Search the Community

You're welcome, Maureen. I'm not sure what the pastes you refered to are specifically, as they are so many different types of pastes that it would be difficult for me to identify each one without the Thai names. The pastes in general can be stored at room temperature, or even in the fridge, but never in the freezer. Kaffir lime leaves and zest are different. You can substitute regular lime zest, or mandarin zest for the kaffir zest. The sour sausage is probably from the Isan (northeast) region of Thailand. I've never made it myself as I am from Bangkok, but I bet I could look up a recipe for you when I get home. The crispy rice is actually a clever way of using left over rice. In the old days, rice was cooked in large quantity in a giant wok like pan. After the rice was cooked and served there would be a layer of rice crust that was stuck to the pan. The crust would be taken out of the pan, air dried, and subsequently broken into smaller pieces and deep fried to be served with other dishes. One of my favorite snacks is a sort of relish of shrimps, minced pork, shallots, peanuts cooked in coconut milk (Na Tung). The sweet/salty relish is served with Kao Tang, or crispy rice cakes. I remember seeing rice cooked in those giant woks at my granfather's company when I was little . Back in those days we fed the workers for free. In fact one of my earliest food memories had to do with those woks, I remember thinking that the Kitchen Mother (a Thai equivelent of "cook") could deep fry me in one of those things!! A tad morbid I'd say, especially for a 4-5 yr-old. I go to Ranch 99 (in Milpitas near my office) and the New May Wah on Clement st. I find that between these two places I usually find pretty much everything I need.

Post your questions here -->> Q&A Thai Cooking Authors: Matthew Amster-Burton (mamster) and Pim Techamuanvivit (Pim) Introduction Why cook Thai food at home? Matthew: Even if you have a Thai restaurant across the street from your house, like I do, you can produce better food and a wider variety of dishes at home. Unlike Chinese food, Thai food doesn't require a blazing hot wok for most dishes, and Thai ingredients are now widely available in large supermarkets. What do we plan to do in this class? Pim: After discussing what to cover for this class, Matthew and I came to an agreement that it would be far too ambitious to even try to cover the subject of Thai food in just one class. Our plan instead is to give you an introduction to Thai ingredients and teach you how to make three dishes, each one representing a different approach to Thai cooking. We hope that these three recipes will at least whet your appetite and give you a bit of inspiration to learn more about the cuisine. The three recipes given here are for Massaman Curry, Nam-sod Kao-tod (pork salad and seasoned rice patties), and the perennial favorite, Pad Thai. I chose the Massaman curry because it is one of the best and most approachable Thai curries. It need not be fiery, rather aromatic, spicy and, of course, delicious. The principles of making curry paste, discussed at length here, can also be used for other types of curry pastes. The Nam-sod recipe is chosen because of the popularity of the Laab Thread. Nam-sod is sort of a cousin to Laab, so I thought it would be a fun thing to make together here. To close, Matthew provides his favorite Pad Thai recipe. Pad Thai is arguably the most famous of Thai dishes, and Matthew swears by his rendition. We hope you try them all. Enjoy. Key ingredients: (by Matthew with comments from Pim) Chilies. Thai chilies if possible, but substitute serrano chilies. Availability: Supermarkets and Asian groceries. Fish sauce. Made from salted, fermented anchovies, fish sauce smells terrible and tastes incredible. For those who love it, living without fish sauce would be like living without oxygen. Availability: Supermarkets, but worth going to an Asian market, where it will be cheaper and available in a wider quality range. Look for Squid (inexpensive and medium-quality), Tra Chang (high quality), and Baby (aka Golden Boy, high quality). Even the high quality brands shouldn't cost more than $2 for a large bottle. Tamarind paste. Tamarind trees, a member of the bean family, grow all over Thailand and produce pods full of tart and sticky pulp. Harvested and compressed into a one-pound brick, tamarind paste should be reconstituted in hot water and strained before using. It gives a tart, woody flavor to a variety of sauces and curries. Pim’s comment: Tamarind paste should not be confused with fresh tamarind in pods available at certain well-stocked Asian markets. The tamarind pods are “sweet tamarinds”, which are different from the type of tamarind made into paste. The sweet tamarinds, as the name suggests, are not sour enough to be used as a seasoning, and are for eating plain. Availability: Asian groceries. Galangal. If you could take a length of ginger root, skin it, and inflate it to an embarrassing diameter, you'd have something that looks like galangal. Often called "Thai ginger" (though regular ginger is also widely used in Thai cooking), galangal has a much stronger flavor that includes pine pitch notes not unlike retsina. It's used most often in chili pastes for making curries, soups, and salads. Availability: Asian groceries and large supermarkets and health food stores. Lemongrass. We humans eat a lot of grass, and I don't mean that in the Alice B. Toklas sense. Rice, wheat, and corn are grasses. Lemongrass is one of the few grasses where we eat the leaves rather than the seeds. These hardy stalks need to be peeled of their tough other layers, then thinly sliced. Slices of lemongrass are simmered in soups and stocks (and are not meant to be eaten) or pounded into curry pastes. Pim’s comment: There are two general ways of preparing lemongrass. If the lemongrass is to be eaten as part of the dish, as in salads or in curry pastes, only the tenderest part should be used, and should be sliced very thinly. On the other hand, if the lemongrass is to be used as an aromatic only, as in soups, you would only need to peel off the outer most layer of the stalk. The rest can be cut into 1-2 inch pieces and perhaps smashed slightly before adding to the soup. Availability: Supermarkets. Shallots. Think French cooks use a lot of shallots? A Thai cook can handily out-shallot Jacques Pepin. These small onion relatives are essential, along with garlic and chilies, in most curry pastes. Some cooks say that the shallot-garlic balance determines whether the paste will make a better curry for fish or meat, with fish preferring a shallot-heavy paste. Availability: Supermarkets, but often better at farmer's markets, where you can find smaller shallots similar to those used in Thailand. Garlic. In season (mid-summer through fall), it's worth seeking out hardneck purple garlic, which is easier to peel and has better flavor than white, softneck supermarket garlic. Used in curry pastes, stir-fries, and salad dressings. Palm sugar. Made from the cooked sap of the coconut palm, palm sugar is a vital ingredient in many curries, where it rounds out the sour, salty, and hot flavors without making the curry taste sweet. Buy palm sugar in compressed blocks and break them up into small chunks with a hammer and chisel. Don't buy palm sugar in a tub, because you will never get it out. Pim’s comment: I think Mamster’s testosterone is getting the better of him here. I don’t usually resort to the hammer or chisel> I find that using a sharp knife to slice off small pieces is quite sufficient. Availability: Asian groceries. Curry pastes. We will teach you to pound your own curry paste in a mortar and pestle, but you can also buy decent commercial pastes at Asian groceries and well-stocked supermarkets. Our favorite brand is Mae Ploy, which lasts months in the refrigerator. You can also make a hybrid paste by starting with commercial product and pounding in fresh garlic, shallots, and chilies. Pounded pastes are used in soups, salads, and stir-fries as well as curries, so many cooks call them "chili pastes." Availability: Supermarkets and Asian groceries. Equipment: No special equipment needed, but a Thai mortar and pestle will be helpful for this class and a variety of other kitchen tasks. You know that small ceramic mortar and pestle sitting in the back of your cupboard? Give it to your pharmacist and get a real one. Thai mortars and pestles are made of indestructible green granite and weigh a ton. They are made for turning tough, fibrous ingredients like lemongrass and dried chilies into smooth pastes. Pounding garlic and fresh chilies together to begin a Thai salad dressing will make your kitchen smell like heaven, and that's even before you stir in the fish sauce. A wok is useful for deep-frying, but for stir-frying (especially noodles), a 12" nonstick skillet works just as well. The Recipes: Recipe 1 Massaman Nuea (Beef Massaman Curry) (by Pim, courtesy of her Aunt Chawiwan) for about 4-6 servings This recipe looks daunting, but I promise it will be the best Massaman Curry you have ever tasted. Even if you opt for the canned paste rather than using this recipe, the process of marinating and simmering the beef in coconut milk and the addition of spice during the cooking will improve the taste dramatically. Ingredients Massaman Paste 15 medium pieces of dried chili, soaked, seeded, chopped 1/4 cup sliced garlic 1/3 cup sliced shallots 1 Tbsp coriander seeds 1 tsp cumin seeds 1 tsp white pepper 1 tsp lemongrass, chopped 1 tsp galangal, peeled, chopped 1 tsp kaffir lime zest 1 tsp cilantro roots, scraped, chopped 1 Tbsp salt 1 tsp shrimp paste, roasted Beef and Marinade 1 kg. beef (I use the Chuck cut) 1 tsp ginger, julienned 2 cups coconut milk* 2 tbsp fish sauce To finish the curry 2 Tbsp oil 2 cups coconut cream* 1 Tbsp cardamom leaves 1 Tbsp whole cardamom 1 inch piece of cinnamon 150 g peanuts 5 whole shallots, peeled ¼ cup palm sugar 1 Tbsp tamarind, mixed with 1/3 cup warm water and strained 2 Tbsp fish sauce The Massaman paste will have to be used the same day if there's any water added. Otherwise it will keep for a few days in the fridge. It does not, however, freeze well. On Coconut milk: In Thailand, the first extraction with very little, if any, added water is called coconut cream (Hua Gati). This compares to sort of an extra virgin pressing of olive oil. The next extraction, with added water, is called coconut milk (Hang Gati). If you use canned coconut milk, just spooned off the thick "cream" part to separate it from the milk. Process: First you marinate the beef: Cut the beef into large chunks and marinate them in the coconut milk and julienned ginger. Set aside for at least 30 minutes before proceeding to the next step. Simmer the beef chunks in the marinade in for another half an hour. Next you pound the curry paste: (Note: This step is optional. You could just skip it if you opted for a commercial canned version. The resulting Massaman won't be as good, of course, but still quite acceptable.) While the beef is simmering, grind all the Masaman paste ingredients together in a blender until the paste resembles a fine puree. You can add a little water to the paste if it became too thick to be processed. Take care not to add too much water or the paste will create a nasty splash when cooked. If you want to use the Thai mortar and pestle to pound the paste, read the section “On the pounding of curry paste” below. Now you make the curry: Heat up a large wok or sautee pan with 2 Tbsp oil, add the massaman paste and cook for a few minutes, stirring vigorously. Add a cup of the coconut cream to the pan and cook, stirring frequently, until the paste is completely dissolved into the coconut cream. Let the mixture bubble for a few minutes until a layer of oil begins to separate from the mixture. Add the rest of the coconut cream and let it bubble away for another few minutes until the oil begins to separate again. Add the whole cardamoms, cardamom leaves, whole shallots, peanuts, palm sugar, tamarind water, and fish sauce. Add the contents of the beef pan, and continue to simmer until the beef is tender. Be careful not to let the curry boil too vigorously at this stage or the coconut cream will curdle. Just let the pot simmer gently until the beef is tender. Check the seasoning before turning off the stove. The taste should be spicy (not too hot, but very spicy), salty, sweet, with an ever-so- slightly sour aftertaste, in this order. Do not let it be cloyingly sweet. Serve with freshly steamed Thai jasmine rice, or Naan bread. On the pounding of curry paste I know the thought of pounding your own curry paste could be quite intimidating, however, there is no need for alarm. There is definitely an order to this seeming chaos. First, you will need an appropriate tool. For this I suggest a good quality Thai mortar and pestle (Krok and Saak). I hope you know what I am talking about. Otherwise watch Jamie Oliver, his Krok is a constant presence on the countertop. You will need to "mise en place" all your ingredients. If your recipe calls for some ingredients to be roasted, do so. You can use your toaster oven or just dry roast in a pan. You should, however, roast the shrimp paste regardless of what the recipe says. Wrap it loosely in foil and roast in the toaster oven for about 5 minutes at 450F. Dried chilies are a main staple for all curry paste. Soak them in warm water for at least 15 minutes or until soft. Seed and chop them finely. While waiting for the chilies to soften, turn your attention to the other ingredients. Chop them as finely as you can. You can use your old workhorse Cuisinart for this, but don’t chop all the ingredients together, do each separately. When the ingredients are prepared and ready, start your pounding. The first ingredients into your Krok are chilies and salt. Pound them until very fine, then add the harder stuff such as kaffir lime zest, cilantro roots, galangal, lemongrass, turmeric, or others. Pound them until fine, it will help if you do one at a time. Then add your garlic, again pound finely. The next ingredient is a shallot. After you’re done pounding the shallot to a fine paste, the mixture in your Krok will be quite moist. This is the time to add powdered spices were they called for in the recipe. The last to go in should be the shrimp paste, since it is, as the name implies, already in paste form. Remember not to stare too closely while admiring the progress in your Krok, lest your eyes burn with excruciating pain from flying bits of the paste. If you are new at this, take a piece of paper or foil,cut a circle slightly larger than the diameter of your Krok, position the circle over your Saak or pestle and push gently downward. Your Saak should now be dressed with a homely little skirt. This will save your eyes from flying ingredients. After all the pounding, you should end up with a very lovely fine paste in your Krok ready for the next stage. You can keep the paste for up to a week tightly wrapped in the fridge, though the sooner you use the better it will be. Should you find yourself in a pit of self pity and depression after reading this, do not despair. It is entirely acceptable to dump all the ingredients at once into a good sturdy Cuisinart or even a blender, and let it do the dirty work for you. Your paste won’t be so lovely, and you will never pass for a good Thai daughter-in-law. Unless the latter is somehow your goal, your curry paste will do just fine. If you still not liberated from the bottom of the pit, get over to the nearest Asian supermarket and buy yourself some ready-made curry paste. Just don’t tell anyone, at least not around here. Recipe 2 Nam-sod, Kao-tod (Nam Pork Salad and Fried Rice Patties) By Pim Ingredients Kao-tod (rice patties) 1 Tbsp galangal, finely chopped 1 tsp dried chili, soaked in warm water for 15 minutes then seeded and finely chopped 3 Tbsp lemongrass, finely chopped 3 Tbsp shallots, finely chopped 2 Tbsp garlic, finely chopped 2 cups cooked jasmine rice 2 Tbsp fish sauce 1 egg Nam-sod (Nam Pork) 4 Tbsp finely chopped garlic (about 10 cloves) 1 pound ground pork 2 oz. pork skin, boiled for 10 minutes then sliced very thin ½ cup cooked jasmine rice 2 tsp salt To finish the salad 1/3 cup shallots, finely sliced 3 Tbsp cilantro, chopped 1 Tbsp green onion, finely sliced ½ cup young ginger, julienned 3 Tbsp lime juice, or to taste ½ cup of peanuts 10-15 dried chilies 2-3 Tbsp fish sauce 2 more limes, each cut into six slivers Making Kao-tod Pound the galangal, dried chili, lemongrass, shallots and garlic together into a fine paste. This is best done in a mortar and pestle. You could use a blender, but do not add any water, otherwise your rice patties will splatter during the frying. In a medium bowl, mash the herb paste, rice, egg, and fish sauce together by hand. Cover and set aside for later. The Kao-tod should not be fried up too long before serving as they will become soggy. Making Nam-sod Pound the garlic into a fine paste. In a large bowl, use your hand to forcefully mash together the garlic, ground pork, pork skin, jasmine rice, and salt. Knead the mixture a bit to build up gluten which gives the Nam a nice structure. Roll the ingredients into about 10 equal size balls. Steam the Nam balls for about 10 minutes or until just cooked. Do not over-cook them as the salad will be dry. Make-ahead note: You can make both Kao-tod and Nam-sod up to one day ahead. Follow the recipe to finish the salad before serving. To finish the salad: First you prepare the Kao-tod. Pat the Kao-tod mixture into patties, each about 3 inches in diameter and ¾ inch thick. Fry these in hot oil until golden brown. Set aside. Quickly fry the 10-15 dried chilies, only for 10 seconds or so, until crisp. Be careful not to let them turn too brown. In a large bowl, break up the Nam balls and mix in the lime juice and fish sauce. You can serve the salad two ways a) mix all the ingredients together, garnishing with the Kao-tod, fried chili and slivers of lime. b) on a large plate, put the Nam-sod in the middle. Arrange the rest of the ingredients around the Nam-sod and let your guest mix their own salad at the table. Recipe 3 Pad Thai Adapted by Matthew from Cook's Illustrated, July/Aug 2002 Ingredients 2 Tablespoons tamarind paste 3/4 cup boiling water 3 Tablespoons fish sauce 1 Tablespoon rice vinegar 3 Tablespoons sugar 3/4 teaspoon cayenne 1/4 cup peanut oil 8 oz thin rice stick noodles 2 eggs 1/8 tsp kosher salt 12 oz shrimp, peeled 2 cups water 1/4 cup kosher salt 1 Tablespoon minced garlic 3 Tablespoons minced shallots 2 Tablespoons minced preserved radish 6 Tablespoons chopped roasted unsalted peanuts 3 cups bean sprouts 5 scallions, sliced 1/4 cup cilantro leaf lime wedges Make tamarind water by pouring boiling water over tamarind paste. Let sit for a few minutes, stir well, and strain. Discard the solids. To the tamarind water, add fish sauce, vinegar, sugar, cayenne, and 2 tablespoons oil. Soak noodles in hot tap water 20 minutes. Drain. Beat eggs with 1/8 teaspoon salt. Dissolve the 1/4 cup salt in 2 cups water, and brine the shrimp in this solution for up to 30 minutes. Drain the shrimp and dry well on paper towels. Heat 1 tablespoon oil in 12" skillet over high heat for 2 minutes. Add shrimp. Stir-fry for 2 minutes or until nearly cooked through. Remove shrimp to plate. Add the last 1 tablespoon oil. Place over medium heat and add garlic and shallots. Stir constantly for 1.5 minutes. Add eggs and scramble 20 seconds. Add noodles and salted radish. Toss with two wooden spoons to combine with eggs. Add sauce and raise heat to high. Toss constantly until coated. Add 1/4 cup peanuts, bean sprouts, most of the scallions, and shrimp. Toss 2-1/2 minutes or until noodles are tender. Add up to 2 tablespoons of water if it begins to look too dry. Transfer to platter. Top with remaining peanuts, scallions, and cilantro. Serve with lime wedges. Optional: If you can get good dried shrimp, a couple of tablespoons added to the pan along with the noodles is a nice touch. Recommended reading Now that we've whet your appetite for Thai home cooking, here are some recommended books and web sites for learning more: Web sites thaifoodandtravel.com. Kasma Loha-unchit is the author of two cookbooks (see below) and she and her husband publish many fine recipes and articles on their web site. Pim’s comment: Her site also contains very good information of sources for Thai ingredients for those in the US. pai-kin-khao.com. Based in Thailand, this site has extensive Thai food articles, recipes, and menus. Pim’s comment: I find articles in this site to be quite interesting, but I am less impressed with some of the recipes there. My impression is that the site is more in the mold of Martha Stewart rather than the serious cooking of, say, Julia Child. The recipes there are mostly simplified, or even a bit too “fusion” for my taste. Books It Rains Fishes and Dancing Shrimp by Kasma Loha-unchit. Two excellent introductory books, the first a survey of Thai cooking and the second a book of seafood recipes. Thai Food by David Thompson. The biggest and most complete Thai cookbook available in English, but not for beginners. Lonely Planet World Food Thailand by Joe Cummings. More travel guide than cookbook, the author attempts to fully document Thai cuisine as it exists on its home turf today. That's a tall order, but Cummings, who has lived in Thailand for decades, is up to the task. Do not travel to Thailand without this book. Post your questions here -->> Q&A

I also hated brussel sprouts since I'd only had them steamed. However, I've always felt that American kids would eat their vegetables if their parents prepared them the way mine did--stir-fried. So, a few years ago, I sliced new brussel sprouts really thinly, and stir-fried them in the wok with olive oil and some kosher salt. I basically toss them to coat, then put the wok cover on for 30 seconds or so, then just before removing them I let them sit a few seconds to get a nice charring. I've also deleafed them, but I'm usually too lazy.

Suvir, hope you're reading this thread, here's another Maharashtrian style of cooking oysters. I freely admit I haven't tried this, but I would trust the source even though it happens to be the back of the calendar in my cubicle! Its not just any calendar though, but the English version of Kalnirnay, the calendar-cum-almanac-cum-monthly magazine (the content printed on the reverse of the page for that month) which is counted as India's largest selling publication with a print run, across its 27 editions, of 10 million copies. If you're not already familiar with it, a Kalnirnay calendar is an absolute must on the walls of any kitchen in Western India, and increasingly other parts of the country as well. Of course, they even have a US edition now and the website, www.kalnirnay.com, thoughfully gives alternate timings of auspicious occasions in the almanac for different timezones depending on whether you're in NYC, Chicago or LA. So as far as authenticity goes its unimpeachable, and in addition the publisher, Jayraj Salgaokar, is a great guy and a foodie so I'm betting the recipes will be good. (In the interests of full disclosure I should note that Mr.Salgaokar sent me a case of the most incredible Alphonsos this year and, while we're not usually allowed to accept such gifts, in this case, on compassionate grounds, my editor gave me a waiver. Also, I wasn't writing anything about them then). Here's the recipe: Maharashtrian Oyster Masala Ingredients: about 50 medium sized oysters, 1 onion, 1/2 coconut, , 1/2 cup fresh coriander leaves, 1 inch ginger 5-6 cloves garlic, 1 tsp powdered garam masala, 1 tsp powdered red chilli, 1 1/2 tbsp oil, I kokum, salt to taste. Oysters need to be washed at least for about ten minutes rinsing at least five to six times in water. Slit open the oyster shell with a sharp knife and separate the flesh so it sticks to one side of the shell, throw away the empty shell and retain the fleshy part. After all oyster are done keep aside. Shallow fry finely chopped onion, garlic (3 cloves), ginger and grated coconut in about 1 tsp oil. Add coriander leaves to this mixture and grind to a paste. This forms the masala. Heat remaining oil in a wok or kadai, chop remaining garlic cloves and add to the hot oil followed by the masala, powdered red chilly and garam masala, sauté mixture till oil leaves the sides. Add 1 cup water; kokum and salt (add salt sparingly as oysters are basically salty). Bring to a boil and add the oysters. Simmer for about 15 minutes. Garnish with freshly chopped coriander and serve hot. Oysters are usually accompanied with bhakris, chapattis or rice. They are traditionally made with lunch followed by the Konkani sol-curry (a cool curry made by mixing kokum and coconut milk). Oysters are rich in calcium and are generally good for all age groups. Form people suffering from high cholesterol levels or obesity, this preparation can be made without oil. A footnote from me: I don't know if you've noticed a curious fact about all these shellfish recipes. They never seem to make use of the shellfish liquor, which seems a real waste. Vikram

I live in a very large, old house in the South. It was originally built sans W.C's and a kitchen. The kitchen was originally an out building that was very large and roomy. A very practical solution for 1880's South Louisiana. When kitchens and bathrooms were added to this house in the twenties they built these huge bathrooms and a very small kitchen . I would say that I have about 5 more feet of counter space than you have, but I have TWO useless corners. The house has been completely remodeled a couple of times and most people would consider it a big, Old South showplace, but they don't have to live in it. I consider it a money pit, but my wife and children love it and I like the location and the little town it is in. I do, however, have 14 foot ceilings and that has given me the ability to have some very tall cabinets made. I put the rarely used stuff way up high and coming downward the more useful stuff. I built a fairly large island with a wet sink right in the middle, which is kind of in the way, but it's functionality outweighs the "dancing around it" factor. I have two large hanging racks coming down from the ceiling that hold virtually all of my cookware (calphalon pro mostly, with some cast iron and odd pieces that I can't do without). They were custom made and look as though they have been there since the house was built. I have a big, very powerful magnetic rack on which I store my knives and metal implements. It works great and was not very expensive and it freed up a drawer for other use. As far as the corner cabinets go, I had a cabinet guy come in and put lazy susans inside the corners of the cabinets. Not only did this cure the dead space problem, but the are very practical and work great. I would install them in another kitchen in a minute by choice, not just for need. I had the sink replumbed to give me maximum space underneath. We moved a few pipes around and you wouldn't believe how much more room we gained (although the disposal remains a problem, you can't do much with it I do have a great stove, however, a 1950 O'Keefe and Merritt with two ovens and a griddle and 4 burners including one that makes my gas meter sing like a Soprano at the Met. That thing is hot. Great for woks, quick frying, etc. The stove is large and takes up alot of space and since it's construction is cast iron and steel plating, it gets a bit hot in the summer (actually it gets hot as hell and I avoid using the ovens like the plague). My advice is to, if possible, hang things, get a cabinet guy to come in and take a look to see what he could improve, maybe get a small rolling island or have one custom built to fit your space, go all the way to the ceiling with your wall storage, and get a cutting board that will fit onto the top of your sink. Also, I must wash as I go. I have too little space in my small double sink to pile up the pots and pans (which is what I was used to doing before I got into this barn of a house, having always worked in restaurants and having dishwashers to do the "heavy lifting". Once you get used to washing as you go, it becomes part of the operation and I actually can't imagine doing it any other way. Hope you can use some of this

I tend to prep as I go. Usually I'll start by prepping whatever I'll need for the first few steps of the process to carry me till the next break in the cooking action. Things neeed later will be prepped as I go. I'm not a particularly fast cook either but the prep work is definitely therapeutic for me at the end of the day. Pu ton some good music and use the chef's knife to just work some of that stress out. I try and also keep things around that can be used to make a very quick meal as well. For instance I can generally bust out a pretty decent yaki-soba in under about 30 minutes, start to finish, including meat or tofu and 2-4 different veggies and a sauce whipped up from whatever I have on hand that seems tasty. Now that I have a decent wok and gas burner I can probably peel another 5 minutes off that time. [Of course there are also nights where I get some damn-fool cooking idea in my head and end up not eating till 11 so...]

As a result of my planned travels through south-east Asia beginning in January, the food side of my brain has been salivating on overtime with any bit of food from this region. Obviously, the Thai stuff is a huge part of it all. I have been recently determined to produce my own Thai curries from scratch at home, in the hopes of mirroring or improving upon what I've eating around my home town - Montreal. We aren't the best for Thai restaurants, but we have a LOT of great restaurants in general, and the whole city is extremely food centric. Therefore, ingredient hunting is not a limiting factor. Choosing them from my limited Thai food experience IS. Now.. Before I take, let me give from what I've learned thus far. I've made this tons of times already, and it now comes out incredibly well!: -Thai green curry- 2 stalks of lemongrass (I take a LOT of it though, so if you are the kind of person that skimps, take a third) 1.5 sq'inch of chopped Galangal root tsp. toasted (indian) coriander seeds tsp. toasted cumin seeds lime rind of one lime 4 chopped green onions 4 chopped cloves of garlic 10 peppercorns tsp. of salt 20-30 green thai bird-eye peppers - deseeded and chopped -- So.. I basically take all of this and crush it to a fine paste in my 7" mortar and pestle and then store away. It's one of those heavy granite Thai M & P's.. absolutely fantastic. I use it for everything.. fresh Indian spice teas, crushing large amounts of peppercorns.. masalas, thai curries, anything. Best $20 I ever spent in the kitchen. Now if you are planning on using this and don't know what the next step is, I'll explain that before getting into any more questions from my end. In a large wok or pot, fry the green curry paste in a tablespoon of oil. after a minute, add the thick side of the coconut milk cans.... 3 of them. Try to not pour in the thin water/milk as it doesn't seem to absorb all the flavor of the paste the same way as does the cream. Let it simmer for 3 minutes, then add about 2lbs of meat--let's say chicken; cut into bitesize strips. Once this is half cooked, throw in about 5-8 quartered Thai eggplants, as well as a bunch of longbeans cut into 3 inch pieces. While you are at it, throw in some of the secondary seasonings... I usually add about 15+ Thai basil leaves and two scored kafir lime leaves. If you put in the lime leaves too early, it becomes the main flavor component. After all this is done, add about 1 tablespoon of crushed palm sugar, the juice of one lime, and enough fish sauce to balance it out. I think I put anywhere between 3-6 tablespoons, then a bit more sugar until it is just...not sweet, nor salty. By this time, I add a thinly sliced green pepper, stir it around a few more times and it is ready. Serve with jasmine or sticky rice. Now.. I believe I have a good and accurate (with what?) taste from this recipe. What I'd like to do now is get a good red curry recipe done properly. I see such mixed up nonsense while searching through google. Also, before everyone suggests it, the only reason I simply don't go out and pick up a mae ploy paste is due to my strange desire to get it all done from scratch, but more importantly, I often have to make these things with/for people who are kosher, and can't eat the shrimp paste. I have noticed a few things with most of the recipes that appeared good from an online comparison standpoint, 1. They all seem to use dried red chilis, can't I use the fresh ones? They smell sooo nice. But is there a reason? 2. -Beyond the fact that the chilis are red, the great majority of most recipes are nearly identical to that of the green thai curry such as the one I posted above. Is that all there is to differentiate in flavor and automatically in color? I do know that one of the things I'd like to do with the red curry is roll up the lime leaves and superfinely chop them into strips to throw into the curry mid-way through. This would make them edible, and I've seen/eaten it like this somewhere and it was fantastic. It contrasted really well with the flavors of the red curry. So.. I believe this is all, I know this has been discussed a bit before in many threads, but I believe this is pointed enough to carry on with it's own thread. Thanks! Joel

Eggplant with garlic sauce - my first time making it myself. It turned out surprisingly good. Used the resipe from “Wisdom of the Chinese Kitchen,” by Grace Young as shown at http://www.thefoodmaven.com/diary/archives...s/00000021.html (minus the pork as I didn't have any onhand). Once again I'm reminded how much I love my wok and portable butane burner.

Hey trillium/tissue: Got any good recipes (Fukienese or otherwise) featuring taro? I was about to try a taro with spareribs recipe that I purely improvised (I had no idea that this was a Fukienese dish). Would appreciate any tips, or even recipes. Also, I do this as a steamed dish; should this be a claypot/casserole instead? Thanks. My shot at taro w/spareribs: 1 medium taro corm, about 1 lb., peeled, quartered, and sliced into ½” slices 2 sheets dried bean curd skin, roughly broken up, and soaked in water for 30 min. Meat Marinade 1½ lbs pork spareribs, sawn into 1½” pieces 1 tbsp. soy 1 tsp. sesame oil 1 tbsp. Xiaoxing wine or sherry 1 tbsp. cornstarch 2 tbsps. oil 2 scallions, minced 4 slices ginger, minced 5 cloves garlic, minced 2 tbsp. soy 1 tbsp. Black Chinese vinegar (or balsamic vinegar -- purists: don't hate me) 2 tsp. brown sugar Ground black pepper 2 tbsps. cilantro, minced 1. Combine ingredients for meat marinade. Set aside for 30 min. In a pan of lukewarm water, break up two sheets of dried bean curd skin. Set aside for 15 min. Drain and reserve. Peel and slice taro corm. 2. In a hot wok or sauté pan, add oil and swirl until the sides are evenly coated. Add remaining scallions, ginger, and garlic, and cook briefly until fragrant. Add meat marinade and stir until evenly browned. Add taro and bean curd skin, and stir. Add soy, vinegar, brown sugar, and ground black pepper to taste. Combine ingredients thoroughly. Remove from flame and empty contents into a pie plate or other shallow dish. 3. Set up a bamboo steamer in a clean wok. Fill the wok with water until it touches the bottom of the steamer. Remove the empty steamer and insert your pie plate into it. Bring the water in the wok to a boil. Cover steamer and lower it into the wok. Steam for 45 min. Remove from heat. 4. Plate. Garnish with fresh cilantro. Serve with rice.

The cooking is nice (fresh brussel sprouts stir-fried, then left alone for half a minute to char nicely at the bottom of the wok...yum), but what I'll really welcome are the persimmons, pomegranates, and chestnuts.

suvir and others, i never reported on my adventures with this recipe (from the home-cooking thread)--re-posting it below. i've made it twice now, the first time with a squash from the farmer's market in boulder that more closely resembled the indian kaddu and the second time with butternut squash. i am happy to report that in both cases the result was phenomenal and i would urge everyone who hasn't yet tried it to do so. suvir, please convey my thanks to panditji and keep a portion for yourself for acting as the conduit. here's my comments/slight variations on the recipe: *butternut squash cubes hold their shape far more readily than the mystery farmer's mkt. squash, so those who are experimenting with other squashes/pumpkins would do well to cook not by time but by feel. if you actually cook certain squashes for 25 minutes you won't need to mash any pieces, they'll completely disintegrate. then again this may be a matter of textural preference. i like more mash, my wife prefers a more solid texture. *in my second sortie i upped the spiciness quotient a little by doubling the green chillies (i use thai chillies) red chilly powder. i personally like the spicy kick with the sweetness of the squash--i also didn't add as much of the amchur, preferring the spicy/sweet with a hint of sour balance to the sour-sweet combination. again a matter of personal taste. *i also added a touch more hing--the earthy aroma of hing really goes well with the sweetness of squash but i can see how this is a dangerous game to play--there is such a thing as too much hing. we ate this alongside an improvised dish of potatoes and green-beans, bengali style mushoor dal with liberal squeezes of lime and hot phulkas. we were happy. while i like my slight variation i would recommend people start with the original: it is a bullet-proof recipe (the only complicated part is the cutting of the squash) and you should taste its splendor before you tinker with it. more home-cooking recipes please! ---------------------------------------------- here's the original as posted by suvir: SWEET AND SOUR BUTTERNUT SQUASH WITH GINGER AND CHILIES Kaddu Kee Sabzi Serves 4 to 6 In my grandmother’s home in Delhi, visitors would arrive begging to eat Panditjis preparation of this very simple and humble vegetable. His recipe, reproduced here, was fabled to be deliciously addictive; you will find out. Kaddu is the Hindi word for the oblong shaped, Indian pumpkin. In America, I use butternut squash instead: it comes close enough in flavor and makes it unnecessary to go hunting for the real thing in Asian markets. The end result is a dish that is authentic in taste and just as beautifully orange. Try it with a traditional Thanksgiving meal. 2- to 2 1/4- pound butternut squash 3 tablespoons canola oil 1 inch fresh ginger, peeled and minced 1 fresh, hot green chili, chopped 1/4 teaspoon fenugreek seeds 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper 1/8 teaspoon asafetida 1 1/2 teaspoons salt, or to taste 1 1/2 teaspoons sugar 2 teaspoons dried mango powder (amchur) 1. Cut the squash in half lengthwise. Peel it with a vegetable peeler or a paring knife and scrape out the seeds. Cut the two halves lengthwise into 1/2-inch-thick strips. Then cut the strips crosswise into 1 1/2-inch pieces. 2. Heat the oil in a large wok, kadai or frying pan over medium-high heat. Add the ginger and cook, stirring, 1 minute. 3. Add the fresh chili, the fenugreek, cayenne and asafetida and cook, stirring, 30 seconds. 4. Add the squash and stir to coat with the oil. Stir in the salt and sugar. Turn the heat down to medium. Cover and cook until the squash is tender, about 25 minutes. Uncover and stir the squash every 5 minutes and check on the cooking; if the spices begin to burn, turn the heat down. If the squash doesn’t brown at all, turn the heat up slightly. 5. Stir in the dried mango powder. Mash the squash with a spoon to break up some of the pieces. Taste for salt and serve hot.

Place an oil pot, topped with a strainer or colander, next to your wok. Using a pot holder grasp the pan's handle where it is attached to the wok and pour the oil into your oil pot. I often use a long handled wok spoon which typically has a 1 cup capacity bowl at its end. When I pour the oil out of the wok I have my spoon in the colander, its bowl facing up. I pour my oil into the spoon and let it overflow and then fall down into the oil pot below. This prevents/minimizes splashing. Just do it carefully and not too quickly. If you're scared to do this, just ladle the hot oil out of the wok into the oil pot. This is slower, but it works just fine. After doing this a few times it's no big deal.

Thanks for the great tips on velveting! I have several Chinese cookbooks and I don't think anybody ever really described it. I have a couple of questions though: 1) Is velveting also normally done to beef? Is that why the beef is always so tender in restaurants? (Also, what cut of beef do they normally use for stir-fried dishes?) 2) Is there a safe way to pour the hot oil out of the wok and into the oil container? This sounds rather dangerous! Thanks!!

My dad is a health nut, oh I'm sorry, I mean health advocate. When we were little kids, I remember him cutting up cubes of dark red, quivery, raw calves liver on a little chopping board and covering them with salt and sesame oil. It's disgusting, but at the time...I loved it. I think I like anything doused in salt and sesame oil though. --edit I remember some more meals I thought I had repressed My boyfriend's mom is a very peppy, eager to please kind of gal. They're Caucasian and I'm Asian so she wanted to make me feel more at home by making some sort of Asian dish. She made some stuff in a wok and put it in a bowl in front of me. My boyfriend took one look and said he didn't want any. I can't remember the entirety of the dish, but I do recall water chestnuts, some dry, chewy thin noodles, and a lot of soy sauce with some celery and other assorted vegetables and tofu. I think it had dill as well. There was no rice or anything to help it down. Not as bad as orange salad though. hehe I once perpetrated a bad food experience on my poor college roommate and her boyfriend. I made some Thai chicken coconut soup and patiently chopped up the lemongrass which we later had to pick out of our teeth and it was so hard on our teeth that nobody took more than a couple of bites. Also, I used cream and it was so creamy, it was almost like a sauce. We haven't kept in touch.

Diner (September 2003) Tasting menu (42 €). Started with an aperitif: Billecart-Salmon Rosé (6,90 €), ordered after good advice a very interesting, characteristic Viña Cimbron 1999. 1) Co2 de mojito. A small glass filled with liquid and rum; the glass was filled with foam (Adrià) of mint. Nice start with the two tastes that rested separate in the glass but came together in you mouth. Nice combination, but much alcohol. 2) Bikini d'espàrrecs al pesto. Small sandwich with green asparagus; quite ordinary. 3) Bikini de pernil mozzarella i tartufo. Another small sandwich with ham, melted mozzarella and truffle. Nice harmony, but still quite normal. 4) Bonitol amb soia i jengibre. Small piece of tuna in a soy sauce. Little Asiatic influenced though. Tuna with a light smoky taste. Nice. Another piece of tuna with much more oil, more taste of fish. Nice too. 5) Llauna de xampinyons. Paris mushrooms, marinated in oil, with garlic and bacon. Seemed very simple but tasted very nice, almost à la campagne. 6) Llauna de barat amb ceciche. A small fish with tomato, herbs, vinaigrette. To acid for me. 7) Llauna de musclos en escabetx. Spanish mussels, also a bit acid. 8) Cornete de xips amb escopinys. A paper cornet filled with some chips and the taste of something like oysters but dried. Very fishy taste and very nice. 9) Ventresca amb pebre sechuan. Nice, sort of popcorn but tasty because of the sechuan. 10) Madalenes d'olives negres. To tiny Madeleine cakes of black olives Very nice, very taste. Excellent! 11) Rabes amb vinagre. Radish with a special but very sharp taste and much acid. Advice to finish this range of dishes was therefore excellent. 12) Tagliatelles vegetals. Just tagliatelli of cucumber with yoghurt. Just nice. 13) Les sopes d'estiu. Three summer soups in small glasses. First one with cocos: very nice (and which reminded me very much of the nice soupe glacée of Cavaillon melon of Daniel Boulud). Second was really a soup with melon, also very nice. Third soup was concentrated cherry soup: very nice too. 13) Salmó & salmó. Just salmon with salmon eggs, sauce of vanilla and a little bit of dill. Excellent dish, extremely well balanced. 14) Surprise egg An egg filled with a sort of sabayon, mixed with truffle. Very, very nice and excellent (which reminded me a bit of the dish Huevo Cremoso con "Tartufo Bianco di Alba" I had last year at Gaig in Barcelona and which was one of the most impressive dishes I had in 20002). 15) Hamburguesa de foie i tófona. Just a plain hamburger. 16) Llagostins cruixents amb romesco. A langoustine with a light crust. Very well cooked, just right, and given with the famous and very nice romesco sauce. Excellent, well balanced dish again! 17) Foie i préssec. Goose liver with peach and just a bit aceto balsamico. I liked the liver, but found it nicer without the fruits… Next to it came a glass with a liquid of red peach which was very nice. 18) Roast beef amb brots al wok. Very soft roast beef with some groceries "al wok". Good but a bit ordinary. 19) Les tapes dolces. Four desserts. First a soup of breams (?): nice! A coupe of 'pinacolada' crème of cocos with a bit of peach at the bottom, very creamy and very nice. Thirdly, a cream of apricot: very nice too. To finish with the famous crème brûlée Catalane; just good. Many small dishes, some very nice, some just nice but not very exciting or showing the creativity I had perhaps too much expected here. [My rating: 15/20.]

Frugal Fresser's Fried Rice Here's a yummy recipe for fried rice--you can add chicken, beef or even tofu for the vegetarians out there. You'll need the following: Four carrots, diced four celery stalks, diced one large onion, minced four chicken legs & thighs four eggs Cayenne pepper sauce 1 1/2 cups of rice soy sauce to taste First, preheat your broiler for about five minutes. This way, the chicken will sear & sizzle when you place it on the broiler. Remove any excess fat from the chicken and reserve this fat to stir-fry the veggies. Sprinkle garlic & onion powder liberally under the skin on the chicken thighs and place them on the broiler. Listen to the pretty sizzling noises. While the chicken is broiling, dice the carrots and celery. Don't dice them so finely as to create a brunoise; the veggies should add color and some texture, but they shouldn't make the diner feel like he or she is crunching a celery stalk. Then, toss the carrots & celery into a preheated skillet or wok with the chicken fat. Stir-fry them for about five to ten minutes, then add the minced onion. The onions won't take as long to cook. If you like, you can baste the chicken thighs in cayenne pepper sauce as they broil. This will make for a nice crispy skin. Turn the chicken every few minutes so it doesn't burn. While the chicken is broiling, cook up 1 1/2 cups of white rice. When the chicken is done, de-bone it and dice it coarsely. You can remove the skin first for a nosh if you like. Now beat the four eggs in a bowl. Add pepper if you like. Just when the rice is done, let it cool for about a minute and then pour the egg mixture on top of the rice. This will coat the individual grains and add a nice color. Now find a humongous pot and add the egg/rice mixture, the diced chicken and the sauteed vegetables. Sprinkle some soy sauce over the top and toss over medium heat until the colors of the veggies are well-distributed. Serve to Jews craving good Chinese food. Keywords: Main Dish, Side, Kosher, Intermediate, Beef, Chicken, Rice, Lunch, Chinese ( RG614 )

I do agree about Chinese food. Using a wok at home is often very disappointing.

In a home kitchen set-up, an individual can`t cook his/her steak(s) at the super high temperatures that the top steakhouses can. Same idea could hold true, for Chinese dishes, that are cooked at super high temperatures in woks at Chinese restaurants(can`t be duplicated at home, with residential equipment). ----------- Steve

I too love cooking with my mom...and hate cooking with my mom! My mom is the best cook that I know and I can't eat Chinese food out without comparing it to hers. She had a restaurant in the 70's when I was a kid. Until I lived in San Francisco (around 1999), I thought General Tso's Chicken was her invention (Tso is her maiden name and it was on her menu)!!! She hates her kitchen. She has one of those corning flat-topped electric stoves from the 70's. It takes about an hour to heat up and you can turn it off and the water will still boil for 20 minutes. She instead cooks outside under a little lean-to (sounds like little house on the prairie). She has a wok ring attached to a propane tank and mostly stir fries things she's grown in the garden. As a child, I remember sitting on the floor on newspaper peeling carrots or potatoes for whatever we were cooking. I would mince garlic and ginger. I was her little prep cook. She's upset that I didn't spend more time cooking with her...but not as upset as I am. Now I do spend that time with her and she teaches me something new each time. But...sometimes I hate cooking with her too! Having worked in restaurants, I waste too much food when I prep. She's always complaining that I'm throwing too much away. When we make potstickers and I think the filling is used up, she can use a rubber spatula and make four more dumplings! I guess that's why Chinese are known for being cheap! Squeezing blood from a stone is nothing to my mother...

Hi Pongi, Here is a simple potatoe dish using amchoor, quite popular in the north. It will give you an idea of one way of using amchoor in a dry dish. we will just call it Sookhae Aloo ( or Dry Potatoes, in case you are not familiar with hindi) Peel boiled potatoes into one inch cubes. heat oil in a wok or kadai add cubed potatoes and cook on medium to low heat. the trick is to let it brown slowly, turning the potatoes occasionally. Messing around too much will mash the potatoes. When you have the desired crispness. Add -Salt -red chiili powder or cayenne -garam masalla -amchoor powder Mix so the potatoes are well coated. Heat another minute and serve as a wonderful side dish. Note: how when you add the amchoor and spices all the oilyness dissapears.

CLAMS OR MUSSELS WITH BASIL While I haven’t measured out the proportions, if you read these instructions carefully I’m confident they will produce an excellent result. By the way I love using basil in my Asian cooking, especially right now when it is plentiful and fragrant. In fact I just used handfuls in a Hunan-style chicken stir-fry. Also try leaving out the soy, oyster sauce and the thickening: you’ll end up with a delicious brothy casserole style dish. Make the sauce base: Heat 1T of vegetable oil in a wok and add 1t minced garlic, 1t sliced ginger, some sliced fresh chile (more or less to taste – none is fine too), and a couple of chopped scallions. Cook, stirring for ten seconds then add a cup of chicken stock. Quickly bring it to a boil then add 2 T dry sherry or shaoshing rice wine, 1-2T oyster sauce, 2-3T soy, 2t sugar, a touch of salt, 1/2t white pepper and if you use it, 1/2t MSG. Taste for seasoning: the sauce should have a nice brown color and be flavorful without being too salty (when you add the clams their juice will dilute the sauce slightly and add more salt at the same time). Cook the clams: Add 1 1/2- 2 dozen well scrubbed clams (mussels work well too) to the sauce base, and cook until the clams start to open (clams may take 3 or 4 minutes, mussels much less). Using a slotted spoon, remove the clams just as soon as they open (so they don’t toughen) and hold them on the side as you finish the sauce. Thicken & finish the sauce: Taste the sauce and correct the seasoning, checking for depth of flavor, salt, sugar (which will give the sauce a rounded taste), spiciness and rich brown color. Reduce it if necessary, then when it tastes right, add a big handful of basil leaves and some coarsely chopped fresh cilantro. Working quickly, thicken the sauce with cornstarch slurry, and then recheck the seasoning. Return the clams and any of their accumulated juices to the sauce, and heat through for just a few seconds. Serve immediately.

My grandmother steams chicken in a wok, basting it with fat from another chicken, giving it a nice rich yellow colour. Don't know how she times it but she gets the flesh just cooked. It's very good, but dependent on the quality of the bird. She visited once and cooked a supermarket bird, and we agreed that it was the chook. The thigh meat is crazy like this just firm, still slippery, and the well cooked skin divine when dipped in a sauce of soy sauce, sesame oil, garlic and chilli... and spring onions, i believe some know it as scallions... I wouldn't get grandma to cook if the bird wasn't reared properly.

thom, i would suggest you decide how much space you have for your oven/range and what fuel/s.As i said when we designed our small kitchen we found we only had 90cms left thus went for the toldeo 90(rangemaster,the Aga company), it has everything we need. 5 rings (1 for woks) 2 ovens (one normal.,one tall-for rib roast & plate warming etc) Seperate grill(big plus) and dual fuel,fan assisted oven Our choice was made on the fact that it had all the features we wanted, it looked good(simple,sleek but sturdy), which we personally didnt find the smeg did when we looked closely, I find agas are lovely in the right enviroment but often look out of place.Our 2nd favourite was a belling was our 2nd favourite but i found the door seal a bit shoddy.And it fitted ! Johnathon is correct that alot of these ranges do look fake close up, trying to look classic or flashy with giant buttons etc. U really do need to go and have a good look at whats availiable. I am sure there are which reviews availiable, i think u have to pay online or try the library Check online as there are so many websites but beware sometimes prices look low but infact delivery is extra. The reason we went to a small local store in surrey was the fact they discounted as we also bought washer dryer and fridge freezer. Once u have choosen your favourite model/s look on [url=http://www.kelkoo.co.uk as they compare online prices & advise of p&p...(i know see i could have saved £36 on mine !) have fun looking sarah xx

I have a traditional residential gas stove... kind of crappy but quite big for a Manhattan apartment. I still find that I can't get a wok hot enough on my stove to make decent use of it. This is complicated by the fact that the heat capacity of most woks is so low that theylose any stored heat if you put much of anything into them. This may not be as much of an issue with normal "cooking-for-one" amounts of food, but is problematic if you want to stir-fry a whole cut up chicken or something that size. Special wok burners make up for this by cranking out so many BTUs that the heat is replenished immediately. As for using a wok for Western style thick reductions... you would run into several problems: 1) only a very small area of the wok is heated by the most intense part of the flame as oposed to a saucepan or sauteuse evasee where there is a comparatively large area; 2) most woks are made of materials that have poor thermal conductivity, therefore the sides of the wok would not conduct much heat into the reducing liquid and almost all the heat would come from the small area at the bottom of the wok; 3) that small area at the bottom of the wok is a "hot spot" by another name, and could burn the reducing liquid.

More like the miniwok, but It feels stamped. Your points on the stovetop are well taken; I forget that not everyone has gas. I'll give using my sauteuse evasee a try-- never occurred to me. However, now that I'm thinking about it, seems that a wok would likewise be very good at quick evaporation.