Effortless Asian Cooking: 30-Minute Recipes for Flavorful Noodles, Rice Bowls, Stir-Fries, Curries and More, written by Sha Jumari, features a delicious collection of over 75 recipes inspired by flavors across East and Southeast Asia. A few highlights include Macaroni Goreng (Malay Spicy Pasta Stir-Fry), Air Fryer Sweet and Sour Chicken, Xinjiang Cumin Lamb Stir-Fry, Singapore Chicken Curry, and Garlic Butter Prawns. I will also be sharing her recipe for Kimchi Bokkeumbap (Korean Kimchi Fried Rice) following the review.
Disclosure: I received this book from Page Street Publishing in exchange for my honest review. All opinions and statements are my own.
Sha Jumari
Sha Jumari is a writer, recipe developer, and creator of the blog, Nomadette.com, with a focus on quick and easy Asian-inspired recipes. Her work has been featured in BuzzFeed and she has also partnered with numerous brands.
Sha grew up and is currently based in Singapore. This is her debut cookbook.
Effortless Asian Cooking
Sha begins Effortless Asian Cooking with a short introduction before jumping into the recipes. Her inspiration comes growing up in a modern Malay household with her mother who, “always found time in her hectic day to whip up delicious meals for us.”
Chapters are divided according to the following: Noodle Lover; Rice Bowls; Clucking Good Time; Meaty Marvels; All Surf, No Turf; Cozy Comforts; and Veggie Delights. The contents have a list of the included recipes with page number for easy reference.
The photography is also provided by Sha. Every recipe is paired with a vibrant, full-page photo of the finished dish.
Measurements are listed in US Customary and Metric. Titles are written in the romanized original name and/or in English. Each recipe has a headnote with background information, prep/cook time, yield, and helpful notes.
Kimchi Bokkeumbap (Korean Kimchi Fried Rice)
To pair with this post, I made Kimchi Bokkeumbap (김치볶음밥, Korean Kimchi Fried Rice) from the Rice Bowls chapter!
A perfect use for leftovers, day-old cooked rice is tossed with kimchi, bacon, onion, garlic, beaten eggs, and a gochujang-spiced sauce for a quick and delicious meal.
The rice is served immediately, hot from the pan, with a fried egg on top if desired.
Sha made the Kimchi Bokkeumbap with beef bacon. If avoiding meat, you can simply omit. For the best flavors, use a well-fermented kimchi.
Add just enough warm water to the gochujang mixture to create a sauce thin enough to drizzle over the rice and toss together.
Notable Ingredients
Gochugaru (고추가루) is a hot Korean red chili powder ground either coarse or fine depending on the use. The best gochugaru is made from red chili peppers that have been dried in the sunlight. It can be located in markets with Korean ingredients and online.
You can even make your own chili flakes by trimming and drying Korean red chilies then grinding to the desired texture.
I store opened gochugaru in the freezer to keep it fresh longer. Adjust the spice level of the Kimchi Fried Rice with more or less gochugaru as desired.
Gochujang (고추장, red pepper paste, red chili paste) is a fermented condiment traditionally made by aging gochugaru (Korean red pepper), chapssal (glutinous rice), yeotgireum (barley malt), mejugaru (fermented soybean), and salt in a clay pot in the sun during cooler months.
It is available in the condiment section of markets with Korean ingredients and online.
For those in Northern Virginia, I picked up both of these ingredients at H Mart in Centreville.
Other Dishes
I also made Kecap Manis Udon (Braised Soy Sauce Udon), Honey Garlic Chicken Stir-Fry, Palak Paneer (Indian Cheese Spinach Curry), and Spicy Smashed Cucumber Salad.
The Kecap Manis Udon (Braised Soy Sauce Udon Noodles) were inspired by the flavors of Sha’s childhood favorite, Ayam Telur Masak Kecap (Soy Sauce Chicken and Fried Egg Braise, also in book). Udon noodles are tossed in a sweet, savory, and spicy sauce with kecap manis, garlic, and bird’s eye chili. To finish, the noodles topped with a fried egg, cilantro, and lime.
The Honey Garlic Chicken Stir-Fry was a favorite with the family. This quick meal pairs chicken pieces with an easy honey garlic soy sauce using pantry staples. It is served with rice and a sprinkling of scallions and sesame seeds.
The recipe for Palak Paneer comes from the Veggie Delights chapter and it is definitely packed with vegetables. Blanched and pureed spinach (plus a green chili for heat) is simmered with minced onion, garlic, tomato, cubed paneer, and spices. It was delicious paired with naan.
The Spicy Smashed Cucumber Salad is one of my favorite ways of using cucumber. The cucumbers are gently smashed, then briefly salted before tossing with a blend of soy sauce, rice vinegar, sesame oil, chili oil, and garlic. The flavors were so refreshing and best of all, there is no cooking required.
Effortless Asian Cooking is a wonderful pick for those looking for weeknight meals with a variety of flavors. Most of the recipes come together in 30 minutes or less. There is a wide range of meat, seafood, and vegetarian-based options. Many use the stovetop, but there are also a few that utilize air fryers and rice cookers.
Generally, the ingredients are becoming more available in larger American grocery stores. A few items that may require further searching include bird’s eye chili peppers, sambal, kecap manis, Sichuan peppercorns, bonito flakes, fresh rice noodles, laksa paste, tofu puffs, tamarind paste, doubanjiang, rice cakes, lemongrass, and Thai green curry paste.
Kimchi Bokkeumbap (Korean Kimchi Fried Rice) Recipe
Excerpt from Effortless Asian Cooking
Kimchi Bokkeumbap (Korean Kimchi Fried Rice)
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons (30 milliliters) gochujang
- 2 teaspoons (6 grams) gochugaru
- 2 teaspoons (10 milliliters) light soy sauce
- 1 teaspoon sugar
- 3-4 tablespoons (45-60 milliliters) warm water
- 1 tablespoon (15 milliliters) vegetable oil
- 6 ounces (200 grams) bacon beef bacon if avoiding pork
- 1 cup (150 grams) kimchi chopped
- 1 onion sliced
- 4 cloves garlic minced
- 4 cups (800 grams) day-old cooked rice
- 2 eggs beaten
- 2 teaspoons (10 milliliters) sesame oil
- 1 teaspoon sesame seeds for garnish
- 2 stalks spring onion or scallion chopped
To serve:
- Fried eggs optional
Instructions
- Whisk together the gochujang, gochugaru, soy sauce, sugar, and water. Set aside.
- Add the vegetable oil to a large skillet or wok, and place over medium heat.
- Add the bacon and allow it to cook to a crisp. Add the kimchi and stir-fry it with the bacon. Continue to stir-fry until the kimchi liquid has evaporated, about 2 to 3 minutes.
- Add the onion and garlic, and stir-fry to combine with the contents in the pan for about 1 minute.
- Once fragrant, add the rice and all the sauce. Stir-fry to combine.
- Push the pan contents to one side and pour in the beaten eggs. Allow the bottom of the eggs to cook for 30 seconds before scrambling. This will get you larger chunks of egg throughout the fried rice. Stir-fry to combine with the rest of the fried rice for about 1 minute.
- Once combined, turn off the heat. Add the sesame oil, sesame seeds and spring onions. Give another quick stir to combine.
- Plate the fried rice and serve immediately. Serve with fried eggs, if desired.
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