Food Wine Sleep

Back some years ago, I was working with Liana Doyle and very talented chef and great personal friend. Liana had been working in the USA for some years before making her way to Asia via Paris where she headed the culinary team at a typical French Bistro for some time. This recipe sort of reflects her career and her cooking style up to that point; a Southern US staple (beef ribs), a traditional French basic cooking method (braising) with an Asian twist. Although I lost contact with Liana a few years ago, I have very fond memories of her as a culinary colleague and friend. This recipe however, of her “tamarind ribs” will stay with me for a long, long time...

For a grain that mankind has been eating for over 5000 years and helps feed over 2/3rds of the world's population, it really is amazing that so many of us still don't know how to cook it. I suppose that may have something to do with the fact that there are close to 40,000 different varieties of rice on the planet, all differing in size, shape, absorption rates and just as many intended uses. The method of cooking rice explained here is equal to and not superior to the traditional absorption method but it is easy and very consistent and what I recommend to anyone having problems getting a consistently good result. It will give you perfectly cooked consistently fluffy in...

Kilawin or kinilaw is a traditional Filipino dish of marinated/cured fish or seafood in vinegar and a souring agent such as the juice of calamansi or Kamias. Calamansi is a small citrus fruits, which grows throughout South East Asia and the juice of it suits this dish much better than lime, as it is still fairly acid but has a distinctively fruity flavor. I personally like Kilawin of tuna the best, simply because the quality of the tuna available in the Philippines is second to none.

I still am blown away by how many people keep salt and pepper on their dining or kitchen table. Personally I keep my salt and pepper in one place, right next to the stove where it belongs! If the Chef does his or her job properly, that is the only place it should need to be as the seasoning should already be in the meal. Wherever you stand on the salt and pepper issue, I think we can all agree that in this dish, the more the better!

This is a shining example of the less complicated a dish is, the better it is. Each ingredient in this recipe is served very near to its natural state and this lack of having been �messed' with results in a simple yet sophisticated combination. The flavours in this dish do all the hard work for you, fresh ocean trout complemented by an effortless sesame crust and seared beautifully rare, the fresh cucumber and the just picked tender baby herbs simply glazed with the distinctive flavours of fresh lime, mirin and fiery chilli. The best thing about this lack of complication is exactly that; uncomplicated cooking for you. Serve this next time you want to impress your...

There are numerous variations of this dish throughout Vietnam, southern China and Thailand. This particular recipe calls for a cuttlefish and shrimp mousse that is breaded and deep-fried while other variations are made with shrimps or prawns only, with the addition of crabmeat to the mousse or even spiced with chili, basil and coconut milk, crusted in desiccated coconut flakes. They are also not always breaded and fried, but also available steamed and steamed and then grilled. Whatever your preferences might be, shrimp on sugar cane will always be a well liked dish whenever you serve it.