Adventures in the Spice Market Pt. 1: The Menu

First things first, I needed to decide which dishes I was going to make for the evening. There were certain must that had to be included the Char Grilled Chicken with Kumquat Lemongrass Dressing, the "best chicken I've ever tasted" according to my wife. And I really wanted to make a simple but thoroughly pleasing Ginger Fried Rice, it had a sunnyside egg on top that when cuinto the rice made for an unbelievable yolky rich flavourful side dish.

I would have loved to make the beef skewers for appetizers, but without a vegetarian substitute, felt some of my guests would feel left out so I opted for spring rolls, chicken for the meaties and mushroom for the veggies. As for a vegetarian main, Originally I was going to try to substitute Seitan or Marinated Tofu for one of the fish dishes but then thought why not make my life easier and just do the chicken dish with the Tofu. And for dessert, we had the Ovaltine Kulfi which I found a bit too rich, but we also had a very pleasing dish called Thai Jewels and Fruit w/ Coconut Crushed Ice, which was subtle in sweetness and refreshing at the end of the meal. but I'm sure it wouldn't have been a show stopper for anyone else, so I opted for a tart, but to lighten it up I thought I'd add a scoop of Coconut Sorbet. So here's the final menu.

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Appetizers

Mushroom Spring Rolls & Chicken Somosas (ended up as Spring Rolls)
with 4 dipping sauces: Nam Prik, Galangal Emulsion, Peanut Sauce and Cilantro-Yogurt Dip
Main
Char-Grilled Chicken Breast w/ Kumquat Lemongrass Dressing
Sides
Ginger Fried Rice
Mango, Cherry Tomatoes & Long Bean Salad
Lime Noodles w/ Vegetables, Basil and Sesame Seeds
Dessert
Chocolate & Vietnamese Coffee Tart
Coconut Sorbet

With the recipes selected, my next task would be the most difficult. Finding the ingredients. Ingredients I've never used and some I have never seen.