Cheryl Lu-Lien Tan

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April 11, 2015 By cheryl

Café Andamiro (Edinburgh): Stellar Korean

Yuk Gae Jang

As you’ve probably gathered from some mutterings on this blog, I’ve had rather low expectations of the Asian food scene in Edinburgh.

There is one Vietnamese restaurant in town. (Well, two if you count Saigon Saigon, which really is a Chinese restaurant that decided to go with a slightly more exotic name.) And my trusty Edinburgh food gurus over at Asian Cajuns inform me that there’s pretty much only one place that serves good ramen in the city.

There is, however, a narrow street right by the University of Edinburgh that is speckled with ethnic food joints. When I mentioned to Lar over at Asian Cajuns that I’d sampled — and adored — the Korean place Kim’s Mini Meals along that stretch, she immediately asked, “Did you go to the other Korean place a few doors away? It’s good.”

Another Korean place? I had to see for myself.

The very next day, I headed straight over to the charming Café Andamiro …

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Filed Under: Asian, Comfort Food, Japanese, Korean, Scotland, Soup, Stew, Tales From the Road, Travel Tagged With: Bulgogi, Burdock root, Cafe Andamiro, California roll, Chicken teriyaki, Dessert, Edinburgh, Japanese, Korean, Korean fried chicken, Okonomiyaki, Pork katsu curry, Scotland, Spicy, Stew, Tea, Yuk gae jang, Yuzu

January 9, 2015 By cheryl

Sayur Lodeh (Malay Vegetable Stew): Firing Things Up

IMG_6337It’s been a harrowing weather week here in New York City — especially for those of us who were spawned in the tropics.

With temperatures in the teens and 20s (and windchill dipping well below zero occasionally), this Singaporean transplant has never been more miserable. But with each gash of wind battering my cheeks, the thing that’s kept me going is one thought: Something hot and soupy — preferably with a little spicy kick to it.

Soup noodles are always terrific, but stews — now that’s a meal that has some heft for these climes. What to make? A surprising choice, actually, for anyone who’s read “A Tiger in the Kitchen” or this blog and knows what a carnivore I am.

But if you’ve ever tasted sayur lodeh (pronounced sy-yer loh-day), a heady Malay vegetable curry that’s fiery with a tinge of sweetness, you’ll know why it came to mind when my intrepid Let’s Lunch crew decided to whip up some stews for our January virtual lunch date …

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Filed Under: Asian, Comfort Food, Let's Lunch, Malay, Malaysian, Singaporean, Vegetarian Tagged With: Let's Lunch, Malay, Sayur lodeh, Singaporean, Stew, Vegetable, Vegetarian

July 28, 2013 By cheryl

Soondubu Jjigae: Korean Silky Tofu with Beef & Seafood, A Quick WeeknightTake

Fiery foods are never far from my mind — but the summer months are when this yearning really consumes me.

Perhaps it’s because spicy food and sweltering weather are so intertwined in Singapore, where I grew up. Regardless, whenever the weather turns hot in New York, that’s when my hankering for mouth-numbing flavors truly rears its head.

This week, this led me to try my hand at a dish that I’ve adored for years in Korean restaurants but had never considered trying: Soondubu Jjigae …

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Filed Under: Asian, Korean, Recipes, Seafood, Soup, Stew Tagged With: Beef, Korean, Maangchi, Seafood, Soondubu jjigae, Soup, Spicy, Stew, Tofu

August 10, 2012 By cheryl

Summery Mexican Chicken Stew: A Farmers' Market Treat

The sweltering days of summer always make me crave two things: 1) Something cold. (If it’s bubbly, all the better.) 2) Something spicy.

So when the sous chef mentioned Mexican recently, the wheels started whizzing — talk about a food just perfect with an ice-cold beer on a super hot day. Tacos? Enchiladas? Spicy corn salads? Where to begin?

That’s when I came across a recipe for chicken braised in Mexican spices — a lovely preparation for chicken that leaves you with mounds of shredded meat and a deliciously spicy gravy.

As for what to do with the chicken and gravy, a trip to my Brooklyn farmers’ market seemed to be in order, especially since my Let’s Lunch crew had decided on a local market-inspired lunch dish for August …

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Filed Under: Let's Lunch, Mexican, Poultry, Recipes Tagged With: Australia, Brooklyn, Corn, Farmers Market, Garlic, Let's Lunch, Mexican, New York, Stew, Sydney, Winter Salad, Zucchini

December 12, 2011 By cheryl

Tasty n Sons (Portland, Oregon): Eggs, Anything But Easy

Perhaps you have noticed that it’s been a little quiet on this blog recently. The igvoiding (a word my sister loves) hasn’t been intentional, I assure you.

Travels for A Tiger in the Kitchen have taken me around the country and across several oceans in recent months. And when I haven’t been on a plane, at an event, prepping for an event or trip or simply recuperating from jet lag, I’ve been taking it (relatively) easy. I’ve rediscovered the pleasure of slowly reading a book — two I recently finished and can’t recommend highly enough: the elegantly written and enchanting “The Manual of Detection” by Jedediah Berry and “Three Junes” by the charming Julia Glass, which I dearly loved and also won the National Book Award for fiction in 2002.

As you might imagine, I have also been eating — very well, in fact. And one of the highlights occurred in Portland, Ore., when a break in the Wordstock Festival gave me a chance to visit a brunch spot friends had been raving about for months: Tasty n Sons.

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Filed Under: Breakfast, Brunch, Oregon, Restaurants Tagged With: Breakfast, Brunch, Burmese, Chicken hash, Cornmeal, Creme Anglaise, Donuts, Eggs, Hash, Jedediah Berry, Julia Glass, Moroccan, National Book Award, Oregon, Pancakes, Portland, Restaurant, Stew, Tasty n Sons, The Manual of Detection, Three Junes

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