Podcasts by Eat Drink Asia
Eat Drink Asia is an award-winning podcast by the South China Morning Post that deep dives into the forgotten history of some of Asia's most popular dishes that have gone global. Discover the human story behind some of Asia's most loved foods, drinks and condiments with SCMP journalists, as they speak with chefs, restaurateurs and food experts from across the region.
Further podcasts by South China Morning Post
Podcast on the topic Essen
All episodes
Fresh‘Korea wave’brewing with instant coffee mixes from 2023-11-15T02:30:23
South Korean exports of coffee mixes and instant coffee sticks have risen as the world’s K-drama fans react to seeing the products featured on TV series such as Moving, Vincenzo and My Mister. This...
Listen
The dim sum dishes facing‘extinction’in Hong Kong from 2023-10-29T07:00:15
Classic dishes including siu mai and har gow can be found in nearly every dim sum restaurant around the world. But where can you find quail egg siu mai, soup dumplings and preserved sausage buns? J...
Listen
Sara Lee pound cake, a staple for the Asian diaspora, crumbles after 50 years from 2023-10-20T10:09:31
Frozen Sara Lee pound cakes could soon become harder for fans to find after the Australia-based manufacturer went into voluntary administration on October 17, 2023. Post deputy culture editor Charm...
Listen
Century egg: misunderstood snack a Chinese favourite for 500 years from 2023-09-17T07:00:21
Century eggs are often portrayed in the West with a tinge of disgust, but Charmaine Mok and Sam Evans are on a mission to demystify the traditional Chinese snack. Post reporter Lisa Cam also joins ...
Listen
Understanding 'wok hei', the breath of the wok from 2023-06-30T09:10:39
Wok hei is what differentiates an ordinary stir-fried dish from a perfect one. Hosts Charmaine Mok and Sam Evans speak with Post reporter Lisa Cam to discuss the art and science behind wok hei, and...
Listen
The story of dumplings: how a traditional Chinese medicine cure went global from 2022-02-04T15:38:56
An SCMP archive special: the story of dumplings is the story of the globalisation of Chinese cuisine - take the journey from Beijing to Shanghai, Hong Kong and down the ancient Silk Road to discove...
Listen
The great Hainanese chicken rice debate: Singapore vs Malaysia from 2021-02-10T10:10:14
Is this poached chicken dish served with various condiments originally from Singapore or Malaysia? It's a question that stirs up quite a debate between these two countries where eating and criticis...
Listen
Japanese tempura, its Portugese origins and how it became high culinary art from 2021-01-04T10:55:13
Tempura is an ubiquitous Japanese dish, with seafood or vegetables coated in batter and deep-fried. But did you know that tempura originated in Portugal? Bernice and Alkira trace its origins back t...
Listen
How tofu made its way to the West from 2020-11-06T08:05:18
Before plant-based meats and oat milk there was tofu. It's a popular staple in Asian cooking that was first written about before the Sung dynasty in 960 AD. Bernice Chan and Alkira Reinfrank look a...
Listen
Hong Kong egg tarts and their medieval English origins from 2020-09-23T09:30:06
Cantonese egg tarts are hard to resist with their silky egg custard filling and flaky pastry crust. Found in bakeries and eaten at the end of dim sum, the egg tart is a sentimental dessert in Hong ...
Listen
Xiaolongbao: how soup dumplings went global from 2020-08-12T07:00:21
Xiaolongbao - or soup dumplings as they are known in the West - are delicate parcels of pork and broth that are served piping hot in a bamboo steamer. In this episode Alkira Reinfrank and Bernice C...
Listen
The story behind Oscar-winning film Parasite’s ram-don noodles from 2020-06-15T11:50:08
Jjapaguri, or ram-don, as it is known in the Academy award-winning movie Parasite, is a super easy and cheap dish that simply mixes two kinds of instant noodles together. In this episode of Eat Dri...
Listen
Quarantine Cooking: Instant noodle okonomiyaki from 2020-06-08T12:00:08
Vicky Cheng, chef and owner of one-Michelin-starred VEA tells us how to turn a humble pack of instant noodles to a glorious okonomiyaki— a classic Japanese pancake.
Listen
It’s butter chicken—not curry from 2020-05-22T13:05:16
As popular and ubiquitous as curry is around the world, the word‘curry’doesn’t actually exist in India. In this episode we look into butter chicken–not curry–a dish that balances the smokiness of t...
Listen
Quarantine Cooking: Coconut fish stew from 2020-04-30T15:25:08
This is a quick coconut fish stew recipe that will make you look like the chef of the house. It's shared by chef Palash Mitra, who helms the Michelin-starred restaurant New Punjab Club in Hong Kong...
Listen
Quarantine Cooking: French onion instant noodle soup from 2020-04-22T11:10:14
Listen to top chefs in Hong Kong describe how they cook their favourite comfort dishes at home. Today's recipe from chef Barry Quek only requires three ingredients: instant noodles, an onion, and a...
Listen
KFC vs KFC from 2019-12-06T14:45
When it comes to fried chicken, almost every country has their own take on it.The Philippines has Jollibee, South Africa has Nando’s, Japan has Karaage... but no country has made the competition mo...
Listen
Banh mi: where Vietnamese tradition and French colonialism collide from 2019-10-25T12:52:39
The dish was born in a time when Vietnamese weren’t even allowed access to wheat flour, making it hard to imagine the sandwich would become world famous.
Listen
All about that Spam from 2019-09-27T10:12:19
American icon became popular during the war and managed to stick around.Your junk email is named after the canned meat, by the way.
Listen
Mooncakes then and now from 2019-08-30T13:18:51
We tried KFC’s spicy chicken mooncakes so you don’t have to.From the end of the Yuan Dynasty to modern Hong Kong, mooncakes have been the bearers of political messages.
Listen
The surprising history of Sichuan cuisine from 2019-07-26T15:19:58
Bernice Chan and Alkira Reinfrank analyse the cultural appropriation, and fascinating history, of Sichuan cuisine. They delve into the chemistry of the Sichuan pepper and unpack the components of a...
Listen
Sushi did not originate in Japan: how raw fish and rice became a world favourite from 2019-06-27T17:41:33
It turns out that early sushi was not about rice. And it originated from the Mekong, not Japan.
Listen
Hot facts about Sriracha sauce, and why you’re saying it wrong from 2019-05-24T11:06:21
Plot twist: The rooster sauce was created by a Vietnamese refugee, but is American-made, and Thai-inspired.
Listen
History of pad Thai: how the stir-fried noodle dish was invented by the Thai government from 2019-04-27T18:00:17
The complex origin and nationalist agenda behind the iconic Thai noodle dish.
Listen
Your ultimate guide to dim sum from 2019-03-30T12:00:10
A journey into the history and culture of dim sum–why it’s served on trolleys, what the path to becoming a dim sum chef is like, and the painstaking work behind a simple har gau.
Listen
How bubble tea was invented and became a global phenomenon from 2019-02-22T17:44:22
Where did bubble tea begin - and why has it become so popular - we deep dive into this chewy drink made for Instagram.
Listen
Hong Kong's Michelin stars, Italian food and sake from 2018-12-17T13:00
Michelin announcement sees fine dining French restaurant Caprice get back its third star, and the British chef gives us some quick dinner solutions.
Listen
Bartender Jeff Bell and chef Gray Kunz from 2018-11-16T00:00:15
An in-depth chat with career bartender (and 2017 American Bartender of the Year) Jeff Bell from the famous PDT bar in New York, upon opening the Hong Kong edition of PDT at the Mandarin Oriental; a...
Listen
Gordon Ramsay in conversation from 2018-10-20T00:00:15
Sit down with Bernice Chan and Alkira Reinfrank for an in-depth chat with Gordon Ramsay, perhaps better known as the profane, short-tempered TV chef on reality programs like Hell's Kitchen, MasterC...
Listen
Chicken feet, tripe, Chinese tea and chef Julien Royer from 2018-10-20T00:00
Bernice Chan and Alkira Reinfrank talk about what Anthony Bourdainmeant to Hong Kong and Asia; sample Cantonese favourites chicken feet and tripe; talk with a Chinese tea sommelier, drink milk tea ...
Listen
Koreatown, Israeli food at Francis and cart noodles from 2018-10-20T00:00
In this episode Bernice Chan and Alkira Reinfrank visit Hong Kong's own 'Koreatown' and taste local versions of classic Korean street food; talk about the pressures of running the hottest restauran...
Listen