Thai Cooking at Home, 2007 – 2012

[heidih]

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So..... could you just post your address again. I think there are a pack of us ready to GPS it and we'll be there for one of those leftover breakfasts of champions.

[C. sapidus]

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So..... could you just post your address again. I think there are a pack of us ready to GPS it and we'll be there for one of those leftover breakfasts of champions.

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Heidi, darn it, did I forget to post my address? If you are coming over, get here quickly - the few leftovers will be consumed within the hour (and thanks for the kind words!).

ETA: All gone. The curry tasted even better after the flavor intensified overnight. I could see making the curry ahead of time, and adding the seafood to cook just before serving.

The bean sprouts held their crunch pretty well. Adding a little fish sauce somehow brought out the roasted coconut flavor.

Edited March 9, 2008 by C. sapidus (log)

[A.J. Di Liberti]

My love of Thai food began when I traveled to Thailand in 1980, living 10 minutes away from the Thaitown area of Los Angeles makes it easy to get ingredients.

Fresh curry paste, red, green or yellow, is always better then canned.

If you don’t care for the curry paste you made before, look for other recipes or modify the one you used until it suits your taste.

If you can’t get birds eye chilies, Serrano’s are a reasonable substitution, but they will alter the flavor somewhat. I prefer fresh peppers when making curry paste, yet if dried is what I have on hand, that's what I use.

As to the amount of heat, the number of chilies used by and large dictates how hot your curry/dish will be.

There will be varying amounts of capsicum from pepper to pepper off the same plant.

Here’s a recipe I created while learning to cook Thai food:

Peanut butter soup

2 Chicken breast (boneless/skinless), cut to bite size pieces

2-4 T. Peanut oil

3 Garlic cloves, thinly sliced

3-7 Bird’s eye chili’s, bruised

1 shallot, minced

½ C. White wine

10 Red Holy Basil, leaves

1 ½ C. Fresh water

2 T. Fish Sauce

1 C. Peanut butter, smooth

1 can Bamboo shoots, cut into bite size pieces

1 can Straw mushrooms

1 can Water Chestnuts, sliced

1 can Baby corn

1 ½ C. Coconut milk

1 Lime, juiced

Coriander, chopped for garnish

1 ½ C. Jasmine Rice, steamed

Heat a wok right on top of a burner using high flame, when the wok begins to smoke add the peanut oil, when the oil is hot add the garlic and chili’s.

Before putting the garlic and chili in the hot oil… turn on the range fan, open the doors and take a deep breath.

Stir in the chicken and shallot, toss until the chicken is well browned. Add the wine and basil then reduce the volume of liquid by about half while stirring.

Pour contents of wok into a stockpot, rinse wok with hot water and wipe dry.

Add water and fish sauce, bring to a boil then add peanut butter. Stir continuously over medium high heat until peanut butter is blended in, add vegetables and simmer for 10 minutes.

Stir in coconut milk a simmer just long enough to warm.

Ladle soup into bowls over steamed rice, splash with limejuice and garnish with coriander.

© A. J. Di Liberti

This recipe is loosely based on Thom kha gai.

[snowangel]

The curry tasted even better after the flavor intensified overnight. I could see making the curry ahead of time, and adding the seafood to cook just before serving.

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Bruce, I was but a lass of 10 when I learned that curry tastes better the next day, or even the day after that.

My family looks at me like I"m crazy for the amount of curry I make when I make it, and I often save a portion of the "curry" before I add the extras, just as one saves rice for fried rice.

IMHO, there's no better breakfast than leftover curry with leftover rice. Even the nuker makes it the Breakfast of Champions (doing battle, BTW, with larp or a yam). But, if you have leftover sauce, without any of the added stuff (like scallops, or venison morsels, etc.) it sure doesn't take long to cook them in the curry on the stove-top, and nuke some leftover rice.

Rule of thumb. Never make less than a quart of curry. Breakfast, lunch, after-school snack, whatever.

[C. sapidus]

Smoked trout salad, from Thai Food. A “rustic salad from the north of Thailand,” this had wonderful medley of flavors and aromas from grill-roasted shallots, garlic, ginger, and apple eggplants; slivered red chiles and green mango; and large handfuls of mint and Thai basil. We tossed the salad with ground roasted rice and a dressing of lime juice, fish sauce, and sugar.

Substitutions: ginger for galangal, and smoked trout for smoked catfish.

Smoked trout salad (pla pla lom kwan)

[snowangel]

Smoked trout salad, from Thai Food. A “rustic salad from the north of Thailand,” this had wonderful medley of flavors and aromas from grill-roasted shallots, garlic, ginger, and apple eggplants; slivered red chiles and green mango; and large handfuls of mint and Thai basil. We tossed the salad with ground roasted rice and a dressing of lime juice, fish sauce, and sugar.

Substitutions: ginger for galangal, and smoked trout for smoked catfish.

Smoked trout salad (pla pla lom kwan)

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I'm loving the handfuls of mint and basil, but do tell more about the smoked trout. Did you smoke it yourself, or was ir purchased? And, just how did they smoke it?

[C. sapidus]

I'm loving the handfuls of mint and basil, but do tell more about the smoked trout.  Did you smoke it yourself, or was ir purchased?  And, just how did they smoke it?

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I purchased the smoked trout, which I assume was cold smoked. I would like to try hot-smoking trout in the bullet, but not on a weeknight. Hmm, barbecue and Thai salad sounds like a fun combination.

[Athena1963]

I have a question on an ingredient if anyone can help. I have looked through several Thai food threads and haven't seen this yet. When we get Pad Thai at restaurants, it has a red-rind tofu in it that is chewy and good. I have been told that it is simply bean curd tofu but I have yet to find it any any markets. Does it have another name? I would really like to find it.

[C. sapidus]

Athena1963, sorry I don't know the answer to your question.

Gai yang (grilled chicken) with dipping sauce, som tum Thai (green papaya salad), and jasmine rice, from Crying Tiger. Sticky rice would have been more traditional. We marinated the chicken in oyster sauce, lemongrass, garlic, black pepper, salt, sugar, and soy sauce. Elder son (the soy sauce lover) said it was his favorite chicken ever.

The dipping sauce included sugar, rice vinegar, water, garlic, and Thai bird chiles, all cooked down to a sticky syrup. I made the som tum fairly mild, and left out the chopped dried shrimp – otherwise, I would have been the only one eating it.

[C. sapidus]

Crying tiger (sua rong hai) with “crying tiger sauce” (nam jim gaew). We grilled strip steaks after marinating for an hour with soy sauce, garlic, black pepper, and a little sugar. The nam jim gaew was a mixture of soy sauce, roasted chile powder, roasted rice powder, sugar, scallions, lime juice, and pak chee farang.

For som tum Issan, the cheap shredder that we found at the Asian market is the bomb for making long strands of green papaya. Boston lettuce leaves for scooping everything up; sticky rice and cucumbers to round out the meal.

We soaked the sticky rice all day, rinsed well, and lined a steamer basket with cheesecloth, and steamed the rice for 30 minutes. We then sprayed the rice with water, steamed for five more minutes, and repeated the cycle of spraying and steaming a total of three times. When the rice was done, we turned off the heat, opened the steamer to release excess steam, and then closed the lid to keep the rice warm. The sticky rice turned out particularly well using this method, but unfortunately I forgot to take a picture.

Crying tiger, som tum Issan

[snowangel]

For som tum Issan, the cheap shredder that we found at the Asian market is the bomb for making long strands of green papaya. Boston lettuce leaves for scooping everything up; sticky rice and cucumbers to round out the meal.

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Can you describe the shredder? Last time I made som tam, I used a julienne peeler, and oh my, what a disaster. It produced nice long strands of green papaya, and did a nice job of julienning my wrist and thumb. This peeler is like a weapon of torture!

[C. sapidus]

For som tum Issan, the cheap shredder that we found at the Asian market is the bomb for making long strands of green papaya. Boston lettuce leaves for scooping everything up; sticky rice and cucumbers to round out the meal.

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Can you describe the shredder? Last time I made som tam, I used a julienne peeler, and oh my, what a disaster. It produced nice long strands of green papaya, and did a nice job of julienning my wrist and thumb. This peeler is like a weapon of torture!

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OK, if you really want to avoid bits of thumb in your salad, I have been quite happy with the Kiwi Pro Slice blue wavy-edged tool, available from Temple of Thai (and many other places besides). The first pass with the tool forms sheets rather than shreds, but the second pass and beyond forms nice, long shreds quite quickly.

http://www.templeofthai.com/fruit_carving/...kiwi_peeler.php

[OnigiriFB]

We soaked the sticky rice all day, rinsed well, and lined a steamer basket with cheesecloth, and steamed the rice for 30 minutes. We then sprayed the rice with water, steamed for five more minutes, and repeated the cycle of spraying and steaming a total of three times. When the rice was done, we turned off the heat, opened the steamer to release excess steam, and then closed the lid to keep the rice warm. The sticky rice turned out particularly well using this method, but unfortunately I forgot to take a picture.

Is there a reason for doing the sticky rice like that? I've always just soaked it, dumped into the bamboo thingy, and steamed it on high for twenty minutes.

[tb86]

FORGET THE DAMN BOSTON LETTUCE, if you want thai style no holds barred let your protien set out out for at least 4 hours at room temp, the main reason you cant get any real thai in the us is because of sanitation parinoia we here in l.o.s. <land of smiles> know that flavor is derrived from a little bit of temprature induced funk...... no other way of replicating it.... fish paste shrimp khao soi, som tum you will never get it right if your not willing to replicate the cooking enviroment that means no refrigeration..... AND FOR SOM TUM A KNIFE WILL DO JUST FINE, ALL YOU NEED IS DECENT DRY SHRIMP, GOOD PRIK, AND A LITTLE SUAI FACTOR, KRAB.....

For som tum Issan, the cheap shredder that we found at the Asian market is the bomb for making long strands of green papaya. Boston lettuce leaves for scooping everything up; sticky rice and cucumbers to round out the meal.

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Can you describe the shredder? Last time I made som tam, I used a julienne peeler, and oh my, what a disaster. It produced nice long strands of green papaya, and did a nice job of julienning my wrist and thumb. This peeler is like a weapon of torture!

←

OK, if you really want to avoid bits of thumb in your salad, I have been quite happy with the Kiwi Pro Slice blue wavy-edged tool, available from Temple of Thai (and many other places besides). The first pass with the tool forms sheets rather than shreds, but the second pass and beyond forms nice, long shreds quite quickly.

http://www.templeofthai.com/fruit_carving/...kiwi_peeler.php

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[tb86]

Austin, do you often cook Thai at home?

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Yes, several times a week (I am in Bangkok after all!). Why do you ask?

Austin

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HA im a expat chef living in luksi right by villa market, spend alot of time at ot market

[tb86]

Ill be in changmai next week ill post some pic of good issan food for you guys if i can figure out how to im kinda slow when it comes to posting pic on this site, as a matter of fat i have about a hundred pics of real thai food from angkok, ayutha, cm, chang rai, ect if some one is willing to post for me,

happy cooking to all.......

[C. sapidus]

Is there a reason for doing the sticky rice like that? I've always just soaked it, dumped into the bamboo thingy, and steamed it on high for twenty minutes.

OnigiriFB, no particular reason except that I enjoy comparing different methods before settling on a standard.. We have only made sticky rice once or twice, so we don’t have the bamboo thingy. The method above looked interesting, and we have a spray bottle for when we smoke ribs, so I gave it a go.

Do you soak your sticky rice before steaming it?

FORGET THE DAMN BOSTON LETTUCE, if you want thai style no holds barred let your protien set out out for at least 4 hours at room temp, the main reason you cant get any real thai in the us is because of sanitation parinoia we here in l.o.s. <land of smiles> know that flavor is derrived from a little bit of temprature induced funk...... no other way of replicating it.... fish paste shrimp khao soi, som tum you will never get it right if your not willing to replicate the cooking enviroment that means no refrigeration.....

tb86, I appreciate your on-the-ground insights, and the fact that you took the time to offer suggestions. Personally, I like a bit of funk in Thai food, but I need to dial some things back when cooking for the family.

Inevitably, Thai food is likely to taste somewhat different when made thousands of miles from Thailand. Still one of my favorite things to eat, though.

AND FOR SOM TUM A KNIFE WILL DO JUST FINE, ALL YOU NEED IS DECENT DRY SHRIMP, GOOD PRIK, AND A LITTLE SUAI FACTOR, KRAB.....

I’ve made som tum with a knife, but for me the shredder is much faster. Probably says a lot about my knife skills, or lack thereof.

Again, thanks for the advice, and I hope you can post your pictures.

[OnigiriFB]

Is there a reason for doing the sticky rice like that? I've always just soaked it, dumped into the bamboo thingy, and steamed it on high for twenty minutes.

OnigiriFB, no particular reason except that I enjoy comparing different methods before settling on a standard.. We have only made sticky rice once or twice, so we don’t have the bamboo thingy. The method above looked interesting, and we have a spray bottle for when we smoke ribs, so I gave it a go.

Do you soak your sticky rice before steaming it?

FORGET THE DAMN BOSTON LETTUCE, if you want thai style no holds barred let your protien set out out for at least 4 hours at room temp, the main reason you cant get any real thai in the us is because of sanitation parinoia we here in l.o.s. <land of smiles> know that flavor is derrived from a little bit of temprature induced funk...... no other way of replicating it.... fish paste shrimp khao soi, som tum you will never get it right if your not willing to replicate the cooking enviroment that means no refrigeration.....

tb86, I appreciate your on-the-ground insights, and the fact that you took the time to offer suggestions. Personally, I like a bit of funk in Thai food, but I need to dial some things back when cooking for the family.

Inevitably, Thai food is likely to taste somewhat different when made thousands of miles from Thailand. Still one of my favorite things to eat, though.

AND FOR SOM TUM A KNIFE WILL DO JUST FINE, ALL YOU NEED IS DECENT DRY SHRIMP, GOOD PRIK, AND A LITTLE SUAI FACTOR, KRAB.....

I’ve made som tum with a knife, but for me the shredder is much faster. Probably says a lot about my knife skills, or lack thereof.

Again, thanks for the advice, and I hope you can post your pictures.

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I try to soak the sticky rice overnight or at least eight hours. If I don't have the time I'll soak it in HOT water for at least an hour. THe eight hour is better but you'd be surprised that the hour soak isn't that bad. I'm glad you understood the bamboo thingy cause I have NO idea what it's called besides a steamer. If you have the bamboo thingy you don't even really need the cheesecloth (it helps in clean up though). I just chuck the rice in and put a lid on it. Also when you are done steaming, dump it out onto a clean counter and kinda knead it or break it up a bit with a wooden spoon around a bit before putting it in the serving bamboo basket (if you have one, I think Peter posted a few pictures with them it if you need a visual). Some people even flip it and put it back into the steamer for another 5-10 minutes but I never do. Too much work! The "kneading" helps with the texture and stuff i think. Dunno if that's really important just what I was taught to do.

As for the papaya the way we always did it is to take a cleaver and kinda thok thok (yes that is the technical term. the somtum lady told me so. kinda thump the cleaver into the papaya multipe times to create shallow cuts all over) into the papaya. Then make shallow slices horizontally. Hope that makes sense. It's quicker than you think but may take a little practice. Make sure your cleaver is the thinner kind and is sharp. You may also want to put a kitchen towel between your hand and the papaya to avoid slippage. Cleavers slicing fingers HURT!

[dockhl]

I've recently fallen in love with MIENG-KAM and want to make it at home. I gather that spinach would be a better choice than leaf lettuce but what about a sauce? What can I substitute for galangal?

[insomniac]

I've recently fallen in love with MIENG-KAM and want to make it at home. I gather that spinach would be a better choice than leaf lettuce but what about a sauce? What can I substitute for galangal?

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hey doc, can you buy the galangal online? if so, get a delivery and keep it in the freezer...I prefer that way altho a Thai friend dries it and keeps it in an airtight jar...I don't think there is a substitute unfortunately

for my mieng kum sauce I use:

2 tbs unsweetened coconut

1/2 tsp kapi (shrimp paste)

1/2 tsp sliced ka (galangal)

1/2 tsp sliced shallot

3 tbsp chopped unsalted peanuts

2 tbsp chopped gung haeng (dried shrimp)

1 tsp sliced khing (ginger)

6 oz. nahm tan (palm sugar)

20 fl. oz. water

roast kapi, ka and shallot til fragrant in 350 deg. oven (around 5 mins)....cool

Put them in a mortar or blender with peanuts, shrimp and ginger, pound til fine

Put it in a heavy-bottomed saucepan with the sugar and water, mix well, bring to the boil, simmer til reduced to about 1 1/4cups....cool.

oh, having just reread yr. post it has dawned upon me that you already have a mieng kum recipe, so for others who may be interested I've left it in....brings back very fond memories of sitting with our friends and the kids in Thailand...my daughter just looked over my shoulder and exclaimed that she had totally forgotten about mieng kum and has decided to whip it up tonite...thanks!!!!

darned spelling again

Edited May 16, 2008 by insomniac (log)

[dockhl]

thx insomniac

I'll have to see what I can find. I made it for dinner last night, so good, even with a bogus sauce !

[C. sapidus]

Another dinner from Thai Food:

Soup of minced pork, scallions, and shiitake mushrooms. The soup base was chicken stock, soy sauce, and a pinch of sugar. We added ground pork, sliced scallions, and shiitake mushrooms, and finished the soup with cilantro and white pepper. The bowl is a little empty because the family nearly finished the soup before I sat down.

Mom Leaung Neuang’s famous satay: strip steak marinated with coconut cream, turmeric, sweetened condensed milk, fish sauce, bourbon, and a paste of shallots and roasted peanuts, cumin, and coriander seed. We sprinkled on the excess marinade while the satay was on the grill. This was one of my favorite satays ever.

Coconut crab salad (“mock frog salad”): Thai basil, sliced shallots and lemongrass, with shredded chiles, Thai lime leaves, and long-leaf coriander. We warmed cooked crab meat with coconut cream, palm sugar, fish sauce, and lime juice, mixed everything together, and topped the salad with ground roasted peanuts.

Cucumbers and jasmine rice to round out the meal.

[dockhl]

my gosh bruce~

it is 10:30 at night and you make me want to go down and cook ! Lovely....

[C. sapidus]

my gosh bruce~

it is 10:30 at night and you make me want to go down and cook ! Lovely....

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dockhl, thank you! Cook away, and please share the fruits of your labors. By the way, I am enjoying all of your recent signature lines.

Tonight we made smoked trout salad again, adapted from pla pla lom kwan in Thai Food. We grilled the shallots, garlic, apple eggplants, and ginger (sub for galangal) on the stove top. Store-bought smoked trout, shredded green mango, mint leaves, and Thai basil, with fish sauce and lime juice dressing. We were out of roasted rice powder – I need to make a new batch.

I love this salad - salty, sour, and smoky, with a well-balanced medley of strong flavors.

Smoked trout salad

[SuzanneW]

I'm just following up with reports on my grachai and shrimp salad reports (previous page). I finally got some fresh grachai for once, and it made a huge difference -- a much better, subtler salad, but still different enough from the typical salad to stand out.