Break out the Charcoal and Fish Sauce

Word on the street—within food editor circles that is—was that Leela Punyaratabandhu, author of Simple Thai Food and Bangkok (winner of the 2018 Art of Eating Prize), wrote a mean method. But even more crucial (and rare) was that, in addition to cooking chops, her writing was full of voice, wit, and lyricism.

Her new book, Flavors of the Southeast Asian Grill , doesn’t skip a beat, and in time, it might eventually be the cornerstone of the Punyaratabandhu canon. A trip to the Asian supermarket in your town (and, yes, there is one in your town ) will most certainly hook you up with everything you need. What countries did you focus on the most, and the least, when tackling the Southeast Asian grill writ large?

Here’s the thing: this book is not a “best of Southeast Asia” kind of book; neither is it a survey of Southeast Asian cuisines. If it was, it would have been obligated to cover all of the cuisines of all of the Southeast Asian countries equally .

The collection in addition covers everything from the most traditional dishes, like roasted suckling pigs, to fun, modern dishes like the sticky rice burger that divests like hotcakes at any neighborhood 7-Eleven in Thailand. You know how the myth about how the best food in Thailand—or perhaps all of Southeast Asia—is found on the street just won’t go away, no matter what?

It’s the same thing all over again, this time with this one genre of food: grilling. It’s been more difficult than I had hoped to get some people to think beyond satay, skewers, and other quick bites from street carts when discussing the grilled and smoked foods of Southeast Asia. It introduces to you roasted whole suckling pigs, sausages lacto-fermented for days, short ribs cured and then smoked, big chunks of pork smoked in a barrel, sauces and salads made from grilled elements, grilled pork dressed with a sprightly dressing made from just-plucked citrus fruits from the home garden.

Why so, and why is the grill so important in Thailand, Vietnam, Laos, and so on? We’ve seen some daring newcomers in recent years, though, who’ve tried to introduce the rich live-fire cooking of Thailand, Laos, and other countries in Southeast Asia to the West. There are so many shared culinary heritages within Southeast Asia, and it blows my mind how each culinary culture in this region has managed to remain distinctive in the midst of ongoing globalization and—of late—social media–driven food presentations.

It’s the same thing with grilled chicken and grilled pork skewers throughout the region. While we are stuck at home, with slightly limited availability of products, how do you suggest we grill in your way—and cook from this book? But that’s only since it’s how you typically compose a meal in the northeastern region of Thailand.

There’s some small joy to be had right there in the midst of all this. This interview has been edited and condensed for clarity. 4 EXCITING RECIPES FROM FLAVORS OF THE SOUTHEAST ASIAN GRILL Spicy Grilled Pork Salad Lightly marinated pork shoulder, grilled over hot coals, is pretty great. Grilled Stuffed Thai Chicken Wings Called “angel wings” at most Thai restaurants in the United States, this dish has been a favorite among Southeast Asian immigrants in North America and Europe.