Miss the bite of extravagance and you wouldn’t know the ultimate joy of filling up!!

Sometimes we all need delicious comfort food! Like when life gives you lemon, make lemonade. Or get some good comfort food! Or maybe both! Doesn’t it feel good to reach out to a yummy comforting meal after a long hard day and enjoy it? Perched up nice and cool in a refreshing restaurant or sitting cozy in your living room and enjoying food; doesn’t summery nights and delicious takeouts truly sum up the day with a punch of happiness?

Besides, there’s nothing that a hot plate of comfort food can’t solve. Unwell, going through a bad break, work stress or just plain bad day? The aroma of freshly cooked veggie crumbles and sweet and spicy glazed mango sriracha or BBQ-flavored vegan waffle and naturally sweetened wholegrain brownie, all just make problems vanish away.

The knock out version of Asian food is a burst of bold flavors!

No more copy cat recipes!! Fun filled Asian cuisine come with a twist each time you reach out to them and are all full of hot ideas and inundating choices. From delicious bite size pizzas to chocolate croissants, it’s hard to tell if the ‘burger with the works’ is better than “Peanut BBQ sweet potato burger with avocado”. So, catch up with some iconic Asian dishes and discover if the Friends of Pho in Kolkata or Once upon a bite in Dubai and Senn Thai Comfort Food in New York city or Soul Food Mahanakorn in Watthana Bangkok could make you get hungry just looking at the photos and blow your senses over once eaten!

Though a cross kitchen between Tokyo and Texas or Shanghai and New Delhi is an obstinate possibility, upscale restaurants do treasure rundown menus from edgy cookbooks, full of diverse Asian comfort food recipes. There is Japanese-Peruvian cuisine; French patisserie, Mexican tacos, and many more crowd-pullers. From fancy take away beaneries to countless neighborhood stalls, all serve from spicy gravies, saucy noodles to legendary chicken or vegetable Manchurian and much more. With names as scrumptious as China Bowl, China Pearl, Chung Wahor Zhangs, these delights- usually batter fried and doused in chilli garlic sauce- are quintessentially soul satisfying comfort food that always come with a kick.

In Asian style cooking, simple elements like rice, noodles, fruits, and veggies are recast, blended with unique herbs and seasonings and reinvented into stunning dishes. From Japanese noodles to Chinese stir-fry to Indian naan, you just can’t run out of options for Asian-themed dines. So, spicing your weekday dinners and weekend pleasures with all things, here are the tastiest 15 such Asian comfort foods to instantly perk up your platter!

Asian Slaw

Crisp, colorful, and wildly delicious: the Asian slaw comes packed with bright vegetables laced with an insanely good sauce that would trump any other rival. Crammed with bright vegetables like shredded cabbage, carrots, edamame, bell peppers and peanuts and flavored with scallions and cilantro, this slaw comes with a dressing of a thick, sweet-savory spicy sauce and is a perfect medley of flavors and textures. Can you imagine all those elements in one bite?

Korean popcorn chicken

Image source: ‘ Korean Popcorn Chicken’ by Julie in tastemade.com.

If you are looking for a starter that’s all fire and flavor, try this tangy, sticky and crunchy chicken popcorn inspired by the much hyped Korean street food Dakgangjeong and trust me, you just won’t have enough of these crazy fireballs! Deep-fried boneless sticky and tangy, these chicken nuggets are bite-sized salvos that’s all set to get you rolling! Made from boneless chicken fillet, this full-of-crackling food gets a typical Korean zing once tossed with tangy and spicy seasoning. The dripping hot sauce further amps up the heat  and turns these super-crunchy balls into a fiery feast!

Chicken Noodle Soup

Image source: The Ultimate Chicken Noodle Soup’ in tasteofhome.com.

A truly work of art, this soup is a bowl of chewy noodles immersed in a steaming savory broth, topped with meats and veggies. An ultimate definition of classic Asian comfort food there couldn’t be a better way to spend a balmy evening than by having a bowl or two of chicken noodle soup.

Thai Noodle Soup

Image source: ‘ Spicy Thai Curry Noodle Soup’ innheathercristo.com.

If you’ve never had it before, you’re in for a cozy surprise! A delicate mix of rice noodles, crisp veggies, and nutty peanut sauce, this soup is an insanely good dish.  It is not only about noodles cabbage, carrots and bell peppers that unfold the magic. The wizardry lies in the sauce. Thick, perfectly sweet, spicy and wonderfully nutty, this sauce is an ultimate count in finger-licking good indulgence! Bites of tender chicken, bok choy, rice noodles, cilantro, basil, lime juice and flavors of curry and coconut make this dish a perfect must-try deal.

Wonton Soup

Image source: ‘Red curry chicken wonton soup’ by Tara in tarasmulticulturaltable.com on Sep.7, 2020.

Getting tire of buffalo wings? How about a bowl of steaming Wonton soup loaded with silky flavors of seasoned chicken broth with filled wantons to ward off your worries!! An Asian equivalent of ravioli or tortellini, wontons are dumplings made with ground meat wrapped in a dumpling wrapper and steamed until cooked and tender. Served with hot broth, just one spoonful can quickly turn that frown upside down. If you’ve never have had them before, now is the time!

Gado Gado

A traditional Indonesian salad of mildly boiled, blanched or steamed veggies like carrots, red cabbage and hard boiled eggs, fried tofu, tempeh and lontong (which is a dense rice cake  wrapped inside a banana leaf. Rice is rolled inside a banana leaf and boiled, then cut into small cakes as a replacement of steamed rice). Served along with a thick spicy nutty peanut sauce, the real tweak  happens when sweet potato is used in place of carrots and green beans are switched for red cabbage. Since the salad is rice-based, it’s hearty and a full meal on its own. Build mainly on cooked veggies and meatless proteins with toppings like prawn crackers, this food is a super quick way to satisfy your craving.

Volcano Fries

Topped with spicy mayo, green onion, and a bit of seaweed, volcano fries is a sensory overload one cannot resist. Served with a generous topping of gooey cheese, crispy chicken cubes and sauce, sprinkled with Cheetos (cheese puff snack) – it’s a dish your nutritionist may frown upon, but trust me, every bite is a journey to heaven and back. With toppings of kani (crab meat) and seaweed salad, scallions, sriracha (fermented hot sauce) and Japanese mayo, the dish turns fiercer but you just shouldn’t get yourself cut loose without trying this one most indulgent food.

Crispy tofu broccoli stir fry

Feature credits: ‘Crispy tofu broccoli stir fry’ in myfoodstory.com on Nov. 16, 2020.

This 20 minutes stir fry dish is the perfect mix of protein and vegetables. Try it with quinoa when you want something light or with noodles if you want something hearty! Stir fried crispy tofu and fresh veggies like broccoli and spinach sautéed in a quick and easy garlic sesame sauce, give this dish all the markings of an easy and healthy food that you can turn to again and again. With firm and flavorful tofu, fresh and colorful veggies all drenched in just enough sauce to coat the tofu and broccoli so that crunchiness stays intact; this salty savory dish is one comfort food that you can always tag to your bucket list!

Vegan Cheesesteak sandwich

This vegan sandwich with mushrooms smothered in gooey cheese sauce creates a whole food that brings you a great taste, some protein and a great texture; all in 20 minutes. A low-calorie, easy to make mushroom cheesesteak sandwich is all you need when your sandwich craving hits the ceiling. Mimicking the meat base, slices of Portobello mushroom sautéed with a thicket of peppers and onions, then tucked into a toasted roll and drenched with a bit of melted provolone, mark it as a great vegetarian dish that wouldn’t decimate your diet plan. Eat this for seven days a week and you could still end up thinner than when you started. What more, you don’t even have to be a vegetarian to enjoy it!

Scallion Pancake

Feature credits: ‘kitchenstories.com.

Crisp on the outside, fluffy on the inside and wonderfully savory all over, scallion pancakes are a popular food that has a crispy, flaky texture and is a new twist on regular pancakes. Made out of an unleavened flatbread and stuffed with scallions or green onions or spring onions, cilantro and sesame, these pancakes are truly addictive. Crispy, flaky, and with the *slightest* bit of chew, when served with a hot and spicy dipping soy sauce, it’s easy to polish off a whole plate of this treat in no time. 

Biryani

Celebrating or just lazing! With over 50 different varieties, biryani  is one superfood that has never let anybody down. The combination of meat, rice and spices is unmatched and unparallel.  Long-grained rice flavored with fragrant spices such as saffron and layered with lamb, chicken, fish, or vegetables and thick gravy is then slow cooked in a Deg (special cookware) with lid secured with dough, preferably on a wooden stove to blend smoky flavors. It’s wholesome and starkly distinct from other fancy gourmet dishes. But what you can be sure of is that each variant is delicious in its own way. So, next time when you’re craving for fancy meals, just go for it. Having a taste of this comfort food will tell a story beyond words can. This stuff is seriously addictive!

Nasi Goreng

Traditionally served on banana leaves, this Indonesian street food is an easy and convenient way to truly satisfy and warm up your soul. With extra cooked rice stir fried with meat and addons like shallot, dark soy sauce and fragrant spices, make it a munchies delight. The real hit of flavour comes from the sambal sauce which is made by cooking garlic, shallots, chilies and shrimp paste in oil and then hand-grinding them to a fragrant and aromatic paste. Crushed anchovies and sugar then pitch in to create a delicious balance of salt and sweet. It’s a perfect take out call if you want to experience other people’s out of the ordinary comfort food.

Feature credits: ‘How To Make Nasi Goreng At Home’ by Banglar Rannaghor in Youtube.com on Nov. 6, 2020.

Teriyaki chicken

Image source: ‘ Chicken Teriyaki’ by Lena Abraham in delish.com on Jun.3,2021.

An awesome 30 minute recipe, this dish is here to change the way you fancy quick meals! Juicy tender pieces of chicken glazed in sweet and savory teriyaki sauce and served with steamed rice and assorted vegetables make up for a complete meal, one that you need to eat to experience the unparallel satisfaction. When sake and mirin are switched in the traditional teriyaki sauce for rice vinegar, toasted sesame oil and ginger, an iconic food is all set for you to catch up and make yourself a happy person.

Cashew chicken noodles

Image source: ’15-minute chicken, broccoli and cashew stir-fry’ by Emma Braz in taste.com.au.

Loaded with broccoli, bell peppers, zucchini, cashews and crispy chicken, this is an unmistakable call on your takeout. Simple, flavorful and delicious, one bowl of cashew chicken noodles is the perfect 30 minute fix for your take-out cravings. With crispy bits of chicken and noodles tossed in a super flavorful, spicy sauce and topped off with roasted cashews, this is just the kind of meal for you when you are hungry and in the mood for something out of ordinary.

Then there is nothing better than a sugary treat to finish off the meal, for your belly might be on fire for it. Here is one genius of a dessert that the world has just begun to catch up and once you try it you’d know why everybody calls it a super dessert.

Kulfi  Falooda

Feature credits: Hebbars Kitchen in Youtube.com on Mar.8, 2021.

From Momos to Chicken lollipops to spicy Papadams! From hot and sour soups, fiery Korean popcorn bites, crispy and tangy stir fries to gorgeous teriyaki chicken, the love for good food is universal. Mouth watering sauces, spicy schezwan magic, flavorful Asian noodles and no fuss crispy vegetarian food, the list of incredible Asian vegetarian bites has everything.

It’s time you gave your takeouts an Asian twist and experience the  flavors that will knock your socks off!!