I have developed a fascination with Asian and Indian styles of cooking again. It seems during this time of year the hotter it gets, the hotter my food has to be. I am not saying that all Asian food has to be hot, but when I eat it I always love to get the extra hot stuff on the side or at home when I cook just spice it right.
The other day, when I had a chance to cook at home (which I love to do when I am alone) I made a fish curry in coconut broth with lime leaves, coconut milk, cinnamon stick, ginger, scallion, a really nice Thai chili paste, curry powder and a lot of white fish and shellfish.
I make the spiced liquid first so it can blend and reduce a little, then add the seafood at the end — maybe have a side of cardamon rice and some cool coconut tea. What a treat followed by an old Sonny Chiba Chinese B movie “Five Fingers of Death” while eating green tea ice cream.
I keep getting asked by some friends to open an Indian restaurant. And I travel to New York City occasionally, just for some of the great Indian restaurants you will find on Second Avenue. So, when I had the chance recently while doing a catering job at my friend Jay Becker’s house, I took advantage of it.
With the menu being cool coastal summer food, knowing our doctor friend from India was going to be there, I decided to whip up some extra-hot chicken tika and chili pickle on the side to see how I would fare with a pro.
When our friend Uday showed up, I brought him in the kitchen, past the buffet, and unveiled the hotness. I wondered if I would pass the test — which I did with flying colors. Uday devoured the chicken tika and chili pickle with his wife, and what soon turned out to be a following of spice eaters developed in the kitchen.
Uday reminded me, while rubbing the sweat off his head, that the degree of heat which you can handle is measured by the amount of hair on your head — or in this case, lack of hair. More heat, less hair. Dr. J. can handle heat.
As my friend Jay would say, “Matt shrunk and quivered to the ground breathless while trying to match Uday bite for bite while Uday shook his head, laughed and said, ‘This is flavorful, not too spicy. Where’s the extra chili?’” Needless to say, I did well and cemented my position as a potential Indian chef.
Part of the fun is finding the ingredients, studying the cookbooks, reading up on the cultures — which are awesome — and getting a better understanding of why, in other parts of the world, they cook the way they do.
For example (though I could be completely full of it), stir fry was created because of lack of fuel. They chop and slice everything thin, light a fire, bring it up quick, cook quick, and put out the fire to save fuel.
In Korean restaurants, they will serve a lot of little side-dishes of vegetables that are pickled or steamed — some with chilies or dried, salted fish — all of which have a purpose for the cleansing and keeping the body intact and getting it what it needs.
And some cultures eat certain foods that add spiritual value to there lives.
You may be surprised to know that in most parts of the world, the word osteoporosis does not exist in most peoples’ vocabularies and cannot be defined.
My sister-in-law is part Indonesian and her aunt and uncle own some restaurants in Bali, so I am thinking that a cooking trip to Bali this winter may be in the cards. I couldn’t think of a better way to travel.
People look at me strangely when I reveal that one of my dreams is to be a dishwasher in a restaurant in Hong Kong and a spice picker outside Mumbai, India. But to really understand a style of cooking, I believe you must start from the ground up.
I hope to be catching fish with a net on a row boat in Bali this winter.
Matt Haley is a chef and a co-owner of restaurants BlueCoast in North Bethany, NorthEast Seafood Kitchen in Ocean View and Fish On! in Lewes, all part of the SoDel Concepts group, which he co-founded. Haley hosts a monthly food chat at Booksandcoffee in Dewey Beach on the third Tuesday of every month. His new television show, “Food Chat with Matt Haley,” airs on the Resort Video Guide channel from Comcast Cable. For more information on each month’s column and additional recipes, or to submit a question, visit the SolDel Web sites at www.sodelconcepts.com.