The Culinary Institute of America

When we think of molecular gastronomy, we usually picture white tablecloths and tasting menus. But why should fine dining have all the fun? Andrew Hunter, Corporate Chef for Kikkoman USA, breaks down the fundamentals of working with agar agar to create vibrant, flavor-packed spheres that can elevate any menu—from casual concepts to upscale kitchens. Step-by-step, he demonstrates how to transform Kikkoman sauces into “flavor bubbles.” Watch as he creates: Salmon Tataki with Citrus Seasoned Ponzu Butter Flavor Bubbles Italian Meringue with Yuzu Ponzu & Marshmallow Flavor Bubbles Blueberry Seltzer & Soymilk Foam with Blueberry Teriyaki Flavor Bubbles Then we head to Encinitas, CA, where Evan Gonzales, Kikkoman Kitchen Cabinet Chef and chef at AToN Center, shares how he applies the technique in a real-world setting—topping Duck Carnitas Tacos with spheres made from duck broth and Kikkoman Orange Sauce. For more information and recipe, go to https://kikkomanusa.com/foodservice/

Bo Songvisava and Dylan Jones, own and operate Bo.lan, a restaurant in Bangkok's Thong Lo neighborhood. Bo Songvisava feels this Nam Prik Makheau, or eggplant relish, best represents Thailand because every region of the country has its own special version. The relish is intensely pungent and usually enjoyed with vegetables and rice. This dish also showcases the incredible diversity of Thai eggplant varieties! Watch the full series at: https://www.plantforwardkitchen.org/southeast-asia

Gaeng som, or Thai sour curry with fish is a water-based, sour and spicy Thai curry, often described as a soup, typically featuring seafood and vegetables. It's known for its distinct sourness from tamarind, and incorporates fish, Thai morning glory, pumpkin, and sliced omelet. This type of curry uses broth rather than coconut milk as the base. Bo Songvisava and Dylan Jones, own and operate Bo.lan, a restaurant in Bangkok's Thong Lo neighborhood. Watch the full series at: https://www.plantforwardkitchen.org/southeast-asia

Bo Songvisava and Dylan Jones, own and operate Bo.lan, a restaurant in Bangkok's Thong Lo neighborhood. They talk about the importance of working with sustainable produce and the deeply rooted traditions of plant-forward cooking in Thai cuisine. Watch the full series at: https://www.plantforwardkitchen.org/southeast-asia

Banana blossoms don't taste like bananas. They have a mild, slightly sweet, and sometimes nutty flavor, and can be eaten raw or cooked. Chef Ian Kittichai at Cuisine Concepts Kitchen in Bangkok, Thailand, shows us how to make a Thai banana blossom salad topped with chopped peanuts and shredded coconut. Watch the full series at: https://www.plantforwardkitchen.org/southeast-asia

Chef Ian Kittichai at Cuisine Concepts Kitchen in Bangkok, Thailand, shows us how to make a classic satay sauce. Spicy, sweet, rich, and creamy, Thai peanut sauce can be enjoyed with satay, noodles, or as a dipping sauce for fried tofu skins, like Chef Ian shows us here. Watch the full series at: https://www.plantforwardkitchen.org/southeast-asia

Chef Ian Kittichai at Cuisine Concepts Kitchen in Bangkok, Thailand shows us how he makes nam makua, which means eggplant relish or dip. This northern Thai dish is made by pounding grilled eggplant, shallots, and chilies in a mortar and pestle along with some palm sugar and fish sauce. The relish is served with fried tofu skins, tapioca crackers, and cucumbers for dipping. Thai relishes, known as nam prik, are typically eaten as a side dish with steamed rice, or as a topping for grilled meats or vegetables. Watch the full series at: https://www.plantforwardkitchen.org/southeast-asia

Chef Ian Kittichai at Cuisine Concepts Kitchen in Bangkok, Thailand, shows us how he makes panang curry with fried tofu. The addition of ground cumin, coriander and peanuts differentiate panang curry from red curry. Chef Ian shows the key technique of maximizing the panang curry flavor by cooking the curry paste in the coconut milk until it splits. Watch the full series at: https://www.plantforwardkitchen.org/southeast-asia

Massaman curry is a fusion dish, incorporating influences from Thai, Indian, and Malaysian cuisines. Chef Ian Kittichai is the owner of Khum Hom Thai restaurant in the Mövenpick BDMS Wellness Resort Bangkok. Here he prepares Massaman curry with chicken, potatoes and peanuts. Chef Ian explains the importance splitting the coconut milk in order to bring out the flavor of the curry paste. Watch the full series at: https://www.plantforwardkitchen.org/southeast-asia

Khao kluk kapi is a popular Thai fried rice dish seasoned with umami-packed shrimp paste and then served with a variety of sides and toppings, including sliced green mango, Thai chiles, green beans, and a fried egg. The dish is known for its combination of salty, sweet, sour, and spicy elements. Chef Ian Kittichai is the owner of Khum Hom Thai restaurant in the Mövenpick BDMS Wellness Resort Bangkok. Watch the full series at: https://www.plantforwardkitchen.org/southeast-asia

Chef Benz Mahasuk is the head chef of Khum Hom Thai restaurant by Chef Ian Kittichai in the Mövenpick BDMS Wellness Resort in Bangkok. Here he shows us how to make a popular soup, Tom Kati Bai Liang Goong. Tom Kati Bai Liang Goong is a creamy coconut milk soup with shrimp and “bai liang” or malindjo leaves, which are similar to spinach. The soup’s milder flavor cool your palate, and make it a great companion to the fierier Thai dishes served with it. Watch the full series at: https://www.plantforwardkitchen.org/southeast-asia

Chef Ann Pavita Sae-Chao is the Executive chef of Khum Hom Thai restaurant by Chef Ian Kittichai in the Mövenpick BDMS Wellness Resort Bangkok. Here she prepares yellow curry with mushrooms or gang kua hed kareng. Gang kua is a type of curry paste from southern Thailand. Watch the full series at: https://www.plantforwardkitchen.org/southeast-asia

Chef Ian Kittichai gives us a tour of Or Tor Kor Market in Bangkok, known for its produce, prepared foods, and seafood. CNN named Or Tor Kor Market as one of the top 10 best fresh markets in the world in 2017. On this market tour, Chef Ian shows us some of his favorite snacks, and some of Thailand’s lesser known fruits and vegetables. Watch the full series at: https://www.plantforwardkitchen.org/southeast-asia

Chef Ian Kittichai is the owner of Khum Hom Thai restaurant in the Mövenpick BDMS Wellness Resort Bangkok. He talks about his childhood memories of selling produce at the market in Bangkok, as well as having plant-based menus available at each of his restaurants. Watch the full series at: https://www.plantforwardkitchen.org/southeast-asia

Chef Luke Nguyen, restaurateur, author and television show host, shows us his creative Vegetarian “pork belly” salad. He makes a batter from tapioca starch, rice flour, and coconut milk layered with tofu and baguette. This is steamed then flash fried to create a finished product with an uncanny resemblance to pork belly. He serves the pork belly in a pomelo and herb salad. Watch the full series at: https://www.plantforwardkitchen.org/southeast-asia

Inspired by the street food of Vietnam, banh khot are mini savory pancakes, typically made from a batter of rice flour, cornstarch, turmeric, and coconut milk. While these are usually topped with shrimp, these plant-based banh khot are topped with mushrooms. Chef Mai Pham from Lemon Grass Restaurant is joined by Chef Luke Nguyen, restaurateur, author and television show host, to show us how to make this dish. Watch the full series at: https://www.plantforwardkitchen.org/southeast-asia

Chef Luke Nguyen is a restaurateur, author, and television show host on multiple series, including Luke Nguyen's Vietnam and Master Chef Australia. He talks to Chef Mai Pham of Lemon Grass Restaurant about cooking creative plant-forward dishes at his restaurant Vietnam House in Ho Chi Minh City. Watch the full series at: https://www.plantforwardkitchen.org/southeast-asia

Phillipe Le Bourhis is general manager at Hotel des Arts Saigon, MGallery Hotel, in Hồ Chí Minh, Vietnam and talks about his hospitality philosophy and serving sustainable meals to his international guests. The hotel includes two restaurants – the Saigon Kitchen, which serves buffet-style dining, and the Albion, which serves modern British cuisine. Watch the full series at: https://www.plantforwardkitchen.org/southeast-asia

Goi buoi, or Vietnamese pomelo salad, is a refreshing blend of juicy pomelo, mint, chili, crunchy fried shallots and toasted peanuts. Pomelos are the largest member of the citrus fruit family, and a Southeast Asian cousin of the grapefruit. Executive Chef Benoit Leloup and Junior Sous Chef, Hoang Long from Hotel des Arts Saigon show Chef Mai Pham from Lemon Grass Restaurant in Sacramento, CA how they make this delicious salad. Watch the full series at: https://www.plantforwardkitchen.org/southeast-asia

These vegetarian gỏi cuốn or fresh Vietnamese spring rolls contain rice vermicelli noodles, mushrooms, herbs and vegetables in a rice paper wrapper. They are served with a peanut dipping sauce. Executive Chef Benoit Leloup and Junior Sous Chef, Hoang Long from Hotel des Arts Saigon show Chef Mai Pham from Lemon Grass Restaurant in Sacramento, CA how they make this delicious appetizer. Watch the full series at: https://www.plantforwardkitchen.org/southeast-asia

This Vietnamese vegetable curry is made with coconut milk, red curry paste, lemongrass, fried tofu, and eggplant. The curry’s toppings include peanuts, fried shallots, shaved raw onions, fresh herbs and a rice cracker. Executive Chef Benoit Leloup and Junior Sous Chef Hoang Long from Hotel des Arts Saigon are joined by Mai Pham from Lemon Grass Restaurant to give us a lesson in Vietnamese curry from The Albion restaurant kitchen at MGallery Hotel in Hồ Chí Minh in Vietnam. Watch the full series at: https://www.plantforwardkitchen.org/southeast-asia

Bánh cuốn are an iconic dish of Vietnam. The thin rice batter is prepared like a crepe, and filled with a mixture of ground pork, minced wood ear mushrooms, and minced shallots. The rolls are served with poached bean sprouts, herbs, cucumbers, chả lụa (Vietnamese pork sausage), with nước chấm dipping sauce. Chef Mai Pham of Lemon Grass Restaurant is joined by Executive Chef Benoit Leloup, Hotel des Arts Saigon to experience these delicious rolls at Ben Thanh Market in Hồ Chí Minh City in Vietnam. Watch the full series at: https://www.plantforwardkitchen.org/southeast-asia

Explore the best food stalls at Vietnam’s Ben Thanh Market in Ho Chi Min City with Chef Mai Pham of Lemon Grass Restaurant and Executive Chef Benoit Leloup from Hotel des Arts Saigon. They try bún thịt nướng, or noodles with grilled meat at Xuân Mai as well as shrimp on sugar cane, both served in fresh and aromatic herbs. Watch the full series at: https://www.plantforwardkitchen.org/southeast-asia

Chef Mai Pham of Lemon Grass Restaurant is joined by Executive Chef Benoit Leloup, Hotel des Arts Saigon to tour Ben Thanh Market in Hồ Chí Minh City in Vietnam. They stop at Xuan Mai for some prawn bun, we see the proper way to enjoy Vietnamese spring rolls, and enjoy some freshly squeezed juices. Watch the full series at: https://www.plantforwardkitchen.org/southeast-asia

The central market of Hồ Chí Minh City in Vietnam, Ben Thanh Market has over 1,500 booths selling items ranging from fresh produce, juices, and food, to apparel and fabric. Chef Mai Pham of Lemon Grass Restaurant is joined by Executive Chef Benoit Leloup, Hotel des Arts Saigon to tour the market’s fresh produce. Chef Mai shows us the specialty herbs of the Vietnamese kitchen, including red perilla, saw tooth herb (also known as culantro), and dill. Watch the full series at: https://www.plantforwardkitchen.org/southeast-asia

Vietnamese lemongrass tofu with peanuts is intensely flavorful and harnesses the fresh, citrusy notes of lemongrass. Mai Pham from Lemon Grass Restaurant in Sacramento, CA shows us how she makes this dish, and thinks that whether you love or hate tofu, you will love this dish! Watch the full series at: https://www.plantforwardkitchen.org/southeast-asia

While very rare in western recipes, in Vietnamese cooking, mixing tofu with an animal protein is very common, and makes a great combination of flavors and textures. Chef Mai Pham from Lemon Grass Restaurant in Sacramento, CA shows us how to make this traditional Vietnamese clay pot with shrimp and tofu. Chef Mai explains that a chảo đất or clay pot dish, is an important part of a Vietnamese family meal, and also a convenient cooking vessel—because it’s used to cook the dish from start to finish and is also how the dish is served. A sauté pan can also be used to make the dish, if you don’t have a clay pot, however!

Chef Mai Pham from Lemon Grass Restaurant in Sacramento, CA, makes a classic Vietnamese dish: Gỏi Gá or Vietnamese chicken salad with tofu and peanuts. With crispy cabbage, herbs, and a tangy dressing, this salad is refreshing and delicious. Watch the full series at: https://www.plantforwardkitchen.org/southeast-asia

Chef Yen Nguyen serves only vegetarian food at her Temple Restaurant at Buddhist Vĩnh Nghiêm Pagoda in Ho Chi Min City, Vietnam. She shares some of her most popular dishes with Chef Mai Pham from Lemon Grass Restaurant. Her peanut stir-fry, seaweed fried rice, fried mushrooms, lemongrass tofu, and spring rolls are the biggest hits on her menu. Watch the full series at: https://www.plantforwardkitchen.org/southeast-asia

Chef Cam Van and Mai Pham show us how to make a vegan version of Vietnamese pho. This deeply flavorful and carefully balanced vegetable broth is made with charred onions and garlic, salted radish, cinnamon, cardamom, star anise, coriander, fennel, and cloves. The broth is ladled over fried tofu, oyster mushrooms, vegetarian tofu “sausage,” and rice noodles. Nguyen Dzoan Cam Van is a household name in Vietnam, and considered Vietnam's "national chef" for her role on her popular cooking show “Kheo Tay Hay Lam.” The famous cooking teacher was ordained as a Buddhist monk in 2019, and she has since focused on teaching vegetarian cooking. The Spice Garden is a cooking school in Củ Chi, a rural district of Ho Chi Minh City in Vietnam where Cam Van now teaches her cooking classes. Watch the full series at: https://www.plantforwardkitchen.org/southeast-asia

Chef Cam Van shows us how to make a classic Vietnamese dish -- Vietnamese clay pot with tofu and peanuts -- which she prepares with Chef Mai Pham from Lemon Grass Restaurant. Ordained as a Buddhist monk in 2019, Nguyen Dzoan Cam Van has since focused on teaching vegetarian cooking. The Spice Garden is a cooking school in Củ Chi, a rural district of Ho Chi Minh City in Vietnam where Cam Van now teaches her cooking classes. Watch the full series at: https://www.plantforwardkitchen.org/southeast-asia

These vegan Vietnamese spring rolls are filled with sautéed jicama, fried tofu, mint, perilla, and sautéed radishes, and served with a peanut dipping sauce. Chef Cam Van shows us how to make this popular Vietnamese street food, which she prepares with Chef Mai Pham from Lemon Grass Restaurant. Ordained as a Buddhist monk in 2019, Nguyen Dzoan Cam Van has since focused on teaching vegetarian cooking. The Spice Garden is a cooking school in Củ Chi, a rural district of Ho Chi Minh City in Vietnam where Cam Van now teaches her cooking classes. Watch the full series at: https://www.plantforwardkitchen.org/southeast-asia

Nguyen Dzoan Cam Van is a household name in Vietnam, and considered Vietnam's "national chef" for her role on her popular cooking show “Kheo Tay Hay Lam.” The famous cooking teacher was ordained as a Buddhist monk in 2019, and she has since focused on teaching vegetarian cooking. The Spice Garden is a cooking school in Củ Chi, a rural district of Ho Chi Minh City in Vietnam where Cam Van now teaches her cooking classes. She discusses how eating a vegetarian diet aligns with the Buddhist philosophy of ahimsa, or non-violence toward living beings. Watch the full series at: https://www.plantforwardkitchen.org/southeast-asia

In The Plant-Forward Kitchen: Southeast Asia, we explore the bold, aromatic cuisines of Vietnam and Thailand — where plant-forward traditions are deeply rooted in everyday meals. Southeast Asian cuisine has long embraced plant-forward principles, drawing from its Buddhist roots that promote compassion for all living beings and encourage followers to adopt an occasional or ongoing vegetarian diet. In this series, we cook vegetarian pho with Buddhist monk, Nguyen Dzoan Cam Van, and we sample a family-style spread of vegetarian offerings at Buddhist Vĩnh Nghiêm Pagoda Temple Restaurant. We make some Vietnamese classics, such as Vietnamese Lemongrass Tofu, with Chef Mai Pham of Lemon Grass Restaurant. At the Michelin-starred Vietnam House Chef/Owner Luke Nguyen shows us his take on a vegetarian pork belly salad. In Thailand, renowned chef and television presenter, Ian Kittichai gives us a whirlwind tour of Thai curries. Finally, we head to Michelin-starred Bo.Lan Restaurant in Bangkok, where Chefs Bo Songvisava and Dylan Jones make an eggplant relish, and discuss the importance of championing local farmers. Watch the full series at: https://www.plantforwardkitchen.org/southeast-asia

This plant-forward salad is inspired by a Thai green papaya salad. Chef Toni Sakaguchi from the Culinary Institute of America makes a base of shredded green papaya, and tosses that with shredded purple cabbage and romaine lettuce, and tops it with fried dumplings for a heartier entrée salad. Get the Southeast Asian Salad recipe here!

Lemongrass tofu is intensely flavorful -- packed with fragrant and citrusy lemongrass and crispy golden tofu. This plant-based dish, called đậu hũ sả in Vietnamese, is delicious served with rice or rice noodles. Chef Skyler Hanka from the Culinary Institute of America shows us how she tops the lemongrass tofu with peanuts, cilantro, sliced chilies, and some freshly shaved lemongrass for an added layer of aromatics. Get the Lemongrass Tofu recipe here!

These crispy Vietnamese spring rolls, or chả giò, are traditionally made filled with vermicelli noodles, wood ear mushrooms, pork and, sometimes, shrimp, though this can vary regionally. Chef Skylar Hanka from the Culinary Institute of America shows us how to make a vegetarian version, filled with tofu and vegetables. In Vietnam, these spring rolls are enjoyed as an appetizer, wrapped in lettuce and herbs before dipping in nước chấm. Get the Vegetarian Spring Rolls recipe here!

Savory and spicy, kimchi fried rice is a popular dish in South Korea that has endless variations. The tart and spicy kimchi, and sweetness and heat of the chili paste make kimchi fried rice a beloved dish all over the world. This vegan take on kimchi fried rice has a bit of an Asian fusion twist, with the addition of Thai herbs and crispy fried egg roll strips for a garnish. Get the Kimchi Fried Rice recipe here!