Mini Contemporary Asian Favourites. Carol Selva Rajah

      Steamed White Rice

      Different varieties of rice have different textures when cooked. Jasmine and basmati rice grains are firm and separate while Japanese rice is soft and fluffy. Sticky (glutinous) rice cooks into a dense mass. Before cooking the rice, Asians always rinse it not once but several times, rubbing the grains between their fingers to remove the starchy outer coating on the grains so the rice will be “fluffy” when cooked.

      200 g (1 cup) uncooked short-grain rice

      1½ cups (375 ml) water

      1 Place the rice in a large bowl and cover it with water. Stir the rice briskly for about 10 seconds, then hold the grains in on one side of the bowl with your hand and carefully pour away the milky water. Repeat this process several times until the water runs clear, then drain the rice.

      2 Transfer the washed rice to an electric rice cooker, add the water and switch on the rice cooker. Fluff the cooked rice with a fork to separate the grains before serving.

      3 If you do not have an electric rice cooker, place the rice and water in a heavy sauce pan and bring to a boil over medium heat. Let the rice boil for 1–2 minutes, then cover the pan, reduce the heat to low and simmer for 10–15 minutes until all the water has been absorbed and the rice is cooked. Turn off the heat and allow the rice to sit covered for 10 minutes before removing the lid.

      Makes 200 g (2 cups) steamed white rice

      Preparation time: 5 mins

      Cooking time: 15 mins

Lemongrass Fish Soup

      This stock is the base for the soup in Fish Soup with Lemongrass, Coriander and Lime (page 24).

      ¼ teaspoon turmeric powder

      1 kg (2 lbs) butterfish or catfish fillets

      2 stalks lemongrass, tender inner part of bottom third only, bruised

      ⅓ cup (100 ml) fish sauce

      8 cups (2 litres) Asian Fish Stock (page 8)

      8 cups (2 litres) water

      1 Rub the turmeric powder on both sides of the fish fillets.

      2 Bring all the ingredients to a boil in a stockpot, until the fish is cooked. Remove from the heat, strain and reserve the clear stock.

      3 Remove and discard any bones from the fish. Process the deboned fish to a paste in a food processor. Set aside.

      Makes 10 cups (2.5 litres)

      Preparation time: 20 mins

      Cooking time: 45 mins

      Asian Fish Stock

      Simple to make if you have leftover fish bones or prawn shells, and certainly more authentic than using commercially prepared fish stocks which may contain MSG. I use amchoor or mango powder for a change instead of lime juice.

      4 cups (1 litre) water

      300 g (10 oz) fish bones, or fish head, cleaned well

      2 teaspoons dried mango powder (amchoor), or 300 g (10 oz) prawn shells

      1 spring onion

      1 Bring all the ingredients to a boil in a stockpot. Reduce the heat to low and simmer partially covered for 30 minutes, skimming off the residue that floats to the surface.

      2 Remove from the heat, strain through a fine sieve and discard the solids. Allow the clear stock to cool completely before refrigerating or freezing.

      Makes 2½ cups (625 ml)

      Preparation time: 5 mins

      Cooking time: 30 mins

      Asian Chicken Stock

      Make friends with your butcher to obtain the boned carcass of chickens or the knuckle joints to make a stock, with some vegetables and ginger to add flavour. Remove the residue that floats to the top as it cooks.

      8 cups (2 litres) water

      1 kg (2 lbs) chicken bones or ½ chicken

      1 onion or 3 spring onions, chopped

      1 celery, sliced

      6 black peppercorns, freshly cracked

      5 cloves garlic, chopped

      2.5-cm (1-in) fresh ginger, peeled and bruised

      2 stalks lemongrass, tender inner part of bottom third only, bruised

      1 Bring all the ingredients to a boil in a stockpot.

      2 Reduce the heat to low and simmer uncovered for 30 minutes, skimming off the residue that floats to the surface.

      3 Increase the heat and return to a boil for 10 minutes then remove from the heat. Strain through a fine sieve and discard the solids. Allow the clear stock to cool completely before refrigerating or freezing.

      Makes 6 cups (1.5 litres)

      Preparation time: 20 mins

      Cooking time: 45 mins

      Mango Plum Salad with Ginger Dressing

      The sweet and sour perfume from the plums and mangoes combine with ginger makes a light and summery foil for many of the hot and spicy flavours that confront you in Asian foods.

      2 semi-ripe mangoes, peeled and stoned, flesh sliced

      ½ teaspoon salt

      6 ripe plums (not blood plums), peeled, stoned and cubed

      1 onion, halved and thinly sliced (optional)

      Pistachio Ginger Dressing

      4 cloves garlic, chopped

      3 red finger-length chil lies, deseeded and chopped

      Juice of 2 limes

      2 teaspoons fresh ginger juice (pressed from grated fresh ginger)

      1 teaspoon sugar

      ½ teaspoon salt

      ½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

      60 g (½ cup) chopped dry-roasted pistachios

      Makes about 2 cups

      Preparation time: 15 mins

      1 Place the mango slices in a bowl, rub the salt into the mango slices to draw out some of the water. Drain well and pat dry with paper towels.

      2 Combine the Pistachio Ginger Dressing ingredients in a bowl and mix until the sugar is dissolved, adjusting the seasonings.