Martin seeks out innovations in East/West cuisine in Honolulu with two chefs who use their Chinese heritage to create modern masterpieces. In-studio recipes include: duck-filled sweet sesame balls; char siu quesadillas; roast duck nachos and beer-battered ahi rolls.
Martin tours the legendary Chinatown markets in San Francisco. Then he enjoys a meal at the Pearl City Restaurant owned by his friends. In-studio recipes include: drunken shrimp soup; four-mushroom beef; five-flavor chicken and eggplant.
Martin explores the variety of food in Toronto’s Chinatown and cooks with a local Macanese family. In-studio recipes include: okra with shrimp paste; slow-cooked seven-flavor pork; stir-fried soybean sprouts with bean thread noodles and Chinatown-style sponge cake with berries and cream.
Martin tours Yokohama’s Chinatown with his friend and dines in a Beijing-style restaurant on a tatami mat. In-studio recipes include: Nanjing “surf and turf” stir-fry; sweet and tangy lotus root salad and Mongolian beef.
Martin calls on the fishermen in the Coloane Village on Macau and feasts on the fruits of their labor, including a unique “hanging fish”. In-studio recipes include: Shanghainese wok-seared fish in wine sauce; black bean sauce clams with fresh basil and cracked crab in ginger-wine sauce.
Martin tours and samples delicacies from the sea at the Sydney Fish Market in Australia. Then he dines on the finest seafood with a fifth-generation Chinese-Australian. In-studio recipes include: wok-fried garlic crab in butter-wine sauce; steamed oysters on the half-shell and nori-dusted flounder bundles.
Singapore was once a major seaport during the height of the spice trade. Martin picks spices from the garden of his friend Kwan Lui who has a cooking school there. They use the spices and the fresh ingredients found at the Tiong Bahru Market to prepare extraordinary dishes. In-studio recipes include: double-ginger fish; egg-flower soup with lemongrass and mushrooms and fluffy cloud in lime syrup.
Martin tours New York’s Chinatown with the help of his old friend Henry Chung, “The Mayor of Chinatown,” and learns about the history of chop suey from Professor Jack Tchen of New York University. Then he’s off to Ping’s Restaurant for a soup that does not need a pot. In-studio recipes include: country-style black bean spare ribs; eight treasures melon bowl soup and tricolor melon salad with coconut prawns.
Martin tries the art of noodle making at the Lee Family Restaurants in London’s Chinatown. In-studio recipes include: Jia Jiang noodles; Shang Dong stir-fry soup noodles and Gum Lo rainbow wontons with a seafood sweet-and-sour sauce.
Martin explores the effect of the Portuguese influence on Chinese cooking in Macau, dines outdoors and visits the Miss Macau restaurant. In-studio recipes include: beauty queen beef; spicy clams with pork sausage and Macau clay pot with rice.
Martin explores the new Chinatowns in and around Toronto. In-studio recipes include: emerald chicken with grapes and kiwi; crispy halibut with miso vinaigrette and fried ice cream with ginger-caramel sauce.
Martin and Chef Chen sample everything from haute cuisine to simple street fare in Singapore. In-studio recipes include: steamed king prawns with cilantro pesto; crispy seafood and mango packets and white cloud wok-seared scallops.
Martin tries traditional Chinese cuisine in Melbourne — from the quick and inexpensive, to dishes with an elegant flair. In-studio recipes include: Chinese doughnuts; shrimp and scallops with Chinese doughnuts and flower drum crab baked in the shell.
Martin drops into San Francisco’s Harbour Village Restaurant, tastes the blend of East/West cuisine created by Chef Andy Wei and learns about wine pairings with Chinese food. In-studio recipes include: lemongrass lamb with minted orange sauce; Dungeness crab with basil San Francisco-style and three-pepper game hen.
Martin visits a 24-hour teahouse in Singapore and introduces Chef Susan Tieng, one of the few women chefs in Singapore. In-studio recipes include: steamed buns with Buddha bun vegetarian filling; shrimp and tropical fruit rolls and golden baked buns with shrimp-scallop filling.
With the help of his friend Chef Tse, winner of the “Iron Chef” competition, Martin discovers the food of Yokohama’s Chinatown. In-studio recipes include: sweet and tangy catfish fillets; pepper steak in soy-red wine sauce and sweet Chinese herbal tea.
Respect and Confucian beliefs come into play as Martin reunites with his teacher and childhood friends from China who now live in New York. In-studio recipes include: stir-fried beef with bitter melon, braised fish fillet with tofu puff, Daikon and bean thread noodles.
Martin discovers the Chinese legacy in Honolulu and tries some of Hawaiian restaurateur Sam Choy’s favorite dishes. In-studio recipes include: tofu puff with long beans and mushrooms; Sam Choy’s whole fish with fruit salsa; Okey Dokey Poke and luau stew.
Martin pays a visit to a tag team of father and son chefs and discusses dim sum and the local menu in Toronto’s Chinatown. In-studio recipes include: wok-braised lobster tails in creamy rum sauce; steamed fish with mushrooms and baby bok choy and mushrooms and baby bok choy in garlic soy sauce.
Martin illuminates the harmony between generations as he samples classic Cantonese dishes in Honolulu and San Francisco and visits a New York Chinatown Senior Center. In-studio recipes include: big pot war wonton soup; velvet oysters with ginger-green onion sauce and triple-decker egg fu young.
The Portuguese influence on Macau has produced a culture called Macanese. Martin visits Macau and tries some Macanese cooking courtesy of Chef Dona Manuela. In-studio recipes include: spicy grilled chicken thighs à la Macau; Macau-style stuffed prawns and tamarind braised pork.
Martin samples the offerings of street vendors in Chinatowns around the world. In-studio recipes include: cold peanut noodles with chicken; Mandarin scallion pancakes and wontons in a hot-and-sour chili sauce.
Martin introduces Cantonese dishes inspired by the first Chinese settlers in San Francisco. In-studio recipes include: “Year of Good Fortune” fish salad; trout stuffed with fish mousse and Cantonese clay pot rice.
Martin visits Damenlou (“Big Door”) restaurant, the haunt of Singapore’s legendary and beloved character, Mr. Fish Head. In-studio recipes include: Singapore’s fish head soup and family-style fish with bean sprouts.
With the help of a few experts, Martin explores the subtleties of Chinese tea in New York, Yokohama and Singapore. He then tours bake shops in Chinatowns around the world. In-studio recipes include: pineapple buns; sweet bride’s delight cakes; jade scallop dumplings and nori-sesame shrimp toasts.
Chinese cuisine is embraced by a Western culture in Sydney’s Chinatown. Martin and Chef Neil Perry shop, feast on barbecue and visit Chef Perry’s world-famous restaurant. In-studio recipes include: Chinatown deli char siu barbecue pork, spicy eggplant and silken tofu with mushrooms and black vinegar sauce.
Martin presents variations on dim sum in Sydney, Hawaii and Singapore. In-studio recipes include: tempura shrimp and tofu roll and “surefire” siu mai golden baked buns with char siu filling.
Father and son chefs cook up Szechwan delicacies with Martin in Yokohama’s Chinatown. In-studio recipes include: Hunan chicken and nuts, sweet-and-spicy garlic prawns and ma po bean curd.
Martin visits San Francisco and New York to taste culinary traditions preserved from the Hunan and Shanghai provinces. In-studio recipes include: tea-smoked pork and tender cabbage stir-fry, red-cooked fish tail, Shanghai sticky rice sui mai and lotus blossom omelet in broth.
After learning about the history of Chinese in Singapore, Martin has a traditional Hakka meal at the Goh family home in Singapore. In-studio recipes include: Hakka-style stuffed tofu, Hakka shrimp-stuffed peppers and eggplant, salt-baked eight-flavor chicken and lucky duck and melon salad.
Martin observes cooking with duck at the Peking Duck House in New York’s Chinatown. In-studio recipes include: mu shu duck wraps, duck soup with Napa cabbage and double-duty duck with bean sprouts.
Martin visits Chef Man Su Wong’s cooking class in Macau to learn about Macanese cooking. In-studio recipes include: Macau’s minchee minced pork, Macau rice noodles and bacalhau Macau.
Martin feasts on northern Chinese cuisine with a family in Melbourne after a tour of the Queen Victoria Market. In-studio recipes include one-wok wonder pork and potatoes, spicy Sichuan twice-cooked pork and wok-raised duck breast with chilli-beer sauce.
Martin visits high-end restaurants in London’s Chinatown to sample innovations in Chinese cooking. In-studio recipes include: Emperor’s lamb, minted fried rice, ginger and egg fried rice, Hakkasan salmon and sea bass in champagne sauce.
Martin gets to the heart of the noodle story in Honolulu and Singapore. In- studio recipes include: Macau shrimp and rice noodle soup, beef-filled rice-noodle pillows and fun with chicken.
Martin explores the traditional Chinese side of Macau by sampling the culinary stylings of Chef Lam, including his famous “Eight Treasure Duck” and golden shrimp puffs.
Martin honors his mother’s birthday with a banquet in Toronto and samples some of Chef Kam Shin Yan’s creations. In-studio recipes include: braised seafood mein, seafood-stuffed “fuzzy” melon and yin-and-yang vegetable bundles.
Chinese communities around the world celebrate festivals throughout the year. In Hawaii, Martin learns a unique way of making Chinese tamale, tastes tomato and beef stir-fry and dines with the Young family on a traditional Ching Ming Festival meal of steamed kumu. In-studio recipes include: Buddha’s feast, steamed whole fish with ginger and green onions and tomato beef.
Martin examines the bond between China and Australia in Guangzhou’s twin city — Sydney. While in Sydney, he receives a cooking lesson from Chef Ma of Fu Lin. In-studio recipes include: double harmony meatballs in sweet and sour sauce, chrysanthemum fish in sweet vinegar sauce and steamed shrimp bouquets.
Martin visits a traditional Chinese herbal shop in San Francisco and helps cook dinner for his friends, the Choy family, with the ingredients. In-studio recipes include: light and tender mushroom-steamed chicken, walnut chicken and cure-all cooked chicken with Chinese herbs.
Martin exposes Macau’s sweet side as he learns how to make peanut biscuits, fried almond custard bars and caramel dip with crackers.
In Singapore, Martin judges an international fried rice contest and samples some of the most expensive fried rice in the world. In-studio recipes include: golden medal crab fried rice, emerald rice and something–for-everyone family fried rice.
Martin samples Cantonese favorites in the vertical restaurants of Yokohama’s Chinatown. In-studio recipes include: zesty lemon duck, Fukian fancy fried rice, sweet-and-tangy glazed pork chops and ginger-chili clams with broth-y bean noodles.
Martin visits a variety of markets and enjoys a feast of Chinese delicacies in London’s Chinatown. In-studio recipes include: aromatic duck, triple egg custard with minced pork and steamed whole lobster with dried tangerine peel.
Martin experiences the world of noodles in small family-run factories and noodle shops in New York and Honolulu. In-studio recipes include: noodle salad with mint and black bean dressing, Hong Kong wonton noodle bowl and beef stir-fry over a golden pancake.
Martin discovers the cultural diversity within Toronto’s Chinatown as he strolls its streets and samples food from other Asian cultures. In-studio recipes include: Vietnamese rice-paper rolls, spicy-creamy Nonya noodles and Thai rice salad with shrimp.
Martin follows the path to good health via a vegetarian diet in New York’s Chinatown. Vegetarian “fish,” “meatloaf” and other substitutes are featured. In-studio recipes include: market basket vegetable stir-fry, vegetarian faux fish and clay pot bean curd.
Martin celebrates the food of Chinese New Year in San Francisco, New York and Honolulu. In-studio recipes include: Sang Choy Bao chicken wraps, Shanghai lacquered sea bass and lucky treasure rice pudding.
Martin introduces the tradition of the Sam Sui women in Singapore, where he visits his friend Mok, whose restaurant honors the history of his ancestors. In-studio recipes include: succulent steamed chicken with ginger-soy dipping sauce, sizzling Singapore chilli prawns and fermented Chinese olive fried rice.
Martin checks out tofu-making in Toronto’s Kensington Market and then samples tofu dishes on Spadina Avenue. In-studio recipes include: hot and sour egg-flower soup, Sa Cha tofu with broccoli and cauliflower, eight-flavor bean curd and Chinese peanut pancakes.
Martin gives a lesson on the distinctions of Dim Sum and shows how to cook some dumplings including Shrimp Har Gau. In studio recipes: Beef Dumpling Translucent Shrimp Dumpling Har Gau Golden Glutinous Rice Dumpling
Martin demonstrates Dim Sum specialties and explains the art of selecting the appropriate tea to compliment the meal. In studio recipes: Winged Chicken Feet in Black Bean Sauce Steamed Beef Meatballs Baked Beef Curry Puff
Martin discusses fish preparation. He takes us through everything from checking for freshness to cleaning and cutting. Cooking methodologies such as stir-frying, baking, and smoking are explained. In studio recipes: Grandma’s Fish Cakes Fish Fillet in Ginger Wine Sauce Fragrant Smoked Fish
Martin gives a lesson in how to prepare shrimp, crab and lobster. He answers questions such as what’s the difference between prawn and shrimp and utilizes every part of the crustaceans to cook including the shells. In studio recipes: Crab on White Clouds Dai Leung Style Walnut Shrimp Lemongrass-Flavoured Lobster
Martin demonstrates the preparation of mollusks, such as scallops and oysters and prepares some dishes with squid. The topics he covers include picking, cleaning and storing of these types of seafood and the methods used to cook them. In studio recipes: Sesame Macadamia Coated Scallops Geoduck Winter Melon Soup Mussels in Black Bean Sauce
Martin discusses the techniques for preparing a wide variety of poultry and their eggs. In studio recipes: Chicken and Vegetable Pillows Home-Style Roast Duck Twice Cooked Quail
Martin discusses the techniques and products used in Chinese Vegetarian cooking. In studio recipes: Crispy Bean Curd Sheet Wrap Vegetable Cabbage Roll Oven Baked Curry Gluten
Martin discusses the handling and preparation of different types of Asian produce. In studio recipes: Stir-Fried Vegetables with Chinese Sausage and Bacon Twice Cooked Long Beans Stir-Fried Gai-Lan with Ginger and Wine Stir-Fried Pea Shoots
Martin gives a lesson in the appreciation of rice in terms of types, ways of preparation and methods of cooking. In studio recipes: Tangy Shrimp Topped Sizzling Rice Clay Pot Seafood Rice Savoury Glutinous Rice in Lotus Leaf
Martin explains the differences between types of noodles and how to prepare them. In studio recipes: Duel Noodle Salad Seafood Chow Fun Cold Noodle Bar
Who knew there were so many types of tofu? Martin did and he introduces us to them and other soy products, along with how to prepare with them. In studio recipes: Clay Pot Tofu Two Ways Easy Tasty Tofu Spicy Pressed Tofu
Martin showcases dried ingredients such as dried shrimp, fish and mushrooms. He compares the differences between using dried verses fresh ingredients and explains how to cook with the dried products. In studio recipes: Bowl of Prosperity Mul Suh Vegetables Grandma Yan’s Dried Shrimp Napa Cabbages
Seasoning is an important component of Chinese cuisine. Martin looks at different ways to use and prepare both fresh and dried seasonings. In studio recipes: Spicy Sichuan Tofu Chicken Drunken Lemongrass Shrimp Steamed Ginger Custard
