Asian Soups, Stews, & Curries: More Than 200 Recipes from the Far East

We love soups. They reheat well after a long day at the office and they are soothing to the throat, very filling but lighter fare. It suits us for an evening meal when we really don't want something heavy but do want something hot. Since we've traveled extensively in Asia and love the cuisine, this book was one we just had to try. I am glad to report that "Asian Soups, Stews and Curries" is a wonderful book for the Asian cuisine lover.The first recipe we tried was Kalbi Tang, Korean Short Rib Soup. This is a famous Korean dish, almost as famous as Bulgogi and Kimchee. The instructions were interesting; in order to achieve the beautiful clear broth in which the meat and onions float, you must soak the ribs overnight, or boil them and discard that water to remove the scum (which is the albumin and meat bits that coagulate when you boil meat.) I followed this direction, and the other stipulation to remove ALL visible fat from the ribs. After then making the stock and refrigerating the soup overnight to remove the rest of the fat, I made the ginger, sesame and soy sauce-based seasoning that flavors the soup. Wow! What a taste--rich, yet with a clear, flavorful broth. This was an enormous hit at our house. After watching my husband practically stick his whole head into the Korean soup pot, I decided there must be more good stuff in here. The next one we want to try is Cambodian Fish Soup with Pineapple and Tomatoes--pineapple is surprisingly good in curry type clear soups. Just about everything is in here from Japanese Chanko-nabe (Sumo Wrestler's fatten-up stew) to Mulligatawny. There are quite a few lentil based curries (nice, we love lentils), noodle soups, meat soups, fish, vegetable and rice soups and stews. This is a fascinating book and one with some very nice and unusual recipes, good for light evening one-pot meals or fancy entertaining or pot-luck. This is fast becoming one of my favorite cookbooks.

What I really liked about this book is all the information. The author covers a lot of Asian countries, and she writes about the differences in styles and common ingredients between them. She also discusses the ingredients - what they are, what the flavors are, and including a discussion of the many types of rice. The recipes are nicely organized, and easy to follow. I've used a few of the recipes, and one is now a favorite.

I have used over 20 recipes from Greeley's book and have not been disappointed in any one of them. I have given two dinner parties (each with about 12 people) and used only recipes from this book.Results were outstanding. Every guest asked for recipes, or decided to buy their own copy of the book. My husband's particular favourite is the Yellow chicken curry.