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Asian food
1. Western University Academic Year: 2011-2012
Asian Food
The spices of Asia
Spices are strong or sweet-smelling vegetable products. Some of the common spices are pepper, ginger,
cinnamon, mace, nutmeg and cloves.
Spices were greatly valued for three purposes: as medicines, for preserving food and to season food to
make it tastier.
In India spices are dried thoroughly in the sun and then ground and mixed together. The mixture is
called “ garam masala”.
The „hotness‟ in the spiced food called curry is due to the presence of chillies. Hot chillies are important
to many Asian dishes. The hottest part of the chilli is the seeds inside, which can be flicked out with the fingers
before adding to dishes.
Garlic
Garlic is widely used in much of Asian cooking. Garlic has many advantages for people such as giving
strength, using in Asian cooking, prevent illness, antiseptic oil and antibiotic.
Two important cereals of Asian
Rice
Rice is the oldest grain in the world. It is staple food grain of most Asians; that is, it is the most
important item in the daily food of most Asians.
Types of rice
Asians can tell the difference between the various types of rice through its texture, color, fragrance and
flavor. The types of rice more commonly used by Asians:
1. Unpolished rice: has high food value and is cheaper than other varieties. It is not popularly
consumed.
2. Polished rice: the rice grains are milled and polished.
3. Parboiled rice: rice with the husk is soaked in cold water and then steamed.
4. Glutinous rice: the grains of rice are whiter and more rounded than ordinary rice. It is mainly used in
Asia in local cakes and savouries.
Use of rice
Used as:
1. A main dish of meal (fried rice, milk rice…)
2. Flour, made into noodles.
Asian Food===LeangChanny-LayChanleang-LySopheak Lecturer: Kol Vireak Page 1
2. Western University Academic Year: 2011-2012
3. Cakes, sweets and desserts.
Wheat
Wheat is the world‟s most important grain crop.
Uses of wheat
1. Noodles (most Asians eat wheat in the form of noodles).
2. Breads (some Asians eat wheat in form of breads).
3. Semolina: this is made from the endosperm part of the grain. It is mainly used to make sweets and
puddings.
Main types of Asian cooking
1. China, Japan, and Korea
2. India, Pakistan and Sri Lanka
3. Southeast Asia
China, Japan and Korea
China
All ingredients are cut into shapes and sizes convenient for picking up with chopsticks. Chinese meal
should appeal to many senses. It should be pleasing to the nose, the tongue and eyes and should create a balance
between texture, taste and smell.
Japan
The main feature is the freshness of raw materials use. Japanese cooking uses seafoods, such as fish,
shellfish, and seaweeds, as well as vegetables and the protein-rice bean curd. Japanese often serve raw fish with
different types of sauces.
Korea
Food is highly seasoned with chillies, sesame seeds and sesame oil as well as garlic. Much use is made
of a fermented vegetable pickle called Kim Chee. Koreans eat more meat than Japanese and Chinese. Although
plain rice is served, rice is often cooked with other foods, such as potatoes, bean sprouts, mushrooms.
India, Pakistan and Sri Lanka
India, Pakistan and Sri Lanka are the lands of the curry. A curry is a stew to which a mixture of spices is
added.
Asian Food===LeangChanny-LayChanleang-LySopheak Lecturer: Kol Vireak Page 2
3. Western University Academic Year: 2011-2012
India
The further southwards one travels in India the greater is the use of spices. Indian cooking is also
affected by various taboos associated with religion or caste.
Hindus generally do not eat beef, Muslims do not eat pork, and high caste Hindus are strict vegetables, not
eating fish or eggs. People of the Jain religion who are strict vegetables do not eat root vegetables.
Sri Lanka
Sri Lankan food has been influenced by south Indian, Dutch, Malay, Portuguese and English cooking.
Curries are distinguished and described by their seasonings (white curries use coconut milk, red curries use
many pounded chillies…).
Pakistan
Pakistani food is basically the same as Indian food but it has been influenced by the Muslim culture of
the Middle East and Central Asia. Pakistanis are also great meat eaters, consuming nearly all kinds of meat
except pork.
Southeast Asia
Southeast-Asian cooking has been influenced by the great civilizations of India and China as well.
The coconut
The coconut tree is useful tree for the people of Southeast Asia and the Pacific islands.
Malaysia, Singapore and Indonesia
Both Malaysia and Indonesia enjoy Malay food whilst Singapore, with its predominantly Chinese
population, enjoys all the varieties of the regional foods of China.
Some main features: Malay and Indonesian food is influenced by the Islamic culture, which forbids the
use of pork. Goat meat is greatly valued. Satay, which consists of tiny cubes of marinated meat or seafood,
roasted over charcoal and eaten with a peanut sauce and rice squares, is popular in Malaysia, Singapore and
Indonesia. In Indonesia, rijsttafel is popularly served for a party.
The Philippines
The food of the Philipines is a mixture of East and West combining ideas from China, Thailand,
Malaysia and Indonesia, and Spain. Filipino food consists of rice and several dishes, which are served together.
Food is distinguished by its sour and salty taste, the use of garlic and onions. Filipino dish is Adaho. Another
popular dish is the Lumpia.
Asian Food===LeangChanny-LayChanleang-LySopheak Lecturer: Kol Vireak Page 3
4. Western University Academic Year: 2011-2012
Cambodia
Cambodian dish is not as spicy. Curries, stir tried vegetable, rice, noodles and soups are staples of the
Khmer diet. Cambodia is well known in the region for its Prahok, a strong, fermented fish paste used in a
variety of traditional dishes. Rice is the principal staple in Cambodia. Cambodians favor glutinous rice eaten
with seafoods, stewed buffalo meat and several vegetables, as well as soup.
Thailand
Thai food is characterized by a variety of dishes that the Thais call kaeng. Kaeng means liquid and efers
to any food served in a liquid form. Thais have been influenced by Indian culture. Coconut milk is used in most
Thai food.
Vietnam and Laos
The food of these countries is influenced mainly by the Chinese and Indian. Fish sauce, garlic and fresh
coriander leaves are the flavoring ingredients used in Vietnam. Laotians favor glutinous rice eaten with
seafoods, stewed buffalo meat and several vegetables, as well as soup. Laotians do not eat plain white rice and
curries. The most distinctive Laotian food is the breakfast dish, which consists of noodles, pork, and garlic and
is sometimes flavored by a Laotian leaf, marijuana.
Asian fruits
No Asian meal is complete without some kind of fruit being offered. There is a tremendous variety of
Asian fruits.
Some common Asian customs associated with eating
The three countries we will look at are China, India and Malaysia.
China
Table setting
The table is usually, round although other shape tables are used.
Table manners
The head of family usually picks up his chopsticks and raises them to signify the start of a meal. And
then, everybody uses his/her chopsticks to help their eating.
India
Table setting
Indians sit on the floor in rows, either eating off banana leaves or a special round plate called a Thali. In
towns and in restaurants, food is usually served at a table, the shape of which is not important.
Asian Food===LeangChanny-LayChanleang-LySopheak Lecturer: Kol Vireak Page 4
5. Western University Academic Year: 2011-2012
Table manners
The traditional Indian style of eating is with the fingers. Food is always eaten with the right hand and
fingers are used to mix the various curries with the rice. At the end of the meal, the hands are washed either
from a bowl of water or at a tap.
Malaysia
Table setting
In rural areas, food and drinks may be served while people sit on mats on the floor. Modern Malays may
set the food on tables with porcelain plates for rice and other dishes, and forks and spoons to eat it with.
Table manners
In traditional home, men and women do not set together for meal. The women serve the men first but
nowadays, men and women sit together for meals. However, women are sitting on the left side of the men.
Malays also eat with the fingers of their right hands. At the end of the meal, hands are washed and fingers are
never licked.
Conclusion
This is a very brief survey of Asian food customs. It is not possible to look into every aspect of such a
vast and diverse area. Also Asia is changing all the time and many of her traditions are being replaced by
modern, Western customs.
End
Asian Food===LeangChanny-LayChanleang-LySopheak Lecturer: Kol Vireak Page 5
6. Western University Academic Year: 2011-2012
I. Vocabularies
- Spice (n.) a substance made from a plant, which is used to give a special flavor to food.
- Cloves (n.) a small separate part of a bulb of garlic.
- Mace (n.) a spice made from the dried shell of nutmeg.
- Nutmeg (n.) the hard fruit of a tropical tree, or a brown powder made from this and used as a spice for
flavoring food.
- Ginger (n.) the spicy root of a tropical plant which is used in cooking or eaten preserved in sugar.
- Cinnamon (n.) the bark of a tropical tree or a brown powder made from this, used as a spice to give a
particular taste to food, especially sweet food.
- Cardamoms (n.) an Indian plant, the seeds of which are used as a spice, especially in Asian food.
- Saffron (n.) a dark yellow substance obtained from a flower and used as a spice to give color and flavor to
food.
- Tumeric
- Tumarind
- Vinegar (n.) a sharp-tasting liquid, made especially from sour wine, malt or cider, which is used for flavouring
or preserving food.
- Cayenne Pepper (n.) a red powder made from a type of pepper and used to give a hot taste to food.
- Cultivate (n.) to prepare land and grow crops on it, or to grow a particular crop
- Pyramids (n.) a solid object with a flat square base and four flat triangular sides which slope toward each other
and meet to form a point at the top.
- Antiseptic oil (n.) a chemical used for preventing infection in an injury, especially by killing bacteria.
- Antibiotic (n.) a medicine or chemical that can destroy harmful bacteria in the body or limit their growth.
- Cereal (n.) a plant which is cultivated to produce grain.
- Staple (n.) a short thin piece of wire used to fasten sheets of paper together. It has sharp ends which are pushed
through the paper and then bent flat by a special device.
- Bulk (n.) something or someone that is very large.
- Carbohydrate (n.) one of several substances such as sugar or starch, which provide the body with energy, or
foods containing these substances such as bread, potatoes, pasta and rice.
Asian Food===LeangChanny-LayChanleang-LySopheak Lecturer: Kol Vireak Page 6
7. Western University Academic Year: 2011-2012
- Bran (n.) the outer covering of grain that is separated when making white flour.
- Germ (n.) a very small organism that causes disease.
- Nutritive (adj.) containing many of the substances needed for life and growth.
- Outer (adj.) at a greater distance from the centre.
- Husk (n.) the dry outer covering of some seeds.
- Reddish (adj.) slightly red in colour.
- Grain (n.) a seed from a plant, especially a grass-like plant such as rice or wheat.
- Starch (n.) a white substance which exists in large amounts in potatoes and particular grains such as rice.
- Fluffy (adj.) soft and woolly or furry.
- Soaked (v.) to make very wet, or (of liquid) to be absorbed in large amounts.
- Absorb (v.) to take something in, especially gradually.
- Nutritious (adj.) Nutritive
- Savory (adj.) food is salty or spicy and not sweet in taste.
- Coarse (adj.) rough and not smooth or soft, or not in very small pieces.
- Freshness (n.) the quality of being fresh.
- Dome-shaped
- Utensil (n.) a tool with a particular use, especially in a kitchen or house.
- Ferment (v.) to change chemically through the action of living substances, such as yeast or bacteria.
- Sesame seed (n.) a herb grown for its small oval seeds.
- Sesame oil (n.) a herb grown for its oil.
- Peninsula (n.) a long piece of land which sticks out from a larger area of land into the sea or into a lake.
- Mustard oil (n.) a thick yellow or brown sauce that tastes spicy and is eaten cold in small amounts, especially
with meat.
- Paan = Leaf.
- Betel (n.) a plant that grows in south east Asia which has leaves and red nuts that act as a drug when chewed.
- Appe and Appum: known as hopper. (Hopper: )
Asian Food===LeangChanny-LayChanleang-LySopheak Lecturer: Kol Vireak Page 7
8. Western University Academic Year: 2011-2012
- Toddy (n.) an alcoholic drink.
- Slaughtered (adj.) get very drunk.
- Charcoal (n.) a hard black substance similar to coal which can be used as fuel or, in the form of sticks, as
something to draw with.
- Knuckle (n.) one of the joints in the hand where your fingers bend, especially where your fingers join on to the
main part of your hand.
Translate into Khmer
-Spice (n) -Cloves (n)
-Mace (n) -Nutmeg (n)
-Ginger (n) -Cinnamon (n)
-Cardamoms (n) -Saffron (n)
-Tumeric -Tumarind
-Vinegar (n) -Cayenne Papper (n)
-Cultivate (n) -Pyramids (n)
-Antiseptic oil (n) -Antibiotic (n)
-Cereal (n) -Staple (n)
-Bulk (n) -Carbohydrate(n)
-Bran (n) -Germ(n)
-Nutritive (n) -Outer (n)
-Husk (n) -Reddish (adj.)
Asian Food===LeangChanny-LayChanleang-LySopheak Lecturer: Kol Vireak Page 8
10. Western University Academic Year: 2011-2012
II. Comprehensive Questions. (10pt)
1. What are the any of the common spices? (1pt)
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2. What are the any popular spices used in Asian cooking? (1pt)
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3. What is garam masala? (1pt)
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4. What are the important of Garlic? (1pt)
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5. What vitamins do rice consist of? (1pt)
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6. Describe about the advantages of Coconut Tree. (3pt)
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11. Western University Academic Year: 2011-2012
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7. Describe about the method of cooking that you know. (2pt)
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III. True (T) /False (F) /No mention (N) statement. (10pt)
1….. The food is cooked over a charcoal or gas fire.
2….. In the past Muslims also ate pork.
3…..Satay is popular in Malaysia, Singapore, and Indonesia.
4…..Chopping board are found in China.
5…..Chatty is a clay pot, which is used in Sri Lanka.
6…..Pakistani food and Bengali food are the same.
7….. Cambodia is well known in the region for its Prahok.
8…..Thai food have been influenced by Indian food.
9…..Laotians do not eat curries.
10…..A north-Indain meal served on a thali.
Asian Food===LeangChanny-LayChanleang-LySopheak Lecturer: Kol Vireak Page 11
12. Western University Academic Year: 2011-2012
III. Gap Filling. Words are given below. (10pt)
India China Southeast Asia 22-25cm generations protein wheat vegetable dishes portion
Wood industrialized making cooking
1. The work is very popular in _________________ and India.
2. The spices that make up garam masala, which is added to meat or _______________________ to give a
distinctive flavor.
3. _________ is more nutritious than rice. Unfortunately, during milling, a good ___________ of the vitamins,
mineral salts and the best ___________ is removed to make white flour.
4. Chopsticks for eating are usually ________________ long and are made of ivory, bamboo, plastic, silver or
__________ . Chopsticks used for __________ are longer and made of wood.
5. In parts of Asia that are being rapidly _________________ and modernized, the younger ________________
may not even be aware of the customs associated with eating.
IV. Writing: What are the roles of food in shaping people’s health? (10pt)
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14. Western University Academic Year: 2011-2012
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