Humidity melts. Heat dissolves.
In classical Cantonese cuisine, lo foh tong ("soup of the old fire"), a soup cooked over a long time that is widespread in southern China and Southeast Asia, opens a sensual approach to the tropicality of Southern Asia. In the pot, the slowly circulating convection gently dissolves gelatin, fat, aromatic oils and alkaloids from meat, bones, dried tangerine peel, angelica root, as well as other herbs and seafood. Layer by layer, textures and flavours combine into a silky, slightly sticky broth.
In miniature, this bubbling pot recalls the trade routes and atmospheric cycles that connect South, Southeast and East Asia with one another. Triggered by the temperature difference between the Asian landmass and the surrounding Indian Ocean, the South China Sea and the Pacific Ocean, the seasonal monsoon brings wind, rain and heat across the region and lets flavours, cultures, belief systems and physical experiences merge into a humid, soupy mixture that we call the tropics.