Don't Buy Fruit and Vege Without Me product reviews

This book is nothing short of amazing. I don't usually read cookbooks from cover to cover; I am more likely to flick through the pages, stopping each time I see a picture that is particularly intriguing or reminds me of something I have eaten and enjoyed in the past. This time, however, I could not just flick. The pictures jumped out at me, compelling me to read the accompanying recipes to find out exactly what the ingredients were. I have some experience with Asian cooking, having spent years with friends from Hong Kong and Vietnam, all of whom were foodies and loved to share recipes. All the same, some of the cooking styles and ingredients in this book were new to me. Of course, I cannot wait to try these new ones out.

A bonus in a book of this type is the combination of background information and selection tips. Advice on choosing produce in prime condition is always useful, especially when you are buying something that is unfamiliar. As do many people, I enjoy experimenting with new taste sensations, but it does not work so well if you end up with an expensive exotic fruit that is inedible because it is so underripe! I am the weird customer in a produce department who is seen sniffing the pineapples or checking the colour distribution on a tomato skin: all with the aim of selecting items that are ready to eat raw or cook immediately. Thanh's guidance on this topic is greatly appreciated! It makes me far more likely to experiment with fresh produce I am unfamiliar with.

Interspersed with the recipes are little gems of information, fun to read in themselves. There are also longer articles introducing different foods; many of these include personal experiences which make them fascinating to read. Thanh has led an interesting life as he explores various food preparation techniques and spends time with other food experts around the world. Many of these people are introduced through the articles as Thanh outlines what he has learned from them. I was fascinated by some of the encounters he describes; the uniqueness of some of the recipes in the book is due partly to the influence of these other food experts, and partly to his own tweaking of the originals. Almost all the ingredients are readily available in Australasia, and for the very few that are not, alternatives are suggested. With the relaxing of COVID restrictions and the reopening of borders, however, many items that were unavailable over the last three years are once again appearing on retailers' shelves.

In the past, on visits to a local Asian vegetarian restaurant, I have often eaten Lemon Rice prepared with tofu - it has long been one of my favourite dishes. I was delighted, therefore, to find an equivalent version made with chicken in Thanh's book. It was less than 24 hours after reading it that I had cooked it for the family! Thanh's version is called Lemon Chicken. I had all but one of the ingredients already, so opted to make the full recipe rather than take the suggested shortcut and use ready crumbed chicken. That is an option I might keep for the future, however! The one ingredient I was missing, potato starch, was replaced by cornflour.

The whole family loved it, even fussy Mr Thirteen. The sauce was almost exactly the same as that prepared in the vegetarian restaurant; who would have thought of combining citrus and chicken stock? I assume the restaurant stock is made from vegetables rather than chicken, but I could not discern a flavour difference and neither could anyone else. The chicken was tender and flavoursome thanks to the panko breadcrumbs and salt, and although I replaced the suggested spring onion garnish with a little sliced avocado on the side, I don't think that mattered too much.

One recipe down, 49 to go - that takes care of most of the meal planning for the rest of the year. I can see, as described on the cover, that this book is destined to be my "new best friend for all cooking adventures"!