New Asian Cuisine has recipes from top chefs, and an Asian grocery map for your shopping list

I should have written about New Asian Cuisine a long time ago, since I’ve been subscribing to the site’s email newsletter for years. Seriously, I don’t know what I’m thinking. NAC is just plain cool, and worth visiting. Regularly.

The site is a treasure trove for foodies who love to cook, and who love Asian cuisine. You’ll find a fabulous array of diverse recipes, both traditional and contemporary, authentic and fusion. Here’s how the creators of the site describe it:

Do you want to know how to make that dish that represents home to you but your mom can’t give you the recipe since it’s all in her head? Or do you want to try making the yummy dish you tried at Ming Tsai’s Blue Ginger Restaurant and want the recipe? How about finding out more about Asian ingredients and where to purchase them? And do you want to be current on Asian food trends, Asian restaurants or the hot new Asian chef? Then, New Asian Cuisine is for you!

The site was originally launched by Grace Niwa, a Boston-based Korean American public relations pro and a foodie, and her friend Wendy Chan. Today, Niwa manages the site with a new partner, food columnist Jaden Hair, the author a fine cookbook of her own, The Steamy Kitchen Cookbook.

One of the coolest features of the NAC is its database of over a thousand Asian supermarkets and online grocery stores in the US and Canada, type in your ZIP code and find a market near you. It’s a great tool to help you figure out where to buy the ingredients to make the wonderful recipes. There are also lists of notable Asian restaurants by state (only one in Colorado for now, though; I’d volunteer to send in some nominations!) and some Asian malls across the country, as well as profiles of a handful of cities’ Asian communities and recommendations of great Asian restaurants.

Best of all, anyone who’s more adventurous than the typical range of Chinese, Thai, Japanese, Indian, Vietnamese and Korean food, you’ll find recipes for dishes from less familiar cultures (especially in a place like Denver, where there aren’t as many Asians as the East or West coasts) such as the Philippines, Singapore, Laos and even Bhutan.

And, they have a section of recipes specific to various Asian holidays, such as several different new years, Diwali and the Moon Festival.

This is a very well-thought-out and useful website for anyone who loves Asian food, and cooking. Bon appetit!