Luke Nguyen's Food Trail (2018 - 2018)

Luke takes us behind the scenes of his latest venture in Sydney, Fat Noodle. He explores his innovate machinery and high tech kitchen before meeting up with Head Chef Kenji to cook popular recipes from their menu. At the Sydney Fish Markets, Luke meets with Executive Chef Chase Kojima and they plate up a kingfish ceviche before meeting with Alan Benson, the photographer for his next book and spoiler alert - scallops make the cut. Recipes Salt & pepper silken tofu Penang flat-fried noodles Kingfish miso ceviche Seared scallops with brown butter sauce and sea urchin

Escaping the hustle and bustle of Sydney, Luke visits the Blue Mountains in NSW. Overlooking the majestic ranges, Luke cooks seared lamb cutlets with an Asian salsa verde and then meets up with an old friend over a stunning high tea. Recipe Lamb cutlet with Asian salsa verde

On the sunshine coast of Australia, Luke meets with a local fisherman to learn about where his produce comes from and they go out netting for spanner crabs, which he then turns into a refreshingly light salad. In Brisbane, Luke visits his restaurant with Head Chef Sarah as she cooks her Korean chicken, before heading to meet Yoshiki Sadahisa to learn the fine art of preparing gyoza. Recipes Korean chicken Whole barramundi with green mango salad Harajuku pork gyoza Spanner crab salad

Luke completes his visit to Brisbane and heads to Saigon where he spends time with his family. He visits his Mum and Aunty 8 in Hoc Mon before cooking a traditional feast to present as an offering to his grandfathers grave, a significant day with his immediate family. Recipes Prawn crispy egg noodle stir-fry Beef in tamarind broth Saigon sticky pork pie

When he's not busy running his restaurants and has a day off, Luke likes to explore places away from the city. Luke explores Vung Tau, a coastal town finding different delicacies on each corner. Luke walks through the market ordering the mornings seafood to cook dishes for locals. Back in Saigon, Luke meets an old apprentice who’s adding a Vietnamese twist to Italian cuisine before embarking in Saigon’s night dinner scene. Recipes Clams Mud crab in tamarind and chilli sauce

With Luke’s busy life it’s important to find the work-life balance. Devoting Sunday as a family day, he explores the outdoors and the variety of restaurants Saigon has to offer. He cooks up several dishes and entertains his friend with a dinner party favourite of banh xeo. Recipe Banh xeo

Luke takes us to his top 3 traditional pho restaurants in Saigon and explains the differences between the styles of pho broth found throughout Vietnam. Luke then takes us behind the scenes at Grain, his cooking school in Saigon, where he aims to educate others on Vietnamese cooking. We get an inside look at his cooking studio classes cooking some impressive, yet simple traditional delights with pumpkin flowers, fish, prawns and his favourite nuoc cham sauce. Recipes Sea bass wrapped in banana leaf Beef pho Pumpkin flowers with prawn and dill

Only weeks away from the grand opening, Luke takes us on a guided behind the scenes tour of his restaurant Vietnam House. The nerves have been building with the opening of Luke’s dream fine dining restaurant in Saigon. Luke breaks down the barriers behind the logistics of opening a restaurant; from the kitchen to service, and finally, he welcomes us to the opening of Vietnam House. Luke, together with his team of hand-picked chefs, cook a couple of featured dishes of the new menu. Recipes Pork and prawn rice paper parcels Tiger prawn with purple rice noodle Rice paper rolls with sesame salmon

Luke hits the ground running in Hong Kong taking us to a few of his favourite spots to eat and drink in Hong Kong. Luke explores the hustle and bustle of the busy city to show his favourite food spots. Luke visits the best spot for milk tea, a Hong Kong style breakfast Congee and Rice Noodle and he visits one of the only traditional Yum Cha style teahouses in Central Hong Kong. After exploring the traditional side of Hong Kong, Luke visits his friend who adds a modern twist to a Chinese desert using liquid nitrogen. Recipes Fried egg noodle with soy sauce Salt and pepper crab Recipe extra: Luke's dumplings

Inspired by his Hakka Heritage tracing back to Hong Kong, Luke wanted to influence Vietnamese cuisine in Hong Kong by combining flavours from all over Vietnam. With this, he opened his restaurant, Moi Moi. Meeting his brother Leroy at their favourite local market, they collect produce to cook his Aunty 5’s cakes with Pork and Tiger Prawn and a Braised Pork Belly with 63 degree egg. Then, venturing out of the city traditional Hakka cuisine, Luke meets locals who share their knowledge for Yellow Wine Chicken and Hakka Stuffed Tofu amongst the picturesque Hong Kong countryside. Recipes Aunty 5 pork and prawn rice cakes Braised pork belly Hakka rice win yellow chicken Hakka stuffed bean curd

Exploring the traditional style of Cantonese specialties, Luke hikes to a Dim Sum house where he helps prepare some of their most popular dim sum, a Quail Egg Siu Mai, and Steamed Rice rolls with dried shrimp. Further out of the city, Luke explores Lantau Island, where he meets local Aunty Peng. She teaches him to cook a White Bean Congee with Steamed Pork neck with salted fish, fish egg and a salted duck egg out of her stilt house. Travelling down the coast to Yin Yang Coastal, he meets private kitchen dining chef, Margaret Xu, who shares her secrets to her traditional ‘Yellow Earth Chicken’ roasted out of her terracotta urn in her private kitchen.

This week, Luke cooks a traditional Chinese XO sauce from scratch and pairs with clams. He then seeks out some more hidden hotspots within the city of Hong Kong and that includes a popular weekend dim sum brunch to a tiny street food kitchen that does 6000 covers a night! Recipes Clams in XO sauce Cantonese rice noodles with wagyu beef