This year the annual Worlds of Flavor conference at the Culinary Institute of America at Greystone took on the seemingly impossible task of exploring “The Rise of Asia” in two days of seminars, cooking sessions — and a lot of eating. A highlight of the conference took place Thursday and Friday nights and Saturday afternoon when the CIA’s Barrel Room was transformed into a marketplace from some exotic land. This year it was several lands, and giant Chinese red dragons and paper dragonflies floated in the air above Thai dancers and Japanese drummers, while chefs anda vendors from Singapore, China, Thailand, Vietnam, Korea and India dispensed samples of everything from chocolate dipped vegetables to green tea ice cream. Here’s a sampling of recipes from some of the chefs.

Cardamom-roasted Cauliflower

“American Masala”

Suvir Saran

1/3 cup extra-virgin olive oil plus extra, for greasing baking dish

3 green cardamom pods

3 dried red chiles (optional)

1 Tbsp. coriander seeds

1 tsp. cumin seeds

1/2 tsp. whole peppercorns

1 head of cauliflower (2 1/2 to 3 pounds), cored and broken into medium florets

1 medium red onion, halved and thinly sliced

Kosher salt, for sprinkling

Preaheat the oven to 425 degrees. Grease a 9 by13-inch baking dish or large gratin dish with olive oil and set aside.

Grind the cardamom pods, chiles, coriander, cumin and whole peppercorns in a coffee grinder or small food processor until fine. Mix the spices with the oil in a large bowl.Add the cauliflower and onion and toss to coat. Transfer the vegetables to a baking dish and roast until they’re tender, about 1 hour, stirring every 20 minutes. Sprinkle with salt and serve.Serves 8

Chinatown

Deli Char Siu

(BBQ Pork)

Martin Yan’s Chinatown Cooking

Martin Yan

1/3 cup sugar

1/4 cup soy sauce

1/4 cup hoisin sauce

1/4 cup honey

2 Tbsp. Chinese rice wine or dry sherry

1 Tbsp. sesame paste or mashed white fermented bean curd

2 tsp. minced garlic

1 tsp. minced ginger

1 tsp. sesame oil

1 tsp salt

1 tsp. black pepper

1 tsp. Chinese five-spice powder

1 to 5 drops red food color (optional)

2 to 2 1/2 pounds boneless pork shoulder or butt, trimmed of excess fat, and cut into pieces roughly 1 inch thick, 3 inches wide, and 8 inches long.

Marinate the pork: Stir the sugar, soy sauce, hoisin sauce, honey, rice wine, sesame paste, garlic, ginger, sesame oil, salt, black pepper, five-spice powder, and red food color, if using, together in a bowl. Place the pork in a large resealable plastic bag.Turn the bag to coat the pork. Refrigerate for at least 4 hours, or overnight, turning the bag occasionally.

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

Remove the pork from the marinade; reserve the marinade. Place the pork on a rack and set in a foil-lined baking pan. Bake uncovered, brushing occasionally with the reserved marinade, for 30 minutes more.

Turn the pieces of pork over and bake, brushing occasionally with the reserved marinade, until cooked through and tender, about 45 minutes more.

Let the pork rest for 10 minutes before cutting into thin slices. Serve hot or cold.Makes about 2 pounds

Gingery

Ground Chicken

“Washoku: Recipes from the Japanese Home Kitchen”

Elizabeth Andoh

12 ounces ground chicken, preferably a combination of dark and light meat

2 Tbsp. sake

2 tsp. sugar

2 Tbsp. soy sauce

1 tsp. grated ginger

Place the chicken in a skillet. Add the sake and sugar and stir to separate the bits of meat before starting to cook. Place the pan over low heat and cook, continuing to break up the meat into crumb like clusters. At first the liquid will look cloudy, but within a few minutes it will become clear and the meat will turn white.

Skim the liquid to remove excess fat and then add the soy sauce. Continue to simmer for another 2 to 3 minutes and then add the ginger. Turn up the heat to reduce the excess liquid in the pan. Ideally, about 1 teaspoon will remain. Remove from the heat, let cool to room temperature, cover and refrigerate for up to 3 days or freeze for up to 1 month. Reheat over low heat, adding a few drops of water if necessary and stirring to break up clusters.

Serve over hot steamed rice. Makes about 2 cups, enough for 3 or 4 portions

Seafood Stew with Lemongrass and Dill

“Pleasures of the Vietnamese Table”

Mai Pham

2 Tbsp. vegetable oil

2 shallots, thinly sliced

2 cloves garlic, thinly sliced

1/2 tsp. dried chili flakes, or to taste

2 tomatoes, preferably vine ripe, cut into large chunks (about 2 cups)

2 Tbsp. fish sauce

1 lemongrass stalk, cut into 3-inch pieces and lightly bruised with the flat side of a knife

2 cups chicken stock

1/2 cup water

1/2 cup light beer

4 Asian celery stalks or 2 regular celery stalks (leafy parts included), cut on the diagonal into 1/4-inch thick slices

1 bunch fresh dill, leaves only, cut into 1-inch pieces (about 2/3 cup)

1/4 pound raw medium shrimp, peeled and deveined

1/3 pound skinless red snapper fillets, or any firm fish, cut into large chunks

1/2 pound black mussels, scrubbed clean and debearded, or Manila clams

Heat the oil in a medium pot over high heat. Add the shallots and garlic and stir until fragrant, about 20 seconds. Add the dried chili flakes, half of the tomatoes, the fish sauce and the lemongrass and stir until fragrant, about 2 minutes. Add the stock, water, beer, celery and half of the dill. Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat to low. Cover and simmer for 15 minutes.

Add the shrimp, red snapper, mussels and the remaining tomatoes and dill, and cook until the fish turns white and the mussels have opened, about 3 minutes. Transfer to a large preheated bowl and serve immediately. Serves 6