Who said white wine doesn’t go with beef!

Thai beef salad using Wagyu Rump – paired with Margaret River 2008 Mount Horrocks Riesling – Clare Valley. Whilst the tail end of summer is still with us for the most part of Asia and the northern hemisphere, or forever summer in the tropical regions, one of my favourite Thai-inspired dishes is suitably appropriate, pairing perfectly with crisp, tangy whites, and reinforces throwing out the ‘old school’ rules of red wine with red meat moreover, being adventurous when it comes to pairing wine with Asian cuisines.

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Serving up pork buns to our enthralled restaurant reviewer for pennies.

It seems an incongruous place to find a rating most chefs would strangle their sous-chefs for. But the gamy Hong Kong district of Mongkok hosts the cheapest starred restaurant in the famed culinary kingdom of the Michelin Guide. It is Tim Ho Wan, a Cantonese eatery that for instance features for just HK$12 (US$1.53) three light, crispy barbeque pork buns filled with a gentle stew of meat chunks swaddled in slightly sweet sauce. These baked buns are largely responsible for not only keeping this restaurant forever busy, but earned it a star that would be the envy of the tens of thousands of chefs in France.

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Reuters Life! – When it comes to enjoying wine with bold Asian cuisines there really are no rules – and certainly no room for the traditional notion of whites with seafood and reds with meat.

Show me any wine and I will find an element of spice or herb infused within it. That is my unequivocal reply to the incessantly recurring question I am asked, “Does wine go with Asian food?”

Indeed, most grape varieties intrinsically display a multitude of spice nuances in aroma or flavor, some more than others.

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1. Everyone loves toast but toast is not necessarily a breakfast dish. Store sourdough bread in the freezer for unplanned barbecues, particularly to serve with drinks before the main event. If you wish slice sourdough before you freeze.

Brush bread slices with extra virgin olive oil and over a char grill or on a flat grill plate, heated to medium , toast bread slices till golden brown on both sides. Place side bowls of flaky salt, roasted garlic pulp, sliced tomatoes or finely grated Parmesan close by to barbecue for guests to slather or sprinkle on to the bruschetta.

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