Jean-Georges Vongerichten, chef and owner of 18 restaurants around the world, pioneered Asian-fusion cuisine and cooks this food better than anyone on the planet. In Asian Flavors of Jean-Georges, he presents dozens of recipes for reproducing the dishes that have made his restaurants--Vong, Spice Market, and 66--the hottest dining destinations in New York City.
Jean-Georges began his love affair with Asian food when he became the chef de cuisine at the renowned Oriental Hotel in Bangkok at the age of twenty-three. His trips to the markets of Bangkok sparked a lifelong obsession with ingredients like ginger, lemongrass, curry pastes and powders, and all kinds of exotic fruits and vegetables. In 1992, when he came to New York to cook at Lafayette in the Drake Hotel, he was the first to combine the flavors of Thailand with French technique. The restaurant was a sensation, immediately earning four stars from the New York Times, and launching his dazzling career in the United States.
In 1997, he opened an outpost of Vong in Hong Kong and discovered the world of authentic and refined Chinese cooking and ingredients. As he says, “Every meal in Hong Kong contain[s] a thousand flavors.” He opened 66 in New York to showcase his newfound passion for the Chinese kitchen.
And then in 2003 he opened Spice Market, his homage to Asian street food, after five years of research and extensive travels through Southeast Asia (documented in the photos in this book). Once again, he translated Asian cuisine through a French sensibility for American diners. Spice Market instantly became his most popular restaurant and remains one of New York’s most sought-after reservations.
Now Jean-Georges has brought together the best of his pan-Asian recipes in one exciting cookbook. The recipes reflect Jean-Georges’s extraordinary talent for creating intensely flavorful dishes inspired by simple home cooking and street food. The secret is his subtle and surprising combinations, which, as in his restaurants, introduce Asian flavors to traditional Western-style dishes and cooking techniques. His special approach comes deliciously to life in such main courses as Grilled Chicken with Kumquat Lemongrass Dressing, Black Pepper Shrimp with “Sun-Dried” Pineapple, Cod with Malaysian Chili Sauce, and Lamb Shank Braised with Green Curry and Vegetables. Unusual side dishes include Steamed Spicy Eggplant and Coconut Sticky Rice. For dessert, there are treats like Chocolate and Vietnamese Coffee Tart or a Seasonal Fruit Plate with Lime-Spiced Salt. Each recipe is laid out in a clear, easy-to-follow style, and throughout the book invaluable tips are offered for streamlining preparation and cooking.
From taste-tempting appetizers, soups, and salads, to irresistible fish, meat, poultry, and vegetable dishes, to special sauces and one-of-a-kind sweets, the recipes in Asian Flavors of Jean-Georges promise to make dining at home as exciting as an evening out at one of Jean-Georges's fabulous restaurants.
What Others Say
Not such a great cookbook
I love to cook and have been doing so for over 30 years. I have a cookbook collection of over 600 cookbooks. I have books by great chefs throughout the world including books by Charlie Trotter, Ming Tsai, Alfred Portale, Charlie Palmer, Allen Susser, Daniel Boulud, Marcella Hazan, Hiro Sone, Norman Van Aken, Jean-Louis Palladin, Alan Wong, Georges Perrier, Mark Miller, Georges Blanc, Alain Ducasse, Roger Verge, Sam Choy, Roy Yamaguchi, Nobu Matuhisa, Jeremiah Tower, Stephen Pyle, Andre Soltner, Nancy Silverton, Thomas Keller, David Waltuck, Mark Vetri, Grant Achatz, and Ferran Adria among many, many others. I also claim several of your own books I like such as Simple to Spectacular, however Asian Flavors of Jean-Georges is a real disappointment. The recipes ... Read More
Innovative, but too much sugar
All of the recipes in Asian Flavors of Jean-Georges have the "wow" factor that I was looking for when I bought it. They're beautiful and have very intense flavors, which I like. JGV has an interesting twist to many common recipes. For example, his cold sesame noodle salad on p 15 contains 22 ingredients, including Granny Smith apples, wasabi powder, shaoxing wine, cinnamon, coriander and crystallized ginger. And the very popular Pad Thai noodle recipe on pg 232 uses a sweet and sour sauce that's made with Elderflower syrup (which took a long time to find), but there's no tamarind in the recipe, which I thought was what makes a good Pad Thai. So why only 3 stars? Because he uses so much sugar in his recipes, which I think ruins the flavor and is also pretty unhealthy. ... Read More
Awesome Asian Flavors
Rarely do I read a cookbook and want to make every single recipe. This was the case with Asian Flavors of Jean-Georges. From Asian Flavors of Jean-Georges I have made the Pork Vindaloo. As soon as the marinade went onto the meat I knew it would be a winner. It smelled so good! The coconut sticky rice was the perfect accompaniment. I have also made the black pepper crab dumplings. They were surprisingly easy to make, and the sweet flavor of the crab was really accentuated by the mint, black pepper and ponzu sauce. The chicken buns were delicious. The dough was tender and the light, flavorful chicken and mushroom filling was a nice deviation from traditional heavier fillings. The mussels with lemongrass, thai basil, chile and coconut milk were the best mussels I have ever ... Read More
Great Flavor Combinations!
This is an extraordinary cookbook. I have this one and also "Cooking at Home with a Four Star Chef" and I like this one much better. His combination of flavors is truly extraordinary. Some of the ingredients are not things you might have in your pantry (go to your local Asian Grocery and get them) but once you have them you can cook most of the receipes. I have never made anything from Asian Flavors of Jean-Georges that was not superb. Some of the recipes (but not all) are complex and time consuming but the effort is truly worth it. You will not be disappointed.
Asian Flavors of Jean-Georges
Beautiful pictures that make your mouth watering. The recipes are quite complicated and very impractical (see: "Peking Duck", which should be hanged from its neck in a refrigirator and cooled by a running fan at the same time!!!). The recipes in most cases also require ingredients that are extremely difficult to find and to buy outside the Asian countries where they are commonly used. Not a practical cookbook at all.
