The Global Phenomenon of Fusion Cuisine

The truth is that fusion food has been around for as long as human beings have been travelling the world, learning about other cultures and stealing elements of them to take home and appropriate as their own. Pasta, for example, is today regarded as typically Italian, but was most probably introduced into Italy by Arab traders in the 8th century – and not, incidentally, by Marco Polo on his medieval travels to China! Potatoes were first eaten by the Incas in Peru, before migrating to North America and later to Europe on trading ships.

In the same manner that ingredients have been borrowed and reshaped for centuries, so have cooking styles. In fact, the world’s first ‘official’ fusion food takes us back 450 years to the (then) small Asian city of Macau; its unique Macanese cuisine was a medley of flavours taken from its Cantonese neighbours and combined with the Portuguese gastronomy of its colonial masters. To this day minchi, made with minced pork or beef, seasoned with soy sauce and molasses, and topped with a fried egg, is Macao’s national dish. Fast forward to the 1970s, and Japanese cooking techniques were blended with French methods to create nouvelle cuisine, so culinary piracy has a long history.

And how is fusion cuisine doing today?

The short answer is: very well, thank you. Fusion cuisine can be seen on the menu in fine-dining restaurants across London and Paris, and features very strongly on the world stage. Here are four recipes for the best fusion cuisine available today.

One of the great melting pots of the world, the USA has adopted fusion cuisine with a vengeance. Its gastronomic scene is a gloriously tasty mélange of Jewish, Native American Indian, Mexican, Korean, Asian and European influences – you name it, it’s there somewhere in modern American cooking.

One of the more recent additions to the American palate is umami, now regarded as the fifth taste alongside sour, salty, bitter and sweet. Its origins are Japanese and it’s found in soy sauce, mature cheeses, shellfish and meats along with many other foodstuffs. One popular umami dish is the handmade burger served at Umami Burger Paris. The following recipe also makes one delicious burger.

• 180g minced beef steak
• 2 pinches of spicy beef stock powder
• 1 slice of cheddar cheese 
• 21g caramelised onions
• 14g classic burger sauce (mix mayo, ketchup, mustard and chopped gherkin, preferably Malossol)
• 4 slices of gherkin
• 1 slice of beef tomato
• 21g shredded Romaine lettuce
• 1 burger bun

• Place a sheet of baking paper on the steak mince and press down lightly.
• Season with the beef stock.
• Sear the mince patty for 1 minute, then sear the other side. 
• Cook until the internal temperature reaches 75°C (167°F).
• Place the cheddar slice on the steak and let the cheese melt.
• Spread the caramelised onions onto the melted cheese.
• Cut the bun in half, butter and grill both slices. Dot one half with the burger sauce. 
• Place the ingredients in this order on the other half: the sliced gherkins, tomato, shredded lettuce, the burger and then the top bun.
• Accompany with homemade French-fry-style chips.

Thanks to widespread emigration, Korean food has found its way into many cuisines. One of the most popular results is Korean-Mexican fusion cooking, which had its origins in Los Angeles – where immigrant communities have lived side by side for generations – during the 1990s. Over subsequent decades, what began life as a well-priced and gorgeously tangy street food, comprising a flavourful mix of burritos or tacos with barbecued meats and kimchi, has been assimilated into the lexicon of mainstream American menus. This recipe for bulgogi tacos and kimchi salsa makes 16 tacos.

• 2 sirloin steaks 
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 600g rock salt
• Black pepper
• 2 tbsp oyster sauce
• 1 tbsp Shaoxing wine or dry sherry
• 1 tbsp grated ginger
• 1 tsp chilli flakes
• 1 tbsp grated palm sugar 
• 16 toasted tortillas
• 150g mayonnaise
• 60g shredded daikon or radish
• 200g shop-bought kimchi
• Chopped fresh coriander

• Rub the steaks with the oil. 
• Spread half the rock salt over a tray, place the steaks on the tray and cover with the remaining salt. Leave for 20 minutes.
• Mix the oyster sauce, Shaoxing wine, ginger, chilli flakes and palm sugar until the sugar dissolves.
• Wipe the salt from the steaks and sprinkle them with pepper.
• Cook the steaks in a pre-heated pan for 2–3 minutes on each side.
• Brush the steaks with the sauce and caramelise on both sides.
• Cover and allow to rest for 5 minutes before slicing the steaks.
• Spread the tortillas with mayo, and fill with the steak, kimchi, daikon/radish and coriander.

Historically, Indian cuisine is interwoven with centuries of trading and colonisation. Its use of spices like turmeric, cumin and cardamom in curries began as a way to preserve and flavour the dish; to this mix Mughal, Portuguese and British culinary influences were added, with each enriching Indian cooking down the centuries. But India is also a huge country with many regional cultures, and that diversity is also reflected in its contemporary cuisine, from the spicy curries of the south to creamier dishes in the north.

Serving 4 people, this twist on a traditional all-American mac and cheese adds chilli as well as the Indian spices cumin and turmeric to the recipe.

• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 125g chopped onions
• 1 tsp chopped ginger
• 1.5 tsp chopped garlic
• ½ tsp powdered coriander and cumin
• ½ tsp chilli powder
• ¼ tsp turmeric
• 125g chopped tomatoes
• 500g white sauce (buy ready-made or cook your own: whisk equal parts of flour and melted butter until the mixture is thick and golden, then slowly whisk in the milk and stir until thickened)
• 500g macaroni
• 250g grated parmesan
• Chopped coriander

• Heat the oil. Sauté the onions, ginger and garlic for 2 minutes.
• Add the coriander and cumin, chilli, turmeric, tomatoes and a tablespoon of water to make the masala sauce. Cook for 2 minutes, stirring.
• Combine the white sauce and half the grated cheese in a small pan and heat for 1 minute.
• Add the masala and macaroni. Cook for 2 minutes.
• Pour into a baking dish, top with the remaining cheese and coriander.
• Bake at 200°C (400°F) for 10 minutes.

Currently in the gourmet spotlight, Thai fusion cuisine is one of the most popular cuisines in the world, thanks to its fresh, creative and carefully balanced flavours. Relying on herbs like lemongrass and ginger for flavour, the country was left pretty much to its own culinary devices until the Portuguese arrived in the 1500s, bringing with them a whole range of fruit and vegetables alongside – most importantly – chillies, now a fundamental ingredient in Thai dishes. Migration saw Thai food adapted into recipes across the globe, from Europe – Thai flavours blend particularly well with pasta – to the New World.

Don’t waste your leftover Sunday roast; add a tangy Thai flourish to it with a laab salad. This easy recipe serves 2 people.

• 1 tbsp peanut oil
• 500g lean pork, minced
• 1 chopped lemongrass stem
• 1 chopped green chilli
• 60 ml lime juice
• 1 tbsp fish sauce
• 1 tbsp sweet chilli sauce
• 1 tsp grated lime rind
• Half a small red onion, sliced
• 2 tbsp chopped coriander
• 2 tbsp chopped mint
• Cos lettuce leaves
• 40g chopped roasted peanuts, unsalted

• Heat half the oil over a high heat until smoking. 
• Add the pork mince, lemongrass and chilli. Stir fry for 5 minutes or until pork colours.
• Transfer to a bowl. Cool for 15 minutes.
• Whisk the lime juice, fish sauce, sweet chilli sauce and lime rind.
• Drizzle over the pork.
• Add the onion, coriander and mint. Stir.
• Arrange with the lettuce and peanuts. Serve.

As you can see with these colourful and tempting dishes, the real answer to the question, “what is fusion cuisine?” is that anything goes, whether it’s Mexico meets Korea or northern India meets the south. Have fun discovering your own favourite fusion cuisines.