Make an Avocado Salad from a Chic LA Restaurant

By Joy Liao

Several years ago, while living in Los Angeles, I began toying with the idea of working in the culinary field. However, without a culinary degree nor any professional kitchen experience, I hadn't quite figured out how to jump start my career.

Fortunately, having gotten to know the executive chef at one of my favorite restaurants, I casually asked if I could shadow in his kitchen. To my surprise, he agreed.

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Hitting the (Thai) Sauce

By Sandy Hu

When Lynn cooks, the whole house smells mouthwateringly fragrant. Garlic, chiles and fresh herbs comingle, creating irresistible aromas as inviting as a Thai restaurant. Lynn, my new daughter-in-law, is from Thailand. She’s not a trained cook, but she has an instinctive sense of how to put ingredients together to make delicious Thai meals.

When we made kalua pig after returning from our Hawaiian vacation this summer, Lynn contributed a sprightly Thai dipping sauce that added zest, turning classic Hawaiian into Polynesian-Southeast Asian fusion.

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Thai in 20 Minutes

By David Hu

Like most people, I love Thai food. And I’m lucky enough to have a girlfriend from Thailand to show me how to cook it myself.

Kra Prao, a stir-fried mixture of ground meat, chiles and fresh basil leaves, is my favorite. I learned to make it from Lynn’s mom, who will be checking out this video from Thailand to see if I’ve cooked in correctly, so the pressure is on!

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