recipes: Courgette Quiche

Ingredients: 1 courgette, grated cheddar 100gr, Parmesan 100gr, 2 eggs, 1 small onion, 1 chili pepper, soy cream 10cl, pepper, salt, paprika powder, cooked ham 2 slices, butter, pastry (puff pastry or shortcrust)
Vegetarians: loose the ham use soy meat instead, you need some vegetable stock aswell.

Grate the courgette, cut the onion and the chili pepper into very small bits. Melt the butter in a frying pan. Add the onion and chili, fry for a minute and add the grated courgette. Fry until soft and let it cool down.

I use ready made pastry, but you can make your own. Take a baking tray and place the rolled out pastry in the tray. Put the ham slice in and cover with some grated cheddar. Add the cooled down courgette.
Mix soy cream, eggs, paprika powder, pepper and salt. Mix well, then poor over the courgette.
Cover it with pastry. Make some holes in the top so the steam can get out.
Bake for 30 minutes in a preheated oven at 220°c. Get it out and cover with very thin slices of Parmesan cheese. Bake for another 5 minutes. Serve hot!

For a vegetarian version you don't use the Ham, or replace it with soy meat. Cook 75 gr of soy meat in some vegetable stock. Melt some butter in a non stick frying pan and fry until golden brown add spices (Pepper, paprika powder). Let it cool down before putting it on the bottom of the pastry.

Go about it ass above cover with grated cheddar....

Feed me: Sibu, early evening.

Sibu, Malaysia. Start of the night market. Baking sweet cakes, to be served with even sweeter fillings.

recipes: tofu & mushroom noodles.

Ingredients: Cornstarch 50 gr, plain flour 25 gr, Rice wine 2 tbsp, Water 10 cl, Paprika powder, Curry powder, Pepper, Salt, Mushrooms 250 gr, Noodles 200 gr, Silken tofu 250 gr, 1 lemon, sugar 1 tbsp, Fish sauce 2 tbsp, mushroom sauce 1 tbsp, Sambal 1 tbsp, oil.

Mix the cornstarch, flower, rice wine and water so you end up with a smooth pancake like mixture . Add some pepper, salt, curry powder and paprika powder.
Cut the silken tofu gently into small cubes, add to the mixture and fry in plenty off sunflower oil until golden brown.
Bring plenty of water to the boil and add the noodles.
Heat a wok, add 2 tbsp of oil, add the sambal fry for 1 minute and add the mushrooms. After a few minutes add juice of half a lemon, and the zest of the lemon. Add sugar, a little fish sauce and mushroom sauce.
Drain the noodles and mix with the mushrooms. Serve with the fried tofu on top.

Feed me: at a funeral.

Preparing the last meal for the funeral ceremony of James Janis. Kenjah tribe longhouse, up the Rajang river (2 hours past Belaga), Sarawak, Borneo.

Feed me: Hama, juice shop.

Spend a few days in Hama, Syria. Met this man in his Juice shop and we had late night conversations for a few days. Sitting outside his shop he told me his story, back in 2000 I think. Wonder what became of him, Hama and ....

recipes; Smoked salmon and rocket salad

Ingredients: tagliatelle 200gr, smoked salmon 300gr, cherry tomatoes 200 gr, pepper & salt, garlic 3 to 4 cloves, 1 red onion, 5 black olives, juice and zest of 1 lime, honey 1 tsp , olive oil 6 tbsp, 2 banana peppers, rocket salad 40 gr, grated Parmesan cheese.

Boil the tagliatelle in plenty of salted water. Add olive oil in a deep frying pan and heat. Add finely chopped onion and peppers, fry for 3 to 4 minutes. Puree the black olives and cut the garlic very fine.
Add the olives, garlic and cherry tomatoes. Prick the tomatoes with a knife so they don't explode. Add pepper and salt. Fry for some minutes and add lime juice and zest. Add the drained tagliatelle and mix. Take from the fire and add the rocket salad. Work quickly, to keep the salad fresh and crisp. Dress on a plate with the salmon and dust with Parmesan cheese.

Feed me: Tang city food court.

Tang city food court from sarcophagus on Vimeo.
Tang city food court in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

Feed me: best shake in Bangkok?

Probably not the best in Bangkok, but certainly the best fruit shakes in the Banglamphu ( khao San) area. Located on Thanon Chakrabongse, Bangkok.

Feed me: Chiang Mai noodle soup.

Chiang Mai Noodle soup near Tha Phea Gate. Excellent tofu soup with little corn crackers.

recipes: shrimp & pineapple noodles

Ingredients:
16 Shrimps, 1 long sweet pepper, 1 red onion, 3 cm of fresh ginger, 2 stalks of lemongrass, 4 slices of pineapple, 2 spring onions, 2 red chili peppers, 4 tbsp cornstarch, 1 tbsp light soy sauce, 1 tbsp dark soy sauce, 1 tbsp fish sauce, 10 cl pineapple juice, 1 tsp palm sugar, sunflower oil.

Clean the shrimp and dust with cornstarch. Fry in oil and put aside. Slice the ginger in very tin 3 cm long strips and fry until crisp and golden brown. Put aside. Slice the red chili peppers, sweet pepper, onion and pineapple.
Boil water and add the noodles, cook until ready. Meanwhile heat the wok add 2 tbsp of oil and add the chili peppers. Fry for a minute and add onion sweet pepper and pineapple. Now add the smashed lemongrass, Smashed it will release more flavour. After a few minutes add pineapple juice, light and dark soy sauce, fish sauce and the sugar.If your pineapple juice is sweet add a little lime juice as well.
drain the noodles and dress the plate and add the sliced spring onion.

Feed me: Moon cakes.

Fantastic moon cakes made by 'de Zeven', running a guesthouse and a bakery in Nan, Thailand.  Comes in endless varieties

Feed me: Kapit night market.

 

Around closing time, it's a lovely small market not a lot of choice though. It is easy enough to find as Kapit (Sarawak, Malaysia) is contained within just a few streets.

recipes: chicken sweet and sour

anIngredients: sweet pepper half a red one and half a yellow one, 1 small courgette, cornstarch, chicken breast 200 gr, 10 mushrooms, 2 cm fresh ginger, 2 chili peppers, garlic 4 cloves, 2 tsp palm sugar, tomato ketchup 2 tbsp, dark soy sauce 1 tbsp, fish sauce 1 tbsp, vinegar 1 tbsp, rice 100 gr, chives, sunflower oil.

Boil or steam the rice, no salt. Cut the vegetables in to small strips, the chicken as well. Cover the chicken with cornstarch and deep fry in oil.  Put aside.
Take 2 cloves of garlic and slice into thin rings. Slice the ginger in to very fine strips. Deep fry the ginger and garlic until crisp. Put aside.
Heat a wok add oil and sliced chili. Fry for a minute and add vegetables. Add 2 smashed cloves of garlic, vinegar, soy sauce, fish sauce, palm sugar and ketchup. Cook for a few minutes add the chicken.
Mix the boiled or steamed rice with the deep fried garlic, ginger and the chives.
Serves two.

Feed me: Good vibes at the market

Guess he loves his job. The fish section at Nan market.

Feed me: Chiang Mai strawberries!

Strawberries at the Chiang Mai traditional dance festival. The festival takes place at Tha Phae gate around November.

recipes: banana pancakes / pineapple pancakes

Ingredients: plain flour 200gr, 3 eggs, baking powder 6 gr, vanilla sugar 10 gr, white sugar 25 gr, milk 20cl, pinch of salt, juice of 1 lime, zest of 1 lime, 1 big bananas and 3 thin slices of pine apple,
butter or oil. 

 

Mix the flour and baking powder in a bowl. add the other ingredients except the lime juice and zest and mix very well. Now add juice and zest and mix.
Slice the banana, about 5 mm thick. The same for the pineapple. Put butter in a non stick pan and heat. Add slices of banana or pineapple, you can do both. Bake for a few minutes and cover with the mixture. Bake until the top is set and flip, bake until ready and serve with some sugar on top.
It is enough for 3 to 4 pancakes.
One pancake is enough for a decent breakfast

Feed me: Preparing dinner in Nan

Our friend Lak preparing dinner. Nan, Thailand.

Feed me: morning market in Myanmar

The morning market in Nyaungshwe, Myanmar. If you are in the Inle lake area, by all means have the local tomato salad it is heaven. Local tomatoes, peanuts, shallot and dressing served with delicious rice crackers.

recipes: tom yum shrimp

Noodle soup with shrimp my way, spicy and a bit sour the way I like it.

Ingredients: sunflower oil 2tbsp., fresh Ginger 2cm, Sambal oelek 1tbsp., sweet pepper 1/2, garlic 2 cloves, springonion 2, Stock from a cube (tom yum flavour), noodles 1 pac (tom yum flavour), shrimp 12, fish sauce 2 tbsp., light soy sauce 2tbsp., lime 1, palm sugar, lime leaves 5, pak soy

Heat the oil and add sambal, fry for 1 min. Ad the roughly shopped pepper and sliced ginger fry for a few more minutes. Then add the stock. Bring to the boil with the spices from your noodles. Next the garlic (just bash it), noodle, shrimp, sugar and lime juice. Taste it and add fish sauce and soy sauce. If you want you can use more sugar or lime. Stop the heat and finish of with the spring onion and the shredded lime leaves. Serve hot with some paksoi or cabbage. Serves two.
It is up to you how sour and spicy you like it.

Feed me: 3O minutes

About a 40 min. walk from Muang Ngoi Neua we came across these signs, Nice !!! We love Laos.

Feed me: Lao restaurant bill

40.000 Kip (LAK, Lao currency) is about 4 Euro.

recipes: Stuffed long sweet peppers

Ingredients: minced meat 250 gr (beef or lamb), 5 small red onions, butter 2 tbsp, 2 long sweet peppers, Cumin 1 tesp, tomato puree 2 tbsp, parsley 2 tbsp, 2 dried chili peppers, cayenne pepper 1/2 tsp, pepper & salt, 3 tomatoes, plain flour 150 gr, lukewarm water, olive oil 2 tbsp, juice of half a lemon.

Turkish salad: slice 4 onions in very thin rings and cover with salt. Leave for 30 minutes and rinse with water. Slice the tomatoes, dry the onion rings with some kitchen paper. Put the tomatoes and onions in a bowl add the lemon juice, olive oil and some pepper & salt. Mix and put in the fridge.

Stuffed peppers: prick the peppers with a fork and blanch them for 2 or 3 minutes, drain. Take a bowl and add meat, tomato puree, 1 finely chopped onion, finely chopped parsley, chilies, cayenne pepper, cumin, 1 tbsp butter and some pepper & salt. Mix very well. Cut the top of the pepper and take out the seeds carefully. Fill the peppers with the meat mixture. Pre heat the oven on 200 °c. Take an oven plate and butter it. Lay the peppers on the plate and cover them with olive oil. Put into the oven for about 30 minutes. Turn on the other side after 15 minutes. Serve hot, you can put the peppers on a BBQ if you like.

Paratha: sift the plain flour add some salt and luke warm water and make a firm dough. Leaf for 15 minutes. Divide the dough into 4 balls. Flatten the balls and roll with a rolling pin until 2 mm thick. brush with melted butter and fold in halve, butter again and fold. roll very flat again and bake in a dry non stick frying pan for 2 minutes each side. Until they start blistering and turning brown.

Feed me: Selling sausages

Selling sausages and rice crackers at the Chinese market in Chiang Mai, Thailand.

Feed me: dried fish

Dried fish at the Nyaungshwe market near Inle Lake, Myanmar.

recipes: Chicken salad

Ingredients: Shallot 2, medium sized red onion 2, ripe tomatoes (Cœur de Bœuf) 4, 3 red chili pepper, 1/2 cup of peanuts, 1/2 cup cashew nuts, 1/5 part iceberg salad, sunflower oil 8 tbsp, 1 lime, black pepper, rock salt, fish sauce 2 tbsp, a little palm sugar about a tsp, rice crackers (Vietnamese or plain), chicken breast 300 gr, sambal oelek 1 tbsp, paprika powder 1/2 tbsp.

Slice the chicken in to small strips. Take 4 tbsp of oil and mix with sambal, paprika powder, pepper and salt. Mix together with the chicken and leave for about an hour to marinade.
Slice the red onion in fine rings and fry until golden brown in some oil. Dry roast the nuts.
Slice the shallots and chilli peppers in to fine rings and put in a bowl. Add the sliced tomatoes, dry roasted nuts and the finely sliced iceberg salad. Mix 3 tbsp lime juice with 2 tbsp fish sauce, 2tbsp oil and sugar.
Add black pepper, rock salt and the lime mixture to the salad and mix gently with your hands.
Fry the chicken in a wok or frying pan. When done dress the plates and sprinkle with some rice crackers (small parts).

Feed me: Air Asia

Flying from Paris to Kuala Lumpur. This is however no longer possible!

Feed me: The Usual suspects

Nan night market with the usual suspects, sausage and fish balls on a stick!

recipes: Spicy meatballs

Ingredients: minced meat (beef) 400 gr, 1 egg, breadcrumbs 70 gr, sambal oelek 2 tbsp, dark soy sauce 2 tbsp, fish sauce 2 tbsp, 2 shallots, pepper & salt, parsley. butter

 

Chop the shallots very fine and fry them in a little butter until soft. Leave them to cool down.

Chop the parsley fine, you will need about 4 tbsp. Add all the ingredients (except the butter) in a bowl and mix well. Easy on the salt because the fish sauce is already salty.  Roll small meatballs and fry in butter. Serve as a snack with dip sauce (sweet chili sauce, peanut sauce, ...) or use in a dish.

Feed me: rice treshing

 Rice treshing done by children on Don Det, Laos.

Feed me: Mukdahan

Mukdahan night market, love to eat at these places. Just order, eat, drink and meet people.

recipes: Tagliatelle, herbs & salmon

Ingredients: tagliatelle 200 gr, shallot 2, sambal oelek 1 tsp, olive oil 2 tbsp, lime 1, black pepper crushed 2 tsp, salt, rock salt 2 tsp, smoked salmon 250 gr, horseradish paste 1 tbsp, parsley, chives, rocket salad, about 20 to 25 cherry tomatoes

 

Cook the tagliatelle in water and some of salt.
Take a non stick wok or pan and heat the olive oil. Add Sambal and finely chopped shallots, fry gently for a few minutes. Cut the cherry tomatoes in half and add with some salt and black pepper to the shallots. Cook for a few more minutes and add zest from the lime. Now add the drained tagliatelle to the frying pan.
Shred the herbs (parsley, chives and rocket salad) roughly. Take the wok of the fire add the herbs and gently mix.
Dress up a plate with the salmon, a little horseradish and some lime. Add tagliatelle and drizzle with some lime juice. Sprinkle a little rock salt over the plate.
Serves two.

Feed me: Sibu market

 Fish at Sibu central market, Malaysia.

Feed me: new years eve

Bangkok, Thailand 2008. Near thanon Phra Athit.

recipes: Lemon chicken

Ingredients: coconut milk 0,4 L., chicken breast 400 gr, 1 lemon, 1 lime,
             2 red chili peppers, lemongrass 2 stalks, 3 lime leaves,
             spring onion 1, light soy sauce 1 tbsp, turmeric 2 tsp,
             white sugar 1 tbsp, pineapple 300 gr, butter 2 tbsp.,
             fish sauce 1 or 2 tbsp., chili peppers 2

Mix coconut milk, juice of half a lemon, juice of half a lime, sugar, turmeric, sliced chili pepper and soy sauce in a cooking pot and bring slowly to the boil. Add lemongrass. Slice the chicken in to medium sized parts and add to the mixture. Let it simmer. Add fishsauce to taste.
Meanwhile cut up the Pineapple (you can use canned), heat the butter in a frying pan. Fry the pineapple until golden brown.
Add the zest of the lemon and lime to coconut mixture. Taste and add more lime or lemon juice if necessary. I add 1 tbsp fish sauce as well. When the chicken is ready, serve it and dress with the pineapple, spring onion and sliced chili peppers.
I serve this one with white rice.

Feed me: Indian ticket

Udaipur, India 2001. Ticket from Anna restaurant, pancakes on the rooftop over looking a rather nice temple.

Feed me: frying up a snack

 

Night market in Pyin U Lwin, Myanmar. **?**

recipes: pork tenderloin with yogurt

Ingredients: 800 gr pork tenderloin, 100 gr mature cheese, 1 L. firm yogurt, pepper, salt, 1 tbsp.paprika powder, 50 gr plain flour, parsley, 2 medium sized onions, 50 gr butter, some toothpicks.

Cut the pork in approximately 8 cm long pieces, and slice 'em halfway through (lengthwise). Cut up the cheese so you have piece of 1x1x8 cm. put the cheese inside the pork, close the meat and use 2 toothpicks for each piece to keep them closed.

Mix the flour and paprika powder. Put some pepper & salt on the meat and roll it in the flour mix until it is covered. Melt the butter in a cooking pot and fry the pork for a few minutes until it is sealed.
Meanwhile cut the onion into small pieces and once the meat is sealed and a little colored, add the onions. Turn down the fire close the cooking pot, let it simmer until the onions are soft and glazy. Add the yogurt, pepper and salt and cook softly for about 45 to 60 minutes. Stir once in a while.
When the yogurt doesn't thicken enough you might want to use some extra flour, dissolve the flour in a bit of warm water before adding. Cook for a few minutes while stirring Add the parsley and serve.
We serve it with mashed potatoes.

Feed me: small roadside restaurant

 Small roadside restaurant near Champasak, Laos 2002 **?**

Feed me: chicken feet soup

 

The broth is very nice, the feet to chewy for my taste. Eat it hot because it becomes gelatinous when it cools down. Nan, Thailand, Xmas 2011.

recipes:aubergine with tomato (vegetarian & non vegetarian)

You can use courgette or sweet pepper instead of aubergine.

ingredients: Soy meat 75 gr, tomato 4 big ones, 2 small onions, olive oil, pepper, salt, 2 aubergines, 2 red chili peppers, parsley, stock, 1 cup of water, paprika powder, parsley

Boil the soy meat in some stock until soft (5 min.) and drain. Meanwhile fry the chopped chili peppers and onion until soft (in olive oil). Add the drained soy meat, a bit of pepper, salt and paprika powder fry for another 10 minutes. Now put in the peeled and diced tomato, a cup of water pepper and salt and let it simmer until the juice has evaporated. Take from the fire and add shopped parsley.

While frying, put the aubergines in the oven at 180°c until soft, drizzle with olive oil. Take a tajine and wipe it with some oil, put in the aubergines and slice then lengthwise. Fill the aubergine with the tomato sauce and poor the rest of the sauce around it. Close the tajine and let it simmer very slowly for another 30 minutes. Serve with bread or rice. Or as we do with Greek pasta.

Substitute the soy meat with minced beef or lamb if you like your meat. Or with beef sliced into small strips, if you try this, first fry the beef in hot butter for one minute on each side, take it out of the frying pan and let it rest until the tomato sauce is finished and everything goes into the tajine.

Cut the aubergines in four parts before putting them in the oven, if you want it to look like the picture.

You don't need a tajine, but you need to simmer it slowly in a closed pot or cooking pan.

Feed me: foodsellers

Food sellers on a bus at Pakse bus station, Laos 2004.

Feed me: eat, drink & pay!

Have a go at Tang City Food Court in the Chinese district of Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

It's tucked away behind the outside tables of the restaurants on Jalan Hang Lekir. Walk around before you order, we went back a few times and still there was more on our to eat list. Stay a bit and watch the hectic life of eaters and servers while having a drink and some homemade ice cream. **?**

recipes: Tom Kha with shrimp (koeng)

Ingredients; Lemongrass 1stalk, 3cm fresh ginger, 3 red chili peppers, 4 Kaffir leaves (lime), 400cc stock (1/2 cube fish stock + 1/2 cube tom yum stock), 100gr mushrooms. 1 lemon, fish sauce 3 tbsp, 150 cc coconut milk, 12 big shrimp, 200 gr white fish fillet, 2 springonions, 6 cherry tomatoes, sugar 1 tbsp.

Take a wok or cooking pot and add the stock, chopped ginger, sliced chili peppers, fish sauce and bashed lemongrass bring to a boil. Cook for about 5 to 10 minutes. Add the mushrooms, coconut milk, sugar, lemon juice and lemon zest let it simmer for a few minutes. Cut the white fish in four even pieces. Up to you if you peel the shrimp or not. Let the fish and shrimp simmer in the soup until ready. Take the soup of the fire and add shredded kaffir leaves and sliced spring onion. Serve with rice.

Feed me: iced coffee in Malaysia

Iced coffee at the Kuala Lumpur Modern arts museum **?**

Feed me, vernissage great expectations

Vernissage "Great expectations" Olivier Martens en Dicky Vlayen at " de Bottelarij". Ulbeek, Belgium 2011. **?**

Feed me, whole fish in a salt crust

Silaphet waterfall Nan province, Thailand **?**

recipes: Panang chicken and mushroom

Ingredients; sunflower oil 2 tbsp, coconut milk 0,5 L, garlic 6 small cloves, chicken (breast) 200 gr, fresh ginger 3 cm, panang curry paste 80 gr, lime leaves 5,  onion medium sized 1, mushrooms 300 gr, lemongrass 2 stalks, fish sauce 2 tbsp, lime 1, red chili pepper 2, palm sugar 25 gr

Fry the roughly chopped onion and sliced chili for a few minutes in the oil. Add the panang paste and fry for one more minute before adding the coconut milk. Let it simmer for about 5 minutes (until oil comes on top) and add sliced ginger, garlic (just bash it) , the lemongrass (cut in 3 and bash it) and sugar. Cut the mushrooms in half and add together with the diced chicken. Cook softly until ready and finish of with fish sauce and lime juice. taste and take of the fire before adding the shredded lime leaves. Serve with rice. You use more or less curry paste and chili peppers, this is medium spicy.

For a vegetarian meal you can add mock meat instead of chicken.

Feed me, strange note

   Strange restaurant note, 40 + 40 + 45 + 35 + 30 + 25 = 215

   215 + 15 (?) = 140 ???

Feed me, Khon Kaen

                         Khon Kaen, Thailand. *??*