Asian-American: Proudly Inauthentic Recipes from the Ph… (2024)

I received a free copy of this book in a Goodreads Giveaway.

I read all of this and heard Dale's voice in my head. If you watched Top Chef (like me) and loved Dale (like me) then this won't be hard to do. I think his voice and his style really shine through here - and it carries over to the recipes.

I haven't had the opportunity to make any of the recipes yet, but I'm composing a list in my mind of things I can't wait to try. I think the recipes are laid out and organized well, and I think his instructions are clear and concise. I love how you can really get a feel for Dale and his vision throughout the entire book.

This isn't your mother's dry, no-personality Joy of Cooking. This is a memoir through food. The photography is beautiful - I love when a majority of recipes in a cookbook contain a picture of what the meal should look like!

This was a uniquely laid-out cookbook. There was a lot of biographical information about the chef/author and his take on Asian Fusion.

I loved the way that the basics were broken down, but the constant stories in between recipes kind of broke up the flow for me when I just want to flip through a cookbook and cook something.

If you are a fan of Chef Dale Talde, and want to know more about him, this is a great way to learn about him AND get some of his recipes.

3 Stars

Since we’re all here just to share our own opinions, here’s mine:

I’m a fiend for southeast Asian food, and to some extent, chinese & americanized-chinese as well. I typically hate fusion-food, especially the untested hipster recipes that all the local places near me try to sell six months before they’re forced to close.

The fusion foods in this book however, seem to be on a higher plane. To simply call this an American-Asian fusion cookbook, is a disservice to the author and his (potential) audience. Several culinary influences include Vietnamese, Chinese, Indian, Filipino, Mexican, Japanese, Mickey D’s (lol) and a few others....I even recall two Middle Eastern inspired dishes.

All jokes aside, the author seems to be well informed in his field. Some recipes such as the Buttered-Toast Ramen sounded gross to me at first glance...but first taste lead me to another conclusion. Even if you have simpler tastes, the Pad Thai w/ bacon, or better yet the Chicken Nugs is definitely a way to go. You’ll be presently surprised to see what about these recipes raises the bar in the culinary world.

I can keep going on about it... but why, you’ve probably made up your mind. At the very least, check out this book at your local library like I did. After two weeks of testing out recipes that personally spoke to me (& my grocery budget) I’ll be purchasing the book for my own collection.

Plus the pictures are great.

Two things:
1. The sample available on Amazon is generous, but it doesn't include the table of contents. Apparently, this guy thinks his childhood story is more interesting than telling people what else is in his book. I don't buy cookbooks that won't show me either a TOC or the index of recipes.
2. He apparently can't express himself without cussing every other sentence. God, it's such a boring habit and it makes for boring reading. Yeah, we all know all those words. Yawn. I can use them well as fluently as anyone, but I prefer not to wear them out by making them verbal tics. I guess people think it makes them sound dominant and edgy, but it really just makes them sound desperate for attention and common.

Had hoped for some good Fila-merican recipes. Maybe they're in there, but can't tell it from the sample available from Amazon. Bad marketing. If the rest of the book is as self-absorbed and juvenile as the sample, though, no thanks.

I like this cookbook. Most of the recipes in here have ingredients I haven't tried. I am going to keep this in the back of my head and get this book again. I want to try like 80 percent of the recipes in this book. Dale Talde is from Top Chef. He was a co*cky contestant on the show.
Some of the pictures of him are pretty cheesy. Dressed up in a mink coat with bling on and pretty ladies hanging out with him. I almost thought I was looking at a "pimp" recruiting handbook. The food pictures make me hungry.

Dale is a more inventive cook then I am. Lots of cool sauces like the “kimchi” yogurt which sound delicious. Plus in a shocking turn very few of the recipes include garlic, which is just lovely! I definitely want to try the crispy rice dish and if I had someone to clean out my deep fryer for me (like if I was the pioneer woman) I would definitely make some of his fried chicken wing dishes!

Talde's famous (infamous?) attitude comes through in every sentence and every recipe. Great!

Yummo fusion recipes! (I personally wish that serving sizes and calories were also included, but this does not affect my rating for the book or the recipes.)

This is by far the most fun cook book I have read and used in a long time.

Fun cookbook

This is truly fusion food. From all ethnicities! False certainly is a talented and creative chef. He's Filipino, but mixes and matches all types of food. Enjoy!

Some interesting recipes.

A humorous in-depth look at Asian inspired dishes. Lots of fun to read and presents a great deal of insight into the recipes he creates.

I wanted to like this cookbook because I relate to the personal food history Talde shares from his Filipino American childhood, but the recipes to me are just gross combinations of his favorite American fast foods and his favorite Asian dishes. I just don't think his fusions work. I ate some of the best Filipino food ever this past winter while traveling in the Philippines, and really I wish someone would write a cook book of classic Filipino dishes with ingredients that could be cobbled from Asian shops and farmers markets here in America. I love how Ina Garten updates and amps up the flavors in classic dishes, and maybe it's not cool or hip--but maybe some Brooklyn Filipino American chef ought to consider churning out a cookbook that conceives Filipino recipes also accessible and appealing to American palates.

perhaps you prefer (somewhat) traditional asian cuisine made with ingredients easy to find, if so, this is the cookbook to buy. Judging from the cover and the artwork inside I expected the food to be just as colourful. I was right. This chef takes local ingrediets and splashes them with an array of tantalizing asian flare.

Read this cookbook for the breakfast chapter alone! I liked watching Dale cook on Top Chef, and his personality comes through in this book. I want to try his breakfasts and his sauces the most, but many of the recipes sound doable for most.

This book is great fun. With wonderful pictures and ideas

Very interesting and mouth watering recipes with some unusual, for me, ingredients that I have never heard of before. Might try some of these later.

I love this cookbook. I love Dale's tone, I love the food... I want to eat every recipe in here. I think I love Dale.

Slightly hilarious and great recipes.

Review to follow soon

read the opening essays and really liked them. totally forgot this dude was on top chef.

haven't browsed any of the recipes.

Love his writing and honest self-reflection. The recipes are interesting and will be fun to try. I really appreciate the organization of the book.

Unapologetic fun with food. Dale Talde's cookbook is packed with humor, creative recipes, and childhood favorites. (oh hey there, MickeyDs fried apple pie, you're looking scrumptious.) What's not to love!

Seems good!