Thai Ingredients

[KatieLoeb]

So today I was on the hunt for frozen Kaffir Lime leaves for a batch of homemade Lime Cordial I'm attempting, for gimlets. Usually not a problem to find, but apparently the FDA inspectors have been raiding the large Asian markets on Washington Ave. and telling them they can't sell them. At least that's what I was told by the one English speaking manager at the market at 6th & Washington. What's a girl to do? I tried Anastasio produce on Christian, but they didn't have any. He suggested I try Iovine's at RTM. So I called Iovine's. They didn't have any either, but suggested I try A Little Thai Market. "Where???" ask I. "A Little Thai Market". Turns out that lovely little Thai stand where I've been buying great spring rolls and Thom Kha soup for lunch in RTM also sells Thai ingredients. I got a whole little baggie full of FRESH Kaffir lime leaves for $2.50. Since they freeze so well, it oughta last me for months. They couldn't have been nicer. Am I dense? Did anyone else notice that they sell all manner of Thai ingredients at that little stand? I'm delighted I found what I was looking for, and won't ever waste another second if I'm seeking Thai specific ingredients.

The lime cordial is cooling on the stove as I type this. I'll let you all know how that turned out, but it smells pretty good so far...

[mrbigjas]

i have to admit that i did know this, and in fact made this exact discovery a few years ago when i was looking for this very ingredient.

but i don't think you're dense -- despite the fact that they have the stuff stacked up and available for sale, it doesn't SEEM like a market so much as a lunch stand.

[KatieLoeb]

OK - I'm feeling a little less stupid now. It really does seem like a lunch stand, but I made acquaintance with the fridge full of fresh ingredients today, as well as noticed the canned, jarred and packaged products behind the glass at the stand. Again, I'll never bother to look anywhere else for Thai stuff. This is just too easy for future reference.

[rockhopper]

Wegman's in Mount Laurel has them but not the Wegman's a few miles away in Cherry Hill which has galangal. So to make tom kha gai or goong you have to go to both.

Thanks for the tip.

[muichoi]

I've always found the diminution of flavour on freezing so great that I don't bother.

[Capaneus]

I've always found the diminution of flavour on freezing so great that I don't bother.

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The items I've gotten there are not frozen, just refrigerated.

[KatieLoeb]

I had only ever seen the kaffir lime leaves available frozen at the large Asian markets, so finding them fresh was a real treat.

As it turned out, when I went to put the rest of the leaves in the freezer I found the ones I'd bought last time, so the major mission was sort of moot. It pissed me off until I realized the fresh ones made the lime cordial so good. I'm making another batch this weekend - I've almost sold through the first batch of about a pint and bit. Needless to say, the lime cordial came out so well on the first try I'll never go back to Rose's again. It's particularly tasty with the Hendrick's gin.

[Sentiamo]

Katie, Im not sure about the climate in Philadelphia but I live in a city where we get to -2 to 4 degrees in winter and +32 to 36 degrees in summer ( thats celsius) and have my own Kaffir Lime tree in a pot. I keep it under the eaves of the house in winter, and in the sun during summer. It supplies me with leaves for home use all year, no need to freeze.

Now for my work kitchen....I need that tree full every day!

[KatieLoeb]

Sentiamo:

I appreciate the thought but houseplants and I are a bad combination for several reasons. A large potted tree would have to come inside at some point and I'd have no where to put it. The cats like to dig up the dirt and chew on the vegetation and then throw up in inappropriate places (like my bed, for example ). The other problem is that I seem to have inherited none of my mother's Green Thumb. She was able to resurrect things I killed. I have a Black Thumb. It isn't malicious, just a bit of benign neglect. But I'm really bad with plants. The rose geranium that's in the inaccessable-to-cats window in my kitchen is still alive through sheer will alone. It's really a minor miracle.

[Ducksredux]

on a sidenote... the woman who runs the RTM Thai place also owns Erawan on 23rd and Sansom and will make Thai food the Thai way if you call her in advance.

Fit to be Thai'd

Chowhound Thai dinner part 1

Chowhound Thai dinner part 2

I went on that outing and ate till I burst.

Another aside: allegedly some restaurants will sell buckets of fresh grated coconut but I've never asked around... and then I got a coconut stool from the Thai market so I didn't need one. Anyone have a lead?

[bjcohan]

Sentiamo:

I appreciate the thought but houseplants and I are a bad combination for several reasons.  A large potted tree would have to come inside at some point and I'd have no where to put it.  The cats like to dig up the dirt and chew on the vegetation and then throw up in inappropriate places (like my bed, for example ).  The other problem is that I seem to have inherited none of my mother's Green Thumb.  She was able to resurrect things I killed.  I have a Black Thumb.  It isn't malicious, just a bit of benign neglect.  But I'm really bad with plants.  The rose geranium that's in the inaccessable-to-cats window in my kitchen is still alive through sheer will alone.  It's really a minor miracle.

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Katie, I have a kaffir lime plant growing in a pot since last summer. I do bring it in for the winter and avoid the cat problem by putting marble chips on top of the soil. The cats don't like the lime leaves at ALL and leave it quite alone. So, if you can snag a plant, put it near that rose geranium and enjoy a limitless supply of fresh leaves!

(BTW, we missed you at the Joe Poon banquet on Monday night!)

Barb

[TarteTatin]

I wonder if the new Asian supermarket on 4th & Spring Garden has them. The produce dept is huge.

[Chris Hennes]

I just read this thread for the first time, and find myself a little bewildered. At this time of year, out here in Centre County, PA, we can get fresh leaves at the regular supermarket. Do you mean to tell me that is not true in Philly?!? I haven't even bothered to look for them frozen, or at the local Asian markets, because I can get them at the Wegmans. What gives? Usually I have to go to Philly to get weird stuff!

[Capaneus]

I just read this thread for the first time, and find myself a little bewildered. At this time of year, out here in Centre County, PA, we can get fresh leaves at the regular supermarket. Do you mean to tell me that is not true in Philly?!? I haven't even bothered to look for them frozen, or at the local Asian markets, because I can get them at the Wegmans. What gives? Usually I have to go to Philly to get weird stuff!

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Our supermarket choices are relatively crappy, precisely because there are other options. Also the cost of real estate.

Mostly that's a good thing - when you figure out just what those other choices are.

[percyn]

Anyone know if they have banana leaves?

[mrbigjas]

Anyone know if they have banana leaves?

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it's not the terminal or montgomery county but first oriental supermarket down at 6th & washington carries frozen banana leaves.

[DCP]

Needless to say, the lime cordial came out so well on the first try I'll never go back to Rose's again.

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So, are you going to leave us hanging, or share the recipe/technique? I'd been awaiting the promised progress report over on the Limoncello thread, before realizing here that success had been reached. So: is it JAZ's recipe? Something else?

[KatieLoeb]

Needless to say, the lime cordial came out so well on the first try I'll never go back to Rose's again.

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So, are you going to leave us hanging, or share the recipe/technique? I'd been awaiting the promised progress report over on the Limoncello thread, before realizing here that success had been reached. So: is it JAZ's recipe? Something else?

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Thanks for asking. I don't have my final recipe typed up yet, but it's a little different than the one JAZ posted. I was also in attendance at the Francesco Lafranconi lime cordial demo. The resulting lime cordial was absolutely delicious, but contained a lot of difficult to source ingredients. My version is a slight tweak on a recipe you'll find if you Google the phrase "lime cordial" and uses far more easily sourced ingredients. Tartaric acid powder is the most difficult thing to find and is easily located at a homebrew/winemaking shop or online. Other than that it should all be easily found. I promise to type out the final recipe version and post as soon as I'm able, which will likely be this weekend.

There's at least a couple of folks here that have tasted the end result. They can more objectively tell you if it's good or not. I'm pretty fond of it though. I'll likely be drinking tall gin gimlets made with gin of choice, lime cordial, a splash of St. Germain and soda all summer. Quite refreshing!

Edited March 7, 2008 by KatieLoeb (log)

[GlorifiedRice]

The place on 43rd and Locust has em too.

[Andrew Fenton]

Anyone know if they have banana leaves?

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it's not the terminal or montgomery county but first oriental supermarket down at 6th & washington carries frozen banana leaves.

... and that's where you'll have to get them; the RTM Thai place doesn't have banana leaves (I asked the other day.)