eG Foodblog: Peter Green - Bringing Bangkok back home

[Peter Green]

Dining at the Mall

By the mid-90s, in the grip of the boom of development that had swept over Thailand, I was pretty much driven off the streets, at least as far as dining went. These were the bad years, when pollution was, really, getting unbearable, and the skytrain only existed as a glimmer, the monolithic remnants of the Hopewell project out to Don Muang the only hint that rapid transit was ever going to come to Thailand (The best description of the Hopewell LRT podiums is still “The Stonehenge of Asia”).

It wasn’t just the noise and the smell and the carcinogens, but bits of “stuff” were getting in the food.

It was putting me off my diet.

However, I wasn’t about to give up eating the dishes I loved, most of which you can’t find in the enclosed restaurants (the open air standards were also suffering from the fumes). As I was wandering around MBK (Mah Boon Krong – a great mall, and my primary source of Maxx Boy Hawaii shirts), I ended up at the food court, staring out the window at a fire in Siam Square.

As an aside, the excellent private museum, the Jim Thompson House, is just across the street. They used to have one of the most beautiful bars in town, overlooking Klong SamSem. The only downside is they closed early, when the museum closed. I wonder if the bar is still there? I should find out

That put me in the mood for some grilled meat, oddly enough. After some initial confusion about the vendors not taking my money, I figured out that I needed to buy chits. With these in hand I went about having a perfectly good meal of pork leg and grilled chicken. It was clean (there’s running water and toilet facilities), and it was fresh, as the horde of office workers I was sharing space with were stripping pretty much everything to the bare bones. After, if you have any excess tickets, you just change them back in.

So, now, if we want a quick meal, or a variety of foods in one convenient location, or you just plain don’t want to leave the mall, we go to the food court.

Of course, this being Thailand, there’s competition as to which Food Court is the best.

First, I’d say I’m not a big fan of the “new” food courts. This would be the ones I’ve seen in MBK and the Emporium, where the outlets are larger, and you have a “credit card” that is swiped at each station. I just find the food more homogenized, and the feel more like the standard food courts we’re used to elsewhere.

Nope, I still head for the courts with outlets that’ll only allow three or fewer people to work inside. This gives you the best variety, and, for my money, the best atmosphere.

As for favourites…..gone is the food court on the 6th with the windows at MBK (I think it was 6. This was before the cinemas went in). The court there is okay, and will do in a pinch.

I’m partial to the Emporium, as you get that great view of the park through those tall, tall windows. The selection is good, and you get a huge turnover from the attached office tower.

Robinson’s has a loyal enough following, as does Central. In fact, Central probably has more fans than anyone.

And then there’s the Paragon. Over the top sums it up, once again. The food court here is just a small part of the whole floor, which I believe was developed in direct competition to the Emporium’s Gourmet level.

I described the mall in 'Eid and the Angels last year, so I won’t recover old ground. Yoonhi and I had strolled over after our regular binge at MBK across the corner. I’d stocked up on loud shirts and various other materials that I won’t discuss for fear of the WTO kicking in my door. Paragon has one of the best book stores around, a large Kinokuniya outlet, so it was worth a visit on my part.

But first we needed to eat.

Decisions, decisions.

For our first pass, Yoonhi had her eyes on the sticky rice with stuff, cooked in a banana leaf. I was feeling light, and so went for the rolls. We do these often at home, but the wraps we use are the Vietnamese ones, that are more delicate. With these the rice roll is more like the “blankets” we get at dim sum in Vancouver, and there’s a good feel of rice noodle in your mouth as you chew and ruminate. Something about the rice noodle, fresh and “white” in flavour, always makes me think of Luang Prabang when I was first there…..

Yoonhi was content with her rice in terms of flavour, but it wasn’t going to be enough food, obviously. She went back for some of the oyster omelet they were making at another stand.

This is what I expect from a food court. Sizzling dishes like this for a buck or two. (How will I ever go back to plastic plates?). And the oysters I was disappointed in raw at Good View worked excellenty in here, cooked through and buried in the egg.

Three dishes, a couple of drinks (Thai iced tea for us), a few baht, and we’re in and out in twenty minutes and happy with the flavours.

And it’s air conditioned (yes, I’m a wimp)

[prasantrin]

This is what I expect from a food court.  Sizzling dishes like this for a buck or two.  (How will I ever go back to plastic plates?).  And the oysters I was disappointed in raw at Good View worked excellenty in here, cooked through and buried in the egg.

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Mmmmmm, I love oyster omelets. I was thinking of them the other day, wondering how I could make one myself. My friend makes a very good one at her restaurant in Winnipeg.

My favourite food court is Central, but only because it's so pretty.

I also like Emporium's food floor more than the food court, itself. I always find the food court to be too crowded and it's rather cramped in there.

I've spent plenty of time at Robinson's food court. It's probably my least favourite in terms of food, but my aunt and uncle go there often. They live fairly close, plus my uncle almost owns it...or maybe he does by now...

[Peter Green]

We’re back. Serena’s finished her art class for the the morning, and the missus and I got a few laps in at the pool. There’s a brief intermission before the next activities (dojo time for us, and a hair spa for Serena and Yoonhi), so time for some lunch.

I wanted to do something quick, and I wanted to use up more of the fresh ingredients, which included some very nice basil. There’s some chicken breast in the fridge, too, so kai phat bai krapao (chicken and basil) seemed like the right choice.

First, line up the requirements….

I’m tossing in some of the cowslip creeper as well. No sense letting it go to waste, and it’ll add a nice touch.

Garlic and chilis (the little devils), then onion and chicken, and then nampla, soy, vinegar, and palm sugar. Drop in the creeper, take it off the heat, and hit it with the basil.

Edible. A little on the wet side (electric ranges are all we’re allowed – and they’re never hot enough) but Yoonhi likes the sauce with her rice, so we’re okay with this.

Now, with that inside of us, the important issue is …..what to do for dinner?

[prasantrin]

You're only allowed electric ranges? Why would that be? Is that a rule solely for the expat crowd, or does it apply to locals, as well?

[Peter Green]

You're only allowed electric ranges?  Why would that be?  Is that a rule solely for the expat crowd, or does it apply to locals, as well?

←

I'm not certain of any one particular reason. I can see their position from a safety point of view. Right now, the main cause of domestic fires is "chip fires", where "certain groups" of expats leave the oil on hot for their chips (French fries, frites, freedom fries, or whatever you care to call them), and forget to turn it off when they go out.

As the house aren't generally stand-alone, I'd hate to be at the mercy of neighbors.

The othe reason would be distribution. We've got butagas in a can for the bbq (we've got a Napoleon out back), but we have to go into town to get that refilled (I keep a spare filled and ready. I learned my lesson in Cairo). It's easier to have us supplied from the electrical grid, rather than having a lot of comings and goings just for cooking gas.

I've thought of getting one of those gas driven outdoor wok burners, but then I realize that while I could have a novel way of adding salt to the food in a continual flow, I don't think my guests would find my sweating into the wok to be that appetizing.

"He puts a lot of himself into his cooking" can be taken several ways.

[Peter Green]

Where to shop?

This is another question that’s going to become fairly partisan. Everybody has their own preferred spots.

And when we say shopping, we ‘re talking groceries.

There are a lot of things which you generally need to get from the markets. These are the local greens and such that the supermarkets often don’t stock. Try asking for bai cha phloo (wild betel leaf) and (if I happen to get the tones right) I’ll get looked at like I’m some grandpa from the sticks. (You need this for miang kham, the little appetizer made by dropping a number of items – chili, ginger, lime, coconut, etc – into a small cone of this leaf). Getting to and from the markets can be a chore, however, so be prepared to invest some time.

Me, I never have enough time. So, unless I’m going to a market anyways for fun, I tend to rely on my friends to do this sort of shopping for me when they’re out there anyways. (Yeah, I am getting lazy in my old age).

So that puts us into the realm of the supermarket. What are our choices?

Well, on the truly monstrous side, there’s Tesco. Everything in one place, huge, and generally with parking, as these are located outside of the downtown core. There’s one down on Rama IV and soi 24 that’s convenient enough, and you could hit up the one at On Nut without straying too far from the BTS. I think there’s one up at Ratchada, too. These are getting blamed for putting the mom and pop places out of business by undercutting their prices, but that’s a rather facile argument. It’s more a case of the changes in Thai (or Bangkok) lifestyles that’s doing this. People don’t have the time they used to have to go from one shop to another, and maybe get what they need.

That said, I take no joy from shopping in Tesco. I could be anywhere. The same goes for Carrefour.

So, where do we shop?

There’s a selection of high end food floors in the big malls. These have their uses. If you’re looking for decent cheese, then the Emporium and Paragon Gourmet markets are a good bet. You’ll also find foie gras (at least as torchons) and caviar at hand. At Paragon I saw the most beautiful octopus tentacle. I was sore tempted to bring it back with me, but didn’t have the right packing material, so passed rather than bring it to a bad finish. Central World is supposedly quite posh, and a lot of my friends prefer it. I didn’t mind Paragon, as the aisles are wide and navigable, while Emporium is a little crowded, but very convenient (and they’ve got a great selection of stuff just outside on that floor, too).

I find, though, that these really high-end spots are lacking in the low end ingredients, and don’t really want to entertain queries about them (“Are you from Nakhon Nowhere or what?”)…….Maybe I should start dying my hair and stop speaking Lao……

The mid-levels are usually my preferred spots. Tops, Foodland, and Villa, especially the Villa 33 on Sukhumvit (I’m less than thrilled with the one on Lang Suan). These provide a good range of functional foodstuffs, with an eye to Western needs as well. And then there’s Fuji, the Japanese expat place, back down the soi by Villa 33. Go all the way down, dog leg to the right, and you’ll hit a very Japanese enclave of shops, restaurants, STD clinics, and food stalls. And then there’s Fuji.

I am, I’ll secretly admit, while all the Koreans are out of the house, a Japanophile. It’s just so much fun. You go into Fuji, the temperature drops a dozen degrees (at least) the aisles are wide, there are housewives leisurely pushing their carts about and reading packages, the staff are quiet and respectful, all with long white gloves and uniforms, and there’s that soft sort of 1960’s music we hardly ever hear anymore, even in elevators. I just want to dress like Cary Grant and study the backs of bottles of Yuzu sauce and check out the yama imo and different brands of mirin.

Many of the hotel shops are also good for food shopping. Besides their baked goods, which are usually excellent, they’ll have speciality imported items. The shop at Nai Lert, for instance, brings in jams from the Royal kitchen of Bhutan (after the visit of the young Crown Prince of Bhutan last year, the city is still rather Bhutan-crazy).

There’s a third path for shopping, as well, but one that requires more time. There’s a whole network of food delivery in Bangkok. Some of my friends keep very up to date on who’s importing what on what days of the week, and also who’s baking what on what days. If you’re plugged in, then you can draw upon very high grade ingredients quite conveniently.

Of course, if you work really hard, get in the good graces of people like Classic Fine Foods Angliss. They’re supplying most of the high end restaurants in town. The two sisters there, the Hame-ung-guls, have achieved an excellent reputation for sourcing whatever needs finding. When I talk to people like Herve at Beaulieu or others, this is who they rely upon.

It’s a pity I don’t have pictures for this section, but there’s a growing movement of “no photos” in a lot of the shops, and particularly the malls. The security guards seem more concerned with a video camera than a shoplifter, but I suppose there’re a lot of foreigners about casing the joints (I shouldn’t joke. There was a particularly nasty robbery a few years back undertaken by elements from the former East Bloc).

This should draw a certain amount of flack. I have my preferences for shopping, as everyone does. Let’s hear from the audience.

[suzilightning]

It's dawn again over here, and I realize it's our 22nd wedding anniversary.

For Yoonhi's last birthday, I was told to get her flowers.

I came back with whole wheat and all purpose.

That's probably not going to cut it today.

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happy anniversary!!

my rule is unless it is on the gift list on the fridge it has to be edible or potable. gift certificate to a favorite coffee shop? bottle of champagne? box of chocolates?(never mind - i did see your stash).

have fun and celebrate each other and what makes you special as a couple

[onehsancare]

You're only allowed electric ranges?  Why would that be?  Is that a rule solely for the expat crowd, or does it apply to locals, as well?

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I'm not certain of any one particular reason. I can see their position from a safety point of view. Right now, the main cause of domestic fires is "chip fires", where "certain groups" of expats leave the oil on hot for their chips (French fries, frites, freedom fries, or whatever you care to call them), and forget to turn it off when they go out.

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I'm confused--why would they be more likely to leave the oil on with a gas stove than an electric?

[Peter Green]

It's dawn again over here, and I realize it's our 22nd wedding anniversary.

For Yoonhi's last birthday, I was told to get her flowers.

I came back with whole wheat and all purpose.

That's probably not going to cut it today.

←

happy anniversary!!

my rule is unless it is on the gift list on the fridge it has to be edible or potable. gift certificate to a favorite coffee shop? bottle of champagne? box of chocolates?(never mind - i did see your stash).

have fun and celebrate each other and what makes you special as a couple

←

I had a brilliant idea! Given that it was the 22nd anniversary, I could get her a small calibre hand gun.

Then I figured that would probably be the worst of choices.

Edited September 28, 2007 by Peter Green (log)

[Peter Green]

You're only allowed electric ranges?  Why would that be?  Is that a rule solely for the expat crowd, or does it apply to locals, as well?

←

I'm not certain of any one particular reason. I can see their position from a safety point of view. Right now, the main cause of domestic fires is "chip fires", where "certain groups" of expats leave the oil on hot for their chips (French fries, frites, freedom fries, or whatever you care to call them), and forget to turn it off when they go out.

←

I'm confused--why would they be more likely to leave the oil on with a gas stove than an electric?

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Sorry, I'm confusing in the post. The point there was that many people can't be trusted with cooking appliances of any sort, and the risk factor with gas goes way up when compared to electric. (as in large explosions).

[Peter Green]

At the Club

I’ve been remiss, and haven’t really gone into all the details we teased you with.

The first three teaser photos that went up drew no response, so I figure I’d best give them a bit more detail.

Let’s talk about lunch at the club. The Royal Bangkok Sports Club.

The entrance to the club is just off Thanon Henri Dunant, the founder of the Red Cross.

This sign explains why the Thai look so good. They haven’t been trained to age.

It started off in 1901, well over a hundred years ago, when King Chulalongkorn granted the club its charter to operate. By 1903, like all good clubs, they were racing horses. In 1904 they started draining the grounds so that they could get on with other things, such as cricket, golf, and rugby. From that time on, with a brief interrupt brought on by the Japanese (they suspended the races….war is hell!), the club was in constant operation.

S.P..Somtow, in his Jasmine Nights, writes of the club and the pool, and its place in the social scene of Bangkok in his youth.

As a note, Somtow’s work is fascinating. A musician, a Hollywood screenwriter, a fairly prolific author, and now a writer of operas, he could best be described as the Mozart of Thailand. His book, Dragon Fin Soup, a collection of short stories, has the title story as an item dear to any foody’s heart; a specialty restaurant. I won’t give away any of the plot, other than to say the protagonist is his old friend, Bob Halliday, Thailand’s leading food and music writer for decades. (I would kill to have a collection of his food writings as Ung Aang Talay – Sea Toad – from the Post).

There’s a buffet upstairs, but where I prefer to eat is either out here, or just inside in the Air bar. They have very good Thai food here (which we’ll get to soon), and an ambience and history that’s hard to beat.

But, back to the food. This day, the weather being fine, my host and us (including my director) sat outside, taking in the beautiful day and the howl of the handheld weedwacker that was being used to trim back the track for the ponies. This was driving the odd frog out of the ditches to bask in the sun.

In addition to the regular selection, there was also a special selection on, a group of carts and charming young cooks preparing a variety of Thai dishes.

I was particularly taken with the chicken blood for the soup.

And the fried dishes looked as good as any tempura.

Dessert of fruits, sugar water, and palm hearts (I think).

The noodle soup with fish balls, pickled squid, and chicken blood was all anyone could ask for from such a dish. A lovelty pink tinged, broth, like the colour from a body in a large swimming pool. I lick my lips looking at this picture.

Everybody likes rice crackers and minced pork.

and the rice noodle with beef curry Indian style was not what we’d been expecting at all. I was thinking more like a Southern Masaman, but this, with the egg, made me think of Parsees. Good, though.

And when, oh when, dear God, am I going to learn to be more sceptical of Thai “special sausages”? At least once every trip I get ambushed by canned weenies.

A yam woon sen was in order. Clear rice vermicelli with burning chilis and lightly tinged prawns.

Stir fried chicken with basil (which looks a heck of a lot better than what I cooked up for lunch today – I told you, I can’t get the wok hot enough to get rid of all the fluid).

The Club’s version of phad Thai. Light on the eggs, which is fine by me. I’m not as thrilled by the egg encased versions.

There’s the lemon grass salad with a fork in it, and of course there would be the usual condiments out and available, as we worked through our dishes.

And last to arrive was the grilled pork neck.

We caught up a bit on the film industry. There’s may be a review for P coming up in Fangoria close to our December 25 release in the US on Tartan, so you can look for that. And this led to a very good review of how all the money can disappear in the film industry. Quite illuminating.

From there we turned to the recent history of Bangkok, catching up on which hotels were used for which ranks during the Vietnam War. The club is very good for this, as you never know who’s going to wander by from that period.

And, naturally, the conversation at some point turned to real estate, a growing concern for me. Do I buy or rent? Decisions, decisions.

All the stuff of a good afternoon, while the caddies shepherd their wards about the tees, and the staff quietly ensure that everything is done to order.

I could grow accustomed to this life.

[snowangel]

Ah, Peter, what a trip back in time for me. I remember Khun Malulee very well; back when I was an elementary school student at the Bankapi campus of ISB, she was a teacher -- I took both Thai and math from her! I keep that cookbook handy, and while not avant, it served a purpose when I was a college student in Northfield in the mid to late 70's.

Oh, and the Nancy Chandler map. I still have one, circa mid-70's. Back then, she included bus route numbers. Are there still buses? If so, is there still a person who walks the aisles collecting the fares in those metal things from which they pulled a paper ticket?

Also glad to know that the Sports Club is still a venerable institution.

Your photos remind me that time and development do not stand still. In 1966, when I first arrived in Thailand, it was a sleepy little town with horrid traffic. ISB was huge, and populated largely by PX kids.

And, outside of the late and great Erawan Hotel and the Oriental Hotel, farang food items were few and far between. I remember when the Central Department Store first opened; must have been early 70's and they had a "cafe." My mom and I went, and ordered grilled cheese sandwiches. We were expecting what should rightfully be called a cheese sandwich, grilled, but were instead served cheese which had been grilled on bad white bread.

But, the Thai food still looks wonderful.

You have just touched on the street food scene. Are noodle carts that prowl the sois still common?

[Peter Green]

Ah, Peter, what a trip back in time for me.  I remember Khun Malulee very well; back when I was an elementary school student at the Bankapi campus of ISB, she was a teacher -- I took both Thai and math from her!  I keep that cookbook handy, and while not avant, it served a purpose when I was a college student in Northfield in the mid to late 70's.

Oh, and the Nancy Chandler map.  I still have one, circa mid-70's.  Back then, she included bus route numbers.  Are there still buses?  If so, is there still a person who walks the aisles collecting the fares in those metal things from which they pulled a paper ticket?

Also glad to know that the Sports Club is still a venerable institution.

Your photos remind me that time and development do not stand still.  In 1966, when I first arrived in Thailand, it was a sleepy little town with horrid traffic.  ISB was huge, and populated largely by PX kids.

And, outside of the late and great Erawan Hotel and the Oriental Hotel, farang food items were few and far between.  I remember when the Central Department Store first opened; must have been early 70's and they had a "cafe."  My mom and I went, and ordered grilled cheese sandwiches.  We were expecting what should rightfully be called a cheese sandwich, grilled, but were instead served cheese which had been grilled on bad white bread.

But, the Thai food still looks wonderful.

You have just touched on the street food scene.  Are noodle carts that prowl the sois still common?

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Was Khun Malulee as sweet as she looked in her picture? I always had a crush on her (don't tell Yoonhi).

I don't see the bus routes on Nancy's latest (23rd edition) map. I know they were there back in the late 80's and early 90's as they calmed us down immensely when the bus would heave off in some strange direction because it couldn't go up Sukhumvit.

Otherwise, once the meter taxis came out and I didn't have to fight over fares, I have not stepped foot on a bus for ages. It was usually faster to walk.

The noodle carts can only be stopped with a steak through the buta gas container. The sois are still alive with the sound of bubbling broth, don't fear.

The Oriental is still regarded as the height of fine dining with The Normandie, and Lord Jim's has had an extensive renovation and looks pretty good. You know, there's a string of other restaurants in there - Sala Rim Naam, China House, and Ciao - that are all quite good, but they just get overshadowed by these two.

My only wish is that there was a transit line closer to the Oriental (okay, there's the River Express, but that's a tough ride in a tuxedo).

I've seen some changes in the last 20 years, but when I talk with my expat friends that have been there since the 60's (plus my Thai friends, of course), it's really an eye-opener. Here's a link to Bangkok After Dark from 1967. I read this and then rewatched The Man With The Golden Gun.

Roger Moore used to be a skinny Bond! Cool!

Cheers,

Peter

[Jensen]

I have a silly question but it's one that's been bugging me since I first saw reference to "the Skytrain".

Is this a Bombadier Skytrain? like in Vancouver?

[Peter Green]

I have a silly question but it's one that's been bugging me since I first saw reference to "the Skytrain".

Is this a Bombadier Skytrain? like in Vancouver?

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I don't use the Skytrain in Vancouver much (we're on a Kitsilano-Downtown- North Shore routing when we're home), but they struck me as very similar.....except I don't remember video screens incessantlyl screaming at me in the trains when I rode in Vancouver. (although I liked the low-fat milk commercials they were running last week....well, maybe only for the first 100 times)

The BTS link doesn't say much about equipment, but something in the back of my head remembers seeing Bombardier's name in the Post back in the late 90's when the BTS came on line. However, Siemens is in on this, and I'm seeing a lot of Siemens/Bombardier in the googles, so it may be a joint venture between the two.

Trains run well, though. And they're air conditioned!

[BekkiM]

Just wanted you to know, Peter, how much I am enjoying this blog. I'm headed to Bangkok in March with husband, son, and another family and as the food-geek of the group, I'm in charge of figuring out where we'll eat. I just ordered Nancy's latest map (thanks so much for the pictures--I'd been thinking "how special can a map be?" until I saw the pix and then I just had to have one of my own) and can't wait to experience the food you're picturing in person.

Thanks!!!!

PS: The refrigerator tour was one of the funniest things I've read on this, or any other, board in a long time.

[suzilightning]

I had a brilliant idea!  Given that it was the 22nd anniversary, I could get her a small calibre hand gun.

Then I figured that would probably be the worst of choices.

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or give her what john gave me for a birthday present one year - a .22 caliber rifle with a spotting scope and 15 round magazine. great for yard critters and threatening computers. you might want to add in some chalk, too.

[snowangel]

I have a silly question but it's one that's been bugging me since I first saw reference to "the Skytrain".

Is this a Bombadier Skytrain? like in Vancouver?

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Geez. How far I've come from Thailand. Here in MN, one associates the word "Bombardier" with a vehicle that takes one out on ice to an ice fishing house!

[Peter Green]

Another dawn, and I fall behind as ever. But late last night was in a good cause. Serena and I were watching Japanese cartoons.

Amongst all the to-and-fro of yesterday afternoon, I trimmed the beef we’d picked up the day before, and prepared a papaya.

In the Great Pantry Paw-Through I’d turned up this sachet of interesting looking satay powder from Malaysia. As my ears are ringing with “We’ve got to use up more of this stuff,” I figured it would be an appropriate additive.

So, the marinade was inchee kabin satay powder, coconut milk, and papaya. The papaya is to get some papene in the system to break down the meat a bit. We’d had some discussion in the China thread over why the bean flour in Chengdu made the meat so tender. After I had one of my Chinese speakers (or rather “readers”) translate the ingredients, papane was the active enzyme causing the tenderizing.

Two good sources for papane are pineapples (which are expensive here), and papayas (which are not expensive here). Hence, being a farang kiinniao (cheapskate foreigner), I opted for papaya.

With that settling, Serena and I worked over some eggs and finished off the custard for the ice cream. That just had to cool before I could make Serena work for her dessert.

Along with “what we store”, “what we read” is probably just as important. The cookbook section breaks into two areas. This split is based upon the fact that they won’t fit in the kitchen. We try to keep the lighter ones in here, as nobody particularly trusts my carpentry.

Cookbooks are sort of like pets. Some we go out looking for, and bring back home, others just appear on the beach one day and stick around. (Khun Malulee’s other two books are there on the right, with their spiral binds)

This is a particular gem for Thai cooking, by Khun Wandee Na Songkhla. The recipes are good (there’s one we always use for stuffed crab) and cover all the regions – but of greater importance are the sections on the traditional handling of ingredients – how to clean pork bowel, how to remove unpleasant odours in rice, how to boil lotus leaves, and a treasury of Thai home kitchen information. I don’t know how available this book is. Inside it’s full of corrections that have been hand applied with stick-em tapes. The ISBN is 974-86722-7-1 My only wish is that the binding was better, as this is getting so much use that I know the pretty little book is going to be a pretty little collection of loose leaf pages in a few more years.

The other cookbook repository is just outside the kitchen, and it hosts the heavier tomes (although not the lesser used ones, as I pull a lot of these out more often).

And, of course, they’ll be more books weighing down the house in other locations, but they don’t pertain so much to food.

Let’s take a look back in the kitchen now.

Susur Lee’s carrot and coconut chutney is boiling down. This’ll be the sauce for the satay, after it’s done the merry-go-round in the blender. There’s a hint of chili in there, but not too much as I want Serena to eat this.

I cleaned the prawns for the salad, and stocked the heads. I don’t have a use for the stock today, but you never know when you’re going to need it, so we just stock by reflex.

Cooking with Alcan. I’ve got two packets of prawns, one grilling/steaming with chili paste, and one without for the girl.

Food on the table. Man the hunter has returned with burnt meat offerings and a carrot-coconut-chili chutney as an accompaniment.

And the girl and her prawns (what a wimp).

And here’s the prawn salad for Yoonhi and I.

And as the coup de glace (sorry) we have ice cream infused with lemon grass, kaffir lime leaf, and galangaa, topped with candied dried galangaa.

And dessert led into Paprika, probably one of the oddest Japanese cartoons I’ve seen in a long, long time.

But that’s another story.

Gotta go to work.

[insomniac]

just curious, Peter,

farang kiinniao (cheapskate foreigner),

.....does kiiniao mean sticky um, 'poo'? I haven't heard that one....

the expression I'm extrapolating from is farang kiinok, (bird poo)the thought lurking behind some Thai smiles describing unattractive western tourists.

ps. the kids and I are great fans of Hayao Miyazaki, beats the Wiggles every time

pps. no green papayas within 150 miles of us I'll send you quinces if............

[prasantrin]

I have Thai Cooking in the Rattanakosin Era, too! I've never used it, though. It's somewhere back in Canada in storage. The only Thai cookbook I brought with me is The Elegant Taste of Thailand. It's also one of the only English-language Thai cookbooks my dad would ever use (for inspiration only, he never followed the recipes). I can't remember the name of the one he really liked, but our Thai friends make fun of it, because it's very old-style Thai cuisine.

I can't believe you have that cookbook. I didn't think I'd see that cookbook on anyone else's bookshelf!

Great minds think alike! Then again, I'd never have In the Kitchen with Rosie or that Victor Sodsook book on my shelf!

[Peter Green]

I have Thai Cooking in the Rattanakosin Era, too!  I've never used it, though.  It's somewhere back in Canada in storage.  The only Thai cookbook I brought with me is The Elegant Taste of Thailand.  It's also one of the only English-language Thai cookbooks my dad would ever use (for inspiration only, he never followed the recipes).  I can't remember the name of the one he really liked, but our Thai friends make fun of it, because it's very old-style Thai cuisine. 

I can't believe you have that cookbook.  I didn't think I'd see that cookbook on anyone else's bookshelf!

Great minds think alike!  Then again, I'd never have In the Kitchen with Rosie or that Victor Sodsook book on my shelf! 

←

The Rattanakosin book I had to have. I think I found it in Kinokuniya in the Emporium, and as soon as I saw the little overlain tape labels in there (who went through every copy putting in corrections by hand?) I knew we were destined for each other.

Some cookbooks you just like to read, and never really use. Fergus Henderson's Ear to Tail is such a lovely book, so gently written, but Yoonhi goes nuts from the lack of measurements.

As for some of the other titles, well, they just show up. And you never know, there may be one great recipe in there somewhere!

And then again......

[Peter Green]

just curious, Peter,

farang kiinniao (cheapskate foreigner),

.....does kiiniao mean sticky um, 'poo'? I haven't heard that one....

the expression I'm extrapolating from is farang kiinok, (bird poo)the thought lurking behind some Thai smiles describing unattractive western tourists.

ps. the kids and I are great fans of Hayao Miyazaki, beats the Wiggles every time

pps. no green papayas within 150 miles of us I'll send you quinces if............

←

We're going to need some help on the etymology here, folks. I think Insomniac is on the right track, but can't confirm.

Mind you, a google on "Thai slang" has turned up endless hours of entertainment!

Khee dteuut is down as "stingy", so we're getting close.

Is there a book out yet on Thai slang? I've got some for Mandarin, Kikuyu, and other languages, but hadn't found one yet for Thai. (Probably banned by the Ministry of Culture)

[C. sapidus]

Peter: I am so enjoying this, and finally found the time to pester you with questions and comments.

I share your love of Thai salads. It looks like we use a similar strategy for balancing grownup and kid meals – grill some protein, serve plain for the younger set, and make a spicy-sour-aromatic meat salad for the elders.

It’s not fair that you are showing so many luscious and inspiring pictures of Thai food. The boys recently started lobbying for more “normal” dinners, so I’ll probably back off on Thai food for a while. OK, maybe Thai dinners once a week.

If you get a chance, could you do a close-up of pea eggplants next to some sort of standard-sized object? I don’t think they are available here, but it is always possible that I have seen them without recognition (kinda like long-leaf coriander, until quite recently).

Fresh green peppercorns are another ingredient that I cannot find. How would you compare the taste of fresh vs. pickled, and do you think that pickled would significantly detract from the flavor of a typically complex Thai curry or salad?

Your collection of curry pastes jumped out at me during the kitchen tour. Do you make your own, bring back from Thailand, or have a particular brand that you like?

Great minds think alike!  Then again, I'd never have In the Kitchen with Rosie or that Victor Sodsook book on my shelf! 

←

Hey, I have Victor Sodsook on my shelf (but I’m not from Thailand, so I have an excuse).

Great blog, with gems scattered throughout – I’m glad that you dodged the falling coconuts of your infancy.

[Peter Green]

Peter’s idea of a good night out

We started at Reflexions at the Plaza Athenee. This is easy enough to access from the Ploenchit BTS station, so there’s no fear of the 6 p.m. rush hour. A brief (if steamy) walk, and we’re safely past the windows of the Glaz Bar (that wonderful blue…and they’re doing tapas now) and into the air conditioned lobby.

I hadn’t even broken a sweat.

Yeah, I don’t blame you for not believing that one.

Upstairs, and there’s a bit of milling and socializing as we wait for Reflexions to let us in. Some of my friends (the thirsty ones) are already here.

On time, we were asked to enter, and, in a perfectly orderly and urbane fashion, queued up to put down our 200 baht for charity (Amcham, which would be the American Chamber of Commerce?).

From there we ascended the staircase to the upper room. This is where the Austrian dinner of last September was held, and where we had done the reception for the Chaine dinner the March before. I appreciate the design, more of a loft overlooking the dining area proper, as the air flow allows the space to handle a lot more people than you would normally try to fit in here, even with two of the walls blocked off with tables for the wines.

Italthai was hosting the event this evening, but the wines were very much French.

There were two whites:

Chateau Cadillac Branda 2005, a Bordeaux Blanc – 40%Semillon and 60% Sauvignon

Chateau Le Bonnat 2004, a white Graves - 66% Semillon and 34% Sauvignon

On the red side, we had three:

Chateau Cadillac 2004 Bordeaux Superieur – 80% Merlot, and 20% Cab Sauvignon

Chateau Cadillac Cuvee JJ LesGourgues 2004 – 70% Merlot and 30% Cab Sauvignon

Chateau Peyros Tradition 2002 Madiran – 60% Tannat and 40% Cab Franc

We started with the whites.

Both were good. I preferred the first, the Cadillac Bordeaux Blanc. But while the tasting notes talked of “a beautiful, intense, and fruity nose” I found it rather restrained. Still, I found it did fill out the mouth well with good fruit.

The Graves Blanc was a close second. A longer finish, perhaps a nicer nose. This would have benefitted from some food to go with it.

While we’d been on the whites, a mob scene was growing around the reds. Okay, I exaggerate, but it was clear that a number of our number had parked out on the red table, and weren’t planning on going anywhere. We, however, have the benefit of mass, and so muscled our way in and fisted out a couple of glasses of each to support the smaller members of our cadre.

Of the reds, the cuvee was my favourite, with a long finish and good tannins. Flavours back on the tongue and up, and lots of berries.

The Peyros was also good, the blend of Tannat and Cabernet Franc getting my attention. A good feel in the mouth, and this had me hankering for some food.

The Bordeaux Superieur was not as exciting, although the tasting notes spoke at great length of this one, with the Merlot giving the fruit, and the Cabernet Sauvignon providing structure. But I preferred the 70/30 in the Cuvee.

When the wine runs out, it’s time to go. But go where.

Well, when you’ve had the pleasure of an elegantly convivial tasting in the company of such a social crowd, it appeared that a slight contrast in texture would be best.

Time for a beer hall.

We had a new companion in the cell, K, and she had a car. So this looked like the perfect time to check out Tawarn Daeng.

This is the famous pork knuckle shot that bemused the Coming Attractions page last week.

Pulling up to the tastefully garish building way out on Rama IV, I admired the subtleness of their anniversary announcement. Eight years now! Heck, I haven’t been out here for at least three. It feels older, more of an institution.

We’d called ahead to book a table, as they often tend to stick the farang out on the flanks where they can’t get into trouble, instead of up where they can see the stage more easily. They checked our reservations, and then showed us inside to our table out on the flanks where we couldn’t get into trouble.

I should know better at my age.

But, with a good selection of the Bordeaux grape harvest coursing through our blood, we weren’t about to let things dampen our spirits…..well, perhaps we’d be content enough to use damp spirits…..forget that, I’m becoming incoherent again.

Four reasons to come to Tawarn Daeng

1) Beer

2) Food

3) Music

4) Sanuk (or Muaan)

I could probably work it up to 5, but after that I get confused.

Beer! Tawarn Daeng is in with some Germans, and they brew their own beers. Lager, dark, and a weisss. They also fill them up in the traditional “I’ll take 20 gallons please” dispensers that I so admired in Chiang Mai at the Good View. Except there they were full of Singha, and here I’d gone for a good, cloudy small batch lager.

The dark is good, too.

For the food, we weighed in fairly heavy. It’s good to have friends to eat with in Bangkok, ‘cause then you can order a lot more.

A whole lot more.

The green stuff up front is bitter gourd tips. Extremely good, and along with the deep fried morning glory in the pork knuckle shot, Yoonhi’s choices for favourites. Me, I had to order more raw prawns while I could get them.

Cockle salad is a treat, and the little vermicelli nests to go with them and the greens are great. We just had to ask that the cockles be well cooked through so that our duds didn’t end up with that blood red stain they can put out (I learned that lesson with a white shirt in Phnom Penh).

There’s some more som tam with salted crab. Next best thing to paa daek (I wish I’d brought a tub of that back from Laos, but Yoonhi didn’t think it was a wise thing to put in the suitcase).

I found a yam som o (pomelo salad) on the menu, so that had to be brought over.

Sai eua (I told you, “creature of habit”). These were serviceable, but not great. At least I didn’t order another plate of canned weenies.

The red, evil looking thing under the plate is an oyster salad. The oysters all roiled up in chilis and more chilis. The stuff on the plate is a chilled green you take with the oysters. On it’s own it has almost no flavour, but with the oyster it changes and “flowers” up. Neat.

And then we ordered second rounds of the pork knuckle and the prawns and the bitter gourd tips.

The music had progressed beyond what I’d remembered. Before it had been the standard Thai rock stuff, with some Luk Thung (country music, but not our country), and a katoey show. Now they still covered the rock stuff, although tamed down a bit, and there was some Luk Thung (but more ballady rather than the twisty stuff I really like, which is more like Khmer music to my ears), but the big deal was the recreation of Hello Dolly, with the boys in their full costumes, people hoisted up in the air and paraded about, and that of course takes us into…….

Sanuk! The Thai sense of fun (or muaan, for the Lao speakers). This was sanuk. When they took a break from the stage show, they’d go into the audience and get some of the serving staff to sing, tell jokes, and generally take part.

More beer, say I!

I made my way through the central throng without having to appear on the big screen, and made use of the washroom. There’s a new addition that makes sense in this place (and which I later saw in other venues):

Coming back, I almost made it past the mob when I suddenly went bolt upright. Someone had given me a grope. You’d think I was in Wales.

And our designated driver got us all home in one piece.

There. A classy start. Good food in the middle, and ribald fun at the end.

And we have all our original body parts the next morning!