Recipes Featured in this Article
Fashion designer Peter Som has made the full leap into cooking. But with both style and food, one influence has stayed the same: his culture.
The unique dishes in Som’s new cookbook, “Family Style,” were shaped by his own Chinese background, as well as other cultures close to him, he tells TODAY.com in studio.
“I think it all started with my grandmother (and) my mom, so really absorbing those flavors, the Cantonese flavors I grew up with, along with my mom’s love of French cooking,” Som says. “All these kind of things came together in the Bay Area, where it’s all about fresh, seasonal food.”
Som says all his dishes are “a nod” to his mother and grandmother, adding that they’re “really at the heart of it.”
But Som’s cultural influence isn’t solely discovered in his recipes. The inspiration also lies in his eye for fashion.
“Everything I do is a reflection of who I am and my culture, all of it, it’s so integral to who I am,” he says. “So whether I’m designing a dress or just putting a recipe together, it’s always going to be me on a plate or what I design is always intrinsically who I am.”
Though some may wonder how one finds mastery in the seemingly differing roles of chef and designer, Som says he’s “always done, loved both.”
“For me, the approach actually is so similar. I think from fashion I learned about editing, layering and the element of surprise, and that same approach is true for recipes,” Som explains. “You want that element of surprise and that wonder.”
“It’s about putting a smile on your face at the end of the day,” he adds.
Forecasting summer trends, Som gives TODAY.com a glimpse into what clothing and food lovers alike can expect over the next few months.
“I think for fashion trends, I’m seeing a lot of soft tailoring, sort of, linen crystal silhouettes, and then also unexpected color combinations — looking at the color wheel and picking like opposite colors and really having fun with color.”
In Som’s words, summer style is “less about perfection and all about individuality.”
In terms of food, Som says he expects “the global pantry, those sort of global pantry items coming into the main, into the forefront.”
“So, like black vinegar or black garlic, fish sauce, all these flavors that maybe were more sort of niche, or just specific to certain cultures, I think we’re seeing them more used now,” he continues. “And I think it’s really all about big flavor — easy, unfussy food and big flavor.”
One recipe that is sure to hit as the weather warms up? Som’s summer roll fish tacos, he says.
“My summer roll fish tacos are so delicious. It’s really a combination of a classic fish taco infused with the flavors of a Vietnamese summer roll,” he says, adding that they’re paired with “an amazing, spicy dipping sauce.”
Som continues, “It’s so manageable to make, and a lot of it can be made ahead of time. And fish, again, healthy, cooks easily. Can’t go wrong.”
Get Som’s recipes from the show:
