Garlic, ginger, coriander, lime … some of the ingredients in Sarah Tiong’s Asian Vinaigrette. Image: Su Leslie, 2017
I have a bit of a love-hate relationship with food programmes on television. I liked quite a few of the old-school “celebrity-chef-cooks-for-the-cameras” shows — especially those involving Rick Stein and the late Keith Floyd. I also loved Two Fat Ladies, with Jennifer Paterson and Clarissa Dickson Wright, and anything with Anthony Bourdain — but that was never about the cooking.
I don’t like talent-quest TV and programmes that require a commitment to regular viewing, so shows like MasterChef pose a dilemma. Will my love of food overcome my reluctance to a) watch competitive cooking and b) buy-in for the duration?
I spy … fresh coriander all ready to use. Image: Su Leslie, 2017
With the current series of MasterChef Australia at episode 24 in NZ — and not even half way through — I’m at the stage of dipping in on the nights when the contestants are making original dishes as individuals, rather than team challenges and replications of guest chefs’ creations. These are the episodes that offer the most interesting food ideas.
Which is a very roundabout way of saying that my Five Minutes of Random this week were spent with the ingredients for a fantastic Asian Vinaigrette that I saw Sarah Tiong make a couple of weeks ago on MasterChef. She served it with Pan-fried Barramundi and Bok Choy. (recipe here). It looked so yummy!
… And tasted fantastic, though I replaced the barramundi with tofu because it was raining so hard I really didn’t feel like going shopping.
And though this is not strictly a #RegularRandom shot — here’s my completed dish.
Pan-fried tofu with braised bok-choy and Asian Vinaigrette. Image: Su Leslie, 2017
Five Minutes of Random (the RegularRandom challenge), is hosted by Desley Jane at Musings of a Frequently Flying Scientist.
Zimmerbitch 
Looks delicious even though I find tofu to be completely tasteless. I’ll have the barramundi please!! And your photos are fabulous!
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Thanks Jude. I had a flatmate once who made tofu, and it was really delicious. The stuff I buy isn’t as good as that, but does have some flavour, and of course, it absorbs the all the flavours of the dressing really well.
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I think my problem is with the texture – it always tastes like a rubbery sponge to me. And no matter how long I marinade it for I have never managed to get any flavours into it.
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😕 the texture is definitely a challenge.
I’ve shifted from firm to soft tofu. Tossed in rice flour and fried, the texture is actually nice; crisp outside and soft centre. But I can see how it can be very hard to like. Perhaps stick to the barramundi 😃
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Wow Su, what a gorgeous series of shots. So soft and yet vibrant. Love the scattering of black and white, love the cut limes and that last shot with the knife is fantastic. I adore Asian food and would love this vinaigrette. I have the same issue with shows like Masterchef. I’ve stopped watching it, but will channel surf sometimes and find it on (when is it not lol) and watch for a bit.
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Thank you 😃
It’s one of the easiest dressings I’ve ever made: and tastes good with all sorts of foods.
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Yum!
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Most of our soya is GMOed so I’ve stopped eating Tofu. (sad to say)
Leslie
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I totally understand that Leslie. I can get an organic brand that I believe isn’t GMO, but really, it’s hard to trust any food these days.
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I would have hoped that you could trust the labeling there. Where are our governments on these issues?
Leslie
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Especially with things like tofu, I tend not to trust that the companies are telling the truth. The penalties for breaking labelling laws — assuming there is a prosecution — aren’t much of a deterrent.
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Beautiful pictures!
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Thank you Kate.
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Lovely post, Su. I like tofu and make my own baked tofu sometimes. I also have a pan-fried tofu and broccoli recipe with peanut sauce that’s quite nice.
janet
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Thanks Janet. Tofu and broccoli is one of my go-to quick dishes too. I guess I cheat by just crushing peanuts with chilli and garlic instead of making actual sauce 😃
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I think I can almost smell it! Looks very yummy indeed! And the pics are wonderful, love especially the B/W ones, they look so classy! And Anthony Bourdain, eh? 😉 My mum and I loved to watch his shows too together, for maybe the exact same reason as you 😉
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Thank you Sarah. I found some old episodes of ‘A Cook’s Tour’ on Netflix recently and have been watching them again. I don’t find him particularly attractive (except for his voice), but I love his irreverence and approach to food. 🙂
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I don’t watch cooking shows and am not much of a cook, but that looks delicious!
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I love food generally, but get a bit overwhelmed by the sheer number of cooking shows on TV. When I was a kid, NZ television had one cooking programme, which was hosted by a very camp couple who always seemed ever so slightly drunk. It was hilarious, but helped transform Kiwis otherwise very boring food culture into something much more exciting — one moussaka and boeuf bourguignon at a time at a time!
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Since food shows only make me hungry and never inspire me to want to cook, I avoid them!
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I’m kind of the opposite. But I have to make sure I watch after dinner.
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I don’t watch cooking shows and I don’t cook but that recipe dish looks good. I’ve started to eat Asian food.
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Great food photos! I almost feel like cooking.
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It’s a really easy dressing to make, and as long as you like spicy flavours, will add zing to pretty much anything. 🙂
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That looks delicious and such fabulous photos. Thanks for watching for me and providing the recipe. I’ve occasionally dipped into Masterchef but I can’t take the competition side. It can make a fun drinking game though. Just take a swig whenever anyone says ‘dream’, ‘journey’, ‘my life is about food’ or whenever anyone cries. Makes it a bit more bearable. 😉
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🙂 a drinking game!!! Now there’s a thought. We just drive each other nuts by saying things like “you’ve brought us a delicious plate of food” and “that’s just yum” in our best George Calombaris voices. 🙂
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I love these captures 🙂
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Thanks Paula 🙂
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That looks excellent – and it reminds me that I have to think of something to make for supper this evening!
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Nothing kills my enthusiasm for cooking like knowing I have to produce a meal
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I might be the opposite – I love having a meal I have to come up with. I usually spend far more time planning than actually cooking!
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So pretty and tasty looking. Funny that you call coriander what I call cilantro – I know they are the same and I have coriander in my spice cupboard that looks, tastes, and smells nothing like fresh cilantro (or fresh coriander depending on where you live).
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I know what you mean. I have coriander seeds in the spice cupboard and I only associate them with fresh coriander/cilantro because I’ve grown the plant and harvested those seeds. Do you call courgettes zuccini? Or courgette? Aubergines here tend to be called eggplants; what do you know them as?
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We say zucchini and eggplant. I wonder how many food words are different in English based on world regions…
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Probably quite a few! Even between Australia and NZ there are huge differences, though not just with food words.
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I love this post – thank you for sending me here. You have given me good ideas on how to proceed with my savoury food shots … one thing is for sure, I need to plan better: to maximise light and to catch the ingredients at their best at each step of prep & cooking!
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Thank you; I hope it helps. Photographing food has been a real eye-opener. It seems so straightforward, but the more shots you take, the more you see how things could be better. One thing I forgot to mention is looking through food magazines for images or particular photographers you like. And it’s a great excuse to look at food pics 👍👍
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