Asian Greens

Rating:
Summary: Greens are Good!
Review: How refreshing to read a cookbook which is both informative, easy to follow and is written simply and cleanly.

Being located in the Asia-Pacific region (Australia to be exact) I find this book well suited to the modern Australian taste bud and palette. Australians are very familiar with and fond of Asian cooking, if not always the authentic version, at least some formulation of it. Ms Lau's book provides easy at home directions for the new home cook/chef starting out, which is the category I fit into. As with the UK's Jamie Oliver, "Asian Greens" is adventurous, and the layout is such that it invites the reader to try new things which at the same time are not difficult or daunting.

I can see this book being a favourite in Noosa (Queensland) and Byron Bay (New South Wales) if people can get their hands on it. I discovered it by looking on amazon.com

I particularly like the the glossary of vegetables, the so called "Greens Guide". For the non-Asian or the uninformed, this guide is most helpful for getting what you want and need into your shopping cart/trolley/basket.

Many of the meals are great for the single person who is oft not inspired to cook (this does inspire!), while also being suitable for couples and families.

I enjoyed the personl anecdotes and descriptors with each recipe. I particularly like the cover and the layout of the book and the information about the author. With chefs like the wonderful Jamie Oliver about, we want some character and fun in our writers and presenters and a little bit of who they are.

The new approach to cooking - keeping it simple, clean and fun, it what we all needed and I am excited to add this book to my slowly growing pile of useful books (and tossing the huge, complicated ones out!)

I just love love love the Asian pesto on page 47, the choy sum and tofu on page 77 and the unusual spiced tofu and long beans with turkey on page 94.

I liked the low level use of pork, as being a non-pork eater it is great to find a book not bursting with this meat. I much prefer the emphasis on the greens, tofu, fish and other meats in the book.

Rating:
Summary: Highly recommended!
Review: I purchased my first copy of this book in Australia, whilst visiting. The recipe for yard beans caught my fancy, and it is *excellent*. The initial index on how to identify Asian vegetables is invaluable, an excellent prelude to cooking them. Since then I have purchased copies for dear friends, they will be great gifts.

If you have an inkling to learn to identify and cook healthful meals for yours and family, and you like Asian food, do your self a favour and purchase this cheap book. It was more expensive in Australia, where it was published, than from amazon.com. The recipes are not difficult, as you will see, but the flavours are superb.

Rating:
Summary: Simple, healthy and very tasty recipes
Review: The recipes are easy to follow and very low in fat. The results are incredibly tasty! I've tasted almost every single recipe in this book!!

Rating:
Summary: Versatile, practical, every-day recipes
Review: This is a cookbook used both by myself and my grown son. I bought it for the very simple but elegant recipes such as Wilted Amaranth in Pine Nut Dressing, Mixed Vegetables with Peanut Sauce, and Quick Asian Greens Soup. In all cases the recipes are flexible i.e. one can readily adapt the recipe to the vegetables at hand. My son, however, focuses on recipes such as Chicken with Thai Basil and Beef Brisket Stew with Daikon.

In all cases, ingredients are readily available in an urban area. The instructions are clear.

That is not to say that the recipes are perfect. Chicken with Thai Basil, for example, is too salty for our taste ... so we cut the fish sauce with sake. The Asian Vegetable Stew, a recipe that caught my eye when purusing the book, has an excellent flavor but I have yet to find a butternut squash that will cook sufficiently when instructions are religiously followed - so I keep experimenting with how long to cook the squash alone. However, these recipes are so simple and versatile it takes little effort to adapt to one's own taste.

In short, I highly recommend this cookbook.

Rating:
Summary: Versatile, practical, every-day recipes
Review: This is a cookbook used both by myself and my grown son. I bought it for the very simple but elegant recipes such as Wilted Amaranth in Pine Nut Dressing, Mixed Vegetables with Peanut Sauce, and Quick Asian Greens Soup. In all cases the recipes are flexible i.e. one can readily adapt the recipe to the vegetables at hand. My son, however, focuses on recipes such as Chicken with Thai Basil and Beef Brisket Stew with Daikon.

In all cases, ingredients are readily available in an urban area. The instructions are clear.

That is not to say that the recipes are perfect. Chicken with Thai Basil, for example, is too salty for our taste ... so we cut the fish sauce with sake. The Asian Vegetable Stew, a recipe that caught my eye when purusing the book, has an excellent flavor but I have yet to find a butternut squash that will cook sufficiently when instructions are religiously followed - so I keep experimenting with how long to cook the squash alone. However, these recipes are so simple and versatile it takes little effort to adapt to one's own taste.

In short, I highly recommend this cookbook.

Rating:
Summary: Highly recommended!
Review: This was originally a book of my mother's but I've been hogging it ever since I chanced upon it in her living room. Even though the recipes are easy, the flavors were very refined and tasty. I've got my own copy now and must say, if you are stuck for something to give for X'mas, this is a nice gift for anyone who loves to cook but doesn't want to spend too much time in the kitchen.

Rating:
Summary: Simple, healthy and very tasty recipes
Review: Very easy to follow recipes. Dishes are simple to make, usually taking up only a span of 30-40 minutes from start to finish. Lau demystifies Asian vegetables making it easy for those who are unaccustomed to using them to at least give them a try. The photos are beautifully done and each explanation of the vegetable is clearly laid out with ways to cook it and how to store it. Not only an extremely helpful book, but the recipes are very low in fat and highly tasty. I've tried almost every single dish in the book and I give it a 2 thumbs up!