Asian cuisine is influenced by various factors such as geography, history, and traditions of different Asian cultures. There are three main dietary categories in Asia: Southwest style features foods from India and surrounding areas characterized by flatbreads, kebabs, and strong spices; Northeast style emphasizes China, Korea and Japan and uses sauces, marinades, and soy products; Southeast style focuses on Thailand and surrounding regions known for aromatic and balanced dishes combining flavors like sour, sweet, and spicy. Staple foods across Asia include grains, legumes, vegetables and fruits, with common flavors derived from ingredients like herbs, fermented pastes, and pickled vegetables. Popular cooking methods are stir-frying, steaming, deep-

1. ASIAN
CUISINE
A
BACKGROUND

2. Asian Cuisine
A blend of several taste such as
sweet, sour, salty, spicy, and
bitter.
Various cultures of Asia each
developed their own ethnic
cuisine through their history,
environment and tradition
Can be described as a balance of flavors
Influenced by a shortage of fuel, grazing
land, even food and cooking utensils

3. Asian Cuisine
Geographic influences include a vast coastline,
monumental distances between pockets of
people in the deserts and plains of China
Colonization by Western Europeans
Warring peoples
Nomadic lifestyles
The monsoons and other climactic conditions

4. Three Asian Dietary Category
1. Southwest Style
† includes cuisines from India, Pakistan,
Sri Lanka and Myanmar (formerly Burma)
† influenced by Persian-Arabian
civilization
†characterized by the following:
a. eating of naan or flat bread along
with mutton, kebabs, and the use of hot
peppers, black pepper, cloves and other
strong spices along with ghee

5. Three Asian Dietary Category
1. Southwest Style
b. cows were used only for their
milk and not for the meat
c. rice, chapatti and beans became
a staple in the meals
† tends to be aromatic and colorful
† non-vegetarian meals include
fish, meat or chicken with spiced
vegetables, lentil dish , yogurt and rice
or bread

6. Three Asian Dietary Category
2. Northeast Style
† comprised of China, Korea and Japan
† gives emphasis in using fats, oils, use of
marinades and sauces in cooking
†usage of soy milk is also common especially
in Chinese cuisine
† food, spices, and seasonings are also being
used as medicines
† food became associated with many religious
traditions

7. 2. Northeast Style
 The most basic difference between
the different cuisines
1. Southern part of China
emphasizes freshness and
tenderness due to its cold weather
while northern part is mostly oily,
soy sauce, and usage of vinegar
and garlic are more popular

8. 2. Northeast Style
2. Japanese cuisine gives
emphasis to deep-frying,
vegetable oil and raw
food/ingredients
3. Korean dishes which is mostly
grilling, sautéing and the use of
hot chili spices

9. Three Asian Dietary Category
3. Southeast Style
†includes Thailand, Laos,
Cambodia, Vietnam, Indonesia,
Malaysia, Singapore, Brunei and
Philippines
† peasant cuisine of Thailand
† gives emphasis on aromatic and
lightly-prepared foods with a delicate
balance of stir-frying, steaming and/or
boiling

10. Three Asian Dietary Category
3. Southeast Style
† usage of fish sauces,
galangal, lemon grass and
tamarind is very popular
† combination of sweet and
sour, hot and sour, hot and
sweet are common in various
regions
† use of dairy product such
as milk were also common.

11. Three Asian Dietary Category
3. Southeast Style
†Sourness from ingredients such as
tamarind, lemongrass, galangal,
turmeric, bitter gourds and other sour
fruits is common
†Major influences have been
exerted by China and India, but the
most profound impact on the region’s
cooking was made in the 16th century,
when the Portuguese brought chili
from the Americas

12. Three Asian Dietary Category
3. Southeast Style
† No standard courses of meal
† Usually considered nutrition,
economy and ease of preparation
in cooking meals/dishes

13. Staple Food of Asia
 Grain, throughout most areas
 Legumes, noodles, millet, and buckwheat
 Beans, nuts, seeds, lentils very popular
 Vegetables include bamboo shoots, water chestnuts,
okra from Africa, hearts of palm, mushrooms
 Fruits include cherries, plums, peaches, pomegranates,
figs, citrus, apples, carambolas, and bananas

14. Common Flavors
 Flavor profiles come from various combinations: of
cilantro, mint, basil, lemongrass, fermented sauces
and pastes such as bean paste, soy sauce, rice
wine and vinegar, pickled ginger, fish sauce (nouc
man), Hoisin and plum sauce
 Preserved vegetables are also common in different
areas (pickled)

15. COOKING METHODS
Stir-frying, cutting foods to shorten cooking
times, and use little oil and heat
Steaming, used to prepare dumplings,
steamed fish in bamboo baskets, steam bread
Deep-frying, tempura in Japan uses rice flour,
peanut oil in other areas
Simmering and braising
Salads used to cool the heat in other dishes
Grilling, often over open fires or braisiers
Nomadic people pick up dried dung for fuel

16. COMMON TOOLS
Chapatti Griddle -
a very thick based but
shallow pan for the cooking of
Chapatti. Usually made from
iron, it's thick base and
construction allow it to become
hot without warping and to cook
chapatti and other breads without
burning.

17. COMMON TOOLS
Cooking Chopsticks-
commonly being
used, specially by Chinese
chefs, in stir-frying and fast
sautéing dishes.
Cleaver
used for a variety
of tasks from hacking,
chopping and bashing to
delicately slicing.

18. COMMON TOOLS
Clay pots-
used for slow cooking.
Made of earth ware, dishes
requiring slow cooking can be
placed upon a stove over a
very low heat.
Spider Strainer
usually a loosely woven
round wire mesh attached to a
bamboo handle, but more modernly
a large metal spoon with holes in
it. Its purpose is to strain foods
removed from hot oils or stocks.

19. COMMON TOOLS
Wok and Wok Tools- It's main
function is for stir frying, but
is equally adept as a deep fat
fryer, a standard frying pan, it
can be used for braising,
boiling, steaming and poaching

20. End of Asian Cuisine