The Steamy Kitchen Cookbook: 101 Asian Recipes Simple Enough for Tonight's Dinner [Hardcover]

Jaden Hair (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 10, 2009

"What am I going to cook for dinner tonight?" It's a common lament for everyone, and the answer too often is something unhealthy, unappealing, or both in the form of expensive take-out. Jaden Hair comes to the rescue in The Steamy Kitchen Cookbook, a fantastic new cookbook stuffed with dozens upon dozens of foolproof Asian recipes that are quick and easy to do—all in time for tonight's supper!

Author and food blogger, Jaden Hair (steamykitchen.com) reveals her secret ingredient to create take-out favorite Broccoli Beef, shows you step-by-step in photos how to roll perfect Vietnamese Spring Rolls, how to make Thai Curry in less time than it takes to drive to a restaurant and teaches how, with only three main ingredients, you can fry up the crowd-favorite Firecracker Shrimp. With her irresistible sense of humor and accessible style, Jaden will have you running into your kitchen to start cooking!

Editorial Reviews

Review

"I loved it and so did my girls! So easy, so quick— soooo good. Thank you, Jaden, for your beautiful cookbook! I love it."—Ree Drummond, author of The Pioneer Woman Cooks

"Jaden Hair—in print, on television, on SteamyKitchen.com and in her own steamy kitchen—is a force of nature, and this book captures that exuberant spirit with compelling recipes and great techniques on a wide range of Asian dishes."
—Michael Ruhlman, author of The Soul of a Chef and Ratio: The Simple Codes Behind the Craft of Everyday Cooking

"Jaden Hair delivers beautiful, simple and delicious food that will bring family and friends to your table. She is the real deal who learned from the best, her mom."
—Martin Yan, Chef and host of Yan Can Cook

"Jaden has great energy and a fantastic spirit, and that comes through in her beautiful food photography and recipes in "Steamy Kitchen." You'll love having her teach you the joys of Asian home cooking."
—Ming Tsai, host/executive producer of Simply Ming and chef/owner of Blue Ginger

"Jaden Hair speaks passionately to a new audience of Asian food enthusiasts, luring them into the Steamy Kitchen with her helpful hints and exciting recipes."
—Andrea Nguyen, author of Into the Vietnamese Kitchen and Asian Dumplings

"Steamy Kitchen is one of the most popular sites at www.food.alltop.com. This book is positively orgasmic."
—Guy Kawasaki, founder of www.Alltop.com; author of Rules for Revolutionaries and Reality Check

"If you never have the pleasure of meeting Jaden in person, you most certainly get to know her through this book, written in her unique conversational style, a gorgeous kitchen journal that exudes her zest for life and all things delicious. It's like one big happy dance."
—Kim O'Donnel, "A Mighty Appetite," The Washington Post

About the Author

Jaden Hair is a food writer and up-and-coming television star who teaches Asian cooking. She authors one of the world's top rated and trafficked food blogs, steamykitchen.com and appears regularly on live spots on Tampa Bay's CBS (WFLA),Sarasota's ABC (WWSB) and has a regular bi-monthly segment on the syndicated show "Daytime." Jaden lives in Florida with her family.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 160 pages
• Publisher: Tuttle Publishing; Hardcover with Jacket edition (October 10, 2009)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0804840288
• ISBN-13: 978-0804840286
• Product Dimensions: 10.3 x 9.4 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (50 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #12,856 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #25 in Books > Cookbooks, Food & Wine > Regional & International > Asian

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

51 of 53 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars best cookbook i own, February 8, 2010

By 

faye bernoulli (Philadelphia, PA) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: The Steamy Kitchen Cookbook: 101 Asian Recipes Simple Enough for Tonight's Dinner (Hardcover)

I love buying cookbooks. I love the pictures, the recipes, and trying new things. However, not many cookbooks have appealed to me because of their long, complicated recipes, so most of the time, these lovely cookbooks end up sitting on my shelf collecting dust.

A good friend of mine got me this for Christmas, and I literally jumped for joy when I opened the package. Jaden is one of my favorite food bloggers, and I couldn't wait to try out her new recipes.

I feel like she gets it-- who wants to spend 8 hours at work, only to come home and spend another 3 hours on dinner after stopping by the grocery to buy 50 things you didn't have and are only going to use once? She gets that I need dinner now, I want it good, and I want it to only LOOK like I spent a lot of time on it. This book is perfect. Her recipes are fresh, fun, and very simple. I've made some good stuff in a dinky studio kitchen (with no oven), and my husband is happy after a long day at pharmacy school. I HIGHLY recommend it, even for your kitchen-fearing friends!

I also bought this book for a friend of mine who lives in Florida. I told her no excuses about not being to cook Asian food; if Jaden can do it, she can!

27 of 27 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Outstanding Cookbook for Pros and the Kitchen Challenged!, December 19, 2010

By 

G. Z. (Seneca Falls, NY) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: The Steamy Kitchen Cookbook: 101 Asian Recipes Simple Enough for Tonight's Dinner (Hardcover)

This is my first review even after years and thousands of dollars in purchases on Amazon. I felt I owed it to the author after finally feeling thrilled with a cookbook purchase.

As an aspiring "home chef" without talent or experience, I've bought dozens of cookbooks hoping to find one that would enable me to create cuisine, not just mundane meals. Sadly, I have been let down countless times. Sure, my lack of cooking skills puts me at a huge disadvantage, but I'm not buying complex books. I tried to stick with cookbooks that focused on the novice. In the end, my dishes looked nothing like the photos, tasted nothing like the description, and left me with little more than dirty dishes and buyer's remorse.

The Steamy Kitchen Cookbook changed that for me. I've now cooked six meals from within these pages and every single one of them left me literally smiling at first bite. Just like one of those corny food commercials. :) Here's why:

1. The ingredients were all found at my local supermarket...unlike books that sent me to far away places in search of obscure spices that I'd never use again.

2. The book was fun to read, kept my attention, and gave me insight like no other cookbook had given me in the past. Most just started right in with the recipes, leaving me with more questions than answers. Unlike the Steamy Kitchen, they focused on the "how" without ever addressing the "why".

3. The steps were easy to follow, the dishes easy to prepare, and the end result actually matched the photos. The other cookbooks I bought should have come with a sous chef because I was way out of my element. I never realized how inadequate they were until I read and followed this book.

4. The flavors were solid, delicious, and spot-on. I couldn't believe I made these meals. They seemed complex to the taste but they were actually quite easy to make. I wasn't the only one in our family raving about the food I cooked. If you knew me, you'd know how incredible that is.

The Scallops & Fruit Salsa...amazing. The Salmon with Cucumber Relish...amazing (I used her 250-degree slow-cook method instead of steaming). The Crab Cakes...best I have EVER tasted. I could go on and on. And I will, in my kitchen, until I've cooked every meal in the book.

If you are hesitant to purchase this book...don't be. Even if you actually ARE a chef, unlike me, you'll find the dishes and flavors to be divine. But if you're a hazard waiting to happen in the kitchen, like me, this book will literally motivate you to keep trying.

Yeah...it's that good.

34 of 40 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A real cookbook for home cooks, October 15, 2009

By 

Kien Goh "Kien Goh" (Pacifica, CA United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Steamy Kitchen Cookbook: 101 Asian Recipes Simple Enough for Tonight's Dinner (Hardcover)

I received this highly-anticipated cookbook yesterday afternoon and was very happy to find out that it exceeds all my expectations. This cookbook is real. It's not perfect but it is friendly and accessible. Reading through the headnote of the recipes, I feel like a dear friend is teaching me how to cook and how to eat better. There is nothing pretentious about it, and that alone makes this cookbook unique and appealing.

Most of the cookbooks out in the market are glorified by food stylists and food photographers--this is not a bad thing because cookbooks are meant to appeal to the potential readers at first sight, but they tend to be too perfect and "cold." The recipes are almost too pretty for everyday cooking. The author of this book learned how to take food photography herself and all the photos in the cookbook was done by her. As a result, it really makes me want to rush to the kitchen and start cooking.

All in all though, I think this is a great cookbook done in a very casual "conversational" style with real-life food photography and everyday Asian recipes.