简介：DISCOVERTHEINTERPLAYOFHISTORYANDCULTUREBEHINDSOMEOFTHEREGION'SMOSTICONICCUISINEONCULINARYASIA Aheavingpotofculturesandtradition,themyriadofferingsofAsiancuisinehaveforyearsdelightedpeopleallovertheworld.Today,theirdistinctandcomplexflavoursfeatureprominentlyacrosschicrestaurantmenusandtheironceforeign-soundingnamesarenowonthetipofeverywell-travelleddiner'stongue.Butmostareoblivioustohow,why,orevenwherethesedeliciousdishesoriginated.DiscoverwhatmakesAsiancuisinesuchahugefavouritetheworldover,andwhatitmeanstopeopleintheregiononCULINARYASIA. InpracticallyallfestivalsandcelebrationsinAsia,foodisaprominentfeature.Morethanjustanall-you-can-bingeseriesaboutfood,CULINARYASIAchroniclesthecultureandidentityofanationthroughitsculinaryhistory,revealingsurprisingoriginsandintriguingstoriesofpeopleandplacesbehindiconicdishessuchasJapanesesushi,KoreankimchiandTaiwaneseoysterricenoodles.EachepisodeofCULINARYASIAtakesalookatfamousdishesassociatedwithaparticularcountryandexplorestheintricatemixofculturethathasdefinedthesefavourites,despitecolonialruleandexternalinfluences. StepintoThailandanddiscovertheimportanceofachievingabalancebetweenthefivefundamentalflavoursineachdish.RevelinhautecuisinefromtheroyalkitchensoftheMughalsinIndiaandlearnabouttheinfluenceofreligionandtheBritishrule.InJapan,witnesshowtheJapanesedefinetheircontemporarycuisinethroughingeniousrecreationsandreinventions,ledbytheprincipleof"Kodawari".Feelthesoulofhigh-techhavenKoreathroughafieryandsassygastronomictrip.FollowthetransformationofTaiwan'scuisineasweembarkonajourneytotracethefootprintsofchange.SavourthefusionofflavoursthatisMalaysia,anexotichodge-podgeofdifferentracesandcultures,influencedbymigrantsandcolonialrule. Withitstreasuretroveofcultureandtradition,Asia'scuisinehasmuchtooffer.CULINARYASIArevealstheinnovationsandinventionsthatAsiancitieshaveadoptedtobringitscuisinetogreaterheights. CULINARYASIAepisodedescriptions: Thailand Unknowntomany,theculinaryvoyageofThailandisnotjustspikedwithsweetandspicyflavours,butaneedtobalancefivefundamentalflavoursineachdishortheoverallmeal.Withadashoffreshherbsandspices,comesavourThailand'sculinaryhistorywithancientrecipesfromacuriouscollectionofFuneralBooks.Discovertheold-worldsecretsbehindtheubiquitousTomYamSoup-Bangkokstreet-stallstyle,thengetabehind-the-sceneslookatthesportofMuayThaiandthevaryingtastesofregionalcurriesthatfuelitschampions.Inararetwistofpace,experienceBuddhistspiritualityandtheancientZenartofThaihealingthroughitsculinaryofferings. India Themostpopulousdemocracyintheworldiswell-knownforitscontagiousBollywoodcultureandyes,curryvarieties.ButistheremoretoIndiancuisinethancurry?IndiaexploresthemanyforeigninfluencesthathavecolouredIndiancultureandcuisineoverthecenturies.LetyoursensesbeyourguideasIndiajourneysthoughtheexoticworldofspicesfromtheroyalkitchensoftheMughalsandlearnsabouttheinfluenceofreligionandBritishRajonfood.Discoveracuisinethatisever-changing,onethatdefiesdefinition...readilyadoptsandadaptsoutsideinfluencesyetstillmanagestoremainintrinsicallyIndian. Japan Acountrywheredevelopmenttakesplaceatlightningspeed,Japanisconsideredbymanytobethebirthplaceofsomeofthemostgroundbreaking-andeccentric-innovationsinthehistoryofhumankind.Fromthehighaestheticsofmodernarchitecturetobrassystreetculture,mangacomicstoinstantramen,Japaneseingenuityhaschangedthewayweliveandthewayweeat.Japanisagastronomicplaygroundwhereradicalinnovationmeetsancienttradition,andwheretraditionitselfhasevolvedtostakeclaimtothe21stcentury. Korea Korea,thetenthlargesteconomyintheworld,hasbeenconsistentlydishingoutfancymobilephones,flashycarsandcoolelectronicstotherestoftheworld.However,moderndayKorea,hometotheworld'sninthbiggestfilmandpopindustry,isservingupatasteofitsculturalheritageandrecipesfromcenturiesago.SomeofKorea'sfoodiconsbearhistoricalrootsthatcanbetracedtoChineseandMongolianinfluences,aswellasoneofthelongestandmostpowerfulmonarchy-theJoseonDynasty.Amazinglyinrecentyears,modernKoreancuisinehasspreaditswingsofpopularityaroundtheworld,spinningaculinaryrenaissanceamongKoreansandothersworldwide. Taiwan Alsoknownas"IlhaFormosa"(whichmeans"thebeautifulisland"),Taiwanhasmorethan500yearsofdatedhistoryandisafoodparadisewithanamazingarrayofdiversecuisines.Animmigrantsocietywithmorethan90%populationbeingHanChinese,Taiwanesehasthegoodfortuneoffusingthebestculinaryskillsfromchinesemainland'seightmajorstreamsofcookingtechniques,fromthehotandspicySichuanfoodtothesimplerusticHokkiencuisine.Food-lovingTaiwanesehaveadoptedademocraticandopenmindsettowardsotherinfluences,beitexquisitetechniquesofmakingsweettreatsfromtheirJapanesecolonialmastersortheuseofrawingredientsfromherindigenousaboriginalpeople. Malaysia IsitpossibletodefineMalaysiancuisine?That'sthequestionthisepisodeseekstoanswerasweembarkonaculinaryadventureacrossMalaysia.Alongtheway,discoveranationofvariedracesandcultures,andherhistoryofmigrantsandtheBritishcolonialrule.Themigrantsmayhavebroughttheirownrecipeswhentheysettledherebutthroughtheyears,thoserecipeshavecreatedafusionofflavoursthatisinimitablyMalaysian.PrepareyourselfforabanquetofChinesefavourites,signatureMalaydishes,colorfulIndianbananaleafcuisine,thefusionfoodofPeranakansandold-worldWesterncuisinewithatwist.…