Thai Cooking at Home, 2007 – 2012

[OnigiriFB]

Does anyone remember this gaeng? I found it on Thai-blogs lunchtime menu 25. It used to be a favorite though it took a bit for me to get used to it. It's hard to describe what it taste like. I just remember YUM!

Khee Lek Curry

This is a strange curry dish. I have had eaten it on several occasions but I will never buy for myself. The main ingredient are the leaves of the "khee lek" tree. As you can see, it has been liquidized in a food blender! Other than that, it has red curry paste, coconut milk and is seasoned with fish sauce and palm sugar. It was supposed to have beef as well. But, basically, what you can see at the top of this dish is all we got! Again, what do you expect for 25 baht. Actually, we were the winner of a lucky dip. I found a shrimp in this dish too! Not sure where that came from unless there were two versions. A warning to people who might be vegetarians. I have actually seen food vendors pick out the meat from a cooked dish to serve to a vegetarian customer!

Image from Thai blogs by Richard Barrow.

I wonder if I could even make this in the States. Does anyone know of a recipe or where I can even get khee lek leaves? I'd assume they would be frozen but then where do I go from there if I can even find them? Help! I want this! It brings back such nostalgia.

[C. sapidus]

Dinner from Thai Food: Southern Muslim chicken (gai goria), steamed eggs (kai neung), and jasmine rice. We also served a relish of garlic and chiles (nahm prik gratiam suk) for dipping assorted vegetables - Belgian endive simmered in coconut milk, eternal cucumbers, iceberg lettuce wedges, and luridly-colored pickled ginger.

The chicken was marinated overnight with coconut cream and spices. We made a thick coconut cream curry and repeatedly dipped the chicken in the curry while grilling. Our coating never looked like the picture in the book, but it tasted good anyway. The curry would have been delicious on it own – it seemed a shame to waste it basting the chicken.

For the relish, we simmered garlic cloves with palm sugar, salt, lime juice, and water. When the garlic was soft, we pounded it to a paste with reconstituted dried chiles, and then seasoned the relish with tamarind, fish sauce, and the garlic syrup.

[heidih]

Belgian endive simmered in coconut milk

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Bruce! I always want to eat everything you posted or just drool on the pics- but the "belgian endive simmered in coconut milk" is speaking to me- can you elaborate?

[C. sapidus]

. . . "belgian endive simmered in coconut milk" is speaking to me- can you elaborate?

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Thank you very much, heidih. The Belgian endive was dead-simple – clean, remove outer leaves, slice in half lengthwise, submerge in salted coconut milk, and simmer until tender. A spicy relish contrasts nicely.

[C. sapidus]

Does anyone know of a recipe or where I can even get khee lek leaves? I'd assume they would be frozen but then where do I go from there if I can even find them? Help! I want this! It brings back such nostalgia. 

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Kalyustans has khee lek leaves in brine (click and scroll). Perhaps Austin can find a recipe - he once mentioned khee lek curry in his blog.

[OnigiriFB]

Does anyone know of a recipe or where I can even get khee lek leaves? I'd assume they would be frozen but then where do I go from there if I can even find them? Help! I want this! It brings back such nostalgia. 

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Kalyustans has khee lek leaves in brine (click and scroll). Perhaps Austin can find a recipe - he once mentioned khee lek curry in his blog.

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Khee lek leaves in brine! Why didn't I think of that. Hrm... You know I haven't heard from Austin in ages. I don't even know if he still is around here. I'll have to look up the old blog. I think he got pretty busy with magazine spreads and traveling and stuff. Anyone else have a recipe? I think it's mainly red curry paste and coconut milk but I don't really know.

[C. sapidus]

Dinner from Thai Food: sour orange curry of trout with bamboo shoots, Napa cabbage, and white asparagus (geng som pla) . . .

. . . and shrimp simmered in coconut cream (lon gung). Cucumbers and jasmine rice completed the meal.

[OnigiriFB]

C. I envy you and your family. I have to come to dinner! Please!?!

[C. sapidus]

C. I envy you and your family. I have to come to dinner! Please!?! 

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OnigiriFB, you are too kind. Please do come to dinner – I would love to have someone with an experienced palate taste some of our experiments and let me know how they *should* taste.

[OnigiriFB]

C. I envy you and your family. I have to come to dinner! Please!?! 

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OnigiriFB, you are too kind. Please do come to dinner – I would love to have someone with an experienced palate taste some of our experiments and let me know how they *should* taste.

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I am sure they taste great! If you go by the pictues which make me drool then I am sure they taste twice as good as they look. Oh and I'll take some of those eternal cucumbers with my dinner too.

[snowangel]

Bruce, how did your family like the sour curry? Did you use canned or vacuum-packed bamboo shoots? I'm craving Thai food, having just "catered" (catering implies, IMHO, that one was paid for more than the ingredients) a graduation party for 125 (!) and Thai was not on the menu).

[C. sapidus]

Bruce, how did your family like the sour curry?

Susan, the family did pretty well with the sour orange curry, even though the broth turned out spicier than intended. The boys generally like cabbage in soups, so that helped. A respectable amount of the curry disappeared without major complaints or kudos.

Did you use canned or vacuum-packed bamboo shoots?

I used whole bamboo shoot tips from a jar, boiled in salted water, sliced, and then simmered in the curry for a while. The bamboo shoots had a nice texture and a slight (but not unwelcome) bitter taste.

I'm craving Thai food, having just "catered" (catering implies, IMHO, that one was paid for more than the ingredients) a graduation party for 125 (!) and Thai was not on the menu).

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When you have fully recovered, I would love to hear about your “catering” experience. I can’t imaging cooking for more than a hundred hungry teens.

[C. sapidus]

Gai yang, beef larb, and jasmine rice, from Thailand the Beautiful Cookbook. The chicken was marinated, baked, and then grilled to crisp the skin.

[C. sapidus]

*sound of crickets chirping*

Peter’s latest trip inspired tonight’s dinner: crying tiger (sua rong hai) from Crying Tiger. We grilled ribeye steaks after marinating in soy sauce, minced garlic, and black pepper. Salad of lettuce, cucumbers, mint leaves, and flat-leaf coriander.

Served with sticky rice and nam jim gaew, a salty-spicy mixture of soy sauce, lime juice, sugar, roasted chile powder, roasted rice powder, and thinly-sliced scallions and flat-leaf coriander.

Thai salads are one of my favorite things about summer.

[OnigiriFB]

*sound of crickets chirping*

Peter’s latest trip inspired tonight’s dinner: crying tiger (sua rong hai) from Crying Tiger. We grilled ribeye steaks after marinating in soy sauce, minced garlic, and black pepper. Salad of lettuce, cucumbers, mint leaves, and flat-leaf coriander.

Served with sticky rice and nam jim gaew, a salty-spicy mixture of soy sauce, lime juice, sugar, roasted chile powder, roasted rice powder, and thinly-sliced scallions and flat-leaf coriander.

Thai salads are one of my favorite things about summer.

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Me too! *drool* I have a steak I think I need thaw out now. You picture is calling my name...

Yum! I definately need to come to dinner. I'm beginning to wonder though if I can pull of a recipes as well as you do. I might just have to dig a bit to find something your family hasn't had yet. Let's see... nam prik pla too? Do you all like salty fish that is fried with a spicy dip made from kahpi (shrimp paste like belanchan?), chilis, lime juice, and garlic? You eat it with eternal cucumbers and various veggies. It was one of my favorite meals when I lived at home. Now if I make it I get the "are you trying to kill every living thing in a 5 mile radius" comment.

[C. sapidus]

OnigiriFB, thank you, and enjoy your steak salad.

Let's see... nam prik pla too? Do you all like salty fish that is fried with a spicy dip made from kahpi (shrimp paste like belanchan?), chilis, lime juice, and garlic? You eat it with eternal cucumbers and various veggies. It was one of my favorite meals when I lived at home.

Hmm, we might be the only ones enjoying your nam prick pla too. I made nam prik gapi once, and thought it brilliant, but the rest of the family politely (or perhaps not so politely) declined.

Now if I make it I get the "are you trying to kill every living thing in a 5 mile radius" comment.     

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[Peter Green]

*sound of crickets chirping*

Peter’s latest trip inspired tonight’s dinner: crying tiger (sua rong hai) from Crying Tiger. We grilled ribeye steaks after marinating in soy sauce, minced garlic, and black pepper. Salad of lettuce, cucumbers, mint leaves, and flat-leaf coriander.

Served with sticky rice and nam jim gaew, a salty-spicy mixture of soy sauce, lime juice, sugar, roasted chile powder, roasted rice powder, and thinly-sliced scallions and flat-leaf coriander.

Thai salads are one of my favorite things about summer.

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Darn, that looks good.

This has to be my favourite way to enjoy a tenderloin (along with tartare).

[C. sapidus]

Belated thanks, Peter.

Cucumber salad with Thai chile, shallots, ginger, and cilantro, seasoned to taste with lime juice, rice vinegar, salt, fish sauce, and sugar.

Chicken with lemongrass (gai tod ta-krai, from Crying Tiger). We marinated chicken thighs with lemongrass, garlic, black pepper, roasted chile powder, palm sugar, and fish sauce. Stir-frying with the chicken reduces the marinade to a fragrant, sinus-clearing, funky-caramel glaze.

Jasmine rice, lettuce, and cucumbers on the side.

[C. sapidus]

(talking to myself again)

A few non-traditional chiles sneaked into tonight's meal.

Roasted pepper salad with chicken: Roasted red and yellow bell peppers, poached chicken, sliced shallots, cilantro, and minced Habanero chile , tossed with a warm dressing of coconut cream, lemon juice, fish sauce, and palm sugar. I have a long list of favorite Thai salads, and this one definitely makes the list (even though I forgot ground roasted peanuts).

Stir-fried red curry beef with long beans: Homemade red curry paste stir-fried with ground sirloin, long beans, garlic, white pepper, palm sugar, and thinly-sliced peppers (red bell pepper, banana chile, and Poblano chile ). The recipe called for a mere teaspoon of curry paste, but adding several tablespoons improved the dish considerably. With red curry paste on hand, this has a very high enjoyment to effort ratio.

Jasmine rice

[heidih]

(talking to myself again)

A few non-traditional chiles sneaked into tonight's meal.

Roasted pepper salad with chicken: Roasted red and yellow bell peppers, poached chicken, sliced shallots, cilantro, and minced Habanero chile , tossed with a warm dressing of coconut cream, lemon juice, fish sauce, and palm sugar. I have a long list of favorite Thai salads, and this one definitely makes the list (even though I forgot ground roasted peanuts).

Stir-fried red curry beef with long beans: Homemade red curry paste stir-fried with ground sirloin, long beans, garlic, white pepper, palm sugar, and thinly-sliced peppers (red bell pepper, banana chile, and Poblano chile ). The recipe called for a mere teaspoon of curry paste, but adding several tablespoons improved the dish considerably. With red curry paste on hand, this has a very high enjoyment to effort ratio.

Jasmine rice

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Oh Bruce- you are not talking to yourself- lots of us are vicariously drooling. Personally I have no camera at the moment, but soon, soon.....

As for "non-traditional chilis"- I think any Thai home cook would use what he or she had available that was tasty so bravo for involving so many different chilis. That warm dressing with the coconut cream sounds like a lush change up from the traditional lime, fish sauce, sugar, chili mix. I will be "riffing" off of your meal. Thanks for the inspiration.

[C. sapidus]

heidih, thank you for the encouragement. I hope you enjoy the warm dressing.

Leftover red curry paste led to a relatively quick dinner from Thailand the Beautiful Cookbook: stir-fried red curry fish; long beans with pork and egg; coconut rice; and eternal cucumbers.

[C. sapidus]

Clearly, I am on a Thai jag.

Grilled chicken (gai yang): This is a family favorite. We baked the chicken until nearly cooked through, and then grilled it to crisp the skin. Before baking, we briefly marinated the chicken with garlic, white pepper, cilantro stems, ginger, fish sauce, soy sauce, coconut milk, and bourbon.

Kasma’s hot and sour shrimp salad (pla gung): We brined and blanched the shrimp, and then tossed with sliced lemongrass and shallots, chopped mint and flat-leaf coriander, and a dressing of lime juice, fish sauce, chiles, sugar, and roasted chile paste (nahm prik pao). From now on, I am adding nahm prik pao to all of my Thai salad dressings.

Served with bread and eternal cucumbers.

[djyee100]

I'm trying to make hoi tod (oyster "pancake"), but I'm not having any success with the recipes I've found.  I think it's the batter that's my problem.  I like my hoi tod to be a big chewy, but with patches of crispiness on the outside. 

One recipe I used called for tapioca flour and soda water, but the end product resulted in a mucillaginous mess.  At least the middle was mucillaginous.  The outside was properly crisp, I thought.  But it soaked up all the oil in the pan, and it was quite a bit of oil.

The other recipe called for equal amounts of all-purpose flour, cornstarch, and tapioca flour, water, and egg mixed in (the first one had beaten egg poured onto the batter after it has been poured onto a hot pan).  This one was more like a regular pancake, so it wasn't right, either.

The perfect hoi tod should be like the one in this video (warning, annoying background music).

Any ideas how to duplicate the batter recipe?

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Prasantrin,

I was surfing some earlier pages on this thread and came upon your request for a recipe for Oyster Pancake (hoi tod) (post #626). I cook a fantastic recipe for this dish from Nancie McDermott's Quick & Easy Thai. I know, I know, not an authentic cookbook, and McDermott is up front about saying so, but her recipe for this street food is authentic (naturally quick and easy) and cooks up like the video you posted. I love this dish on busy weekday nights--I can get it on the table in 30 minutes.

For best results, I like to cook the pancake in a nonstick cast iron skillet. I've made it with both oysters and shrimp, and I actually prefer the shrimp version.

CRISPY OMELET WITH OYSTERS/SHRIMP AND BEAN SPROUTS (hoi tote)

Adapted from Nancie McDermott's Quick & Easy Thai

Serves 2-4.

1/4 cup rice flour

1/4 cup tapioca flour

1/2 tsp salt plus more to taste

1/2 cup water

2 eggs

3 TB vegetable oil

6 lg shelled fresh oysters or 12 shelled uncooked medium shrimp

1 1/2 cups fresh bean sprouts

2-3 green onions, white part thinly sliced, green part in 1" lengths

2 TB freshly chopped cilantro

Sriracha, Tabasco, or other hot sauce

In a small bowl combine the rice flour, tapioca flour, 1/2 tsp salt, and the water. Stir well. In another small bowl, lightly beat the eggs with a couple pinches of salt. Set the bowls by the stove with a serving platter and make sure all the other ingredients are ready to go. This dish cooks up fast.

In a large flat skillet (I use a 10" nonstick cast iron skillet), heat the oil over medium high heat until a bit of batter sizzles at once. Give the batter another stir, and ladle it into the pan to form a big, lacy, open pancake. If you like a thinner pancake, hold back on some of the batter. Scatter the oysters or shrimp on top and let cook 1 or 2 mins until the pancake is fairly firm and crisp. Check the bottom occasionally for scorching. Any opaque white spots you see on top are uncooked; I press them with a spatula so the pancake cooks evenly. Pour on the eggs, and let cook a minute longer, until the eggs are almost set.

Cut the pancake in half with the spatula, and flip over each half to cook the other side. Breaks don't matter--this dish is supposed to be a delicious mess. If you have room in the skillet, you can saute the bean sprouts and green onions in the middle of the pan. I don't have enough room in a 10" skillet, so I transfer the cooked omelet to the serving platter. Then I saute the bean sprouts and green onions in the pan for 1 or 2 mins, tossing until they are shiny and fragrant. Generously salt the bean sprouts and green onions. Pile them alongside the omelet pieces. Sprinkle with cilantro, and drizzle with Sriracha. Then dive in!

ETC: The recipe should have said to pile the bean sprouts and green onions alongside the omelet pieces, rather than on top, so that the pancake stays crispy.

Edited August 27, 2008 by djyee100 (log)

[djyee100]

For dinner last night, Crispy Omelet with Shrimp and Bean Sprouts (recipe in previous post).

[C. sapidus]

djyee100, that crispy omelet looks scrumptious.

I made a double batch of the “basic red curry paste” from Thai Food. This is my favorite red curry paste, and it will probably turn up again tomorrow night.

For tonight, we made chuu chii curry from Thai Food, substituting chicken for scallops. We topped the curry with cilantro and slivers of chile and lime leaves. Accompanied by braised cabbage with shrimp (from Cradle of Flavor), jasmine rice, and cucumbers.

I was counting on leftovers, but the family finished everything.