Exploring The Unique Flavors Of Asian Restaurant Dishes
The world has shrunk to a global village where Chinese restaurants and Mediterranean dining places will comfortably situated next to a French bistro or a Texas inspired grill. In the past, Asian restaurants could only be found in enclaves where they served specific ethnic groups. It is extremely easy now to explore the exotic and unique flavors of Asian restaurant dishes.
Familiar and Comfortable Chinese
Of all the Asian restaurant dishes, Chinese entrees have been around the longest and their taste is probably the most familiar. The availability of Chinese food everywhere is simply amazing; it is probably one of the most popular things to have delivered or to take out. There are, however, many types of Chinese cuisine and many regional varieties of Chinese food. Beyond the ever popular Peking duck and the usually westernized chow mein, there are other dishes that beg to be savored. Next time you eat in a Chinese restaurant, try starting your meal with fish maw soup or winter melon soup then go on to crispy noodles. Try the stuffed mushrooms and old duck steamed with bamboo shoot and ham. You will be so content you won’t really care what your fortune cookie will say.
Simply Pleasing Japanese
Most people go to Japanese restaurants with only sushi, tempura and sashimi in mind. Actually Japanese cuisine offers a wide range of choices that not too many ever sample. There is of course the shabu-shabu which unfailingly pleases everyone who has tried it. If you are rather faint-hearted and are afraid of raw fish and unknown flavors, try the “korroke” or the croquettes which are mashed potato balls filled with beef or shrimp or crab. If you like hearty soups have a go at the sukiyaki. It just might become a new item in your list of comfort foods. This sweet, soy flavored soup has sheets of tenderloin mixed with Napa cabbage, dried mushroom, tofu and leeks. Simply satisfying!
Vigorous and Irresistible Korean
The most classic Korean restaurants will serve you good Kalbi (Korean barbecued beef short ribs) or bulgogi (thinly sliced sirloin pan grilled or cooked over a Hibachi grill) and side dishes which invariably include different types of kimchi. If you like meat and potatoes, try the Korean version which utilizes fork tender ribs simmered for hours in a thick sauce made with dates, soy sauce and radish. This is a hearty, filling dish that you will surely want to enjoy again and again.
Hot and Spicy Thai
Thai food is gaining popularity among many diners today. Thai cuisine is a pleasantly aromatic blend of lemongrass, lime, chili, sugar, coconut milk and fish sauce. Among the dishes that are sure to captivate your taste buds are tom yam - a sour, spicy soup made pungently fragrant with lemon grass; pad Thai – glass noodles cooked in tamarind and peanut sauce and seafoods and pla doo foo – deep fried shredded catfish served with green mango salad. The nice thing about eating Thai food in places other than traditional Thai villages is that you can ask for the kitchen to go slow with the chili.
Light and Refreshing Vietnamese
Of all the foods that come from the Mekong Valley, Vietnamese offeringss are possibly the lightest and the most refreshing. Often bearing traces of French cuisine, Vietnamese foods use spices that other Southeast Asians seldom do: cilantro, thyme, basil and mint. One of the two most widely accepted Vietnamese dishes are pho – a soup usually based on chicken stock with bean sprouts, green onions, cabbage and fine glass noodles. The other is chia gyo - fried egg rolls filled with sautéed ground pork and shrimp, carrots, onions then wrapped in rice paper. Both rolls are served with a peanut hoishin sauce and they come in a plate with vermicelli and lettuce.
An exploration of Asian restaurant dishes is an amazing journey through different spices, presentations, cooking methods and cultures. It is a delicious trip worth taking at any time.
