: Middle East Population: 33 million Capital: Riyadh Geography: A desert nation with coastlines on the Persian Gulf and Red Sea Language: Arabic Signature flavours: Rice, cardamom, cinnamon, tomato, parsley, sesame, lamb The Menu I ordered a couple of cookbooks from the library for this assignment. One ended up being more focused on Lebanon, but…
Assignment 64: Afghanistan
Location: Central Asia Population: 31.6 million Capital: Kabul Geography: A landlocked, mountainous country Language: Pashto Signature flavours: Rice, lamb, rosewater, cumin, dried fruits, nuts, yoghurt The Menu Eric went straight to the Toronto Public Library for cookbooks when he was assigned Afghanistan. A newly-released and well-reviewed Afghan cookbook was on order for the library and…
Assignment 55: Singapore
Location: Southern tip of the Malay Peninsula Population: 5.6 million Capital: Singapore Geography: A highly developed island city state Language: English, Malay, Mandarin, Tamil Signature flavours: Seafood, kecap manis (sweet soy sauce), garlic, chillies, anise, noodles The Menu Recipes abound for Singaporean cuisine, so my challenge for this assignment was choosing between them all. Singaporean…
Wooden Spoon Wanderer 