According to the Chinese Zodiac calendar, 2022, is the year of the Tiger, starting from February 1st, 2022, and ending on January 21st, 2023.The Tiger is known as the king of all beasts in Asia and is a symbol of strength and braveness. So, what’s more suiting than to start the year with some Crying Tiger Steak & Dipping sauce.

These are not traditional egg rolls but a fun way to make a veg friendly fried appetizer. I got the idea from having left over kimchi/tofu dumpling batter which I later added some extra fillings typical with vegetarian egg rolls like cabbage to make these egg rolls.

Yukari and Yukari Rice: Yukari shiso salt is a Japnanese seasoning salt made simply from powdered dried purple shiso leaves and sea salt. The result is a tangy and colorful seasoning for onigiri, yukari rice, and many other Japanese dishes. To make Yukari rice, just sprinkle it over cooked rice and mix. I go this recipe from Yoko a Japanese chef and owner of a new upcoming ramen spot in Kingston.

We had lots of fried fish growing up and this was always one of my favorites. I just love how crispy the skin gets!

Click to learn more and to watch Keith and I prepare this Vietnamese favorite!

Do you like Chinese style sweet and sour chicken? Well this recipe is sure to please and replaces the chicken with a plant based substitute, golden oyster mushrooms!

These mushrooms are dredged in a flour/egg batter and then deep fried to perfection for that extra crispy crunch. The wet batter creates a nice doughy crust that makes it more fluffy while the chewiness of the oyster mushrooms gives you that mock chicken texture!

Buttered beef summer rolls - aka “Cuon thit bo chien beure”.So, this is one of my little sister’s (@altnyc ) favorites. She loves Vietnamese summer rolls but these are harder to find in a menu anywhere (more commonly you will see shrimp or pork & shrimp summer rolls).This dish is super fun to make. Thin cuts of beef is flash seared in front of you with butter (on a small hot plate in the center of a table) and everyone at the table gets to assemble their own rolls and eat them freshly made.

Vietnamese chili lemongrass sate sauce (tương ớt sa tế in Vietnamese) is that yummy spicy chili oil that you typically see in Vietnamese restaurants. It packs in a little heat and spice and helps add bold flavor from its use of garlic, peppers and fragrant lemongrass.

Nuoc Mam Cham, simply translated equates to fermented fish dipping sauce. This traditional fish sauce is a bright/citrusy/and semi-sweet and fishy dipping sauce is widely used in many Vietnamese dishes. Click through to see my Dad’s recipe!

Nuoc Mam Cham, simply translated equates to fermented fish dipping sauce. This traditional fish sauce is a bright/citrusy/and semi-sweet and fishy dipping sauce is widely used in many Vietnamese dishes. This subtly fishy dipping sauce is made from a blend of fermented fish sauce, water, sugar, and citrus. Below is my mom’s special blend.

I’ve been eating and testing a lot of recipes lately so I’m going to adopt Meatless Monday’s to dedicate to vegetarian and/or vegan meals!Are you a team “tonkatsu” or chicken “katsu”? I used to love ordering this at Japanese restaurants all the time but this time I wanted to make something similar but with tofu!

These meatless kimchi dumplings pack in a lot of flavor and can spice up a boring ramen packet! I made these dumplings and just parboiled some bok choy, bean sprouts, and added some kimchi and some of my Sate Sauce (ớt sa tế) sauce to the top! Yum!!

Whenever you go to an authentic Vietnamese restaurant they always have a plethora of side dipping sauces like a fish dipping sauce (nuoc mam cham), scallion oil (mo hanh), fermented mustard greens (du chua) or even vegetarian dipping sauces if you’re lucky! They compliment, and are a staple in creating many Vietnamese dishes. Below are a few of my favorite staples which you’ll see served with many of my concoctions to follow!