Gordon Ramsay – Gordon’s Great Escape Southeast Asia: 100 of my favourite Southeast Asian recipes (страница 2)

The island of Penang is regarded as a food Mecca and the culinary capital of Malaysia. There you will find a plethora of street stalls selling Chicken satay (Snacks/appetisers) and Nasi lemak (Meat). Penang is just one big showcase of the food the country has to offer; the ingredients there are fairly Indian-inspired and feature a wide range of spices.

Vietnam

Like its neighbour Cambodia, Vietnam has suffered years of unrest – even before the 20-year Vietnam War. However, as a country it has made great speed in its recovery and over the past 15 years it has begun to show great economic growth.

In terms of their cuisine, the Vietnamese know what they like and stick to it, unlike the Malaysians who are open to change. The people of Vietnam eat the freshest diet of the four countries; just like Thailand and Cambodia, dairy produce plays little part and broths such as Beef pho (Soups) and Hu tieu (Soups) are often eaten five times a day.

Walking down the street in Mui Ne I passed by lots of little roadside cafes, inside which were industrious chefs who spent hours preparing their ingredients. I was told this is very typical, and that the Vietnamese can spend up to five hours washing and chopping vegetables for a dish that would then take only five minutes to cook. The Vietnamese live to eat and cook well.

The Vietnamese are also very adventurous eaters; there is really no limit to what they will consume. I was told by someone that if it moves, they eat it. (I discovered this to be true one night at a restaurant in Ho Chi Minh City where the restaurant’s speciality was serving every part of a snake.) They like to eat incredibly fresh meat that is slaughtered as close to serving as possible. In the northern city of Hanoi I embraced nose-to-tail cooking, preparing pig cooked seven ways, including using the pig’s ears and trotters.

Rice is a major component of the diets of the all the countries I went to, but I have to say that the Vietnamese are masters of using it in more than just in its original form – including as rice noodles or rice paper. I felt incredibly lucky to have met rice farmers in their paddy fields and learn from them how to cook the ultimate rice dish.

My time in Vietnam was inspiring and fascinating; the food there is most certainly fun and different, and it’s both flavourful and full of texture – crispy, crunchy, chewy, silky and soft.

It is fair to say that this Great Escape was a journey of epic proportions, and I feel that I have barely touched the surface of some of the many ingredients and cooking techniques that each country has to offer. What I found extraordinary was that very often delicious plates of food are created in kitchens kitted out with no more than one gas hob or a grill. Their one-pot cooking produces endless curries, soups, stir-fries and relishes that are both inspiring and fragrant.

In Southeast Asia they cook with the seasons and with the freshest of ingredients, which is key to the flavour of so many of their dishes. There is little room for some Western foods in their diet, such as cheese, bread, pasta, butter and milk, and so ingredients such as coconut milk and coconut cream feature heavily in this book as they are used instead of dairy products.

This phenomenal journey was made memorable thanks to the people that I met along the way, and this book is a tribute to them. So many complete strangers shared their stories and recipes with me, and for a brief moment in time each and every one of them helped me to understand their lifestyles and passion for food. I am incredibly thankful to them, and grateful that with their help I can bring a taste of their world into our Western kitchens.

Конец ознакомительного фрагмента.

Текст предоставлен ООО «ЛитРес».

Прочитайте эту книгу целиком, купив полную легальную версию на ЛитРес.

Безопасно оплатить книгу можно банковской картой Visa, MasterCard, Maestro, со счета мобильного телефона, с платежного терминала, в салоне МТС или Связной, через PayPal, WebMoney, Яндекс.Деньги, QIWI Кошелек, бонусными картами или другим удобным Вам способом.