The first few months of our travels were, from a food perspective, bland. Sure, we had wild venison in New Zealand, more avocados than we could eat in Chile and the opportunity to try Australia's coat of arms, but when our plane landed in Kuala Lumpur, we were ready for some real spice and a little more flavor.
Over the next 4 1/2 months we got it, and a few times it got us back. Our willingness to try (almost) anything, along with a large supply of tums and pepto, led us to some delicious food discoveries. Below is a round-up of some of our most memorable eating experiences:
The Breakfast of Champions
Breakfast seems like an appropriate place to start, and is the meal where we were most out of our comfort zone. It's also the meal where we discovered some of our new favorite dishes. For example, roti canai in Malaysia - a delicious Indian-inspired flatbread often served with ayam, a chicken curry dipping sauce, or filled with banana and coated in honey. Best served with Teh Tarik.
Another favorite breakfast were the dumplings with fried bread in China. We think the dumplings had cabbage and egg in them, but aren't sure. Regardless, they were delicious.
And, of course, the multi-course Japanese breakfast that includes broiled fish, pickled vegetables, some type of egg and mysterious but tasty tofu logs. And, of course, rice (or rice porridge).
New Favorite Foods
This could be a long list, so here's just a few.
Chicken rendang from Malaysia - an excellent example of Nyonya cuisine, which is a happy marriage of Indian, Chinese and Indonesian food.
Fish amok in Cambodia - a coconut leaf filled with fresh fish and an aromatic coconut sauce that you will want to put on everything.
Banh xeo in Vietnam - a rice pancake filled with greens, pork and shrimp, wrapped in rice paper then dunked in a fish/soy sauce. We started ordering this at any restaurant that would make it for us. Even if it wasn't on the menu.
And, of course, öröm from Mongolia - at first we were scared of this homemade yak milk cheese/butter spread, but once we tried it we couldn't get enough. Best served with sugar and fried bread. Healthy!
Happy Rediscoveries
We eat a lot of Asian food at home and one thing we've realized while traveling is that most of it is really quite good. For example, sushi in Japan is no better than sushi in New York, Boston, or Portland. But there are a few dishes that we though we knew, until we went to the source.
Green curry in Thailand - You think you like green curry? You have no idea what you're missing. Green curry in Thailand is just better, much better. Maybe that's why the Thai government is investing in this important project: http://m.theglobeandmail.com/life/food-and-wine/food-trends/bad-thai-thailand-creates-taste-testing-robot-to-authenticate-cuisine/article20862979/?
Ramen - Sure it's trendy now and everyone ate it in college. But have you had ramen in a homemade pork broth with a perfectly cooked egg and homemade noodles? Or with a soy broth and chunks of slow-braised beef tendon? It's a totally different food.
The Untested, and the Untried
We admit, there were a few things our stomachs just couldn't fathom, and we weren't brave enough to try. Like...
Dried organ meat in Mongolia: At several gers, the host would pull a plate of dried yak(?) organs from under the bed and offer them up as a snack. We always refused, but our horse riding guide would whip out his knife and start slicing off bites. In our defense, we did try some of the freshly boiled organs and learned the Mongolian words for heart, liver and intestines in the process.
The century egg: We first saw this example of Chinese cuisine in a Malaysian market. It's an egg preserved in a mixture of clay, ash, salt, quicklime, and rice hulls for several weeks or months (thank you Wikipedia). On the outside it looks like an egg covered in charcoal, but on the inside it has a dark green/grey yolk surrounded by brown gelatin. Yummy.
Scorpions, tarantulas, or any other insect: We consider these "tourist food" - who, besides tourists really eats this anymore? Or maybe we're just hiding our fear behind a veneer of traveler superiority. Regardless, we didn't eat any insects in Asia. Yet.
For now, we're quite happy with our nine course Japanese dinners.
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