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Monday, May 17, 2010
When I was counting down my favourite meals of last year, I wrote that one of them was had at Neil Perry’s very sexy Chinese restaurant, Spice Temple. While I had originally gone in slightly skeptical, I left a believer. And while the food may not have been the most authentic, it certainly had flavour, and a lot of heart. Since then, and because of that visit, my hot and hungry spouse S and I have been cooking more and more from Perry’s Chinese cookbook, Balance and Harmony: Asian Food. It was a book that we had originally purchased (before our meal at Spice Temple) because it was, well, pretty. As cookbook collectors, we occasionally buy texts not because we want to cook from them but because of the pictures, or the layout and design, or because we have all of the chef’s other books, or for any number of reasons. Neil’s recent books are beautiful. They’re a joy to look at, with clean design and gorgeous photos. And so, while we had poured over Balance and Harmony: Asian Food several times, we had never intended to actually use it as a real reference. When we wanted to cook Chinese, we usually turned to authorities like Barbara Tropp, Fuchsia Dunlop or Grace Young. But after that meal at Spice Temple, we decided to give Perry’s book a try. And we’ve been really happy we did. Our favourite recipe from Balance and Harmony: Asian Food (so far) is also one of the simplest. It’s marinated then grilled (or roasted) beef, sliced thin and served with an amazingly delicious, piquant, Asian dipping sauce. I love this sauce. It’s sharp and slightly sour and spicy and utterly delicious. And super easy to prepare. Perry serves his beef straight from the oven. But S prefers to serve it slightly chilled. She likes how the beef has a really pronouced “beefy” flavour when cooled. With the sauce, it makes for a lovely starter and pairs perfectly with cold sake or beer. For the beef, we like to pick up a big, beautiful hunk of Wagyu striploin from Huber’s, our favourite local butcher. We then marinate the beef with kecap manis, salt, sesame oil and coarsely ground black pepper. I like to let it marinate for at least 6 hours. When it comes time to cook it up, preheat your oven to 140 degrees Celsius. Using a hot, slightly oiled cast iron pan, sear the beef on all sides until just a tad charred. You want a nice light crust. Then pop the beef into the oven and cook until the core temperature is 45 degrees Celsius (if your oven does not come with a temperature probe, you should invest in a meat thermometer). Take the meat out and let it rest for 15 minutes. Then pop it into your fridge, taking it on about 20-30 minutes before you want to serve it. Slice it very thinly and serve with Perry’s awesome Asian dip. Perry’s Awesome Asian Dipping Sauce 2 tablespoons chilli powder The easiest way to prepare the sauce is to mix all the ingredients in a jar and shake.        Posted by Chubby Hubby 
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I’m going to try making this! I just grabbed the last bits of japanese Wagyu from the supermarket and this is a good way to split the loot. Keep up the good work!
Posted by: Karen Soh | 18 May 2010 @ 1:15 am
Awesome! I saw the book at Costco the other day and at first scoffed at the idea of being taught Asian cooking by an ang moh. I was pleasantly surprised when I flipped through the pages and now this post is just validation that I should be getting it! Thanks mate!
Posted by: The Pseudo Epicurean | 18 May 2010 @ 11:18 am
Great, I’ll use this recipe for sure!!
Posted by: diane | 19 May 2010 @ 4:31 pm
I am a big fan of Niel Perry too. : )
Posted by: riya | 20 May 2010 @ 5:06 pm
Are you sure it’s 2 tablespoons of chilli powder? Sounds great but a bit excessive for the other amounts
Posted by: bakewell | 20 May 2010 @ 8:31 pm
The photo seems to show what looks like sliced chilli ?
Posted by: Varun | 22 May 2010 @ 1:18 pm
Aun, I’m drooling over your beautiful photo. I love the book but am ashamed to say I haven’t cooked anything from it yet - must do asap!
Posted by: keiko | 24 May 2010 @ 8:11 pm
Hi bakewell, yes the quantity of chilli powder is correct. But as sharp-eyed Varun pointed out, I actually prefer to use fresh chilli. I use one
deseeded birds eye chilli, finely chopped in place of the chilli powder. I also like to grate some gula melaka to taste in to it.
Posted by: S | 26 May 2010 @ 10:26 pm
Good to know I’m not the only one suckered in by pretty cookbooks. Gorgeous photos as always and am now craving myself some tangy dipping sauce….would be nice with grilled prawns too I’d imagine!
Posted by: Lori @ Wannabe Gourmand | 27 May 2010 @ 11:26 am
good to have the address of a trusted butcher… should the cravings for a schnitzel strike suddenly! however, i think i might be too busy exploring all the hawker stalls in singapore for a while… ah! i am so looking forward to it already and i am glad i have your website here with expert advice on where to eat!
Posted by: johanna | 29 May 2010 @ 2:37 am
Great photos! i love the way you compose the picture and how you arrange the colours.
Posted by: Singapore Food Photography | 12 July 2010 @ 12:16 pm
I love these easymade asian dips so much. They fit to so much different stuff. For me as a fingerfood fan they are so important. For the next session I will use your recipe for sure. Thanks for reminding me…
Posted by: berlin catering fingerfood | 31 July 2010 @ 12:50 am
wonderful! that sounds sweet, salty, tangy, spicy, umame…just the right balance
Posted by: Amelia from Z Tasty Life | 2 August 2010 @ 1:52 pm
hey hey.. do you have recipe for Kong Ba Bao’s recipe.. been trying different versions.. & still looking for the best!
i love how your photos are taken! Nice & yummlicious!
~CC tan~
Posted by: cecilia | 3 August 2010 @ 4:06 pm