 An Asian-American
Thanksgiving—Recipe Ideas
Plus, Sangkaya Fak Thong (Thai Pumpkin Custard) courtesy of Linh
Song
By Frances
Kai-Hwa Wang, AAV Contributing Editor
So here it is, the day before Thanksgiving,
and I still have no idea what I am going to cook. I was sorely tempted
last week by the "Vegan Holiday Meal" package being sold by Whole Foods
Market (dinner for 6 for only $49.99!), but I hesitated too long and
missed my chance for an easy way out. Last week, I was looking forward
to cooking Thanksgiving dinner. Today I am not so sure. I cannot close
my pantry door because of the gigantic box of shitake mushrooms and the
enormous bag of pine nuts I bought from Costco. My refrigerator is
stuffed full with groceries that have to be cooked. There is no backing
down now. I have to cook something. But what?
The newspaper and magazine articles that
always come out at this time of year give me some ideas, but mostly
ideas about what I do not want to eat. What is it with bread
stuffing? It’s always dry and lumpy and bland. I just don’t get it.
Of course, I don’t normally eat bread, either.
I usually try to make dishes that are
in-season and echo traditional Thanksgiving dishes but with an Asian
flair, like a shitake mushroom gravy, a Thai-style butternut squash
curry, and a sticky rice stuffing.
This year, I thought I would try to make
more western-style food, but so far everything’s been falling flat.
I was going to make a cornbread-chestnut-squash stuffing, but the
cornbread I made (two days in advance, like the recipe says), smells
like fish for some reason. I was also going to make sweet potato
medallions—sweet potatoes with maple syrup glaze on top, but at the
last minute, I could not bring myself to use maple syrup and glazed
them with soy sauce instead.
My husband just laughs at my trauma, "Why
are you bothering with western food? Just make whatever you want."
"But it’s Thanksgiving. You’re supposed
to have Thanksgiving food—squash and sweet potatoes and stuffing."
"Why? You don’t like any of those things
anyways. Why not make something you like, something that’s good?"
My Aunt Lily calls and asks if I know
about the Thanksgiving dinner being held at Weber’s Inn, a local
hotel. When I say no, she asks me what I am going to cook. Her two
sons and their families are coming into town and she was going to
take them out somewhere so they could have a turkey dinner, but both
her sons said that they would rather have her dumplings and steamed
buns.
So now I am back at the beginning. What
to make for Thanksgiving? Here are some ideas of Thanksgiving-style
dishes with an Asian flair to spark your cooking talents. Write in
and let us know what you are making this year! Send us your recipes
too! I’ve got to go cook now.
Turkey equivalent:
- Roast Turkey glazed in teriyaki
sauce
- Roast duck with sticky rice stuffing
- Steamed chicken with ginger or five
spice powder
- Steamed or grilled fish (you can
never go wrong with a fish)
Stuffing equivalent:
- Chinese Sticky rice stuffing with
shitake mushrooms and pine nuts
- Sushi rice
- Indonesian Nasi Kuning—yellow
turmeric rice cooked with coconut milk
- Various kinds of Indian-style pullao
with vegetables, mushrooms, raisins, or saffron
Soup:
- Sweet corn soup
- Corn Lemongrass soup
- Potatoes and Sweet Potatoes:
- Sweet potato tempura
- Sweet potato medallions with soy
sauce
- Ming Tsai’s gingered sweet potatoes
- Mashed potatoes with oil and garlic
- Shitake mushroom gravy
- Nepali-style potato and cauliflower
curry
- Squash and beans and peas:
- Butternut squash nori rolls (how
could anyone say no to sushi?)
- Thai-style butternut squash curry
with coconut milk
- Indian-style garbanzo bean curry
garnished with fresh mint
- Stir fried green beans with slivered
almonds or cashews
- Stir fried green beans with pressed
tofu or marinated tempeh
- Stir fried pea sprouts (better than
the frozen peas out of the box)
Dessert:
- Halupia—Hawaiian coconut custard
- Sangkaya Fak Thong or Thai Pumpkin
Custard—coconut custard baked in a sweet pumpkin
- Sweet walnut soup
- Sweet potato mochi rolled in grated
coconut
- Sweet potato nian gao (Chinese new
year’s cake)
- Anything with persimmons and
pomegranates
- Roasted chestnuts
And what to do with the leftover turkey?
Instead of the dreaded turkey sandwiches…
- You know that "Oriental Salad" with
shredded chicken, cabbage, and raw ramen noodles—try it with
turkey!
- Laotian Turkey Lap--shredded turkey
salad with lime, cilantro, fish sauce, roasted rice
- Stuff leftover turkey into steamed
buns
- Wrap leftover turkey into mu shu
skins with some leftover vegetables and hoisin sauce
- Add shredded leftover turkey to
fried rice or fried noodles or noodle soup
Sangkaya Fak Thong or Thai
Pumpkin Custard
Recipe courtesy of Linh Song’s mom, Mam
Non Organization (http://www.mamnon.org/)
- 4 eggs
- 1 c. sugar
- 1 c. coconut cream
- 1/8 c. coconut milk
- 2 tsp. flour
- 2 small pie pumpkins
- 4 T. sugar
- 1 tsp. pandan extract essence
Scrub the pumpkins, carve the top off
into a star-shape, empty seeds and clean out the "threads."
Take a knife or fork and spear the inside with small holes and then
spread 2 T. of sugar inside each pumpkin. Set aside to
let it "soak" in.
To prepare custard, mix the eggs and
sugar until dissolved. Add coconut cream, mix.
In separate bowl, mix coconut milk and
flour until dissolved. Add this to the egg mixture. Pour
into the pumpkins, leaving an inch space before the top since the
custard expands. Steam the pumpkins for 40 minutes in a double
broiler, add the pandan extract to the water. Be sure to add
the tops to the side of the pumpkins (so you can shut the pot lid).
Let it set in the refrigerator.
To serve slice into wedges so that you
can see a half-circle of custard and thin rim of pumpkin. Delicious!
Related Readings by Frances Kai-Hwa Wang
Creating Our Own Thanksgiving, Asian American-style
Thanksgiving dinner doesn't have to be soft, bland and
beige, you know...
An Asian-American
Thanksgiving—Recipe Ideas
Plus, Sangkaya Fak Thong (Thai Pumpkin Custard) courtesy of Linh
Song
Thanksgiving and Other
Harvest Season Books for Kids
APA books that share themes of
giving thanks, family, and food
The Chinese Mid-Autumn Festival
The Chinese Mid-Autumn
Festival is a harvest festival celebrated on the night of the full
moon with moon cakes, lanterns, and the Story of Chang-E, the Moon
Lady.
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