Asia - the place for food (Part 2)
Having already developed a liking for Chinese and Indian food in the UK, moving to Japan opened up new food possibilities.
In Japan I found slightly different variety of Chinese food, and enjoyed eating garlicky gyoza dipped in chilli oil, vinegar and soy sauce. Gyoza are a bit like a Chinese verion of ravioli, with a little parcel of meat or prawn wrapped in a type of thin pasta. I also found in Japan the popular Chinese dish known as Ghengis Khan, which is stir fried slices of lamb with vegetables.
Another discovery in Japan was Korean food, and I once had a great meal at a Korean restaurant in Kyoto, where we had fried garlic, delicate slices of raw liver – yes, I really didn’t realise how raw liver could taste so good – and then grilled meat and kimchee.
From Japan I visited Thailand, and here I was willingly seduced by yet another variety of food. The Thai food combines the fieryness and spice found in Indian food, with some of the crispiness and soupiness of Chinese food. I fell in love with Thai green curry, which I now often make at home. An additional feature of Thai food which makes it so tasty from my point of view is the plentiful addition of coconut milk and pulp which I so much like.
One feature that runs throughout all of Asian food is rice, and I am sure that this is one of the reasons why I like it so much. Although British, I am more a fan of rice than of bread and potatoes.
In future posts there will be more mention of Asian food – hardly surprising since it has so much to offer the tastebuds.