. . where everything is available, there can still be problems. Everything has names in three or four languages. For instance, on Valley Blvd in Alhambra the markets still label many things in Chinese, while just a couple blocks down the street in San Gabriel, it is mostly in Vietnamese.

Cookbooks and recipe writers may use Thai, Vietnamese, Cambodian, Lao or Chinese names. They are also not sufficiently descriptive of unfamiliar ingredients to identify them or possible substitutes.

I have just put up a page on Southeast Asian Herbs. It will get further expansion and enhancement, but should be somewhat helpful.