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The Asian Kitchen

Spoons made of coconut shells or wood are put to countless uses in the Indonesian kitchen.

You do not need a range of exotic implements to cook Asian food. Perhaps that is the most surprising aspect of Asian cooking-that often sophisticated food is prepared with so few utensils! Most of the implements found in the average Western kitchen can be adapted for use in Asian cooking, although several items, such as a wok or rice cooker, will make the preparation and cooking of certain dishes much easier. Far more time is usually spent on the preparation of the ingredients, which have to be peeled, chopped, grated, ground, and blended before the cooking begins. You should be able to obtain most of the implements mentioned here from Asian grocery stores.

Cooking Implements

Perhaps the most essential ingredient in the Asian kitchen is the wok-known as a kuali in Malaysia and Indonesia-a deep, curved pan traditionally made of cast iron and used for just about everything except cooking rice: stir-frying, deep-frying, braising, making sauces, steaming, and so on. The shape of the wok distributes the heat evenly, while its sloping sides ensure that food falls back into the pan and not over the edge during stir-frying. It's also practical for deep-frying, requiring less oil than a conventional saucepan or skillet. It allows just the right amount of evaporation for many dishes which begin with a large amount of liquid and finish with a thick sauce. When choosing a wok, avoid aluminium or Teflon-coated types; a heavy cast-iron wok that won't tip over easily is preferable, or best of all, a non-stick alloy that will not scratch when metal scoops are used.

A wok should be "seasoned" before its first use so that food will not stick. Wash the inside of the wok with warm soapy water but do not use a scouring pad. Rinse with fresh water and dry thoroughly. Put some oil on a paper towel and wipe the inside of the wok. Repeat until the paper towel comes away clean. Chinese cooks always heat the wok before adding oil to be sure that it is dry and the oil will not splatter. After cooking, never clean your wok with detergent or harsh abrasives; just rinse it with warm water and wipe dry. Remember to buy a lid for your wok-invaluable for when you want to steam food and for finishing off dishes.

In India, the kadai, a large wok-like utensil, is used for frying and sauteing. The kadai is made of iron, brass or aluminium, and slightly deeper than a wok, but the latter makes an excellent substitute. For rice and curries, a flat-lidded, straight-sided pan known as a degchi is used, but a good heavy-based pot will do.

To partner your wok, a frying spatula, as well as a perforated ladle for lifting out deep-fried food, are useful. Chinese cooks use a round-edged spatula for tossing stir-fried ingredients in the wok. Indonesian cooks use an assortment of wooden or coconut husk spoons for stirring.

Other useful utensils include a wire mesh basket on a long handle, good for scooping out deep-fried food or boiled noodles. Chinese cooks also use a pair of long wooden chopsticks for turning over food during deep-frying, although this requires a certain dexterity, only acquired with practice. You may be happier with tongs.

Extremely high heat is needed when stir-frying food in a wok, and many electric cookers cannot achieve the ideal heat. Malaysian cooks—especially Chinese—insist on at least one gas fire, often with a double ring of gas jets. If you are using an old-style electric cooker which cannot reach a very high heat nor be reduced in temperature quickly, you should consider investing in a gas-fired ring to be used with your wok.

Almost any saucepan can be used for cooking Asian dishes, but take care to choose one that has a non-reactive lining, since many dishes contain acid such as tamarind or lime juice. Non-stick saucepans are ideal for Asian food as they avoid the problem of spices sticking on the bottom and allow you to use less oil when frying. Claypots of various shapes and sizes, with a sandy outside and a glazed interior, are used for slow cooking and for making soups and stocks. These are attractive and inexpensive, but any type of saucepan can be used.

Rice was usually cooked in an aluminium or a stainless steel saucepan, although most homes in the cities now boast an electric rice cooker —a great boon if you eat rice fairly often. It's foolproof, produces dry fluffy rice every time, and also keeps rice warm for latecomers. Alternatively, use a heavy saucepan with a firm-fitting lid.

Steaming is a healthy method of cooking in Asia, and a multi-tiered bamboo steamer with a plaited cover to absorb any moisture (unlike a metal cover where moisture condenses and falls on the food) is invaluable. If you are using a multi-tiered metal steamer, put a tea towel under the lid to prevent moisture from dripping back onto the food. The steaming basket is placed inside a wok on a trivet above boiling water. Chinese stores also sell perforated metal disks that sit inside a wok above the water level; these are useful for steaming a single plate of food. Cover the wok with a lid and keep the water level topped up and at a gentle simmer during steaming.

Just as indispensable as a wok is the cleaver, which comes with either a heavy rectangular blade about 3-4 in (8-10 cm) deep, ideal for cutting through bones, or a lighter weight blade for chopping, slicing, mincing, bruising garlic cloves and scooping up food on the flat edge to carry to the pan. A cleaver does the work of a whole battery of knives in a Western kitchen. You will also need a strong chopping board.

In addition to the usual knives found in any kitchen, a useful implement used by traditional Asian cooks is a narrow, double-bladed knife for carving vegetables into decorative shapes, and slicing fruit and vegetables thinly for the various rolls and wraps.

If the thump-thump of the stone, granite or porcelain mortar and pestle is not for you, blenders, food processors, and coffee grinders make light work of the pounding, grinding, and blending of spices and seeds. It's essential that all the ingredients to be made into a paste be finely chopped before blending. Whether using a mortar and pestle, blender or food processor, the principle is to grind or blend the toughest ingredients first, adding softer and wetter ingredients towards the end. First grind any dried spices or nuts until fine, then add hard ingredients such as chopped-up lemon grass and galangal. Pound or process until fine, then add softer rhizomes such as fresh turmeric and ginger, soaked dried chilies and sliced fresh chilies. When these are minced, add the ingredients that are full of moisture, such as chopped shallots and garlic, and soft shrimp paste.

If you are using a food processor or blender, you will probably need to add just a little liquid to keep the blades turning. If the spice blend is to be fried, add a little of the specified amount of cooking oil. If it is to be cooked in coconut milk, add some of this. While processing, you will probably need to stop the machine frequently to scrape down the sides. Continue until you have a fine paste.

Some cooks add water rather than the cooking medium to the blender; this means that the spice mixture will need to be cooked for a longer period of time before adding the other ingredients, to allow the water to evaporate and the mixture to fry rather than stew.

The multi-purpose banana leaf is often used in Southeast Asia to wrap food in for grilling, steaming, or placing directly onto hot coals. If you are able to obtain banana leaf, wipe it clean and cut to the required size. Hold it directly over a gas flame or plunge in boiling water until it softens before wrapping the food. Aluminium foil is generally recommended as a substitute, but for a texture that is closer to that obtained by using the leaf, wrap food in greaseproof paper first, then in the foil.

In Japan, bamboo baskets are used for draining noodles (a colander or sieve makes an adequate substitute). Bamboo mats, available in speciality Asian stores, are useful for rolling rice inside wrappers of seaweed, rolling up Japanese omelets and for squeezing the liquid out of cooked vegetables.

The Japanese grater, usually made of porcelain or bamboo, is perfect for grating ginger or horseradish, since it breaks down the fibres beautifully.

Indian and Sri Lankan breads are rolled out with a wooden rolling pin on a flat circular stone slab or wooden board, and cooked on a heavy iron griddle or tawa. A heavy cast-iron skillet or griddle makes a good substitute.

Coconut graters are essential in Asian countries. They are sometimes available in Western countries.

Cooking Techniques

The general cooking techniques used in Asian cookery are not too different from those used in the West.

The most common cooking method is probably stir-frying, which is fast cooking over a high heat in oil, usually in a wok. Evenly sliced ingredients are tossed about constantly; contact with the heat from the sides as well as the bottom of the wok means that food cooks very rapidly, sealing in the juices and flavor. Timing is absolutely crucial to the success of stir-frying, so chop all ingredients, measure all the seasonings, and have the garnishes and serving dishes at hand before starting.

Deep-frying involves cooking food by immersing it totally in heated oil. For best results, cook the food in small amounts so that the temperature of the oil does not drop too much. The optimum temperature for deep-frying is 37 5-400°F (190-200°C). Properly deep-fried food is not greasy at all-usually the result is a crisp exterior and a moist, succulent interior. Drain well on paper towels before serving.

Steaming is a cooking technique much prized by the Chinese and Japanese. The gentle cooking is an excellent method for showcasing the freshness of the produce, since all the natural flavors are retained. Make sure the water level in your steamer or wok is always topped up when you're steaming.

Grilling is another popular cooking technique, and it is hard to imagine Indonesia. Malaysia, and Singapore without their variations on satay, or Vietnam without its sugar-cane prawns. The meat to be grilled is placed on skewers (remember to soak the skewers in water beforehand to prevent them from burning). Most of the dishes in this book can be cooked under a domestic grill or over a barbecue. Baste with some of the marinade as you cook. In Korea, where grilled marinated beef is a national dish, many families have their own table-top grill on which to cook bulgogi and galbi ribs.

Braising involves cooking food over a low heat in flavored liquid for a long time, and is ideal for tougher cuts of meat and some vegetables. To red braise meat is to cook it in dark and light soy sauces, star anise or five-spice powder. Chinese cooking wine, and sugar.

Poaching is carried out in water or stock that is barely simmering. The liquid should only just cover the meat which must be fished out as soon as it is ready.

To blanch, bring a pot of water to a rolling boil and immerse the food-usually vegetables-in small batches. Cook until they are tender but still crisp.

Many Indian, Sri Lankan, Indonesian. Malaysian, and Thai dishes involve the use of spices, and as each spice takes a different amount of time to release its flavor and aroma, it is important to follow the correct order given when adding spices to the pan. Many spices need to be dry-roasted before use. It is best to do this in a heavy cast-iron pan without oil. Watch the heat carefully, shaking frequently so that the spices do not catch. For maximum flavor and aroma, buy whole spices and grind them just before cooking.

When cooking with coconut milk, it is important to prevent it from curdling or breaking apart. Stir the milk frequently, lifting it up with a large spoon or ladle and pouring it back into the saucepan or wok while it is coming to the boil. Once the coconut milk is simmering, be sure never to cover the pan. Thick coconut milk is sometimes added at the final stages of cooking to thicken and enrich the flavor of the dish. Stir constantly while heating but do not allow to boil.

Cooking rice is a subject that often arouses controversy, and if you have a reliable method, stick with it. Whatever method is used, first wash the rice thoroughly to remove any impurities and excess starch until the water runs clear. The absorbency of rice depends on the variety of rice and its age, with older rice absorbing more liquid. Cooking times depend on the type and weight of your saucepan, and the heat of your cooker. See page 15 for a recipe for plain rice.

"Full of flavor, healthful, sometimes hauntigly Similar to neighboring cuisines, at other times dramatically different, the food of Burma is not complex to prepare at home."

A farmer winnows paddy in the Shan Plateau. Rice is the staple crop in Burma.