Get a taste of New York, South Korea, Bangkok, Vietnam and Singapore without having to take a single step outside of your own kitchen!
If there’s one thing this quarantine has taught all of us, it’s that we can cook—or at least follow recipes enough to create edible meals. Guess what? If you can at least do the latter, then you can definitely recreate some of the most famous dishes from the world’s favorite travel destinations. And no, we’re not talking about random pad thai or ramen (although those are amazing too!). What we have here is a list of recipes hacking iconic food from around the world; yes, the ones that are destinations in their own rights.
Thank heavens for content creators who spend time, effort, and resources to create videos like this!
Check out the full list below:
Levain Bakery Chocolate Chip and Walnut Cookies from New York
Crispy on the outside, chewy and gooey on the inside with generous amounts of dark chocolate and walnuts. These cookies are always on “Best of New York” lists and for good reasons—they are seriously good. But did you know that you can create them at home? Among all the recipes on the web, we think Joshua Weismman’s really hit the mark. Watch it here.
Ichiran Tonkotsu Ramen from Japan
Ichiran is the first-ever establishment selling ramen to receive a Michelin Star. It has 70 chains all over Japan and has been long considered as a must-visit place for tourists. Among their many tasty offerings, Ichiran is most famous for their signature Tonkotsu Ramen, which according to some is the very embodiment of umami. Chef Motoki Matsunaga who is the owner and head chef of the Menroku Group, has created a way to replicate Ichiran’s secret recipe and you can learn about it here.
Tim Ho Wan’s Michelin-Starred Pork Buns from Hong Kong
Hong Kong is undoubtedly one of the world’s culinary capitals. I mean, you have some of the most amazing bao places, Cantonese restaurants, and Japanese bars packed in that one tiny city. One of the most internationally famous joints to come from Hong Kong is Tim Ho Wan—a casual dining restaurant that has a couple of Michelin Stars under its belt. And among the many things it offers, none is more famous than the pork buns. Toasty, semi-sweet bread filled with a savory pork filling. What can be better, right? Pepper.ph, a Filipino food publication has made an easy hack that promises to provide the same experience. And you can find that here.
Milk Bar Crack Pie from New York
New York’s Milk Bar is known for many things. Among them are their Birthday Cake, Compost Cookie, and Crack Pie, which essentially is made of toasted oat cookie crust and a gooey butter filling. Christina Tosi’s original recipe was hacked by Jamie Tracey, who learned about the famous chef just a day prior to making the pie. In his first video, Jamie made mistakes, so he made another one, which is so much clearer and professional-looking. You can watch it here.
Jay Fai’s Giant Crab Omelet from Bangkok
Jay Fai is a Michelin-Starred street food stall-owner in Bangkok who is most famous for her crab omelet (kai jeow pu). There is such a big demand to eat at her small establishment that you need to book at least three months in advance just to be guaranteed a seat. Darren Aorn, a food vlogger based in Thailand made a video of how to prepare this dish with his Thai wife. You can watch it here.
Have restaurant favorites you’d wish people to try and hack? Or perhaps you have other food topics you’d like us to cover? We’d like to know about them! Comment your suggestions below.
