Ce'nedra

Hmm I'm afraid I can't help you there as our family always serves fu ru mashed up in some form or another. I've seen it served in a duck hot pot (along with blood jelly and other bits) the other day at my aunt's. Really interesting -she told me it could also be served with goat. Anyone heard of this style of hot pot?

I know nothing about cream so what do you consider a decent brand at a reasonable price? Oh and thanks

Thanks for all the info guys. I went to buy ordinary cream and milk for the half & half. Will be on the look out for double cream next. Should Woolworths have it, I wonder? Or do I need to visit some specialty store?

Or more specifically Sydney. I was wondering if 'half and half' cream is referred to by another name here? I can't seem to find it (hoping to make a Thai dessert) in the milk and cream sections. Also, is double cream commonly available in conventional supermarkets such as Woolworths/Coles?

Ok so I finally asked my sister (who currently lives in the US) to buy Savoring Mexico and Savoring America for me yay! It's very unfortunate though that even on amazon, the books are still rather expensive for someone who lives in Australia like me...taking into account the shipping costs and also converting the dollar. It seems I can only receive my books next time I visit my sister...which is next year! Now, I'm considering which other books (from either Savoring or The Beautiful series) to get...I hear Savoring India is exceptional!

Np judiu I've been watching the show over here and I've been in awe. It's brilliant not only on a food lover's viewpoint but is also quite raw and powerful in its approach to shedding light on immigrants' struggling lifestyle. While in NY, Jamie got to taste dan dan mian (dan dan noodles) and that'll be in his book too. Will be interesting to see.

menuinprogress, those look amazing and most certainly melt-in-the-mouth. Did you use any particular book as reference?

I think I'm sold! But I'm contemplating whether to buy it now or wait around seeing as it's currently at that 'new book' price and all. Here are quite a few sample recipes from the book for anyone interested http://www.jamieoliver.com/jamies-america/

P.S. I mentioned it in another thread already but I'll say it again. Kinokuniya (in Sydney) currently has 20% off ALL cookbooks (Chinese and Japanese cookbooks included) until 31st Oct!!!

Matt Moran (of ARIA fame) also has a new cookbook out called 'When I Get Home'. Luke Nguyen (Red Lantern) recently released 'Songs of Sapa' (he also has a tv show currently showing on SBS).

How do guys make the sesame sauce for hot pot? Do you use the same recipe as the one discussed here? The reason I ask is because I have a friend who uses the exact same ingredients as she would with cold noodles (sometimes she alternates and uses the sauce from dan dan mian). As for me, my hot pot sesame sauce is rather basic hmmm...

Some guy's review of it (quite a positive one)

I was at Kinokuniya just today and there's currently a 20% sale on ALL cookbooks until the end of month (make the most of it Sydneysiders). The first thing that captured my attention upon entering was Jamie Oliver's new (?) cookbook on...American cuisine! That really took me by surprise (a pleasant one) since he always seems to focus on English and Italian cuisine. Or is at least heavily inspired by those cuisines (particularly the latter). I've been on the look out for a good cookbook on American cuisine for awhile now so the obvious question here is: has anyone bought/looked through this book and would you recommend it? I suppose the most common sense thing to do is buy a book from a 'real' American, although while I'm all for authenticity (and am certainly seeking it), I find many of those books tend to use ingredients that are incredibly difficult to purchase here in Oz. What I love about many of Jamie's recipes is that he shows respect for a cuisine's traditions but still manages to make it adaptable for the everyday (or clueless) cook. I've had a good flick through and the recipes looks scrumptious...I just need a second opinion! P.S. It'd be interesting to see Jamie's take on Chinese/other Asian cooking one day. Asian cuisine is one area he seems to be lack focus on.

Discovered this Mexican food warehouse by way of SMH (you can buy the ingredients online as well): http://www.montereyfoods.com.au/

http://chow.ireallylikefood.com/ A really fantastic and professionally-made food blog. Just check it out; you'll see what I mean. It branched off from this blog http://www.xanga.com/thousandthdish

Apparently many Cambodian dishes employ fermented fish? I've had a Vietnamese noodle soup that's fermented fish-based and apparently it's Cambodian in origin (therefore, it's Cambodian and not Vietamese I guess?). Pungent -not the greatest pleasure to smell it -but the dish has a real depth in flavour and is absolutely addictive once you develop a taste for it!

Mmm this is making me ferociously hungry for some Southern food! I'll try out the gumbo recipe from my Culinaria America cookbook!

I can't say for certain as I'm no expert on Northern Vietnamese cuisine, but I don't think it's caramel sauce in the bun cha sauce. Caramel sauce would've gave it a thicker consistency and as discussed, the sauce we're talking about is more liquid/soupy. I'm guessing that it's the nuoc cham (minus the chillis) with added marinade and meat fats/oils from the grilled pork. *thinking* Yep, I'm going to go with the meat oils/fats. Reminds me of cha ca thang long, which is drenched in flavoured oils as well.

I'm very surprised (pleasantly) by the Australian dining scene of late. Recently, I had authentic Xinjiang food...and I'm talking dapanji 大盘鸡 served with handmade noodles, lamb kebabs with all the lovely notes of cumin, chilli flakes and so on... There's been a real interest in regional Chinese food; any lesser known cuisines. People are increasingly curious and I think it's such a beautiful thing (and certainly good for my tummy!). Foods that we used to shrug off as "only in Asia/China" are finally making their way in the Aussie food scene. I love it! P.S. I'll post my pictures of the Xinjiang food some time later (which can be any time really haha).

What are these exactly? Looks like popiah/fresh spring rolls but with different fillings...also, the skin seems to be slightly thicker and therefore probably a different texture. Anyone know what the exact name for it? Apparently this is in Zhejiang. Perhaps it's unique to the area... http://www.flickr.com/photos/ooluong/44134...57600039340037/ http://www.flickr.com/photos/ooluong/44134...57600039340037/ http://www.flickr.com/photos/ooluong/44134...57600039340037/ http://www.flickr.com/photos/ooluong/44134...57600039340037/ http://www.flickr.com/photos/ooluong/44134...57600039340037/

Has anyone ever had this? I was flipping through my 'Chinese the Beautiful cookbook' and the recipe caught my attention. I grew up drinking chrysanthemum tea but never had it in a savoury dish before. How common is Chrysanthemum firepot? I've never seen it here (restaurants or home). Also, should the broth be strongly flavoured or very subtle?

THANK YOU nolafoodie! Will save that recipe now. How long do the barberries need to be soaked for (I've never used nor seen it before)? Are these only available in Middle Eastern food shops?

Wow somebody actually won the Celebrity Chef cookoff today!

I wouldn't be surprised. It's very hard to impress the Chinese if you're a foreigner trying to cook their food haha. I do know that Perry's restaurant is more focused on his interpretation of regional Chinese rather than being particularly authentic. Didn't know the dishes were in Balance and Harmony -thanks for the heads up! I thought B & H was mainly Thai for some reason. It's still quite expensive though...but my friend did say she saw it for a really decent price at either Target or Kmart. Not sure if it's just a limited special...I may be sneaky and wait around till she buys it and then snatch it off her. Does anybody recommend Peter Evan (of Hugo's) cookbooks?

Cambodian, Laotian -and let's throw in Korean and Filipino- cuisines are often neglected in 'Asian' cookbooks. It's a real pity actually; particularly with Korean since I have particular interest in the cuisine and I find it to be a real hidden treasure (in the way that it's not well appreciated) in the West.