Travelling around the world and experiencing different cultures and cuisines is something we all miss with the pandemic still going on. Instead of hopping into a plane to travel around the world, why not make it special and travel around the world from your kitchen? From England to India, Mexico to Thailand and everywhere in between.
First stop – Vietnam.
Vietnamese cuisine is distinct and flavourful. There’s a balance of salty, sweet, sour and hot flavours, achieved through the usage of nuoc mam, a fermented fish sauce, cane sugar, calamansi juice, tamarind and chilli peppers.
Here’s a Vietnamese dish you can try. Goi Cuon are translucent spring rolls packed with green vegetables, coriander and a combination of boiled shrimps or minced meat. They are then served with a rich peanut sauce to dip. Nutty and delicious down to the last bite.
Next stop – Mongolia
Mongolian food is simple and consists of a variety of meat. Vegetables, noodles, rice and pasta goes together with the meat to complete it. Mongolians also consume a lot of dairy products, pastry and fried bread for breakfast and lunch.
Meet Huushuur, a deep-fried meat pie wrapped in a golden pastry and filled with meat. Variations include potatoes, cabbage or kimchi cabbage and Mongolian cheese.
Head south of the Americas to Colombia
Colombian cuisine is a blend of European and indigenous ingredients and many dishes include pork, potatoes, chicken, beans, corn and rice. Foods range from hearty and salty to sweet, gooey, and cheesy.
Bandeja Paisa is Columbia’s national dish and it’s a feast not for the faint-hearted. On just one plate you will find steak, ground beef, chicharrones, rice, beans, an egg, avocado, an arepa, and plantains. It’s an extremely delicious and hearty meal that will leave any diner in a food coma.
Let’s head to the land of Pharaohs and pyramids – Egypt
Often confused with Arabian cuisine, Egyptian food has its own uniqueness. Although their cuisine is not fancy as compared to European food and doesn’t use a load of spices, it’s that simplicity of their food that makes it tasty as shown in their national dish, Koshari.
A go-to street food, Koshari is deemed Egypt’s national dish. A comforting bowl of Koshari consists of spiced lentils and rice combined with chickpeas and macaroni. It is then smothered in tomato sauce and topped with crispy fried onions. Every bite is a delight with depth and texture to it.
Let’s head east now to the land of Kpop – Korea
Delicious lip-smacking food, Korean cuisine is a combination of rice or noodles, vegetables and meat, flavoured with ingredients such as chilli, sesame oil, fermented bean paste, soy sauce, garlic, ginger, pepper, and using techniques like fermentation and pickling. Here’s an interesting dish to try, especially for those who love vegetables or are looking for something healthy.
Literally meaning “mixed rice”, bibimbap is made up of white rice topped with cooked, pickled or fermented vegetables, a sauce made with gochujang and topped with a fried egg. Stir-fried beef or tofu can also be added. The whole thing is then mixed up together with the sauce and eaten. It’s healthy and delicious.
Have you tried some of these foods? Do drop us a note of other cuisines you have sampled.