I LOVE...NEXT BIGBITESKOREAN:Here’sa cuisinethatperfectlyunderstandsthe
principlesofjunkyStatesidefast-foodwhileembracinga glorious
culinaryheritageofitsown.Koreanfoodis oftendefinedas
bibimbap,bulgogiandkimchi, butthereis somuchmorethan
that.Koreanfriedchickenis alreadyjustlyreveredhere,whilethe
barbecuealsoranksamongthebestin theworld.Familiarcentral
flavourslikegarlic,soysauce,sugar,sesameandchilliareperhaps
bestexpressedingochujang(Korea’sfamousfermentedredchilli
paste)thatpopsupin loadsofmyfavouriteKoreaneats.Seafood
is strongandfermentationis tothefore,withdisheslikethe
impeccable‘ricethiefcrab’.It’ssomoreishyouwon’tnoticehow
manybowlsyouareconsuming.Eventheweirdstufflikemung
beansaren’ttooweird,especiallywhen turned into cellophane
noodleswitha texturelikejellyfish.
It is,however,thestreetfoodofKoreathatseemsmostlikelyto
getanever-largerfootholdhere.Foodliketteokbokki, a 500-year-
oldelasticricecake,deliciousblushingin a sauceofgochujang, or
savourydoughnutsandsteamedhoppangbunsfilledwithsweet
pumpkin,curryorkimchi,orchewyfriedhotteok buns filled with
brownsugarcaramelandpeanuts.
SRILANKAN:SomuchmorethanIndian-lite,SriLankancuisine
bringsfreshnessandaciditytothetable.Dishesareliftedbya
dizzyingarrayofsambolsofgratedfreshcoconutorseenisambol,
a caramelisedonionrelishloadedwithsugar,spicesandtamarind.
Givenlocalproduction,you’llfindcinnamon,cardamom,nutmeg,
chilliandmustardseedsjoiningcoriander,cumin,saffronand
thosecurryleavesin thespicebox.Sambolsarewonderfulwith
SriLankanstreetsnacks,frompanrollstocrispy-edgedrice-flour
hoppers.Hopperswouldbeamongmyfavouritebreakfasts,
especiallywhenthere’sanoozyfriedeggcookedat thebottom.
Curriesarea staple,buttheytendtocomeacrossasa bitlighter
andmorefragrant,temperedwitha coconutmilk.Themore
tropicalclimateseesa dizzyingarrayoffruitandvegonoffer,while
Dutch,BritishandMalayinfluencesalsopokethrough.Forme,the
bestwaytoenda meal– orstarttheday– is withlocalcurds
dousedwithkitulsyrup,madefrompalmtreeflowersap,reduced
downtomakethisdarktreacle.It’slikeSriLanka’smaplesyrup.
WESTAFRICAN:Dishesfromthe 16 countriesofWestAfrica
havemadethemselvesaroundtheworld,whetherasthe
inspirationoftamalesin Mexico,Louisianaokragumboandthe
black-eyed peas that arrived in Deep South with West African
WeknowandloveThai,IndianandJapanese,
butwhatarethenextcuisinestomakeit intothe
mainstream?Matt Preston makes his picks.
KOREANCHIMAEK
SERVES 4.
13 / 4 cups(430ml)buttermilk, plus extra^1 / 2 cup (125ml)
21 / 2 tspsesameoil
3 garliccloves,crushed
3cmpiece(15g)ginger,finelygrated
8 (280geach)chickenthighfillets, cut into 6cm pieces
2 cups(300g)plainflour(^1) / 2 cup(70g) cornflour
4 eggs
Vegetableoil,todeep-fry
(^1) / 3 cup(80ml)KoreanBulldog barbecue sauce or regular
barbecuesauce
Toasted sesame seeds, to serve
KOREANSEASONING
2 tbseachonionpowder,garlicpowderandseasalt
1 tbsKoreanchillipowder (not flakes) or 2 tsp regular ground
chillipowder
3 tspgroundginger
2 tsp white pepper
Combinethebuttermilk,sesameoil,garlicandgingerinlarge
bowl.Addthechickenandtosstocombine.Setasidefor1 hour
tomarinate,orif timepermitscoverandrefrigerateovernight.
FortheKoreanseasoning, combine all ingredients in a bowl
andsetaside.
CombinetheKoreanseasoningandfloursina largebowl.
Whisktogethertheeggsandtheextra^1 / 2 cup (125ml) buttermilk
ina separatebowlandseasontotaste.
Heata largeheavy-basedsaucepanhalf-filledwithoilover
medium-highheatuntiltheoilreaches160°C(a cubeofbread
willturngoldenin 45 secondswiththeoilis hotenough).
Preheatovento160°C.Workingwith1 pieceofchickenata
time,removefromthebuttermilk,thentossin theflourmixture.
Dipintotheeggmixtureandthentheflourmixtureagain,tocoat.
Inbatches,frychicken,turningoccasionally,for6-8minutesuntil
golden.Reheattheoilasyougotomakesureit staysat160°C.
Transfertoa platelinedwithpapertoweltodrain.Placein the
oventokeepwarmuntilreadytoserve.Seasontotaste.Sprinkle
with sesame seeds to serve, with barbecue sauce alongside.
slaves.WestAfricanis toooftenclassifiedasa peasantcuisineof
starchystapleslikesorghum,rice,orthepoundedyams,plantains
andcasavawhichareusedtomakeSenagalesefufuandNigerian
akarafritters.Butthere’ssomuchmore.Soupsandstewsare
plentiful,usingfishfromthecoast,orbeef,chicken,lamborgame
furtherinland,flavouredwithchilli,onionsandtomatoes.
Fortheculinaryadventurer,thereareingredientslikeboabob, cola
nut,egusiseeds,guineafowlandmeleguetapepper,aswellas
wildWestAfricangreensthatpopupin disheslikepalaverstewor
Cameroonianndolé. Yes,I know,CameroononlybordersWest
Africa but who would resent having this national dish on the menu?
44 delicious.com.au
I’M LOVING.