Category Archives: Asian Recipes

Saucy Miso Roasted Turnips and Radishes

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Roasted turnips and radishes, plus their green tops, in a delectable sauce.
Roasted turnips and radishes, plus their green tops, in a delectable sauce.

My cousin’s wife, Mayjane, is a true sauce fanatic. So much so that’s she’s been known to ask a server to scrape up the last tablespoonfuls of sauce from a seemingly-empty restaurant dish to deposit in a doggy bag to savor the next day at home.

As such, I have no doubt that she would got nuts for the buttery, tangy, umami-bomb of a sauce that triumphs in “Miso Roasted Turnips and Radishes.” Without question, the rest of you will, too.

This easy side dish is from “Warm Your Bones” (Union Square & Co., 2024), of which I received a review copy.

It was written by Vanessa Seder, a food writer and culinary instructor, who was a long-time teacher at the Stonewall Kitchen headquarters in Maine.

Although the book’s subtitle is “Cozy Recipes for Chilly Days and Winter Nights,” most of the recipes can be enjoyed year-round. That includes “Nutty Homemade Sourdough Parmesan Crackers with White Bean, Sun-Dried Tomato, and Sage Dip,” “Roasted Cauliflower Steak Sandwiches with Hard Boiled Eggs and Herby Olive Oil Yogurt on Flatbreads,” “Spicy Fideos with Seafood,” and “Banana Maple Bundt Cake with Creme Fraiche Glaze.”

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Eggs and Bacon — Japanese-Style

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This savory veggie Japanese pancake gets garnished with Kewpie mayo, tonkatsu sauce, bonito flakes, nori, and scallions.
This savory veggie Japanese pancake gets garnished with Kewpie mayo, tonkatsu sauce, bonito flakes, nori, and scallions.

After two trips to Japan, I have grown even more enamored of the cuisine — if that’s even possible.

Not just of the fancy kaiseki meals prepared with overarching reverence. Nor just the basic, mind-boggling cheap convenience store foods that have no business being as fresh and delicious as they are. But also of the simple, soulful homey dishes that are as far from flashy as you can get.

“Buckwheat Okonomiyaki with Eggs and Bacon” is one such dish.

This savory pancake is from “Wafu Cooking: Everyday Recipes with Japanese Style” (Alfred A. Knopf, 2024) of which I received a review copy.

It was written by Sonoko Sakai, a Los Angeles-based cooking teacher and food writer with quite the career arc. Born in New York, she started working as a film buyer and independent movie producer. In 2009, though, she made a 180-degree turn, journeying to Tokyo to study soba noodle making. When she returned to the United States, she became a culinary instructor and food writer specializing in Japanese cooking — and never looked back.

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Treat Yourself to A Batch of Tamarind Cream Danishes

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Puff-pastry danishes with a cream cheese-tamarind caramel filling.
Puff-pastry danishes with a cream cheese-tamarind caramel filling.

Attention: Raise your hand if you have a partially used jar of tamarind concentrate languishing in your fridge.

Yes, I’m talking to you. And to myself, of course, because I am equally guilty of that.

“Tamarind Cream Danishes” is the perfect excuse to dig out that jar and put it to good use in this flaky, buttery treats that sport a center of cream cheese and tamarind caramel.

The recipe is from “Sugarcane” (Hardie Grant, 2024) of which I received a review copy.

It was written by food writer and recipe developer Arlyn Osborne, a graduate of the French Culinary Institute in New York, who worked at Food & Wine magazine and the Food Network.

It’s a collection of 80 recipes for sweets that are inspired by her Filipino heritage from her mother’s side. Think “Ube Coconut Cake,” “Mochi-Stuffed Chocolate Chip Cookies,” “Star Fruit Tarts,” and “Lemongrass Vanilla Scones.”

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Chinese Walnut Cookies for the Lunar New Year

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Like Chinese almond cookies -- but made with walnuts and sesame seeds instead.
Like Chinese almond cookies — but made with walnuts and sesame seeds instead.

Growing up in San Francisco, I remember many a meal at a Chinese restaurant that would conclude with a plate of fortune cookies set down in the center of the table.

Sometimes, slices of fresh oranges accompanied them.

But on the rare occasion, when I was very, very lucky, there would be almond cookies, too.

With their splotchy, golden cracked top that had a whole almond nestled at the very center, they were crisp, crumbly, and melted in your mouth.

“Chinese Walnut Cookies” are reminiscent of those. They are more petite in size, and nudge out the almonds for ground walnuts and toasted sesame seed oil instead. Consider them Chinese almond cookies’ more radical cousin, and every bit as delicious and satisfying.

The recipe comes from the cookbook, “Crumbs” (Phaidon, 2024), of which I received a review copy. It is the work of Ben Mims, a food writer, cookbook author, and former cooking columnist for the Los Angeles Times.

It is a breathtaking volume of 300 cookie recipes from around the world. So much so, you’ll wonder if you’ll ever need another cookie cookbook again.

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“To Lahaina, With Love”

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A simple and delicious recipe from Chef Lee Anne Wong, who lost her restaurant in the devastating Lahaina fires.
A simple and delicious recipe from Chef Lee Anne Wong, who lost her restaurant in the devastating Lahaina fires.

In times of natural disasters or catastrophic world events, not only do firefighters and paramedics immediately mobilize to help, but so do chefs, cooks, and others in the hospitality industry.

After all, they know better than anyone the power of food to comfort, nourish, and heal.

As I watched the news accounts of the gut-wrenching destruction wrought by the Southern California wildfires, it reminded me eerily of the 2023 firestorm that obliterated the town of Lahaina on the island of Maui.

In each case, restaurateurs and their employees — including some whose establishment or homes had been ravaged by flames — turned up in droves to cook meals for anyone in need, despite their own dire circumstances.

Wildfires may be growing more severe nowadays due to climate change. But it’s heartening to witness the indefatigable resilience, resourcefulness, and compassion of a community rising to meet it.

“To Lahaina, With Love” exemplifies that. Proceeds from this cookbook, which debuted last month, benefit Fresh Help Maui, a non-profit that provides meals and locally-caught fresh fish to those impacted by the Maui fires.

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