Many Asian dishes are naturally vegan--i.e. contain no meat products and no dairy--or are easily adapted. It's not surprising since fresh vegetables are a large part of our diet, coconut milk is our “milk” of choice, and cheese hardly shows up in any of our...
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People either recoil in terror or express intrigue when I tell them about one of my favorite comfort foods—Spam mac and cheese. Yes, you read right: Spam--aka luncheon meat--that processed and prepackaged meat product (I daren’t call it real meat!) in a can. Growing up...
My paternal grandmother, whom I called "Oma" As my cookbook launched this past October 1st, I came to the sudden realization that I knew more about the grandmothers I interviewed than my own. And in a reversal of scenarios, one friend whose mom I featured...
A few weeks ago, I was in Seattle to celebrate my dad’s 70th birthday. That's my mom and dad. The peak of the nasi tumpeng is sliced off first, in the same tradition as slicing into a birthday cake (Photo courtesy of Ricky Raynaldi) My visit wasn’t...
Luffa squash lying elegantly on my dining table Our taste buds are the most effective memory keepers of all. Let me explain. A few weeks ago, I was talking to my favorite Hmong farmer, Moua, about the assortment of Asian vegetables he grows and sells. He drew...
Last Labor Day weekend, 60,000 people converged on beautiful San Francisco to attend Slow Food Nation. I was one of them, except I was working behind the scenes at the Taste Pavilions, at of all places, the pickles and chutney booth! The 50,000 square foot pier at Fort...
When I first started working on my cookbook, I really didn't know what to expect. I was lucky enough to have a brief chat with Grace Young at the 2007 IACP conference in Chicago. The author of two family-based cookbooks, Grace gave me a behind-the-scenes overview of...
That's how I'd describe my mum's ginger tea, or as it's called in Indonesian, wedang jahe. Ginger tea is wonderful on a cold wintry day. I love how the viscous liquid slides down my throat and warms my chest--it's my drink of choice as I curl up in...
Once thanksgiving has come and gone, and the food coma has dissipated (hopefully!), one is faced with the next big thing--leftovers. Who doesn't love turkey leftovers? I do! But having overdosed on one too many turkey sandwiches and turkey tetrazzinis, I'm looking for a turkey leftover makeover. My solution? Reincarnate the turkey in Asian-style dishes. Just...
