I can’t believe Thanksgiving is just a couple days away and we’re going to be celebrating it Friendsgiving style with a few of our closest friends! With the help with YouYou this year we’ll be doing a few things with an asian spin, because why not?

Crispy Air Fried Balsamic & Soy Sauced Brussel Sprouts

These bad boys only take less than 30 min total from prep time to final cooking. Click over for the recipe!

These are not traditional egg rolls but a fun way to make a veg friendly fried appetizer. I got the idea from having left over kimchi/tofu dumpling batter which I later added some extra fillings typical with vegetarian egg rolls like cabbage to make these egg rolls.

Onigiri are one of my favorite sushi snacks. When I worked in fashion these snacks were perfect for a quick and very filling lunch (just two of these was enough to get me through the rest of the day). Did you know that these are also super easy to make at home as well?

If you aren’t familiar with this popular Japanese snacks, onigiri are made simply from sushi rice balls that are shaped into triangles and wrapped with nori seaweed sheets. They can be filled with an assortment of different fillings but one of my favorites are picy tuna filled and they are so easy to make! Jump down for the recipe.

Yukari and Yukari Rice: Yukari shiso salt is a Japnanese seasoning salt made simply from powdered dried purple shiso leaves and sea salt. The result is a tangy and colorful seasoning for onigiri, yukari rice, and many other Japanese dishes. To make Yukari rice, just sprinkle it over cooked rice and mix. I go this recipe from Yoko a Japanese chef and owner of a new upcoming ramen spot in Kingston.

Trung Chien- A Vietnamese inspired omelette/egg pie. My dad used to make many different variations of this, sometimes with shrimp and sometimes with tofu but always with some fresh garden veggies like scallions, bell peppers, and onions.

It's a simple dish, almost like an egg quiche if I had to compare it with anything but made with vermicelli noodles and some Vietnamese ingredients like dried wood ear mushrooms, fish sauce, and shallots.

We had lots of fried fish growing up and this was always one of my favorites. I just love how crispy the skin gets!

Click to learn more and to watch Keith and I prepare this Vietnamese favorite!

Did you know that one small takeout rice container like shown is like 2 cups of rice (aka fried rice gold)? It’s perfect for making a generous portion of fried rice like shown.  This rice was almost a week old and it still tasted amazing fried up (always use at least 1 day old, cold, rice). Click for the best kimchi fried rice recipe!

Want to learn how to make perfectly fluffy scrambled eggs every time?

When I need a quick easy meal I usually make eggs for myself. This recipe is dairy free with the use of cornstarch which surprisingly makes your eggs super silky & ultra fluffy and velvety soft! The touch of sesame oil also gives it a silk, luxurious touch to the eggs as well. T

You might have guessed it from it's name but these delicious noodles originated in Shanghai. This was one of my favorites because for over 13 years I traveled to China for work as a vegetarian. Surprisingly, this popular noodle dish uses only a few household ingredients but it sure does packs in a lot of flavor. Slow-frying and browning the spring onions in oil until crispy infuses the noodles with a very rich savory sauce packed with lots of umami & onion yumminess!

Bitter Melon (aka bitter gourd) is called “muop dang” or “kho qua” in Vietnamese. They call it bitter melon because it’s quite bitter and can be an acquired taste for some. In Vietnamese cuisine, it’s often cooked with other ingredients to offset it's bitter punch.

I often think it’s almost a right of passage and knowing that you’ve crossed over to an Vietnamese adult lol. A popular dish to cook bitter melon in Vietnam is with eggs so today we’ll be making stir fried eggs with bitter melon! Read on to learn a few tricks to avoid overly bitter bitter melon!

These blanched spinach like greens along with fresh ripe tomatoes and red onions are tossed with a savory sweet & tart fish sauce vinaigrette. This simple salad is made in many Filipino homes. Talbos ng kamote / kamote tops aka sweet potato leaves are native plants in the Philippines and they’re super nutrient dense.

Today we're making vegetarian Matzo Ball Soup. We'll be making our vegetarian broth from SCRATCH and also making our matzo balls from scratch as well!