iii_bake

My quick fool proof crunchies part is (what i call ) oreo soil. I grind oreo add a little bit of butter, orange zest and nutmeg, served with baked peach topped with whip cream.

I have posted two parts already. The splitting half and the peeling.

Peel off the shell on the body part first, leave the tail intact. You can peel the head first but that will risk losing the fragile tomalley. Then the head...just like taking off its helmet! Gently pull out the gills and the legs...i always call this part the chin! The peeled prawn should look whole, the tomalley should not ooz out like shown ( i was too hash). Devein also ( not shown here). As mentioned, the tomalley will lend full prawn flavour and that is the essence of thai cooking. For those who made pad Thai and Tom yum koong (koong is prawn/shrimp in Thai) and could not replicate the same flavour as those in real authentic Thai.. try this peeling technique even with other types of shrimp or prawn.

I can only suggest the items i am sure what they are: Tamrain Leaves:..Fresh??? I have never seen them dried though. The tamarind leaves are used in Soup called Tom Klong...a kind of Tom Yum seasoned with Tamarin pulp extract ( instead of lime)...the leaves are a bit sour and lend the sourness to the soup. Shrimp Fat in Oil, i think it is the tomalley ( see perparation for Thai River Prawn for the photo). Use this in Shrimp fried Rice to get the Full Shrimp Flavour. ( add just before you mix in the rice) Pork Fu...Eat with Boil Rice for breakfast ( and other boil rice condiments).

I sometime use cast iron skillet. It works just great. Do try the tomalley...with sauce or dressing...the real prawn flavour!

Following the questions from jamie Lee on Whole Prawn, i just ran into these prawns and thought it would be a good idea to write about Thai river prawns. Actually I have the writing due for the cooking notes for my cooking school but it would take a while for my webmaster to add this into our web, so i decided to (learn how to ) post it here first. This isfor the splitting and grilling prawn. The peeling and more info will be coming shortly. I got these Prawns from Ayudhya Province, Thailand...they were still kicking and alive. They were fished from Chao Praya River. The size is about 10 prawns per kilo. This kind pf prawn is also raised ( like farming) along the river side but you would be able to tell if they were fished from the river or the rasied ones from the way they are sold. The vendor has only two small buckets each contained about 10 - 15 prawns with one ...only one 200 gram prawn. The big one gave me the hint that they were really caught from the river, if they are from the farm...the vendor would not carry just one! The good size is 6 per kilo. ( The biggest is 3 per kilo or 5 per two kilos) Notice the freshness from the glowing shell and the eyes. Take a closer look! Use scissors to cut half the head shell. Then the body part...cut to the end but leave the tail intact. Use a sharp knife to split the prawn by cutting the flesh along the line earlier cut by scissors. Notice the Yellow creamy part on the head.... That is Tomalley, the best part we look for in prawns or shrimps in Thai cooking. Now they are ready for the grill! ( or simply put in the oven) Split the prawns for grilling make eating easier...you can use knife and fork to take out the flesh. It also gives you opportunity to easier check on the doneness... grill until almost white...and the tomalley is set...do not turn. We serve this with Thai seadood sauce, Thai tamarind sauce or simple fish sauce and lime!

I happened to go to Ayudhya, a province in Thailand famous for its river prawn and i found these alive n kicking prawns sold at the market. Notice the yellow roes at the tummy and how they look so translucent. Splitted and grilled....notice the yellow creamy tomalley on the head part! ( I have photos for the preparation of the prawn...but these photos are so big...Can anyone advise on how to make them smaller so i can post the series like DEMO??)

The leaves of lemon grass are sharp like blades ..we normally do not use them cooking but you can make lemon grass tea from leaves. If you use the leaves to make tea, you will need more leaves than when you use stalks. Simply boil it...adding sugar or not is up to you. The tea is quite soothing...

So...they are Thai River Prawn. It is best grilled ( splited as mentioned), Make Tom Yum or Thai Pepper Garlic Sauteed. The Best part of this type of Prawn is the tomall(e)y ( the orange/yellow creammy part in the head). To peel : you take of the shell on the body first....this is to avoid losing the tomally. Then gently pull the pointed head shell off...make sure that the tomally is in place. Then pull of the gill ( the "chin"part ). When finish you'd have the head n the body parts. If you cook Thai...the tomally does make difference in the dish. Even with the pasta dish i suggested... the tomally does enhance the Prawn Flavour! These prawns are really good...hang in there and you'd love them!

You really need to practice a lot with the T tool before you get it right. One thing I read which really helped me was about dipping the tool in water before you use it. That helps prevent it from sticking to the batter. If you're having trouble with the crepe setting too fast, you can try taking the pan off the heat as soon as you've poured the batter, then use the T-stick to swirl it. In my experience, high heat is crucial for the lacy pattern, but you could also try using extra butter in the pan. Many traditional recipes do call for quite liberal amounts of butter. I think increasing the sugar in the recipe might help too. Give it a try. My experience is mostly with galettes, which are made from just buckwheat flour, water and salt, yet even with such a simple recipe I had to try many, many times before I got it just right. I made really small quantities each time so as not to waste too much! ← I will start practicing real soon. Thanks for the tips!

May i ask..what is the size? ( How many..per pound?) If they are large enough...split them shell on lengthwise from head to tail. Place them shell side down on a skillet. Sprinkle with a bit of olive oil, Herb De Provence, Black Pepper and salt. Cook until the flesh turns from translucent to almost white ( do not turn or flip). Add a bit of butter. Serve with salad. Or add long pasta..spagetti, fettuccine ot tagliatelle with chopped flat leave parsley!

I am doing just great with crepe when it comes to the swirling technique in a pan. The lace pattern was not that bad. The point is, i wish i could advance my technique a step further by creating beautiful lacy ones and with the T tool. Again, can anyone give some advice on this? Thanks

Thank you Pennylane! I have made a few experiments with the very thin batter but the thinner the batter the faster it sets. And the faster it sets...the more difficult to spread with the tool. Is my understanding correct?

I have seen French Crepe with beautiful lace pattern when i visited France. The other day at Beijing Restaurant, i was served Chinese thin pancake (or crepe...) with roasted duck...the pancake was with beautiful lace pattern. I wonder how to make those beautiful pattern?..it was like real lace. I also have staub cast iron crepe pan, T shape wooden tool and a pointed wooden spatula ( for flipping the crepe), but, to be honest...i do not know how to use it. Can anyone help with the tips and the techniques on spreading the crepe really thin with this pan & T tool and how to make the lace like pattern? SOS

I guess I should clarify. I haven't been to every part of Japan searching for that type of dessert. But I think that most Japanese would know of it. A Google image search brings up pages and pages of such desserts. http://images.google.ca/images?q=%E3%82%B9...m=1&sa=N&tab=wi ← OK, sweets sold by the name of "sweet potato" are as popular as strawberry sponge cakes, mont blanc, and purin (Japanese custard pudding) in Japan, and it happens to be a favorite of my son's. It's only that I haven't had the marugoto type. ← Will have it for breakfast again after tea yesterday. I bought a piece 750 Gram ( half the potato) and keep on eating until finish. It costs as much as pastries from Hediard ( the French shop)... Thanks everyone for the info.

That type of sweet potato dessert is quite common all across Japan. ← I'm not sanrensho , and I must say that I'm not very familiar with that type. I mean, I know of it, but I haven't had it before. I can say that using skin as a container is not at all a novel idea; you can see the skins of persimmons, orange and other citrus fruits, kabocha, and other vegetables as containers. I don't think Marugoto sweet potato is a specialty of Otaru. It's only that Hokkaido is famous for its dairy products. Of course, you can make marugoto sweet potato yourself. A recipe is here. http://cookpad.com/kabotin/recipe/280651/ (Sorry, Japanese only) ← Dear Hiroyuki, You have killed me instantly letting me have the recipe in front o f me but cannot do a thing. iii

I'm not sure. Do any of the photos in the following links look similar? Marugoto (= whole) sweet potatoes (second and third photos) http://shop.gnavi.co.jp/Mall2/305/101816.html Kawa tsuki (= skin on) sweet potato http://www.rakuten.co.jp/kitanoyorimichi/881157/881161/ ← Yes!!!!! I just took a picture of mine but the pciture u have is the one i am referring to. I went back to the shop, it jsut a Hokkaido promotion week...and the chef said it is called Marugoto. Can you enlighten me more on both the MArugoto and the Kawatsuki? The marugoto is such a comforting dessert, i love it. Thank you for the www link. ← Unfortunately, I'm not familiar with either, but I think I found the right one: http://yaplog.jp/haruhime-d/archive/611 The product name is Otaru no Marugoto Potato. It does look familiar to you, doesn't it? I also found the website of the manufacturer: http://www.umaibeya.com/sweethouse/sy_hyo.html ← WOW....you have the one i do!!!!! Thanks Now...one more Q pls: is Marugoto common dessert In japanese? Or is it an invention and only available at this shop? Or is it common in Otaru? Oh oh...three Qs actually. Thanks iii

I'm not sure. Do any of the photos in the following links look similar? Marugoto (= whole) sweet potatoes (second and third photos) http://shop.gnavi.co.jp/Mall2/305/101816.html Kawa tsuki (= skin on) sweet potato http://www.rakuten.co.jp/kitanoyorimichi/881157/881161/ ← Yes!!!!! I just took a picture of mine but the pciture u have is the one i am referring to. I went back to the shop, it jsut a Hokkaido promotion week...and the chef said it is called Marugoto. Can you enlighten me more on both the MArugoto and the Kawatsuki? The marugoto is such a comforting dessert, i love it. Thank you for the www link.

I just had baked sweet potato from Otaru Hokkaido. It its like having custard on the top of the splitted and flattened potato.... Can anyone give me the idea what actually it is? and what is it called in Japanese? Thank you iiii

I might have been blurred. I mentioned this once on page 3. The recipe was also posted ...# 82, i think. Please let me knoiw what you think of it once you bake. Ciao, iii

My favourite is Flo Braker's buttermilk Cake. It is moist almost melt in the mouth. If u need the recipe, pls let me know. iii

Not sure if this was mentioned here : Roasting rice: Sprinkle a bit of water on the rice will help rice roasted better and more fluffy. The roasted rice should look partially puffed like pop corn...not just brown. Rice roasted well will be easily ground into flour by, in a mortar, just swirling the pestle on the rice... you'll get the ground roasted rice in seconds. New roasted rice does a big differnece in Larb!

Just want to jump on the wagon to say Congratulations to Dorie. I just learned about your blog from this thread and also learned that i have all your books except the one with a Chef on the cover...sorry cannot recall the title of the book. I did read thru all the books but not yet have a chance to bake anything. I love them all. Again, congratulations! iii

Got it, thanks