Asian Culinary Arts Sizzling Up the Food Trends with Ming Tsai

By Jennie Shin

Move over Emeril, here comes Ming Tsai. With two hit TV shows on the Food Network (“East Meets West”, “Ming’s Quest”), a cook book (“Blue Ginger”), and a highly successful restaurant (Blue Ginger) under his belt, Ming Tsai has gone from chef to culinary superstar. He is America’s most famous Asian chef who has become a household name by bringing Eastern and Western cooking philosophies together through his thirty minute daily television show.

The Emmy Award-winning chef/host has made this fusion cooking into more than just good food; he has made it an art form. On the show, Ming creates dishes such as Asian Gazpacho spiked with a hint of ginger and Thai basil. Ming believes in the minimalist Zen approach, which makes his recipes easy to follow. But don’t let his simple techniques fool you. The end results look as if you’ve slaved in the kitchen all day.

“Blue Ginger: East Meets West Cooking with Ming Tsai”, a companion guide to his television shows, offers the same low-key culinary approaches. The book includes step-by-step instructions and photos to clarify the details of the cross-cultural techniques. This recipe book offers a unique culinary experience, and is easy enough for beginners to learn to fill potsticker dumplings, prepare sushi rice, and roll sushi. The recipes offer many ways to spice up an ordinary meal into an extravagant creation without too much effort.

Although he makes cooking easy, Ming continually stresses the importance of making the meal look its best in both his book and on his TV shows and Ming always pairs his recipes off with a choice of wine and side dishes. He also provides advice on ingredient substitutions and techniques for those hard to find eclectic contents. For avid cooks, mail-order sources are provided in his book for easier access of specialty ingredients.

Ming proves over and over that the fusing of East and West is a harmonious and delicious way of eating. With quick dishes such as Gingered Beef with Leeks and Asparagus, Hoisin-Marinated Chicken with Napa Slaw, and Wok-Flashed Salt and Pepper Shrimp, Ming appeals to a wide group of people with diverse palates.

Born in sunny Newport Beach, California, Ming’s family relocated to Dayton, Ohio where his mother ran the family’s Mandarin Kitchen restaurant. This is where it all began. Ming started cooking in his teenage years helping out his family’s business. However, his passion for cooking was put on hold when Ming followed his father’s footsteps by attending Yale where he graduated with a degree in mechanical engineering.

However, his love for cooking finally lead him to Paris where he studied at Cordon Bleu, a prestigious culinary arts school. After finishing in France, Ming returned to the US to earn a master’s degree in Hotel Administration and Hospitality Marketing from Cornell University. From then on Ming spent nine years apprenticing under top chefs around the globe. During that time, Ming developed his unique style and caught the eyes of cooking show producers.

Ming has been featured in USA Today, The New York Times, Saveur, Food Arts and Food & Wine. Esquire magazine hailed him as Chef of the Year in 1998, and the James Beard Foundation nominated Blue Ginger as Best New Restaurant in the country. Ming’s first cookbook, “Blue Ginger” was also named one of 1999’s 25 Best Cookbooks by Food & Wine.

Not only is this culinary celebrity smart and savvy, but he’s also attractive and engagingly articulate. People magazine voted him one of the world’s most beautiful people in 2000. But sorry ladies, he is already married!

June 4, 2003