Jackson Free Press

Silky Cambodian Saraman curry and kaffir lime creme brulee might be out-of-the-ordinary culinary choices for a chef from New Orleans, but Keith Kornfeld has made Southeast Asian cuisine his specialty for more than 12 years.

Kornfeld will be in the Jackson area this Friday and Saturday as a guest chef at Pan-Asia Restaurant, 720 Harbour Pointe Crossing, Ridgeland. He will also be on "Fox 40 & Friends" Friday morning for a cooking demonstration of traditional Thai-style, stir-fried chicken. He hopes to reassure Americans who are intimidated by unfamiliar Southeast Asian recipes.

"You don't have to be Asian to cook really great Asian cuisine; you just have to have a passion for it," he said.

Kornfeld's own background demonstrates how a passion for a different culture's food can change a life. He first learned Southeast Asian cooking from his Thai friends in Hawaii. From there, he "took off in faith" on a 10-day trip to Thailand where he photographed and learned more about the country's cuisine, and started working on a cookbook.

"I came back, resigned my job, ... packed up and moved to Thailand," he said.

That was in 1998. Since then, Kornfeld has cooked in restaurants in London, the Maldives, Fiji, New York and, of course, Thailand, where he met his wife, Yui Kornfeld. He was working at a resort near the coast when the 2004 tsunami hit Thailand and tried to keep up morale as people and businesses fled the devastation. He has also taught cooking lessons on authentic Thai cuisine.

Kornfeld hopes to share his passion for Southeast Asian food with Jacksonians by providing training for the Pan-Asia staff and a new experience for guests. He also hopes to publish a cookbook soon and open a restaurant in New Orleans that will serve a Thai street-food inspired menu.

See Kornfeld's Pan-Asia menu here.. For information, call the restaurant at 601-956-2958 or visit http://www.pan-asia.com