This might be my favorite cookbook released this year, and this isn’t hyperbole. “Egg Rolls and Sweet Tea” by Natalie Keng is an “Asian inspired, Southern style” cookbook that I related to on a very personal level. She’s the daughter of Cantonese-Chinese immigrants who moved to Georgia, U.S.A. Her palate was formed by both her heritage and her environment. (Swap Georgia with Boston, Massachusetts, and that’s me.) For Keng, “fusion food” isn’t a trend from the 1990s, it’s simply a way of life because “authenticity” isn’t black and white.
The chapters in this book are:
- Wrap and Roll
- Wild About Rice
- Veggie Mania and Wok the Garden
- Lil’ Plates, Appetizers, and Snacks
- Noodles, Salads, and Slaw
- Buddha Bubba, Meat and Bones
- Gone Fishin’
- Gettin’ Saucy
- Semisweets
Some of the recipes that I want to try are:
- Oven-Baked Country Bacon and Collard Egg Rolls
- Ginger-Spiced Sweet Plantains
- Five-Spice Mashed Rutabaga
- Sweet Chili Peach Napa Slaw
- Savory Miso-Butter Garlic Noodles
- Mom’s Chinese Spaghetti
- Game-Day Five-Spice Sausage Meatballs with Teriyaki Sauce
- Joy Luck BBQ Pulled Pork Bao Buns
- Late-Night Fish Sticks Congee
- Gotcha Matcha Ice Cream Pie
- Zesty Ginger-Peach Cobbler
- Black Sesame Cupcakes with Matcha Frosting
- Jasmine and Honey Sweet Tea
- Golden Milk and Sorghum Hot Toddy
My inaugural recipe was for the cinnamon-molasses oolong milk tea, because it sounded delicious but more importantly because I had all the ingredients: cinnamon sticks, oolong tea, milk, molasses, and vanilla. I was impressed because these were not flavors that I would have picked on my own to pair. It was sweet, but not much more so than if I were to go to a bubble tea shop and order a drink with “less sugar.” (If you’re going to use loose tea, I think you’ll need at least 1.5 tsp worth. I used 1 tsp for the recipe and I think the flavor should have been stronger. I could still taste it, but it took a backseat to the other flavors.)
The second recipe I made was the first recipe of the book: smoked salmon summer rolls. (Rice paper wrappers are my favorite.) It’s reminiscent of a tuna salad and of a lox bagel, but served as a favorite hot weather dish from Asia. It’s made with smoked salmon, minced basil, minced mint, chopped scallions, capers, mayo, wasabi powder, milk, cucumber, rice vermicelli noodles, and rice paper wrappers. This was both fun and delicious.
Normally, I test 2 recipes from a book (sometimes 3), with very little alterations. I think it’s only fair to make recipes as written for reviews. But I just couldn’t resist making a third recipe with a major method change. I really wanted to make “Mom’s unfried red rice with berries” which includes goji berries. I may or may not have too much goji berries in my pantry, courtesy of my mother. My family mostly uses it for soups, so I liked the idea of putting it into a rice dish. This recipe has you cook red rice with some bouillon, water, raisins, dried goji berries, dried cranberries, nuts or seeds, garlic powder, white pepper, five-spice powder, and salt on the stovetop for almost an hour, before mixing in some butter. I’m not an Asian snob who will only make rice in a rice cooker (in fact, I don’t use a rice cooker at home) but I really didn’t want to simmer rice on a muggy June day. So, I broke out my electric pressure cooker. Stovetop red rice instructions seem to generally be 1 part rice to 2 parts water, but pressure cookers don’t that much water because the water is not evaporating off. For the 1 1/2 cups of rice in this recipe, I tried 2 1/2 cups water. It was a touch too much water. So, dear reader, if you get your hands on a copy of this book and want to make the red rice in a pressure cooker as well, try either 2 1/4 cups or 2 1/3 cups water. If your dried fruits are dried out, try 2 1/3 cups. If not, try 2 1/4 cups. But even so, the flavors of the final dish were fantastic. I can’t wait to try this out on my family during our next potluck.
If you appreciate fusion food for what it really is, you will enjoy this book. If you have an Asian American background, I think you will enjoy this book. If you’re looking for creative takes on Southern cooking, try out this book. I’m not saying that I’m going to make all of Keng’s recipes. After all, I have too many recipes that I want to make and never enough time, or fridge/pantry space. And like any cookbook (or restaurant menu for that matter), not everything appeals to me. But so much of this book sounds fun and somehow familiar, that I look forward to sharing with friends and family.
Disclaimer – I kindly received a copy of this book from Gibbs Smith for this review. I’m not getting paid for this post. The views and opinions expressed are purely my own. This book is available for purchase now through your favorite retailer.
Reference Links:
Awesomesauce Eats 