Category Archives: Asian Recipes

David Nayfeld’s Miso Honey Mustard Baked Chicken

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A creamy Kewpie mayo-miso dressing does double duty, marinating the chicken and finishing a simple salad.
A creamy Kewpie mayo-miso dressing does double duty, marinating the chicken and finishing a simple salad.

We all know what it’s like to be face-to-face with a case of the hangries.

When you or someone with you is about to have a meltdown unless some delicious and satisfying food materializes pronto.

As the father of a 5-year-old daughter, David Nayfeld has been there more times than he can count.

Even for this chef-restaurateur of San Francisco’s Che Fico, Che Fico Pizzeria and Via Aurelia, as well as Menlo Park’s Bubbelah and Che Fico Parco, it can be a challenge when his daughter Helena asks pleadingly, “Dad, what’s for dinner?”

So, he’s taken all the tips and shortcuts he’s learned along the way and compiled it into his new cookbook, appropriately named, “Dad, What’s For Dinner?” (Alfred A. Knopf). It was written with Joshua David Stein, a Brooklyn author of cookbooks and children’s books.

The cookbook, of which I received a review copy, is a collection of more than 80 recipes designed to be family-pleasing, with nods to sneaking in a few more vegetables here and there, too.

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Korean Spicy Braised Tofu — In Minutes

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A quick and easy tofu banchan that explodes with punchy flavors.
A quick and easy tofu banchan that explodes with punchy flavors.

Like many people, I often have a love-hate relationship with ingredients new to me — and the recipes that require them.

The loathing comes, albeit halfheartedly, when I realize that getting my hands on them requires an extra trip to a specialty grocery store or a search online to find a source.

The adoration comes when I unexpectedly discover a product that not only delights, but opens up a whole new world of new possibilities to me.

That was the case with maesil cheong or Korean plum extract syrup.

Made by fermenting unripe green plums with sugar, it’s used in Korean marinades, sauces and drinks. It’s even thought to aid digestion and combat fatigue.

Korean plum extract syrup.
Korean plum extract syrup.

It’s slightly viscous, sweet, floral, and a little tart. It reminds me of Japanese ume plum, of which I already can’t get enough. I’m already thinking how fantastic a splash would be in a cocktail or iced tea or a glass of club soda.

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Kat Lieu’s Bodacious Black Sesame-White Chocolate Cookies

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Black sesame paste plus black sesame seeds give these cookies a deep nutty taste.
Black sesame paste plus black sesame seeds give these cookies a deep nutty taste.

What’s black and white — and delicious all over?

These “Black Sesame-White Chocolate Cookies” by Kat Lieu.

It’s from her new “108 Asian Cookies” (Little, Brown & Company), of which I received a review copy. Based in Washington State, Lieu is a food writer, recipe developer, and founder of Subtle Asian Baking, the global online group focused on spreading the deliciousness of Asian baking, and fundraising for Asian American and Pacific Islander communities.

Born in Canada to a Chinese mother from Hong Kong and a Chinese Vietnamese father from Vietnam, she readily admits that she didn’t even baker her first cookie from scratch until 5 years ago. The former doctor of physical therapy found herself embarking on a baking spree that year as a way to heal from the sorrow of her father’s death.

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Get to Know Egg Tofu

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Crispy and custardy egg tofu with chili and honey.
Crispy and custardy egg tofu with chili and honey.

Kristina Cho says that she loves introducing people to egg tofu. Count me in as a new convert who is ever grateful to her now that I’ve made the acquaintance.

While tofu is made by coagulating soy milk, egg tofu is made with a blend of soy milk and eggs that gets steamed. Because of the eggs, it has a more yellow color. What I really fell for is the texture. It is slightly firmer than silken tofu and possesses a wonderful custardy quality. In fact, it reminds me very much of Japanese chawanmushi.

Find it in tube shape like slice-and-bake cookie dough in the refrigerator case of Chinese or Asian markets, beside the usual blocks of tofu.

Cho’s “Seared Egg Tofu with Honey and Soy” is an ideal way to try it, too.

The recipe is from her cookbook, “Chinese Enough” (Artisan, 2024), of which I received a review copy.

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Crunchy and Creamy Thai-Inspired Broccoli Salad

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Broccoli salad gets a lift from plenty of lime juice and creaminess from tahini.
Broccoli salad gets a lift from plenty of lime juice and creaminess from tahini.

With a newly opened jar in my fridge, I’ve been on a tahini kick of late.

So, when a review copy of the new cookbook, “Sesame: Global Recipes & Stories of An Ancient Seed” (Ten Speed Press), landed in my mailbox, the timing was perfect.

The book was written by Rachel Simons, the founder of Seed+Mill, the first store in the United States that’s devoted to sesame products. Its tahini (ground sesame paste) and halva (fudge-like candy made from sesame paste) are used by top chefs and carried in more than 1,700 stores, including Whole Foods and Sprouts.

Sesame seeds have been cultivated for as long as 5,500 years on the Indian subcontinent to make seed oil, Simons writes. With their naturally sweet nutty taste, they’ve also been strewn over bread in ancient Greece and Rome, as well as in Turkey, Jerusalem, Canada and China.

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