Basil - You'll no doubt find more than one variety of basil at the supermarket. The Asian variety is more pungent and stronger with an anise-like taste than either the French or Italian varieties. You can, however, use any of the three with an Asian recipe. But use only fresh basil, never dried.
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Bean sauces - Bean sauces (including brown bean sauce, brown bean paste and yellow bean sauce) are made from soybeans, flour, salt and water, and come in bottles or tins. If you use a tinned variety, transfer the bean sauce to a glass jar. It'll keep in a refrigerator that way almost indefinently.
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Bok choy - In the old days, this was called Chinese cabbage. Napa cabbage can be substituted.
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Cardamom - A member of the ginger family, cardamom is one the world's most expensive spices. It is grown in India and Sri Lanka. The dried seeds can be either black or brown in color and, ground or whole, are found as an ingredient in many curries.
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Chili peppers - They come in a variety of colors and strengths. The most common kinds used (primarily) in SE Asian cuisine are capsicum chilies (mild), red chilies (medium), green chilies (moderately hot), and bird's eye chilies (hot!). Remember: the seeds are what provide the 'heat' in chili peppers. When chopping, grinding or cleaning, always use caution; never rub your eyes!
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Chili powder - Asian chili powder is different from Mexican chili powder (which is mostly ground cummin), and is much hotter. But I've used Mexican chili powder-- the kind found most often on supermarket spice shelves-- without any trouble.
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Chili sauce - Sometimes, in the US, a meat relish will be called chili sauce. That isn't what you want in your Asian pantry. Instead, look for both the Chinese and SE Asian varieties and keep both on hand (don't confuse these, either, with sambal). Tabasco sauce could be used in a pinch.
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Cinnamon - Native to Sri Lanka, you should buy cinnamon sticks rather than ground cinnamon, if only because the ground variety loses it flavor faster.
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Cooking oils - See "Oils".
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Corn starch - I've seen this also called corn flour. Corn starch is the white powder that is used as a thickening agent in many Asian sauces. Do not confuse this with corn meal, yellow and gritty, that is used to make breads or to crisp pizza crusts. Tapioca starch can also be used as a substitute for corn starch.
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Curry powder
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Cutlery - A sharp cleaver is a must. Serrated-edge knives don't have many uses in Asian cooking, so plan to acquire a set of good straight-edge cutlery instead. You'll be doing a lot of chopping, slicing and dicing (and 'butterflying' shrimp, too).
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Cilantro - Also known as Chinese parsley or coriander. The plant's crushed, dried seeds are the main ingredient in curry powder. The fresh leaves are found in recipes from Thailand, Myanmar, India, Vietnam and China, where it is also known as 'fragrant green'.
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Dashi - Dashi is made from bonito (dried fish) flakes and is used primarily as a rich fish stock in Japanese cooking. A quick way to make dashi is to use hon-dashi, a granulated product (1 Tbs added to 1 cup boiling water makes 1 cup of dashi). Otherwise, you'll be boiling and straining fish flakes all day.
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Fermented bean curd - See "Tofu".
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Garam masala - A mixture of ground spices used in a lot of Indian cooking. You can make your own or buy a prepared blend in stores.
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Garlic - Garlic is a member of the onion family and is a vital ingredient in Asian cooking, used not only for its flavoring but also its health-giving properties. (An Asian culture or two, though, believe that garlic inflames 'baser' passions.) Learn to mince or grate garlic well; learn, too, to never overcook it.
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Ghee - Clarified butter, pure butter fat without any milk solids. It can be heated to a higher temperature than regular butter without burning.
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Ginger - A member of the rhizome family. Use only fresh ginger root; powdered ginger's flavor is quite different. To preserve fresh ginger for long periods of time, scrape the skin from the ginger root, divide into sections, then pack into a clean, dried jar. Pour a dry sherry into the jar to completely cover the ginger. Cover tightly and store in the refrigerator.
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Hoisin sauce See also Sauces. - Made from soy beans, garlic and spices, it is a sweet, spicy, and thick sauce, and keeps indefinently in a covered jar or bottle.
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Lemon grass - A tall grass with sharp edges. Its bulbous base is used to impart a lemony flavor to curries. Best used when fresh, but dried lemon grass can also be used. Substitute 12 dried strips for one fresh stem, or substitute 2 strips of very thinly peeled lemon rind.
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Mirin - A sweetened Japanese rice wine (sake). Mirin imparts, without adding sugar, a subtle sweetness to stocks and sauces. A dry sherry can be substituted.
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Miso - Fermented bean paste. Japanese thick soups are mostly based on miso, which comes in white, red and brown colors. One (1) Tbs of miso paste to 1 cup hot water is the standard measure.
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Mushrooms - They can be bought fresh or dried. Dried black Chinese mushrooms (doong gwoo) impart a much more earthy taste than their Japanese shittake counterpart. Soak in a bowl of warm water for 15-20 minutes before slicing and cooking. Other common varieties of fresh or canned Asian mushrooms include STRAW MUSHROOMS (nameko) and WOOD FUNGUS (kikurage). SILVER FUNGUS is very rare, prized for its appearance and crunchy texture, and used only for festive occasions.
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Noodles - I still get confused by all the different varieties of noodles that can be used in Asian cooking. Japanese noodles are different from Chinese noodles, and are more often found in soups: SOBA are thin, buckwheat noodles; SOMEN(or RAMEN) are thin, white noodles made from wheat flour; UDON are thick wheat flour noodles. (I use UDON for Japanese fried noodles (yakisoba/yakiudon), too. HARUSAME (Chinese equivalent = FEN SZU or FUN SEE) are fine noodles that become translucent when soaked or boiled, and work well for salads. Similar to harusame are SHIRATAKI, which are used in sukiyaki. Chinese noodles include: DAHN MIN, egg noodles made from wheat flour that are sold in packets of 7 or 8 bundles; HO FUN are rice noodles that come in varying thicknesses; MI FUN, a rice vermicelli, are thin strands that can be used in soups, or deep-fried and used as bed for Cantonese chow mein or hot hors d'oeuvres; FUN SEE are transparent noodles, also known as "spring rain noodles"; E MIN are soft, fried noodles that are most often found in stir-fried dishes; CHOW MIN (né MEIN) are first boiled, drained and dried, then deep-fried.
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Oils - Cooking oil - I prefer PEANUT OIL for frying. It has a high smoking point and is quite neutral in taste. Seasoning oils - A little bit of HOT CHILI OIL goes a l-o-n-g way. And I use SESAME OIL, mixed with peanut oil, for wok stir-frying or braising.
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Rice - Known as fan in Chinese and gohan in Japanese, rice is considered the staple grain of Asia. (Ironically, there is actually more wheat than rice grown in China.) There are many varieties of rice; learn the differences between long-, medium-, and short-grained rice. Short-grained rice, when washed of starch before boiling, becomes very 'sticky'; medium-grain rice, such as Thai jasmine rice, will clump up nicely, too, after boiling. There isn't any reason to use a long-grain rice in Asian cooking unless it's the only variety you have available. Avoid 'converted' rice at all costs. Cooking - There are a large number of rice cookers on the market but you can also use a saucepan for cooking rice. Ideally, the pan should be teflon coated (a la T-Fal©) and conduct heat evenly so as to avoid burning the rice.
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Rice flour - Wheat flour cannot be substituted. Use rice flour to create a lighter texture for deep-frying batters. Ground rice can also be used for batters and other mixtures, and will result in a crisper texture.
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Rice wine - Both Japanese (sake) and Chinese (shaoxing) varieties abound and can be used interchangeably (though I use sake for Japanese recipes and shaoxing for Chinese recipes). If you can't find rice wine, you can substitute a dry sherry or dry white wine. I don't know of any non-alcholic rice wines; if alcohol is not recommended for your diet, you should substitute a non-alcoholic dry white wine or even apple juice (but not cider) for rice wine.
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Saffron - Undoubtedly the world's most expensive spice. The threads are deep-orange in color and have a strong perfume. Turmeric is sometimes marketed as "Indian saffron," but is not the same as the real thing.
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Salts (incl. MSG) - I use common table salt most of the time, but you can also use sea salt or kosher salt for some recipes. MSG (monosodium glutamate) is actually an extract from grains and vegetables and is tasteless, but acts as a catalyst to enhance flavors. If you're using fresh ingredients and good seasonings, there isn't any real reason to use MSG. However, I do keep some MSG-coated salt in my pantry to duplicate some of those well-known restaurant flavors.
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Sauces - Seasoning sauces - the backbone of Asian cuisine. No pantry should be without soy sauce, oyster sauce, hoisin sauce and fish sauce (nuoc nam or nam pla). SOY SAUCE comes in both dark and light varieties. The former is not as salty as the latter but does have a much stronger flavor. You can keep both on hand, but will find that you use light soy sauce much more often. TAMARI SAUCE can be substituted for soy sauce. Blended sauces - Learn to make TERIYAKI SAUCE. It's good as a marinade or sauce ingredient for meats and vegetables.
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Seasoning oils - See "Oils".
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Seaweed - A good source of natural salt, seaweed is most often used in Japanese cuisine. Don't confuse the different varieties. NORI, blueish-green in color, comes in sheets or large flakes, and is used for sushi; KOMBU, a dried kelp that comes in broad grayish-black ribbons, is used for flavoring dashi and sushi rice, and can also be pickled for a relish; HIJIKI is a dried seaweed used as a vegetable in soups. It must be soaked before cooking. WAKAME is another dried seaweed that is soaked but used for salads, soups or vinegared relishes.
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Spices - Always have on hand Curry Powder, 5-spice Powder, Ground Clove, Ground Cardamon, Ground Cinnamon, Cayenne Pepper, Chili Powder, Ground Coriander, Nutmeg, Ground Turmeric, Ground Cumin and both White & Black Ground Pepper. I also keep sesame and carraway seeds around, too.
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Star anise - It's the 8-pointed fruit of an evergreen native to China, and is essential to good Chinese and SE Asian cuisine.
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Tofu - Tofu is made from fermented soy bean curd. Originally from China, tofu has been used in Japanese cooking for a thousand years. Not only is tofu low in fat and high in protein, it is cholesterol free, versatile, and inexpensive. There are hundreds, if not thousands, of ways to prepare tofu as part of a vegan diet or in combination with vegetables and meat.
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Vinegar - Do not use Western vinegars (apple cider vinegar, et al.); use only rice wine vinegar for Asian cooking. There are almost as many varieties of rice wine vinegar as there are rice wine. Chinese vinegars tend to be darker in color and stronger tasting than the clear Japanese variety. Keep some of both on hand. You'll learn over time which one is appropriate for a particular recipe (e.g. use Chinese rice wine vinegar for hot 'n sour soup).
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Wasabi - This is different from Japanese mustard and is a pungent green horseradish-like sea vegetable used most often with sushi. It comes packaged in powdered and dried form (just add water to reconstitute it), but I'm also seeing it packaged wet in plastic tubes at Asian food markets.
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Wines - Rice wine (either sake or shaoxing) is preferred. But you can easily substitute dry sherry or a dry white wine (and sometimes brandy) if you can't find the real thing.
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Wok - I use three kinds ... a large, heavy-duty wok for deep-frying and stir-frying large quantities of food; a smaller, hammered, handled wok for everyday stir-frying and steaming; and an electric wok that works wel for something like imperial fondue (steamboat) or sukiyaki. If you have room for only one wok in your pantry, buy a hammered wok (and large bamboo steamer). The hammered sides are great for holding vegetables in place so they don't become soggy if you use the wok for steaming with the wok cover on.
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Yogurt - Use only the unflavored kind.
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