Allergies

topic posted Sun, January 7, 2007 - 11:40 AM by  Mickey
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My love for Asian foods is in jeopardy. I have recently found I am allergic to (among other things) soybeans, rice, and peanuts.

Thai food is right now. So is most Japanese. Chinese too, I imagine. There's soy and rice in nearly everything.

Are there asian dishes I might look for or prepare that are made without these allergens?
posted by:
Mickey
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  • Re: Allergies

    Sun, January 7, 2007 - 1:43 PM
    ouch that sucks.

    I am allergic to chilli, so I cant eat thai or indian in a restaurant, or in the home country for that matter.. but I did learn to cook it all myself, and can make a version for myself and for the rest of the diners.. ho-humm

    at least you can eat noodly things, right?!
  • Re: Allergies

    Sun, January 7, 2007 - 1:46 PM
    Buckwheat noodle (soba) dishes could become more common in your repetoire, for lack of soy sauce, one could substitute a dash of fish sauce mixed in a combo of chili oil and seseme oil...

    Most of the products from Asian Bakeries, for instance the curried chicken puffs, pork bow, pastries.

    You'll have to switch from sushi to sashimi... personally I find the experience of eating sashimi more pleasurable than eating sushi, though for the absense of the rice much less filling. I know there are some who love to dip the heck out of their fish into soy sauce but really I think the pleasure of sushi is far more refined and subtled when the saltiness of the soy is not masking some of the more delicate flavors.

    There are prepared seaweed dishes....

    most satays, so long as the sauce isn't based on soy, there are some sweet sauces and some curried variants.

    Many dishes are of steamed vegetables, mushrooms, tree ears and even steamed chicken mixed in with lobster sauces... though that's a bit of a retro sauce, reminds me of being a kid in the seventies. Should be very safe to eat, it's egg based rather than soy based.

    Are black beans okay or are they somewhat related enough to soy to trigger your allergies, if you aren't allergic it gives you a few opportunites to improvise it's use in whatever sauces you can improvise...

    Soups are always okay, any wheat noodle, egg noodles probably if they are based in wheat, there are definately some options

    Then I suppose to get very sixties and seventies style Polynesian style food, there is always the sweet and sour sauce variants. Make sure if you are eating dishes with this sauce to drink your wine from a tiki mug.

    i am truly sorry about your allergy though, it does limit things, but then again dietary necessity is one of the chief reasons why there are so many different Asian dishes. There are even TCM dishes, it's not all herbal drinks, it's food as well. If you see a TCM physician and tell them your problem they will probably be able to prescribe some foods and things for you I might not have thought of.
    • Re: Allergies

      Sun, January 7, 2007 - 8:18 PM
      Noodly things with rice noodles are out. And aren't most soba dishes made with soy?
      • Re: Allergies

        Mon, January 8, 2007 - 1:39 AM
        Are you sure about the rice allergy? I know that soy and peanut allergies are quite common, but this is the first time I've heard of a rice allergy--I had always been taught that rice was one of the "safe" foods you could use in an allergy-elimination diet. (Not that I would be at all surprised if new types of allergies are cropping up now.)
        • Unsu...
           

          Re: Allergies

          Mon, January 8, 2007 - 5:06 AM
          I was surprised to hear about the rice bit as well... are you sure it isn't glutinous rice (or some chemical component of a particular type of rice) that you might be allergic to?
      • Re: Allergies

        Mon, January 8, 2007 - 10:34 AM
        most of them are Mick, in terms of the sauce used.

        You might not be able to go and eat it in resteraunts...

        But you can enjoy the soba noodles at home yourself with other sauce options.

        This is an opportunity to create some great new dishes while finding something that works, as you do that feel free to share the recepies here.
        • Re: Allergies

          Mon, January 8, 2007 - 9:41 PM
          Yes, it looks like I need to go to the Asian markets and do some shopping for raw materials.
          • Re: Allergies

            Wed, January 10, 2007 - 5:03 AM
            I often make a noodle soup a la Ramen: Boil in a pot some ramen noodles (egg/wheat) or soba (egg, wheat and buckwheat) or Udon (here I am not 100% sure if they might contain a little rice, but I think not), cook and lift/rinse off as on the cooking instructions

            In a large noodle bowl

            dollop of miso
            squirt of sesame oil
            a bit of fish sauce/flakes

            grated ginger
            slithered leek

            sometimes slithered/squashed garlic
            some dried or fresh chilli

            top up with boiling water
            stir a little and add

            boiled noodles some nori sheets, sesame seeds,prawns, half a boiled egg, slithers of ham, cooked meat, whatever floats your boat

            happy slurping!
  • Unsu...
     

    Re: Allergies

    Wed, January 10, 2007 - 9:46 PM
    I had a client with these same allergies...I substituted the following:

    For shoyu or tamari, I used fish sauce or rendered broth
    For rice, I used kasha or quinoa
    For peanuts, sesame seeds (and sesame oil).

    As far as seaweeds go, there are some that are pre-seasoned- usually with shoyu (soy). Just stay away from the pre-seasoned one's, and you should be fine.

    Kryssa

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