Rivalry between Malaysia and Singapore has simmered since 1965 when the two nations went their separate ways. One perennial issue is which can lay claim to Hainanese chicken rice. But has anyone considered Hainan’s position?
Tempura – seafood or vegetables coated in batter and deep-fried – is as much a staple of Japanese cuisine as sushi and sashimi, but its origins are on the other side of the world.
From its invention in China 2,000 years ago to acceptance in mainstream America today, tofu has gone from an acquired taste to trendy superfood.
Chefs in Canton, southern China, created the egg tart by adapting an English recipe for custard tarts brought there by homesick merchants. Custard tarts go back to 15th century England, where they were a savoury affair and contained bone marrow.
It is said that xiaolongbao, or soup dumplings, loved around the world thanks to Taiwanese restaurant Din Tai Fung, originated in snack shops in a town on the outskirts of Shanghai, and may have had a very different name.
Ram-don, or jjapaguri, is not typically served with marbled sirloin like it is in the film Parasite, but the dish is common in South Korea, a country that embraces its love of instant noodles.
The story of butter chicken is one of three hard-working refugees, a hugely popular Delhi restaurant, and an accidental combination of ingredients born of necessity.
South Korea is widely known for having one of the best and most crispy versions of fried chicken, a dish enjoyed the world over that was first introduced to the country by US troops during the Korean war.
Introduced to Vietnam by the colonial French, the baguette was later adapted for local tastes. Banh mi is still sold in Vietnam as a cheap snack, but can now also be found around the world.
Fried, baked, boiled or braised, pork-based Spam was first a hit in the US during the Great Depression and then in Asia after World War II. Now some chefs are incorporating it in upmarket dishes.
We tried KFC’s spicy chicken mooncakes so you don’t have to.From the end of the Yuan Dynasty to modern Hong Kong, mooncakes have been the bearers of political messages.
We think of Sichuan food as numbing and super hot, but the cuisine is much more subtle than that, say chefs and fans. Dishes such as mapo tofu and Sichuan hotpot are popular all over the world, but two-thirds of Sichuan dishes aren’t fiery.
Sushi reached China, then Japan from the Mekong River, and was later exported to the US and the rest of the world. Originally a dish of fermented whole fish preserved with inedible salted rice, it has evolved with technology into what we know today.
Huy Fong’s sriracha is an American-made hot sauce with Thai roots, invented by a Chinese-Vietnamese refugee who started out delivering his product personally across California. Most non-Thais are mispronouncing it.
We think of Sichuan food as numbing and super hot, but the cuisine is much more subtle than that, say chefs and fans. Dishes such as mapo tofu and Sichuan hotpot are popular all over the world, but two-thirds of Sichuan dishes aren’t fiery.
A journey into the history and culture of dim sum – why it’s served on trolleys, what the path to becoming a dim sum chef is like, and the painstaking work behind a simple har gau.
Created in Taichung, Taiwan in the 1980s, bubble tea is a mix of milk tea, tapioca pearls and syrup. It spread through Asia, gaining popularity and then exploded across the United States.
