KUALA LUMPUR, July 19 -- Fusion cuisine often gets a bad rep, particularly when the mash-up terrifies rather than thrills one's taste buds.

Then there are those recipes that come about in an easy burst of inspiration, often drawn from whatever ingredients we have lying around in our fridge or pantry.

In this particular case, I had a nearly empty tub of gochujang in the fridge. Some ripe tomatoes that needed to be used up, plus some bulbs of garlic that were past their best.

Waste not, want not, as they say.

I had used gochujang before to heighten the spice levels of mapo tofu, a household favourite. That pairing works better than one might imagine, a meeting of Sichuan and Seoul, if you will.

But what about the tomatoes and garlic? ...