Recipe Description:

Slurpable and bouncy, udon are a joy to wrestle with as they wriggle around your chopsticks, whether seasoned by a soup broth, salad dressing or stir fried sauce. Although commonly associated with Japan, the earliest iteration of udon noodles originated in China and was introduced to Japan during the Tang dynasty. Today, udon is a beloved comfort food sold in almost every restaurant. For this recipe we wanted to create a Korean fusion featuring shiitake mushrooms and the power trio of kimchi, gochujang and gochujaru flakes, which produces an umami ballad so beautiful you’ll want to make it over and over again!  

• Preparation time:

  For 2 - mins For 4 - mins

• Cooking time:

  For 2 - mins For 4 - mins

Recipe Description:

Japanese food has a reputation for being delicate & understated, but such sophisticated delights won’t necessarily see you through the winter or fill your belly after a day’s skiing in the mountains near Joetsu. That’s where bowlfuls of thicker, heartier soup come in handy, perhaps infused with a sturdier than average miso paste that will stand up to the strong meaty flavours. Joetsu city’s famous tonjiru (pork miso soup) is one such dish, but we’ve been further inspired by the unusual spiciness of Japanese miso ramen, an unconventional formula that often features Chinese-style chilli bean paste to add that extra kick.

• Preparation time:

  For 2 - 25 minsFor 4 - 30 mins

• Cooking time:

  For 2 - 30 minsFor 4 - 35 mins

Recipe Description:

Aged just 29, Alfred Prasad became head chef of Tamarind in London, achieving a Michelin star that he maintained for 13 years. His light, seasonal cooking is inspired by childhood memories of exploring India with his parents, tasting the varied delights of India’s regional cuisines. His food philosophy of ‘health, heritage and happiness’ merges creativity and scientific precision, enhancing the essential flavours of fresh ingredients with characteristic subtlety. Black pepper is one of Alfred’s favourite spices; infused in a smoky, silky sauce, its heat softens, revealing floral notes that complement the chicken’s tangy yoghurt marinade.

• Preparation time:

  For 2 - 25 minsFor 4 - 35 mins

• Cooking time:

  For 2 - 30 minsFor 4 - 40 mins

Recipe Description:

A ‘dan’ is a bamboo pole that street vendors in the city of Chengdu used to hoist on their shoulders, allowing them to carry a cooking pot for noodles on one end, and their sauce on the other. On setting up their wares in a side street, they’d shout ‘dan-dan’ to attract attention to the simple meal being prepared— a base of spicy sauce laced with tingly Sichuan pepper, a heaping of noodles, then a savoury fried topping (here we’ve opted for meaty mushrooms). Stirred together and eaten quickly while hot, it’s still the preferred meal of Chengdu’s night owls and busy students, a teasing, fiery fast food with an artisanal spirit.

• Preparation time:

  For 2 - 25 minsFor 4 - 30 mins

• Cooking time:

  For 2 - 25 minsFor 4 - 30 mins

Recipe Description:

Yoshoku (‘western-style’) restaurants had been around for over half a century before (legend has it) baseball star Shigeru Chiba walked into one in 1948 and asked for his two favourite dishes on one plate— kare, a silky-sweet gravy spiced with imported British curry powder, and katsu, a crispy panko-coated cutlet. Yoshoku food soon thrived amidst Japan’s post-war economic boom, with katsukare its deserving figurehead. In recent years, Japanese curry houses have offered endless customisation, with katsu curry on udon becoming a popular and playful twist on the classic dish.

• Preparation time:

  For 2 - 25 mins, For 4 - 25 mins

• Cooking time:

  For 2 - 35 mins, For 4 - 35 mins

Recipe Description:

There are many variations on Chinese ‘hong shao’, or the ‘red (hot) cooking’ technique, but most involve frying or grilling an ingredient, braising it in soy sauce, rice wine and aromatics, then reducing and thickening the sauce to a deep, dark red glaze. It’s a technique possibly as ancient as soy sauce itself, and still often cooked the old way, in small clay pots that help to seal in the evolving flavours of the simmering sauce. Tofu’s neutral, absorbent tenderness is perfect for ‘hong shao’, while mushroom sauce, often called ‘vegan oyster sauce’, adds an extra layer of indulgent umami joy to our Cantonese home-style recipe. 

• Preparation time:

  For 2 - 25 minsFor 4 - 30 mins

• Cooking time:

  For 2 - 25 minsFor 4 - 30 mins

Recipe Description:

Tamil is the language that gave the world the word Kari, and therefore the entire concept of curry. But you might not recognise many of the kari dishes from this part of South India, and these days kari actually refers to 'flesh' (whether animal or vegetable) rather than sauce. This dish, also known as kottu kari kuzhambu ('minced meat in sauce') is a typical example. It's dryer and less creamy that a typical curry, with all of the spices freshly toasted and then crushed to provide a darker, more intense aroma— incidentally, coffee drinking is an important part of Tamil culture!

• Preparation time:

  For 2 - 30 minsFor 4 - 40 mins

• Cooking time:

  For 2 - 40 minsFor 4 - 50 mins

Recipe Description:

Brassica Oleracea goes by many aliases worldwide: broccoli, kale and cabbage, to name a few. Cauliflower is the slyest chameleon of them all, able to act grainy, floury or meaty, as in this trendy plant ‘steak’. Trendy, yes, but Indian vegetarians have been cooking with similarly ingenious meat substitutes for centuries. This tender centerpiece, lightly marinated and roasted to perfection, is no second-stringer, though, ably supported by the equally world class combo of a spicy chickpea curry and a refreshing salad

• Preparation time:

  For 2 - 20 minsFor 4 - 30 mins

• Cooking time:

  For 2 - 35 minsFor 4 - 35 mins

Recipe Description:

The Malabar coast usually refers to the entirety of India’s southwestern shoreline, but it is Kerala that tends to be most associated with the name, perhaps because it has historically drawn attention for the wealth of its trading ports, its cultural diversity and abundant supply of spices. Some of that abundance is on display here, from the tang of mustard seeds to the slightly bitter caramel sweetness of fenugreek. Together with curry leaves, they provide a typically intriguing base of Keralan flavour from which this sweet and soothing (yet undeniably spicy) tropical fish curry emerges.

• Preparation time:

  For 2 - 20 minsFor 4 - 30 mins

• Cooking time:

  For 2 - 30 minsFor 4 - 40 mins

Recipe Description:

When the French introduced beef to Vietnam, the Vietnamese didn’t turn it into pho and then call it a day. Bo kho is one of the most compelling, yet underappreciated beef dishes in Vietnamese cuisine, much more darkly fragrant and full-on than its more delicate, soupy cousin. Probably inspired by French stews like boeuf bourguignon, it’s served as a rousing breakfast in northern Vietnam. For dinner, though, we like the spicier, more savoury version cooked in Danang slightly further south, its terracotta red sauce splashing over the white rice noodles as the steaming aroma hits everyone at the table with a wave of comforting warmth.

• Preparation time:

  For 2 - 25 minsFor 4 - 30 mins

• Cooking time:

  For 2 - 50 minsFor 4 - 75 mins

Recipe Description:

Hailing from the Greek island of Spetses, prawn a la spetsiota is one of Greece’s most popular seafood dishes. Every juicy mouthful of the prawns braised in herby, honey-infused tomato sauce, transports the blissful greek sunshine to your plate. Most Greek cuisine is fairly modest when it comes to its spice content, but Spetses sets itself apart in this regard. The Venetians nicknamed the island Spetsai, meaning spice, as it was part of their trade route. Thereon, this beautiful little island, just a stone's throw away from the mainland, has been famed for its delicate use of spices like cumin and chilli flakes.

• Preparation time:

  For 2 - minsFor 4 - mins

• Cooking time:

  For 2 - minsFor 4 - mins

Recipe Description:

East Asian Buddhist monasteries have a distinct and well-documented culinary tradition, often based around catering to visiting meat-eaters by cleverly imitating the flavours, textures and even appearances of various meat dishes while using entirely vegetarian ingredients like tofu and seitan. Jackfruit was only introduced from India into China relatively recently, but perhaps it will catch on in vegetarian restaurants and monasteries— its stringy, tender texture and savoury flavour is perfect for these ‘duck’ pancakes, absorbing our rich sauces and spices while harmonising with the clean, light garnishes and sweet, sticky plum sauce

• Preparation time:

  For 2 - 40 minsFor 4 - 55 mins

• Cooking time:

  For 2 - 55 minsFor 4 - 60 mins

Recipe Description:

Massaman is an unusual Thai curry, full of dried spices that aren’t typically found in the region’s cuisine, like cinnamon, cloves and star anise. It’s thought that traders from the Middle East and India, bringing luxury ingredients to the cosmopolitan Ayutthaya Kingdom on Thailand’s west coast, are responsible for the curry that literally translates as ‘Muslim curry’. By the 18th century, Massaman was so popular that the then-king of Thailand wrote a poem praising its ‘exciting allure’ that would ‘arouse any man’. We’re not sure about that, but its combination of intricate Thai technique and soothing, aromatic flavour is hard to beat.

• Preparation time:

  For 2 - 15 minsFor 4 - 20 mins

• Cooking time:

  For 2 - 35 minsFor 4 - 40 mins

Recipe Description:

India is arguably the home of specialised vegetarian ingredients, but a love of paneer cheese has kept the similarly versatile tofu firmly on the other side of India’s north-eastern border. That is, until recently. Tofu is becoming increasingly popular in India, with home cooks finding that it can perform all the same tricks as paneer, and then some— eaten soft and fresh or charred and grilled, smooth or in chunks, scrambled, crispy, toasty, roasty… it’s a wonderful blank canvas not just for Indian flavours but Indian cooking styles as well. Consider this classic tikka saag masala your introduction to the brave new world of Indian tofu.

• Preparation time:

  For 2 - 35 minsFor 4 - 50 mins

• Cooking time:

  For 2 - 40 minsFor 4 - 60 mins

Recipe Description:

In Chengdu, Sichuan, the memory of traditional home cooking is kept alive in small eateries nestled among the back alleys and side streets— so-called ‘fly restaurants’, probably named more for their size than for any concerns about hygiene. ‘Fly restaurants’ offer a warm welcome to all comers, an unpretentious hole-in-the-wall ambience and a full slate of familiar local dishes. This braised pork belly is infused with comforting star anise and cinnamon as well as bracingly spicy chilli bean paste. The carrots absorb flavour until they’re just as meaty as the pork itself, making for a humble stew that is far more than the sum of its parts.

• Preparation time:

  For 2 - 15 minsFor 4 - 35 mins

• Cooking time:

  For 2 - 20 minsFor 4 - 40 mins

Recipe Description:

It’s difficult to find a common thread uniting all of Caribbean cuisine, with each island practicing its own special blend of Latin American, European, Amerindian, West Indian, Indian, Chinese and Middle Eastern cuisines. But one ingredient unites the entire region— the Scotch bonnet chilli pepper. While on the spicier side, it’s also an unmistakably fruity variety, almost always used fresh to impart its almost refreshing tropical flavour. Despite all the cultures that have brought their foods and traditions to the Caribbean, the Scotch bonnet is an enduring reminder of the islands’ original inhabitants.

• Preparation time:

  For 2 - 25 minsFor 4 - 35 mins

• Cooking time:

  For 2 - 30 minsFor 4 - 40 mins

Recipe Description:

Cooks in the Hunan region of China were some of the earliest and most enthusiastic adopters of the chilli pepper, but this famous recipe is said to date back as far as a thousand years earlier— perhaps that’s why the heat of its fresh chilli slivers tends to be eclipsed by the pleasant tang and succulent savouriness. The sharp, clear vinegar together with the citrus aroma of Sichuan pepper gives the dish its refreshing, bright quality. You might find stir-frying it fast-paced and even chaotic, but the end result is a deceptively tranquil and elegant looking dish!

• Preparation time:

  For 2 - 20 minsFor 4 - 25 mins

• Cooking time:

  For 2 - 25 minsFor 4 - 30 mins

Recipe Description:

Tikka masala’s 20th century origin as a British-Indian twist on Punjabi butter chicken is widely known, but jalfrezi’s Anglo-Indian roots stretch back further, to the days of the Raj. Indians would stir-fry the leftover meat from British roast dinners back to colourful life with chilli and garlic (‘jhal’ means ‘spicy-hot’ in Bengali), adding liquid to moisten, and this simple ‘curry’ quickly caught on with diners back in the UK. Today’s jalfrezi uses similar techniques, but we’ve sent you much fresher ingredients! Green pepper is essential, while our crispy fried paneer provides the dish with a buoyant, perky, sauce-absorbing main attraction.

• Preparation time:

  For 2 - 35 minsFor 4 - 45 mins

• Cooking time:

  For 2 - 45 minsFor 4 - 60 mins

Recipe Description:

Centuries ago, Chinese traders were drawn to the new opportunities available on the coast of modern-day Singapore, Malaysia and Indonesia, some settling down in the area with local wives. These families were the ancestors of the Peranakans, whose cuisine to this day is a unique mix of Chinese and Malay traditions. Laksa is a defining dish of this ‘nonya’ (‘auntie’) food, named as a tribute to the women who have passed down its secrets through the generations. It’s a perfect marriage between the soothing, refined slurp of a Chinese noodle soup and the flavourful punch of Southeast Asian curry pastes, chilli and coconut milk.

• Preparation time:

  For 2 - 40 minsFor 4 - 45 mins

• Cooking time:

  For 2 - 45 minsFor 4 - 50 mins

Recipe Description:

The oldest recipes in the world were found in Iraq, etched on ancient tablets that detail the festival food prepared in long-ruined temples. Modern Iraqi cuisine still has traces of that ancient legacy, as well as bearing the influence of Turkey, Iran and the Middle East, even as far as India. This saffron-raisin sauce, infused with ground nuts and spices, is a powerful sensory experience typical of the region’s cooking; it might even be considered a rather humble dish! The combination could be cooked in one pot, as a casserole, but we love the interplay between the buttery, full-on sauce and the separate roast chicken and potatoes.

• Preparation time:

  For 2 - 20 minsFor 4 - 25 mins

• Cooking time:

  For 2 - 25 minsFor 4 - 30 mins

Recipe Description:

More than half of the population of Gujarat is vegetarian. Rather than imitating meaty flavours, though, Gujarati cooking tends to lean into the natural sweetness of plant-based ingredients, using unrefined sugars to amplify their red and green vegetable sauces, with salt and spice (and often distinctive fresh herbs like our methi leaves) as a counterbalancing culinary force. Tarka, whole spices tempered in oil, is known in Gujarati as vaghar; that’s only the beginning of the bold flavour layering that characterises this roasted cauliflower showstopper.

• Preparation time:

  For 2 - 25 minsFor 4 - 30 mins

• Cooking time:

  For 2 - 40 minsFor 4 - 45 mins

Recipe Description:

‘Gongbao’ or ‘Kung Po’ was the honorary title of a 19th century governor of Sichuan province, who either created the dish himself or encountered it while paying a grateful visit to a man who had saved him from drowning. He used to serve generous amounts of this marinated chicken and peanut stir-fry at all his banquets, spreading its richly deserved reputation far and wide. It’s a masterclass in the famous sweet-sour and numbing-spicy (‘ma-la’) flavours of classic Sichuan cuisine. Numbing? Yes, that’s the Sichuan pepper— a pleasantly tingly spice sensation caused by the dried berries of a certain citrus plant.

• Preparation time:

  For 2 - 25 minsFor 4 - 35 mins

• Cooking time:

  For 2 - 35 minsFor 4 - 45 mins

Recipe Description:

Although Thai chefs are often judged solely by their Pad Thai skills, this national dish is more culturally eclectic than you might think. The name, meaning ‘Thai-style stir fry’, probably comes from Chinese expats, who combined their techniques of noodle making and wok cooking with sweet-sour, pungent Thai flavours like lime and tamarind. Thailand’s wartime dictator, facing a rice shortage, then nationalised the dish, sending the recipe to Thais so that they could open up noodle shops and street carts. Noodle fever soon gripped the nation— no surprise, since this quick, tasty dish is easy to prepare, yet enticingly difficult to perfect.

• Preparation time:

  For 2 - 35 minsFor 4 - 50 mins

• Cooking time:

  For 2 - 45 minsFor 4 - 65 mins

Recipe Description:

Pilaf is a dish so ancient, its origins probably predate the beginning of recorded history. Wherever it was first made, what we do know is that for many people across Asia all the way to the Mediterranean sea, there is no cooking technique more deeply rooted than the simmering of rice in a flavourful broth, timed perfectly so that each grain is fluffy and separate, with its own distinct bite. Our pilaf is a showcase of hearty ingredients that are popular across the Middle East and the Levant, but especially celebrates the lip-smacking tartness of fruity pomegranate seeds, tangy sumac and refreshing mint yoghurt.

• Preparation time:

  For 2 - 35 minsFor 4 - 45 mins

• Cooking time:

  For 2 - 60 minsFor 4 - 70 mins

Recipe Description:

Chingri Malai Curry is a signature Bengali delicacy. A regal dish, fit for those special days when you feel like eating like a King. A curry cooked with seafood is almost always a mandatory dish on occasions such as weddings, the Poila Boisakh (Bengali New Year) and other celebrations. The main school of thought is that the early version of the recipe was brought over by Malaysian traders to the Bay of Bengal, which is where we see the word “Malai'', taking ownership in the title. Tiger prawns cooked in creamy coconut milk with a host of delectable spices: cumin, chilli, turmeric and garam masala, this prawn curry will be a crowd favourite on your dinner table.

• Preparation time:

  For 2 - mins For 4 - mins

• Cooking time:

  For 2 - mins For 4 - mins

Recipe Description:

Yoshoku (‘western-style’) restaurants had been around for over half a century before (legend has it) baseball star Shigeru Chiba walked into one in 1948 and asked for his two favourite dishes on one plate— kare, a silky-sweet gravy spiced with imported British curry powder, and katsu, a crispy panko-coated cutlet. Yoshoku food soon thrived amidst Japan’s post-war economic boom, with katsukare its deserving figurehead. Aubergine provides an earthy butteriness to our vegan katsu, coated in panko breadcrumbs that retain their light, crisp texture even when slathered in our full-bodied curry sauce

• Preparation time:

  For 2 - 30 minsFor 4 - 45 mins

• Cooking time:

  For 2 - 45 minsFor 4 - 50 mins

Recipe Description:

The best chimichurri is chock full of chunky, herby goodness. Among the many variations, it’s usually made of parsley, garlic, dried oregano, hot red pepper flakes, in a base of olive oil and vinegar. Numerous linguists believe the title chimichurri to be derived from Basque settlers who arrived in Argentina in the 19th century, and that the name of the sauce comes from the term tximitxurri, loosely translated as “a mixture of several things in no particular order.” Today, many households always have a bowl of chimichurri to accompany whatever meat is being served that day. In true latin America style, we paired our succulent steak and aromatic chimichurri with a creamy Puerto Rican mofongo: garlicky mashed plantain.  

• Preparation time:

  For 2 - minsFor 4 - mins

• Cooking time:

  For 2 - minsFor 4 - mins

Recipe Description:

In the hybrid culture of India’s Mughal Empire, elaborately adorned cookbooks were as much of a status symbol as any work of science or literature, helping to popularise a rich, spiced-up Indian version of Persian cuisine. Korma is perhaps the most prestigious recipe in this tradition, said to have been served to the emperor to celebrate the construction of the Taj Mahal. Great korma is a balancing act, using spices for their heady fragrance while remaining mild and creamy in flavour.

• Preparation time:

  For 2 - 15 minsFor 4 - 25 mins

• Cooking time:

  For 2 - 25 minsFor 4 - 35 mins

Recipe Description:

While the ingredients for rendang might look familiar to anyone well-versed in Indian or Thai food, their use in this dish has no precedent anywhere else. Rendang is unique to the Minangkabau people of Indonesia, who have been preparing it for hundreds of years. Beef is coated in a spice paste and simmered slowly in coconut milk until richly dark and almost dry. Before refrigeration, it was the ideal food-on-the-go for merchants and travellers braving the tropical heat, but today it’s the highlight of Minang restaurants worldwide, where it has gained a little saucy tenderness without losing its intense, concentrated flavours.

Fly Singapore Airlines to 13 destinations in Indonesia including Bali, Lombok and Jakarta via Singapore. 

With over 17,000 islands to explore, there’s something for everyone in Indonesia. With stunning beaches, pristine rainforests and ancient wonders, you’re spoilt for choice.

• Preparation time:

  For 2 - 30 minsFor 4 - 40 mins

• Cooking time:

  For 2 - 40 minsFor 4 - 55 mins

Recipe Description:

Don’t let the name mislead you: ‘Mongolian’ is a popular adjective in Taiwanese cuisine. Restaurants in the 1950s, used to serving seafood, pork and poultry to their fellow islanders, needed a marketing gimmick for unfamiliar imported meats, and the cultural association between hearty Mongolian nomads and their wandering flocks and herds proved ideal. In this dish, lamb steak is sliced thinly, allowing good coverage for the soy, hoisin and red chilli sauce. The rich aroma of mushrooms and diced aromatics is balanced out by the earthiness of bulgur wheat and quinoa.

• Preparation time:

  For 2 - 30 minsFor 4 - 35 mins

• Cooking time:

  For 2 - 45 minsFor 4 - 50 mins

Recipe Description:

You might think of a ‘frozen dumpling’ as something convenient to have around the house when you can’t be bothered to cook, but if you’re a Siberian hunter, frozen dumplings are a way of life. A sack of these ‘pelmeni’ (meaning ‘ear bread’ due to their shape), ready to be boiled by the handful, is an essential piece of kit for long expeditions through the cold taiga. The thin dough wrapper is a tasty way to keep the flavourful filling safe. Despite their intrepid origins, pelmeni are now enjoyed in home kitchens all over Russia, often with a dollop of sour cream and some chopped fresh herbs.

• Active time:

  For 2 - 50 minsFor 4 - 50 mins

• Total time:

  For 2 - 65 minsFor 4 - 65 mins

Recipe Description:

In Jordan, hospitality is taken extremely seriously. There’s only one, mostly unwritten rule when you’re invited for dinner in Jordan: bring nothing and eat everything. Such a welcoming attitude requires hearty, full-flavoured recipes that can feed a crowd. Enter kofta bi tahini, a creamy casserole of fragrant mince drenched in magical lemon-tahini yoghurt, topped with sliced potatoes that crisp up in the oven. The top layer of tahini sauce thickens and becomes extra-creamy, merging with the golden-brown potatoes— to call it a hybrid Middle Eastern shepherd’s pie and dauphinoise would be barely scratching the surface.

• Preparation time:

  For 2 - 20 minsFor 4 - 25 mins

• Cooking time:

  For 2 - 25 minsFor 4 - 45 mins

Recipe Description:

In Cantonese restaurants, chicken usually gets the stir-fry treatment, with chefs who are adept at both knife & wok handling cooking it quickly enough to serve all comers. Steaming isn’t as rapid, and takes up valuable kitchen space, which is why this particular delicacy is usually reserved for home kitchens rather than restaurants. Steaming draws out a small amount of extremely intense, ginger-infused broth from the chicken, which the slippery umami of the shiitake mushrooms enhances even further. It may not look like much, but every element of this tender, subtle dish is actually a precision strike of concentrated flavour.

• Preparation time:

  For 2 - 15 minsFor 4 - 20 mins

• Cooking time:

  For 2 - 40 minsFor 4 - 45 mins

Recipe Description:

Sweet & sour is an entire flavour philosophy in China, found just as often in dipping sauces as in main dishes. But the pork recipe we all know and love, where the sauce is reduced to a sticky glaze in the wok, is Cantonese. It’s known locally as gu lou yuk, which either means ‘historic pork dish’ or ‘tummy-rumbling pork dish’ depending on who you ask. Ketchup might seem like an unusual addition, but Hong Kong chefs have been using its tangy umami kick for decades; ‘ketchup’ is in fact a Chinese word. The competition between vinegar’s tang and a more fruity sourness is the heart of the dish, with ketchup uniting both flavours

• Preparation time:

  For 2 - 20 minsFor 4 - 35 mins

• Cooking time:

  For 2 - 20 minsFor 4 - 35 mins

Recipe Description:

Tagine is not just a North African dish, but the earthenware pot it is cooked in, designed with a conical lid that channels condensed steam back to the stew at its base— an ingenious technique in regions where water can be a precious commodity. This chunky, spirited vegetable tagine is boosted with a trio of classic seasonings: fragrant ras el hanout (‘top of the shop’) spices, fiery, smoky harissa and tangy dried prunes, contributing a bright, fruity accent to this otherwise intensely savoury dish. So if you don’t have an earthenware pot to hand, don’t worry! It’s the bold flavour contrasts that make this tagine so special.

• Active time:

  For 2 - 30 minsFor 4 - 45 mins

• Total time:

  For 2 - 45 minsFor 4 - 60 mins

Recipe Description:

Sweet & sour isn’t so much a recipe as an entire flavour balance philosophy, rumoured to have originated in the form of a lightly sugared vinegar dipping sauce from Hunan province, China. But the recipe we all know and love, where the sauce is reduced to a sticky glaze in the wok, is Cantonese. Ketchup might seem like an unusual addition, but Hong Kong chefs have been using its tangy umami kick for decades; ‘ketchup’ is in fact a Chinese word. The competition between vinegar’s tang and a more fruity sourness is the heart of the dish, with ketchup uniting both flavours.

• Preparation time:

  For 2 - 30 mins, For 4 - 25 mins

• Cooking time:

  For 2 - 30 mins, For 4 - 25 mins

Recipe Description:

Despite the Punjab being probably the greatest influence on Indian restaurant cooking in the UK, you’re much more likely to find this classic in Punjabi home kitchens and roadside dhaba restaurants than on the menu of your local curry house. Tariwala is a true curry lover’s curry, embellished with neither butter nor cream, relying purely on the cook’s careful attention to the dish’s base ingredients to draw out their natural richness. The result is a robust, rustic sauce that foregrounds the rich, homely flavours of roast chicken and sauteed onion. It’s nostalgic yet timelessly satisfying, a recipe perfect for rainy days and Sunday lunches alike.

• Preparation time:

  For 2 - 10 minsFor 4 - 10 mins

• Cooking time:

  For 2 - 40 minsFor 4 - 45 mins

Recipe Description:

Much of Indian cuisine was forever changed during the imperial reign of the culturally Persian Mughals. But in Hyderabad, the ‘City of Pearls’, a hybrid Indian-Turkish-Middle Eastern culture had already existed for centuries, and its hugely wealthy and partially independent monarchy, the ‘Nizams’, kept the grand traditions alive after the empire’s fall. Inspired by the city’s cultural melting pot, chefs in palatial kitchens developed a unique synthesis of South Indian ingredients, Persian influences and North Indian spice layering, all of which, from tahini to tamarind, is loaded into these hearty yet sophisticated aubergines.

• Preparation time:

  For 2 - 35 minsFor 4 - 35 mins

• Cooking time:

  For 2 - 90 minsFor 4 - 100 mins

Recipe Description:

Unlike ‘drunken’ dishes in Chinese cuisine, there’s no alcohol in pad kee mao, or ‘drunken noodles’. The name probably refers to the diner’s tipsiness, rather than the food’s. Thai people typically prefer to do their drinking at the table. In fact, ‘drinking food’ could be considered almost its own subset of Thai cuisine, with a focus on satisfying textures, nutty and intense flavours, and lots of fiery chilli to shock those dulled senses. Scorching the lime for this dish is a classic ‘drunken’ technique, ‘waking up’ the citrus fragrance and intensifying the lime’s sweetness. This is Thai cooking at its rapid, reckless and remorseless best.

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• Preparation time:

  For 2 - 30 minsFor 4 - 35 mins

• Cooking time:

  For 2 - 30 minsFor 4 - 35 mins

Recipe Description:

Deeply aromatic and subtly smoky as well as sour, the black lime might just be the king of dried fruits. It owes its sweet, earthy depth of flavour to a long process where it is salt-cured and then left to dry in the sun under carefully controlled conditions. A crucial ingredient in Persian cuisine, they’re used in everything from drinks to powdered spice rubs. There’s no better way to draw out their indescribable flavour than in a hearty khoresh (stew), like this deeply aromatic lamb khoresh with plenty of fresh herbs and citrus to balance out the savoury richness.

• Preparation time:

  For 2 -30 minsFor 4 -35 mins

• Cooking time:

  For 2 -40 minsFor 4 -45 mins

Recipe Description:

In Japan they’re known as udon, while in China they’re ‘cu mian’, or ‘thick noodles’, and are especially popular in the area around Shanghai. By either name, this flour and water-based pasta is a real marvel. Slurpable and bouncy, udon are a joy to wrestle with as they wriggle around your chopsticks, whether seasoned by a soup broth, salad dressing or stir-fry sauce. For this recipe, we were inspired by the glossy soy sauce fries served up by Shanghai street food vendors, who deftly sear the super-heated flavours onto the mischievous noodles.

• Preparation time:

  For 2 - 20 minsFor 4 - 25 mins

• Cooking time:

  For 2 - 25 minsFor 4 - 30 mins

Recipe Description:

In the ‘50s and ‘60s, Punjabis and Sikhs moved to the Midlands to work in Britain’s factories and foundries. Initially, racism and hostility barred these immigrants from the area’s pubs; but as the traditional trade struggled, several establishments found a new lease of life thanks to Indian publicans, who began serving Punjabi food alongside the typical draught ales and lagers. The ‘Desi pub’ redefined the British institution for a more inclusive era, while also introducing ingenious twists on classic pub food— like this hearty English roast, spiced up with a classic tandoori marinade, garam masala gravy, Desi roast potatoes and minted peas.

• Preparation time:

  For 2 - 40 minsFor 4 - 50 mins

• Cooking time:

  For 2 - 60 minsFor 4 - 70 mins

Recipe Description:

Cornwall has the pasty, Latin America has the empanada, and India has the samosa. But there’s nothing quite like the karipap, or ‘curry puff’, a flaky handheld pastry snack filled with fragrant potato and other curry-laced fillings. It’s hard to find a Malaysian market without a curry puff hawker, while Singapore is dotted all over with major chain stores on a mission to dominate the trade. In these cosmopolitan countries, there’s as many family recipes for curry puffs as there are families. While slightly milder ones are enjoyed at breakfast or tea, we’ve opted for more of a full-on, dinnertime puff, packed with Southeast Asian flavours.

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• Preparation time:

  For 2 - 40 minsFor 4 - 60 mins

• Cooking time:

  For 2 - 60 minsFor 4 - 80 mins

Recipe Description:

Thai cuisine’s use of various prepared curry pastes makes it easy to quickly prepare a dish with a complex flavour profile, and it also means that Thai cuisine traditionally encourages flexibility— red Thai curry paste is used for all sorts of marinades and stir-fries, in addition to the saucy coconut milk kaeng that we somewhat inaccurately call ‘curry’. Despite all that variety, you’d be hard pressed to find a Thai restaurant serve a duck kaeng that isn’t red. Perhaps it’s because the extra-savoury red chilli flavour cuts so marvellously through the sweet, juicy delicacy of duck meat. Who would dare tamper with such a classic?

• Preparation time:

  For 2 - 15 minsFor 4 - 20 mins

• Cooking time:

  For 2 - 45 minsFor 4 - 45 mins

Recipe Description:

In this dish, celebrity cook Mallika Basu pays tribute to the Punjabi origins of chicken tikka masala. You’ll find Murgh Makhanwala at every north Indian roadside restaurant. Skewered chicken tikkas (kebabs) are first grilled and then nestled into a tomato curry laden with butter and double cream, which probably explains the enduring appeal of this dish! Create that sublime, creamy texture here with a dash of soured cream, a chunk of butter and our tomato paste.

• Preparation time:

  For 2 - 30 minsFor 4 - 30 mins

• Cooking time:

  For 2 - 65 minsFor 4 - 70 mins

Recipe Description:

Deeply aromatic and subtly smoky as well as sour, the black lime might just be the king of dried fruits. It owes its sweet, earthy depth of flavour to a long process where it is salt-cured and then left to dry in the sun under carefully controlled conditions. A crucial ingredient in Persian cuisine, they’re used in everything from drinks to powdered spice rubs. There’s no better way to draw out their indescribable flavour than in a hearty khoresh (stew), like this nutty chickpea & spinach dish. 

• Preparation time:

  For 2 - 15 minsFor 4 - 20 mins

• Cooking time:

  For 2 - 25 minsFor 4 - 30 mins

Recipe Description:

Poaching is not just a cooking method for many Chinese chefs but an art form, a lifelong pursuit of perfectly cooked yet irresistibly succulent morsels infused with flavours that are tantalisingly delicate. We’ve included instructions here for a technique called ‘oil-drenching’, which is a typical way to intensify and enrich steamed or poached dishes— a quick burst of hot oil is poured over aromatic ingredients to create a rapid, perfectly fragrant sauce. It might sound intimidating, but if done carefully over a stable, heatproof vessel, it’s sure to become your new favourite dinner-party trick.

• Preparation time:

  For 2 - 15 minsFor 4 - 20 mins

• Cooking time:

  For 2 - 20 minsFor 4 - 25 mins

Recipe Description:

Once a rich, rustic treat in the days when chicken was scarce, musakhan is now a perennial Palestinian icon. You don’t have to use olive oil to cook it, but it’s certainly the traditional approach— musakhan tells the story of Palestine, its farming communities and olive trees. The olive harvest is an annual cause for celebration and feasting, with musakhan (‘sakhan’ means ‘to heat’) the preferred way to test the quality of the newly pressed olive oil. If it doesn’t change colour or become bitter when used to caramelise the onions, it passes the test. Then onions and chicken are placed on flatbread and roasted in the oven together

• Preparation time:

  For 2 - 35 minsFor 4 - 40 mins

• Cooking time:

  For 2 - 45 minsFor 4 - 50 mins

Recipe Description:

Burmese food is often described as a combination of neighbouring Indian, Chinese and Thai cuisines, but perhaps this is just a matter of familiarity— if Burmese food had taken off in Britain first, we’d all be describing lemongrass and turmeric as our favourite Burmese ingredients. Burmese cooks make it all seem effortless, foregoing complicated curry pastes or spice layering techniques in favour of a simple yet carefully balanced approach: decent handfuls of good ingredients thrown into the same pot, as with this deliciously sweet-creamy-fragrant curry and its combined tomato and coconut gravy.

• Preparation time:

  For 2 - 30 minsFor 4 - 40 mins

• Cooking time:

  For 2 - 50 minsFor 4 - 60 mins

Recipe Description:

Of all the Iranian ways to cook rice, ‘polo’ makes the grandest statement, a showstopping centerpiece that testifies to the generous and ambitious cooking displayed on the Persian sofreh (tablecloth). ‘Adas’ (lentil) polo is the dish’s oldest form, probably developed soon after the arrival of rice into Iran from South Asia. It consists simply of rice and lentils mixed together, but polo is never simple; a good polo is infused with herbs and spices and layered with a spectrum of colourful ingredients, such as these juicy, savoury Mediterranean roast vegetables in a pomegranate glaze, garnished with parsley yoghurt and toasted almonds.

• Preparation time:

  For 2 - 35 minsFor 4 - 40 mins

• Cooking time:

  For 2 - 40 minsFor 4 - 45 mins

Recipe Description:

In the hybrid culture of India’s Mughal Empire, elaborately adorned cookbooks were as much of a status symbol as any work of science or literature, helping to popularise a rich, spiced up Indian version of Persian cuisine. Korma, meat or vegetables braised in a rich yoghurt sauce, is perhaps the most prestigious recipe in this tradition— the emperor Shah Jahan feasted on it when he celebrated the construction of the Taj Mahal. Mushrooms grow more readily in Nepal than Northern India, but they’ve found new popularity as a strong, savoury ingredient, perfect for comforting, mild dishes with toasty, warming fragrances like this one.

• Preparation time:

  For 2 - 25 mins For 4 - 30 mins

• Cooking time:

  For 2 - 30 mins For 4 - 35 mins

Recipe Description:

Georgia stands on the crossroads between East and West, a small country that has managed to preserve its unique cultural identity in the midst of its Turkish, Persian and Russian neighbours. Ajapsandali, a meltingly luscious aubergine stew that celebrates the last of the summer harvest, is a typical example— all the rustic heartiness of a ratatouille, infused with a beguiling blend of Eastern spices. To add to the intrigue, we’ve topped ours with feta as a nod to the zingy, crumbly appeal of Georgia’s local cheeses. Earthy and bright, saucy yet firm, this is a perfect introduction to the bounties of Georgian cuisine.

• Preparation time:

  For 2 - 30 minsFor 4 - 40 mins

• Cooking time:

  For 2 - 50 minsFor 4 - 60 mins

Recipe Description:

Japanese cuisine is full of abbreviations— ‘don’ refers to ‘donburi’, a meal of rice served in a bowl together with a topping of prepared ingredients. Originating as a quick, convenient way to serve Japanese workers in the 19th century, donburi caught on nationwide, and now many of Japan’s most iconic dishes, from sushi to tempura, can be found as -don toppings. Gyu-don (‘beef bowl’), a Western-inspired stew, is the signature dish of some of Japan’s most popular fast food chains. Yet its purest, heartiest incarnation is simple and home cooked, with thin slices of beef and onion leaking flavour into the simmering broth.

• Preparation time:

  For 2 - 30 minsFor 4 - 40 mins

• Cooking time:

  For 2 - 40 minsFor 4 - 55 mins

Recipe Description:

A ‘dan’ is a bamboo pole that street vendors in the city of Chengdu used to hoist on their shoulders, allowing them to carry a cooking pot for noodles on one end, and their sauce on the other. On setting up their wares in a side street, they’d shout ‘dan-dan’ to attract attention to the simple meal being prepared— a base of spicy sauce laced with tingly Sichuan pepper, a heaping of noodles, then a finishing touch of savoury, crispy minced pork and garnishes. Stirred together and eaten quickly while still hot, to this day it’s the preferred meal of Chengdu’s night owls and busy students, a teasing, fiery fast food with an artisanal spirit.

• Preparation time:

  For 2 - 25 minsFor 4 - 35 mins

• Cooking time:

  For 2 - 30 minsFor 4 - 40 mins

Recipe Description:

‘Chinese cooking’ encompasses so many different regions and traditions that you might just as easily try and talk about ‘European cooking’. But there’s one dish that can be found all over China, with just a few regional tweaks here and there— Hong Shao Rou, or ‘red braised pork’, named for the distinctive hue that the dark sauce gives to the pale meat. Even the humblest home-cooked version tastes luxurious, thanks to the deep, dark & caramelised flavour of the concentrated soy sauce, while the aromatics & spices give off a comforting, fragrant aura that makes this indulgent dish feel downright healthy.

• Preparation time:

  For 2 - 25 minsFor 4 - 30 mins

• Cooking time:

  For 2 - 50 minsFor 4 - 60 mins

Recipe Description:

Historically more popular in northern China, where wheat is more common, jiaozi are an enduring cultural symbol across the country. They’re especially enjoyed around the New Year since their horn-like shape resembles a traditional gold ingot, symbolising future prosperity. Whether in their folding or filling, jiaozi can be as simple or complex, as elegant or rustic as you want them to be, a perfect pick-me-up breakfast or a hearty banquet feast, steamed to silky smoothness or pan-fried to crispy perfection. We hope these classic, Southern-style savoury jiaozi will be just the beginning of your dumpling adventure

• Preparation time:

  For 2 - 45 minsFor 4 - 60 mins

• Cooking time:

  For 2 - 50 minsFor 4 - 65 mins

Recipe Description:

Before the war, chicken was a delicacy in Korea, stewed with gentle aromatics like ginseng for special occasions. But starting in the 1960s, chicken came to symbolise post-war abundance and stability— the latter is perhaps ironic, given that it’s typically served as an anju (drinking food) and nicknamed chimaek (‘chicken with beer’). Many chicken hofs (pubs) deep-fry their wings, but for a less hectic weeknight dinner we recommend roasting! There are plenty of variations on Korean chicken, from lightly battered to rotisserie-roasted, but this sticky, spicy yangnyeom glaze is our favourite way to grapple with these iconic crispy wings.

• Preparation time:

  For 2 - 20 minsFor 4 - 20 mins

• Cooking time:

  For 2 - 25 minsFor 4 - 25 mins

Recipe Description:

Like everyone else in the region, the Konkani people of coastal south western India are ingenious users of every part and preparation of the coconut, so you might expect their curries to be simmered in coconut milk. This dish is intriguingly different: while there’s toasted coconut in the base of the sauce, the star of the show is unripe raw mango. Like many of the region’s tangy tropical fruits, it’s a souring agent, used to impart lip-smacking flavour to these juicy prawns as well as contributing their own satisfying, almost al dente texture. It’s a distinctly exciting experience, a stir-fried curry fit to burst with volatile flavours.

• Preparation time:

  For 2 - 35 minsFor 4 - 45 mins

• Cooking time:

  For 2 - 40 minsFor 4 - 50 mins

Recipe Description:

Malaysian and Singaporean cuisine is so dizzyingly diverse that a casual meal can start to feel like peeling back layers of history and colonisation, encountering Thai flavours, Chinese techniques, Indian aromas, and traces of both Western and Middle Eastern influence among the fragrancy and punch of local Malay cuisine. This succulent lamb is an example of how southern Chinese-style cooking has become richer and spicier in its Malaysian incarnation— sweeter, darker kecap manis takes soy sauce’s place, while a garnish of toasted coconut, crispy onions and smoky chilli oil offers an unforgettable first impression before the first bite

• Preparation time:

  For 2 - 25 minsFor 4 - 35 mins

• Cooking time:

  For 2 - 50 minsFor 4 - 65 mins

Recipe Description:

In the ‘50s and ‘60s, Punjabis and Sikhs moved to the Midlands to work in Britain’s factories and foundries. Initially, racism and hostility barred these immigrants from the area’s pubs; but as the traditional pub trade struggled, several establishments found a new lease of life thanks to Indian publicans, who began serving Punjabi food alongside the typical draught ales and lagers. The ‘Desi pub’ redefined the British institution for a more inclusive era, while also introducing new, ingenious twists on classic pub food. This mouthwatering tandoori fish and chips with minted masala peas is our salute to a most under-appreciated fusion cuisine

• Preparation time:

  For 2 - 25 minsFor 4 - 35 mins

• Cooking time:

  For 2 - 40 minsFor 4 - 45 mins

Recipe Description:

“In Sichuan, they’re not afraid of spice. In Guizhou, they like it. In Hunan, they’re afraid if it isn’t there.” This popular Chinese joke isn’t wrong; while all three of these regions’ cuisines contain plenty of chilli, Hunanese food often uses a range of chilli preparations in a single dish, creating layers of chilli flavour and unmitigated heat, without all of that numbing Sichuan pepper to balance it. This tender braised pork belly and aubergine is just the tip of the iceberg, uniting the crisp bite of fresh chilli with the dry, peppery heat of flakes and the smoky, savoury aroma of chilli oil. This is a recipe for true chilli lovers only!

• Preparation time:

  For 2 - 35 minsFor 4 - 45 mins

• Cooking time:

  For 2 - 40 minsFor 4 - 55 mins