A Taste of Asia recipe book review

[judydawn]

I haven't seen too many comments on our new Asian cookbook so after going through it last night and making a list of things I might like to try, I thought I'd give my opinion and then leave the discussion open for others to have their say.  I'm sure we will all have differing views.

Generally I found things had too many ingredients, a lot of them simply not available in the suburbs so it would mean a special trip to town to the market shops and therefore couldn't be made on the spur of the moment as I like to do.

A couple of items had (see this book) alongside them but I couldn't find an explanation in the glossary. These were Soya Bean Milk and XO chilli sauce - I wasn't going to bother commented on that fact when it was just the Soya Bean Milk as I presumed they mean just ordinary soya milk which you can buy at any supermarket but when the XO chilli sauce popped up, I really needed an explanation of that one as it obviously was not just any chilli sauce.  I have googled it this morning and Lee Kum Lee have it in their range.  With some of these ingredients I felt it would have been nice to have an alternative that we might already have in our cupboards to swap for the more exotic ones. I have the feeling that I am going to be omitting some items from recipes simply because I can see it all becoming rather expensive if you are not going to be cooking these meals all the time.

My biggest complaint with any recipe book coming out of H.O. is the lack of explanation as to how many serves it will make. We would presume 4 serves but even at the beginning of the book I could not find that statement.  One recipe does say it serves 6-8 which is what makes me think everything else must be 4 serves.

I was unable to tell how hot some of the dishes may be, not knowing the ingredients that well at times.  A heat rating would have been a good addition to some of the recipes.  It would have been useful also to have suggestions as to what to serve with some of these recipes as some are not a complete meal and need something else other than rice.

I think there is only one beef recipe which actually tells you to use round steak, the rest of them just say beef.  These recipes have been tested in the H.O. kitchen so how hard would it be to tell us what meat they used and would recommend so that we don't use the wrong cut and end up with tough dish.

At first I was struggling to find anything I thought I'd make, some of the recipes are far too long but thankfully in the end I have made a list of things to try - 23 in all with only one of them from the dessert section. Starting off today with Babi Tempra - Pork with lime and soy which will not surprise a few of you.

I hope this is constructive criticism and is not taken the wrong way by anyone involved in the cookbook but I will look forward to reviews of recipes so that perhaps I might try some of the things I have not included on my list. The recipes certainly seem authentic Asian and I've always been a Westernised Asian food lover myself so I guess that is where the problem lies.  I would have liked to have seen some more simple soups included in the book too.

Looking forward to views from others. Thermoheaven has already told us of her favourites so I have put them on my list of things to try.

[Lovemythermo]

I have only just received my copy too JD, but I have to say I agree with you. I'm only halfway through it but my initial thoughts are that it seems a little bit out of reach and I'm a fairly seasoned Asian cook.

Now I'm not living near the central markets I too will have to make a special trip, although I do work near there so can pop in at lunchtime.

I might comment more once I've had a better look but it seems to me that in their efforts to be authentic it might put others off from giving them a try?

[judydawn]

Thanks thermoheaven, we will just have to make some of the dishes, post our reviews and hopefully encourage others to buy the book and try some of the recipes.  I am happy if I get 1 good recipe from a cookbook so I am sure this one will surpass that number.  I think the book is aimed more towards Asians living in Australia than Australian people who enjoy Asian food - it is perhaps a little too authentic for us.

[Chelsea (Thermie Groupie)]

Thanks for the review JD. I don't think I will bother getting it as we don't have an Asian grocer close-by or anywhere that would stock the ingredients.

[JulieO]

Good review Judy.  I decided not to get the book because of the difficulty sourcing some of the ingredients where I live.  Unless I can buy them from a normal supermarket (no Asian grocers here) then I'm in trouble.  I don't mind ordering some things on line like I did with some spices etc for the Indian book, but I'm not as much 'into' Asian as I am Indian.    I look forward though to reading peoples reviews.  

[mkr]

A couple of items had (see this book) alongside them but I couldn't find an explanation in the glossary. These were Soya Bean Milk and XO chilli sauce - I wasn't going to bother commented on that fact when it was just the Soya Bean Milk as I presumed they mean just ordinary soya milk which you can buy at any supermarket but when the XO chilli sauce popped up, I really needed an explanation of that one as it obviously was not just any chilli sauce.

For those who would prefer to make their own there is a recipe for the XO chilli sauce on page 11 of the book and the soy milk recipe is on page 24

JD I'll email you a pictorial of some of the more unusual ingredients used in this book. It might help if you do get a chance to visit an Asian store or the central markets. I have an Asian grocer 5 minutes down the road, but I know not everyone is so lucky!

I'm really looking forward to trying the Hainanese chicken rice as this is one of my favourites when we go out to eat.

[thermoheaven]

I don't think this book is intended for mainstream Aussies who cook the occasional Asian dish and proclaim their love for Asian food. I think this cookbook has a very specific market. In addition to it being "Asian", it's very Malaysian/Singaporean (what else would anyone expect considering one of the contributors is Singaporean?). My guess is that HO is targeting the Malaysian/Singapoean population in Perth. If anyone were to show this cookbook to say a Hong Kong Chinese person, quite a few of those dishes would be considered quite alien to them as well. Most of the Australian population see mostly Cantonese/Hong Kong style food in the restaurants (and of course, Australian Chinese food), so to most of us, that is Chinese food. The few recipes I like out of the Asian cookbook aren't particularly strange to the Australian palate; they could be something some people haven't tried before, but they are definitely not soya bean milk, which I find quite different.
In all fairness, I view this cookbook as I do any other - if I find a few recipes out of it worthwhile, I'm happy - I have tons of cookbooks I've never cooked out of, so finding a few things I'd like to make is a bonus. I only do the salmon soup out of the seafood cookbook, and I don't think I've ever cooked out of the Indian or vegetarian books - not yet, anyway.

HO is probably trying to address those people who say it can't cook Chinese food. The tm can cook Chinese food, and it can do it very well, but I'd say those people who can't see it cooking Chinese food probably aren't into cooking that much and can't see past the risotto and pasta in the demo. It's a pity HO don't want to show any flexibility with their demo dishes - if they did, I'm sure many more doors would open.

That's my 2c worth.

[Lovemythermo]

thermoheaven I think you've hit the nail on the head about HO and the very basic demo. Everyone on this forum knows there is more to the TMX than custard, if only potential owners could see what it can really do.

Can anyone shed any light on why the demo's are so rigid?

[Yvette]

I have ordered this book have not received it yet, but I will be happy if I get a couple of new recipes out of it. As Judy said it will be good when people start cooking some meals and post reviews.

[TheCrone]

Can't wait to get it as DH is from shanghai and wants to cook with tmx.  Just wish we could get some written chinese recipe books for him.

[thermoheaven]

just google "thermomix Taiwan" - I'm sure you should be able to find the Taiwanese books.

[cookie1]

Thank you for the fabulous review Judy. I have only glanced at it and hope to have a much better look when I get home.

[FaithHopeLove]

Hello all,

I actually cooked the chicken rice from the Asian cookbook.. My husband and I love it very much. The reason why because most of the times we had the chicken rice outside which cost us $8-$10 per meal.. Guess what? It's actually save our money by using the TM to cook it and it's lovely~

I think this cook book is more for Asian bcoz in EDC, more on western food. I guess for Asian cooking, more ingredients involve but I do love the dishes from EDC as well.. ^_^

[CreamPuff63]

I just  I got the book yesterday arvo, and have had a quick look. I don't have much in the way of Asian ingredients, but thats okay I will pick out something and see how we go. My opinion at the moment is that when putting together a book it is very hard to cater for all. If you did a westernised version, those people that wanted true Asian would be disappointed - and vice versa. I look forward to trying Alvans dumplings and all the recipes that people say are really good. Maybe someone can post some more westernised di shes on the forum? I think that considering Asians generally tend to be nice and slim, I should perhaps cook a liitle more like them (please excuse me, if this sounds like a racist comment - but its intended as more of a compliment if anything).

[johnro]

Thank you Judy for the initial comprehensive review and all other lovelies for further posts!! Should have read this thread prior to commenting on your Sweet and Sour Prawn review JD.