Thai foods.

Paknam Seafood and Trade Fair

2010-01-28T04:08:00.002-08:00

If you live in Samut Prakan then you might be interested in the Paknam Seafood and Trade Fair. It is going on from now until Saturday 4th April 2009. It is taking place in the area in front of the city hall, alongside the river. They have a large stage set up for concerts during the evening with dining tables set up in front of it. Down one side are rows of food vendors. More than half the stalls in the city hall area are clothing and household goods. The rest are food. There are also rides for the kids like merry go round. If you are in the area then it is certainly worth visiting. It is open from late afternoon.

How to cook... Boiled Stuffed Bitter Gourd

2010-01-28T04:08:00.000-08:00

Boiled Stuffed Bitter Gourd (gaeng jeut ma-ra yat sai)

This week we have another plain soup for you which isn't spicy. It is called Boiled Stuffed Bitter Gourd or "gaeng jeut ma-ra yat sai" in Thai. I am not too fond of bitter gourds but it is apparently good for your health and is used a lot in natural medicines. I have to be honest and admit that we cheated a little today. I bought this as a pack at Tesco Lotus for 25 baht. Sometimes it is easier and cheaper as nothing is wasted. All you have to do is cook! In the picture of the ingredients below, you can see bitter gourds stuffed with a mixture of minced pork, mung bean noodles (wun-sen) and carrots. On the right there is carrots, stock cube and Chinese soup celery.

Wash the bitter gourd and then cut it into three inch sections. Remove the insides with a fork. Next prepare the pork mixture. Soak the wun sen in cold water. Mix this with the minced pork and chopped carrots and season with a little fish sauce. Stuff this inside the bitter gourds. Place them carefully in a pot and add some stock. Bring to the boil and then simmer gently until the bitter gourd is tender. Add the Chinese soup celery to the soup once you start simmering. Taste the stock and add more fish sauce if you like.

Mung Bean Noodles Spicy Salad

2010-01-06T19:03:00.001-08:00

Mung Bean Noodles Spicy Salad (yum wun-sen)

This is a Thai salad that uses mung bean noodles (wun sen) and minced pork. In Thai it is called "yum wun-sen". You can also add fresh shrimp but we didn't have any in stock. You might find this a little spicy but it is up to you how many chillies you add. In the ingredients pictured below, you can see chopped onion, red chilli, lime, roasted peanuts, mung bean noodles, cooked minced pork, spring onion and chopped tomatoes in the middle.

You need to prepare the noodles by first soaking them in cold water for ten minutes and then briefly dipping them into boiling water. Then back to the cold water. Then drain them. Mix the noodles together with the minced pork that has already been well cooked. Add some crushed red chillies. Season with an equal combination of fish sauce and lemon juice. Taste it first and then add sugar for the desired amount. Sprinkle on top the spring onion and roasted peanuts.

Stir-fried Bitter Gourd and Egg

2010-01-06T19:02:00.001-08:00

Stir-fried Bitter Gourd and Egg (pad ma-ra sai khai)

Today we are cooking a stir-fried dish with bitter gourd and egg. In Thai it is called "pad ma-ra sai khai". It is another one of those simple dishes that doesn't take long to prepare or cook. In the ingredients shown below, you can see two eggs and sliced bitter gourd.

You need to prepare the bitter gourd first by washing it and then slicing it in half lengthwise. Remove and discard the insides and then cut into slices like in the picture above. Heat some oil in the work and then add the sliced bitter gourd. Cook until it becomes tender. Season with light soy sauce and oyster sauce. I only had normal soy sauce so hence the darker look. Finish by breaking the eggs into the wok. Give it a good stir until the egg is cooked through.

Stir-fried Beans and Mushrooms

2010-01-06T06:42:00.001-08:00

Stir-fried Beans and Mushrooms (thua khaek pat het)

It is good to have some vegetarian dishes every now and then. This is another good example that is also not spicy. It is Stir-fried beans and mushrooms or "thua khaek pat het" in Thai. As you can see in the ingredients below, there are two different kinds of mushrooms. Starting from the top, you have rice-straw mushrooms, carrots, bean curd skin, green beans and shiitake mushrooms in the center.

There are a few things you need to do first to prepare for this dish before you can start cooking. Firstly, you need to soak the shiitake mushrooms in water overnight in order to soften them. The bean curd skin is often bought dried so you need to soak this in water for about thirty minutes. Once you are all ready, heat some oil in the wok and when it is hot enough, add the mushrooms, beans, carrots and bean curd skin. You will also need to add some water so that it doesn't dry out. Season with sugar and soy sauce.

Fried Shrimp with Basil Leaves

2010-01-06T06:41:00.002-08:00

Fried Shrimp with Basil Leaves

Fried Shrimp with Basil Leaves (pad grapao goong)

Some people might find the dish this week a bit too spicy, but it is not unbearable. It is Fried Shrimp with basil leaves or "pad grapao goong" in Thai. You could also cook it with chicken if you like. In the ingredients pictured below, you can see holy basil leaves and shrimp on the left and bird's eye chillies and garlic cloves on the right.

You need to prepare the chilli and garlic cloves first by pounding them with a mortar and pestle. Heat some oil in a wok and when it is hot, add the chilli mixture. When it becomes fragrant add the shrimps that have already been prepared. Stir well so that everything is well combined. Season with fish sauce and sugar. You could use oyster sauce if you like. Don't cook for too long. At the end, add the basil leaves and give a good stir.

Fried Battered Mushrooms

2010-01-06T06:41:00.000-08:00

Fried Battered Mushrooms (het naang fah chub bpaeng tod)

Today we have a simple dish called Fried Battered Mushrooms or "het naang fah chub bpaeng tod" in Thai. As you can see in the picture below, there are only two basic ingredients. On the left there is a pack of tempura flour and on the right oyster mushrooms.

Cooking is of course very simple. Wash the mushrooms then set them aside to drain. Mix the flour with an equal amount of water. Some people also add an egg. Dip the mushrooms into the batter one at a time and then fry them in hot oil until golden brown. This is best served with chilli sauce.

Chu Chee Tofu

2010-01-06T06:40:00.000-08:00

Chu Chee Tofu (chu chee tao-hoo)

Today we have another vegetarian dish. It is Chu Chee Tofu or "chu chee tao-hoo" in Thai. As you probably know, tofu is often used as a meat substitute in many Thai dishes. In many cases, the finished product looks like the "real thing". In the ingredients below you can see the red curry paste and coconut milk at the top, white tofu on the right and red chilli, palm sugar and kaffir lime leaves on the left. You can use yellow tofu if you like which you will find to be a little saltier.

Cut the tofu into slices much like you do for a cake. Fry this in a pan of oil. Next, heat some coconut cream in a pan until the oil surfaces. Add the red curry paste. Stir it well. You may need to add a bit more coconut milk in order to make a smooth paste. Season it with light soy sauce and palm sugar. Next, add the fried tofu and some more coconut milk. If it is too salty then add some more sugar and coconut milk. I haven't said how much seasoning as it is normal to adjust to your own taste. Finish by adding the kaffir lime leaves and spur chilli. We pre-fried the kaffir lime leaves but you don't need to do that.

Crispy Egg Salad

2010-01-06T06:39:00.000-08:00

Crispy Egg Salad (yum khai foo)

This week we have a crispy egg salad for you which is called "yum khai foo" in Thai. In the ingredients pictured below, you have on the left onion, bird eye chilli, palm sugar, tomatoes and two eggs. On the right you can see carrots, lime, Chinese celery and blanched ground pork. You can also add some garlic.

To cook you need to fry the egg first until crispy. Take it out and drain on some tissue before cutting into bite-sized pieces. Mix together bird eye chillies, fish sauce, lime juice and palm sugar. Lightly crush it with the flat blade of the knife. Next add the blanched ground pork, sliced onions, tomatoes and carrots and mix it well. Finally add the sliced egg and chopped Chinese celery. We will have another Thai Food Recipe for you

Tom Yum Mushroom Soup

2010-01-06T06:38:00.000-08:00

Tom Yum Mushroom Soup

There are many different kinds of "tom yum" though for me I prefer "tom yum kung" which comes with fresh shrimp. This one is called "tom yum het sot" which is the sour and spicy soup with three kinds of mushrooms. In the ingredients pictured below, you can see, from the top, lemon grass, galangal, Chinese celery, shiitake mushrooms, oyster mushrooms, rice-straw mushrooms and kaffir lime leaves. I cook tom yum nearly every week as it is supposed to be good for your health. I normally use chicken and one kind of mushroom. Lately I have been cooking "egg noodle tom yum" a lot which I will share with you later.

Put some water in a pot and add the sliced galangal, lemon grass, kaffir limes leaves and chillies. You need to tear the kaffir limes leaves and not cut them. Once it comes to the boil add the three kinds of mushrooms. Season with sugar and light soy sauce. Once everything is cooked, add the celery and turn off the heat. Finally add the lime juice. You need to taste it to make sure that you have a good balance.

Khao Tom Mad

2010-01-06T06:37:00.000-08:00

Khao Tom Mad

On the first day of every month, we have the Paknam Food Festival in our town down by the river. During the recent event they promoted the sale of traditional Thai food. One of my favourites is this glutinous rice dessert that contains a banana and black eye peas. In Thai it is called "khao tom mad" or sometimes "khao tom pad". Other ingredients include thick coconut cream, salt and sugar. It is wrapped in banana leaves and tied together with thin strips of bamboo. Everything is natural and certainly beats the modern practice of using foam boxes as containers.

Here is a brief outline on how to cook. Wash the long grain glutinous rice and then soak in water for three hours. In the meantime, mix thick coconut cream, salt and sugar together and stir until the sugar dissolves. Add this to the rice. Next put this mixture into a pot over a low heat and stir until it dries out. Next, put some mixture onto a sheet of banana leaves. Place on top some black eye peas and the ripe banana. Then add some more rice mixture. Wrap this up in the banana leaves. Tie two of these packages together. Finally, steam them for two hours.

Stuffed Fried Squid

2010-01-03T05:28:00.001-08:00

Stuffed Fried Squid

Where we live in Paknam, it is close to the sea, so we have access to a large variety of seafood. Today we will show you how to cook "pla meuk yat sai tod". Our version here is stuffed with minced pork. In the picture of the ingredients below, you can see the washed squid on the right and the minced pork mixture on the left.

You need to wash the squid thoroughly and then slice it open at one end. Next, use a mortar and pestle to gently pound garlic, black pepper and the minced pork. We also added soy sauce and an egg to this mixture. This was then stuffed into the squid. We then used a matchstick to close the end and then deep fried it in hot oil. For the sauce we used bottled chilli sauce. But, you could also make one using a combination of vinegar, sugar, salt and spur chillies. Put the first three ingredients in a pot and stir until the sugar dissolves. Add the spur chilli and keep stirring until it thickens.

Stir-fried Chicken with Garlic Plant

2010-01-03T05:27:00.000-08:00

Stir-fried Chicken with Garlic Plant

The Thai food recipe we have for you this week is Stir-fried Chicken with Garlic Plant. In Thai it is called "gai phat ton gra-thiam". As you can see in the picture below, there are only two main ingredients: chicken and garlic plant. This needs to be sliced diagonally and washed.

Heat some oil up in a pan and when it is hot add the chicken. Add some stock so that it doesn't dry out. When it is nearly cooked add the garlic plant. Season with oyster sauce and light soy sauce. To thicken the sauce, you need to add an equal amount of corn starch and water. Taste again and add more seasoning as desired.

Stuffed-Squid Soup

2010-01-03T05:26:00.001-08:00

Stuffed-Squid Soup

Today we have a plain soup for you called "gaeng jeut plaa meuk yat sai". If you like seafood and don't like it to be spicy then you might like this. In the ingredients pictured below, you can see coriander, spring onion, minced pork mixture and washed squid.

You first need to wash and clean the squid. Then prepare the stuffing with a mortar and pestle. Gently pound together the pepper and garlic and then mix in the minced pork, soy sauce and one egg. In the meantime, bring a pot of stock to the boil. Add the stuffed squid and cook until done. Add the chopped coriander and spring onion. Season with soy sauce to match your taste. Sprinkle on top some fried garlic.

Deep-fried Prawn in Red Curry

2010-01-03T05:25:00.000-08:00

How to cook... Deep-fried Prawn in Red Curry

The Thai dish this week is Deep-fried Prawn in Red Curry or "chu-chee koong tod". The word "chu-chee" comes from the sound when you put something into hot oil. If you don't have prawn you could use fish, pork or chicken as an alternative. In the ingredients pictured below, you can see shredded kaffir lime leaves, green chillies, palm sugar and red curry paste on the left, fresh shrimp in the middle, and coconut milk and flour on the right.

There are two stages to cooking this dish. First you need to mix the flour and water equally to make a batter. Dip the prawns into this batter and then deep fry them until golden brown. Set aside on some tissue paper. Next, heat some vegetable oil up in a pan and stir fry the red curry paste. Add some coconut milk so that it doesn't dry out. Season with fish sauce and palm sugar. This is a careful balance so you need to adjust to your own taste. The red curry paste is then poured into the serving dish. Add the fried prawns and sprinkle with shredded kaffir lime leaves and either green or red spur chilli.

Grow Dragon Fruit

2010-01-03T05:24:00.000-08:00

How to Grow Dragon Fruit

Last year, I wrote a short blog with pictures about How to Eat Dragon Fruit. It proved to be quite popular with people searching on Google. The bright pink fruit is not native to Thailand and can be found in other regions of the world. I enjoy eating this fruit though in the supermarkets of Bangkok it can be expensive at about 40 to 60 baht a kilo depending on the time of year. The main season is May to October when you will find it at a cheaper price.

One of the main growing regions for dragon fruit in Thailand is Chanthaburi where I am now. We were driving down the road yesterday when I spotted this dragon fruit orachard. The fruit doesn't grow on a tree but on a cactus that likes to grow up a wall or a pillar as in this picture.

The cactus has a bright yellow flower that I am told only fully flowers at night-time. By morning it starts to wilt as you can see here. This then develops into the green fruit which you can see in the picture below. Finally it turns red when it is nearly ready to harvest. In town I saw them selling this fruit for 10-15 baht a kilo.

I haven't made an effort to grow one yet though I will try when I get back. There are apparently two options. One is to grow from a cutting of the cactus. The second way is to use the black seeds inside the fruit. It should be fairly easy to find this plant in town but I will also try growing from seed. Check out our Thai Food Forums for updates and also the latest pictures of my effort to grow pineapple and lemon grass.

Fried Spare-ribs Marinated in Pineapple Juice

2010-01-03T05:22:00.000-08:00

How to cook... Fried Spare-ribs Marinated in Pineapple Juice

The dish we are cooking this week is Fried Spare-ribs marinated in pineapple juice. In Thai it is called "si-khrong moo thot". It is not really much of a traditional Thai dish but I see it a lot on menus at restaurants. In the picture of the ingredients below you can see spareribs at the top and garlic and black pepper on the left with pineapple juice on the right.

Prepare the spare-ribs first by washing them and cutting them into bite-sized pieces. Next marinate them in fresh pineapple juice for about half an hour. While this is marinating, prepare a mixture of dark soy sauce, light soy sauce, fish sauce, crushed garlic, black pepper, sugar and ground coriander seeds. Then rub this into the spare-ribs and leave to marinate for a while longer. Prepare your wok with about an inch of oil. Once it is hot add the spare ribs a few at a time until golden brown. Serve on a plate with some lettuce and fresh pineapple.

Stuffed Omelet

2010-01-03T05:21:00.000-08:00

How to cook... Stuffed Omelet

One of my favourite dishes in Thailand that isn't spicy is "stuffed omelet" or "khai yat sai" in Thai. It is a little tricky making the egg envelope. It works best with a big wok and a gas flame. In the ingredients pictured below, you can see carrots, onion, minced pork, tomato, coconut milk, 4 eggs and peas in the middle. Make sure that everything is chopped up small. You can also use garlic if you like.

Heat some oil up in the wok and then add the minced pork. Stir fry for a few minutes and then add the carrots, onions, peas and tomatoes. Season with light soy sauce, oyster sauce and a pinch of pepper and salt. If it tastes too salty then add some sugar. When cooked put to one side. Heat some oil in a wok again making sure that the sides heat up as well. Beat the eggs together with some coconut milk. Once the wok is hot enough, pour a small amount of egg into the wok and tip it back and forth in order produce a thin layer all around the wok. Once it is nearly done, add several spoonfuls of your minced pork mixture.

Odorless Kimchi

2009-12-30T20:55:00.000-08:00

What’s kimchi without the strong garlicky odor? Right? In this morning’s LA Times, there’s a story about Kim Soon-Ja who is the annointed Kimchi Master of South Korea, and about how she pursued the creation of an odorless kimchi. This was ignited by a comment during a trip to Europe: ”My tour guide asked me not to take out my kimchi in public because it can be distasteful to foreigners.” Ouch!
After much research and diligence, she has created a “new type of freeze-dried pickled cabbage that doesn’t smell even after water is added, appealing to both foreigners and the fussiest Korean eaters.”
The obvious reason for such a pursuit is to better globalize kimchi by making it more appealing by the suppression of the kimchi smell. The South Korean government is making large investments in the midst of the global recession to evangelize Korean food around the world, and kimchi is one of the central pieces of both Korean food and culture. However, the raging debate from the purist is that the odor of kimchi is what makes kimchi so unique. Do you take out the olive oil in Italian cooking? What do you think? Should kimchi go odorless? Remember when you were a kid and you invited your non-Korean friends over to the house and your mom busted out the kimchi next to the sandwiches and turkey.

Restaurant: Cho Dang Gol

2009-12-30T20:54:00.000-08:00

The warm weather lately has been good and bad. Thinking back, I realize how long of a winter we’ve had this year. On the cold, wintry nights, I often found myself craving a bowl of hot tofu stew (soondooboo chigae) from Cho Dang Gol, a favorite restaurant of mine. Tucked away from the fluorescent lights of Korea Town on 32^nd Street, this relatively unknown gem is a real treat for fans of authentic Korean cuisine.
The woody, rustic interior of Cho Dang Gol offers a subdued, calm haven away from the bustling streets of K-Town.
One thing I love about Korean restaurants is the unlimited small plates, panchan, which encompass all sorts of foods – grilled fish, fresh kimchee, fried zucchini pancakes, just to name a few. Although the panchan here does not include my favorite steamed egg (served at Kunjip), the majority would agree that the kimchee is far superior, with just the right marinade of soy sauce, garlic, brown sugar, sesame oil, and hot chili peppers.

Tofu, the highlight of the menu, is made fresh daily on the premises, and featured in a variety of specialty dishes. We start off with the traditional Seafood Tofu Soup, whose bright redness gives it a deceivingly spicy facade. The piquant broth (which actually isn’t very spicy) is made from kimchee, kochukaru (red pepper powder), seafood, saewoojeot (salted shrimp), sesame oil, and various ingredients depending on the chef. The tanginess of the stew balances the tofu, which has a chunky, crumbly texture that differentiates itself from the cartons of processed tofu usually available in Asian supermarkets. The stew is served with sticky purple rice, which not only tastes delicious but is also rich in anthocyanin antioxidants, which have been proven to help combat free radicals in the body. If you are not a fan of seafood, the Kimchee (with Pork) or the Vegetable are also excellent choices.

Fortunately, pork is still safe to eat these days. The Herbal Pork Belly, Bo Ssam, is one of the signature dishes at Cho Dang Gol. Fresh slices of marble pork belly marinated in traditional herbs, giving it a slight medicinal taste, are arranged neatly in an iron pot and kept warm by a portable stove. Then the ornamentation begins. The pork belly slices are placed on thin, round translucent sheets of daikon and garnished with shrimp sauce (that is also the acting agent in fermenting kimchee), soybean and chili pepper paste, shredded sesame leaves, and raw onions. Then simply fold the daikon in half. Voila! The succulent pork fat melts quickly in the mouth, and is perfectly balanced by the raw onions and the crisp, refreshing slices of daikon.
We finish up our meal with a cup of hot ginger lemon tea complimentary of the restaurant, preparing us for entering into the cold again. All in all, a deeply satisfying meal, and pleasantly, without the side effects of MSG.

Korean Beacon Weekly Food Column

2009-12-30T20:52:00.000-08:00

Korean food is magnificent at four in the morning. After a late night of partying, all I can think about is how delicious the steamed egg is going to taste when it enters my mouth. The steam rising from the bubbling pot of goodness makes me sweat a little, and the sweet aroma of the sesame oil infused in the egg instills a sense of comfort in my dreary mind and most importantly, keeps me from passing out on the sticky table.

I never intended to start a food blog, but that by no means suggests that my love affair with food has been a short one. Back in college by Morningside Heights, I loved binging on the decadent milkshakes at Tom’s and going up to Fairway Harlem to buy groceries for my weekly sumptuous cooking feasts with the “Iron Chef Society” I had formed with my two lovely male friends. During my investment banking days, I looked forward to scanning Seamless everyday for new restaurants and I’d often get calls from colleagues on random nights asking me for suggestions on places to take their dates. Before giving them a list, I always had them answer three questions: type of cuisine, atmosphere, and price. Now, they’ve appointed me as their “walking Zagat guide.” And so in February, I finally started documenting my reviews on www.jumelli.blogspot.com, and I recently decided to saddle up and take on the foodie role at Korean Beacon.
To give a “taste” of what I’ll be doing in the upcoming months, I will be posting bits and pieces on Korean foods, restaurants, events, recipes, and other delicious things of the sort. If you have any suggestions or ideas on things/places/events you like/hate/adore, please open your hearts and share them with me at submit@koreanbeacon.com
For those of you foodies who haven’t seen Julia and Julie yet, I highly recommend it! I love the one scene where Julie Powell tells Eric that no matter how terrible of a day you’ve had, you can always come home and find comfort in knowing that if you mix chocolate with butter, sugar, and eggs, you will get a fabulous chocolate mousse. I almost slobbered over myself watching her whip the mousse into a buttery, chocolate-y chunk of goodness on screen.

What Korean Food do Foreigners Like?

2009-12-30T20:51:00.001-08:00

So what Korean food do foreigners like? The winner is bibimbop and bulgogi. This according to a survey released by Corean Image Communication Institute. Sixty percent of respondents said Korean food stands a good chance of going global because it is healthy and made with plenty of vegetables. But they said high sanitation standards and traditional design of restaurants is essential if that is to happen.
The survey asked 207 foreigners in influential positions such as global company staff and professors, 78.7 percent of respondents said they like Korean food. Asked why, the vast majority or 60.2 percent said because it tastes good. Some 16.6 percent cited curiosity about new cuisine and 14.2 percent nutritional value. Respondents who did not like eating Korean food cited taste, smell, interior design of restaurants and sanitation.
Bibimbap was the favorite Korean dish of 17 percent of respondents. Some 13.7 percent of respondents said they liked bulgogi best, while 11.5 percent favored Korean-style short ribs. Only 5.6 percent liked kimchi, Korea’s signature side dish of pickled cabbage. More than half of respondents or 58.5 percent said Korean food can be globalized.
Asked why, 36.7 percent answered because it was made with plenty of vegetables, 21.5 percent cited the rich taste and 18.9 percent said the varied range of dishes. Some 29.1 percent and 20.9 percent of surveyed people said spiciness and strong smell could be an obstacle to globalization. Some 20 percent of respondents said improved sanitation and Korean-style interior design of restaurants are imperative for globalization of Korean food.

Valentine’s Day : Celebrate with chocolate

2009-12-30T06:50:00.000-08:00

With Valentine’s Day and Chinese New Year falling so closely together, you could say that February’s theme color is red. Red symbolizes love and good fortune (in Chinese culture), of course.
But I say February’s theme color is brown, because there’s no better month to indulge in chocolate!
I recently made Beacon Hill Cookies from Alice Medrich’s Cookies and Brownies. Alice Medrich is a goddess on so many levels. Entrepreneur magazine named her America’s “First Lady of Chocolate.” Not only are her recipes decadent (I’ve never encountered a bad recipe from her), but her book Chocolate and the Art of Low-Fat Desserts is the best low-fat, if not dessert, book out there. That book is actually the inspiration for my mini-bakery. You can have low-fat dessert and never know the difference!
Back to the cookies… I prefer to call them Truffle Cookies because it’s a much better description. It’s basically melted chocolate with just enough beaten egg whites to aerate it. Upon biting into the cookie, the paper thin crust shatters to reveal a creamy center.
You should use the finest quality chocolate you can find. Because there’s so few ingredients, the chocolate cannot hide behind the “dough.” I used chocolate that I bought in Europe last May. Even after seven months, the chocolate was still in its prime. Of course proper storage helped. Since New York is humid in the summer, I wrapped the chocolate in plastic wrap, refrigerated it in a metal tin (so flavors in the fridge wouldn’t seap through), and didn’t unwrap the chocolate until it came to room temperature. If you unwrap it any earlier, condensation will cause the chocolate to develop white spots (bloom). A little water + chocolate is like oil + water. Not a good combination!
When I broke the chocolate into small pieces, there was a clean, crisp snap. American chocolate, however, crumbles and bends when you break it. Although “bad chocolate” is an oxymoron, stay away from those Hershey’s bars!
The original Beacon Hill cookie recipe calls for chocolate chips. You could use them, but chocolate chips have additives that help them keep their shape.
I thought about adding these cookies to the Su Good Sweets lineup, but they’re prohibitively expensive to sell. In Manhattan, so-so chocolate chips are almost $4 a bag, and good chocolate costs lots more. In Europe, chocolate is unbelievably cheap! I bought one pound for about $3 US! Plus, these cookies don’t really have a shelf life. They’re best eaten the day they’re baked. They’re still good a couple days later, but they lose their truffle-like creaminess.
So lucky for you, I’ll post the recipe here. Warning, these cookies are deadly! These are not cookies you scarf down mindlessly. You savor the aroma and flavor of each bite, doting on the subtle background notes of your good quality chocolate. And then you eat five more cookies because you just can’t stop.
Last note about the ingredients: cream of tartar stabilizes the whites and helps them beat faster. If you’ve ever beaten whites but instead got a white curd floating on top of a watery mess, you’ve overbeaten the whites. Cream of tartar acts as insurance so that disaster doesn’t happen. However, a tiny jar costs about $5, and as Alton Brown says, it’s a one-hit wonder. I prefer kitchen multitaskers, so you can substitute it with twice the amount of distilled white vinegar or lemon juice. Some people complain about the off flavor of vinegar, but I can never detect it in the baked product.
Chocolate Truffle Cookies
adapted from Alice Medrich’s Cookies and Brownies
Makes about 30 2-inch cookies
Ingredients
6 ounces bittersweet or semisweet chocolate, cut into pieces
2 large egg whites, at room temperature (hint: whites are easier to separate when they’re cold but beat better when they’re at room temperature)
1/4 teaspoon cream of tartar or 1/2 teaspon white vinegar or 1/2 teaspon lemon juice
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/4 cup sugar
3/4 cup chopped walnuts
Equipment
2 cookie sheets, lined with parchment paper or greased
Optional step: To bring out the flavors of the nuts, toast them whole in a 325F oven for about 10 minutes, or until they’re fragrant and browned. Chop them when they’ve cooled.
Preheat the oven to 350F. Position racks in the upper and lower thirds of the oven.
Melt the chocolate in a heatproof bowl in the microwave on medium power for 2 to 2 1/2 minutes, or set the bowl in a skillet of barely simmering water. Stir frequently until the chocolate is almost completely melted. Remove from the heat and stir to complete the melting. Set aside.
Beat egg whites with the cream of tartar (or vinegar or lemon juice) and vanilla until soft peaks form when you lift the beaters. Add the sugar gradually, continuing to beat until the egg whites are stiff but not dry. They’re ready if you invert the beaters and the egg whites stand straight up. If they droop, they’re not ready. Pour the nuts and all of the warm chocolate over the egg whites. Fold with a rubber spatula until the color is uniform. Do not let the batter wait.
Drop level teaspoons of batter at least 1 inch apart on the cookie sheets. Bake for i0 to 12 minutes, or until the cookies are shiny and cracked, firm when you press them but still gooey inside. Rotate the sheets from front to back and top to bottom of the oven about halfway through the baking time to ensure even baking. Slide the parchment liners onto racks or transfer cookies from the pan with a metal pancake turner. Cool cookies completely. Cookies are best on the day they are baked but still delectable a couple of days later. May be stored, airtight, for 2 to 3 days.
Frugal me…while the cookies are baking, lick the bowl clean, because the batter’s like chocolate mousse. If some of the chocolate solidified in the double boiler or spatula, pour warm milk over it to remelt it. Then treat yourself to a cup of real hot chocolate.
Some ideas for lightening the cookie:

Use half the nuts and toast them so you can get away with using less. Also chop them finer so every cookie has nuts.
Substitute a mixture of cocoa powder and sugar for half of the chocolate.
Substitute softened Nutella for the chocolate and omit the sugar. Okay, the Nutella doesn’t really help, but it’s an interesting variation.
Use low-fat chocolate souffle as the batter but bake as directed above.

I only tried the first option, so I have no idea how the other variations work. If you try it, let me know!

Fried Wonton

2009-12-30T06:38:00.004-08:00

Fried Wonton (giew tod)

I like eating wonton with my noodle soup. Just as delicious are these fried wontons that you can often find around town. It comes with a sweet chilli dip. In the ingredients below you can see minced pork, coriander and garlic, an egg and chopped onion, and some slices of wonton. The folding is a little tricky but you should get the hang of it after some practice.

Make sure that you chop up all the ingredients so that it is very small. In a bowl, mix together the minced pork, onion, garlic and the corriander. Beat an egg and slowly add this to the mixture. Season with fish sauce (salt if you don't like the smell) and some pepper. Next comes the tricky part. You need about spoonful of the mixture and put into the middle of the wonton slice. Fold in half to make a triangle and then bring the two corners together. You can use egg yolk to help seal it if you like. Now add them to a pan of hot oil. Come back to www.thai-blogs.com next week for more Thai Food recipes.

Grilled Beef Salad

2009-12-30T06:38:00.002-08:00

Grilled Beef Salad (yum neua yaang)

The Thai version of a salad, or "yum" can be spicy so be careful if you don't like your meals hot. This is Grilled Beef Salad or "yum neua yaang" in Thai. In the ingredients pictured below, you can see grilled beef, chopped onion, spring onion, tomatoes, cucumber and a lime. You can also see coriander and mint leaves. In the center is some green chili in a sauce containing fish sauce, lemon juice and sugar.

The first step is to grill the beef until cooked and then cut it into thin slices. Next you need to mix all your ingredients together in a large bowl. This includes the sliced beef, cucumber, tomato, onion and the chilli sauce that I mentioned earlier. Tip out onto a plate and add a sprig of mint leaf and coriander leaves. Come back to www.thai-blogs.com next week for another Thai food blog.

Spicy Bacon and Eggs

2009-12-30T06:38:00.000-08:00

Spicy Bacon and Eggs (yum kai dao bacon)

This week we are cooking spicy bacon and eggs which is "yum kai dao bacon" in Thai. Usually a "yum" is a spicy salad that is mixed in a bowl but this one is a bit different. It is a bit like a Thai version of the English breakfast "egg and bacon". In the ingredients pictured below, you can see onion, 3 eggs, lime and red chilli on the left and two rashers of bacon on the right. We also used fish sauce.

Heat up some oil in a wok. When Thai people cook egg they usually use a lot of oil and then only add the eggs once the oil is hot. While this is heating up, crack three eggs into a bowl but don't beat them. If you have time, then prepare the sauce. Use equal amounts of fish sauce and lime juice, say two tablespoons, and about a teaspoon of sugar. Stir this until the sugar dissolves. Chop the red chilli up and add it to your sauce. Once the oil is hot enough then add the eggs. Cook until the egg yolk goes hard. There is no need to flip it over as the oil should be deep enough to take care of this. Set this aside and then fry the bacon until crispy. Place your egg onto a plate and slice it up. Put on top the uncooked onion rings and crispy bacon. Then pour on top of it all the chilli sauce.

Chicken and Wax Gourd Curry

2009-12-30T06:37:00.002-08:00

Chicken and Wax Gourd Curry (gaeng khua fak gub gai)

This is one of my favourite curries that I cook every now and then. It is Chicken and wax gourd curry or "gaeng khua fak gub gai" in Thai. You cook it in much the same way as other red curries but there is an extra step with the wax gourd. You can see these at the top of the ingredients picture below. You can also see coconut milk, sliced red chilli, kaffir lime leaves, tamarind, palm sugar, sliced chicken and red curry paste in the middle.

You need to prepare the wax gourd first by peeling it, slice it several times lengthways, remove the seeds and then finally cut into one inch chunks. Heat up the coconut cream in a wok for several minutes and then add the red curry paste. Add some coconut milk if it starts to dry out. Add the sliced chicken and cook until it is nearly done. Transfer to a deeper pot, and add another cup of coconut milk together with the wax gourd. Once the wax gourd is cooked, season with equal amounts of tamarind juice, sugar and fish sauce. You can use lime juice if you don't have any tamarind. Add the torn kaffir lime leaves and red spur chilli before turning off the heat. Come back next week to www.thai-blogs.com for more Thai Food Blogs. If you have any questions then feel free to post in our Thai Food Forums.

Spring Rolls

2009-12-30T06:37:00.000-08:00

Spring Rolls (por pia tod)

I think spring rolls are a favourite appetizer for many people. In Thai it is called "por pia tod". The ingredients do vary but in our picture below you can see, spring roll sheets, mungbean noodles, chopped garlic, minced pork, bean sprouts, white cabbage and an egg in the middle.

Soak the mungbean noodles in water until they are soft. Then cut them into short lengths. Mix together the pork, egg, finely sliced cabbage, beansprouts and noodles. Add a tablespoon of light soy sauce. Fry the crushed garlic in hot oil until golden brown and then add the pork mixture. Set aside. Put a spoonful of the mixture onto a spring roll sheet. Fold over the mixture then roll it about half a turn. Tuck in the ends and then finish rolling it and seal it with a wheat flour paste. While you are preparing the spring rolls, heat an inch of oil in a wok. Once hot, deep fry the spring rolls until golden brown. Server it with a sweet chilli sauce. Come back next week to www.thai-blogs.com for another Thai Food Blog.

Stir Fried Asparagus and Mushrooms

2009-12-30T06:36:00.002-08:00

Stir Fried Asparagus and Mushrooms is a good accompanying dish that you can have with a curry. In Thai it is called "phat aetsaparakat gup het hom". It is not spicy and is simple to cook. In the ingredients pictured below, you can see shiitake mushrooms, two garlic cloves and chopped asparagus.

Pepare the asparagus first by taking off the outer skin and washing them. Dip them briefly into boiling water and then into cold water. If you are using dry shiitake mushrooms then you need to soak them in water first until soft. If you are using fresh mushrooms like us, you just need to trim them and wash in water. Heat some oil in a wok and add the crushed garlic, frying until golden brown. Next add the mushrooms. Stir for a minute or so and then add quarter of a cup of chicken stock, half a tablespoon of light soy sauce and a tablespoon of oyster sauce. Now add the asparagus. To thicken the sauce, add some tapioca flour that has already been mixed with some water. Give it a good stir and then remove from the heat. Come back to www.thai-blogs.com next week for another Thai Food Blog.

Fried Pomfret

2009-12-30T06:36:00.000-08:00

Fried Pomfret (pla jalamet khao tod)

This is a nice simple dish called Fried Pomfret, or "pla jalamet khao tod" in Thai. In the picture below, you can see the pomfret fish and the tapioca flour.

Wash and clean the fish and then scour it on both sides. Next rub in the tapioca flour. Heat up some deep oil in the pan and when hot enough, fry the fish on both sides until golden brown. Serve with fresh vegetables and a dip made from hot chillies, shallots and an equal amount of lime juice and fish sauce. Come back to www.Thai-Blogs.com next week for another Thai Food Blog.

Salty Fried Prawns

2009-12-30T06:35:00.000-08:00

Salty Fried Prawns (kung tod khem)

This is a simple dish of salty fried prawns, or "kung tod khem" in Thai. You can see the salty prawns in the picture below.

Preparation is simple for this dish. Wash the prawns and then place them in a bowl where you need to rub them with salt. While you are heating up the oil, let them sit for a few minutes. Once the oil is hot enough, deep fry them until they are a rich golden red colour. Come back to www.thai-blogs.com next week for another Thai Food Blog.

Noodle Rolls with Dried Shrimp

2009-12-30T06:34:00.002-08:00

Noodle Rolls with Dried Shrimp (guay tiew lord)
ก๋วยเตี๋ยวหลอด

This is a simple side dish that you can do as an appetizer. In the ingredients pictured below, you can see wide noodles, a mixture of chicken, tofu and garlic, bean sprouts, dried shrimp and sliced egg in the middle.

Prepare the mixture first by finely grinding cilantro root, garlic and pepper. Heat some oil in a wok and when it is hot add the mixture and cook until the garlic is nearly golden brown. Add the minced chicken and stir-fry until cooked. Next add the tofu and dried shrimp. Season with equal amounts of soya bean sauce and sweet soya sauce. Blanch the bean sprouts in hot water until soft. Beat the eggs and then fry it in a wok so that it is very thin. Roll it up and then slice the egg thinly so that it looks shredded. Put a spoonful of the mixture, together with the bean sprouts and egg, onto the wide noodle and roll it up. Use a sharp knife to cut across the roll without going through to the other side. Come back to www.thai-blogs.com next week for another Thai food blog.

Amazing Taste of Thailand

2009-12-30T06:34:00.000-08:00

Thai food is certainly world famous these days. It has been estimated that there are now Thai restaurants in 13,000 locations around the world. These range from fast-food take-aways to up-market restaurants. Many of them have been set up by Thai expatriates living abroad. But there are also many restaurants run by foreigners who have fallen in love with Thai food while on holiday in Thailand. In 2007, tourists in Thailand spent an average of 4,120 baht per day, out of which 17% was spent on food and drink. In order to promote Thai cuisine to foreign tourists, the Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) are helping to run the "Amazing Taste of Thailand Festival". This will be held from 24th to 28th of September 2009 at Central World in Bangkok.

In order to help promote Thai food around the world, the TAT have also organized "Thailand Brand". They have invited chefs, restaurant owners and media from all around the world to come to Thailand to introduce them to the rich diversity of food in the five regions. Today, the TAT invited us at Paknam Web to a popular restaurant in Suphanburi called Kungpen, where we caught up with one of the foreign tour groups. Apart from a very delicious meal of famous food from this region, we were also given demonstrations on Thai cooking and Thai desserts. In this picture, a chef from France is being given instruction on how to cook three popular dishes.

This first dish is called Spicy Minced Fish Salad or "laab pla ma" in Thai. Pla Ma is a famous fish in Suphanburi which literally translates as "Horse Fish". I am told that the face looks a bit like a horse! The main ingredients of this dish include minced fish, lemon juice, fish sauce, ground chilli, roasted rice, sliced red onion and mint leaves.

The second dish that we were given a demonstration cooking of was Snake-Head Fish with Herbs, or "Pla Chon Samun Prai". The herbs include sliced lemon grass, citrone leaves, ginger, galingale and white sesame seed.

The final dish was Shrimp Stew or "kung lon" in Thai. The main ingredients include chopped prawns, lemon grass, citrone leaves, sliced onion, sliced red and green chillies, crushed bird chillies and coconut milk. All of these dishes were very delicious.

This is a picture of our table. I think I enjoyed eating everything that was presented to us. It was a really delicious meal. I know it is a hard job writing travel and food blogs, but someone has to do it. And I am glad it is me! It is one of the best jobs you could ask for.

Before I finish, I just want to show you two final pictures of the food that we ate and that I really enjoyed. This first one is Fried Salty fish or "kung tod gluea" in Thai. The second dish below, is Fried Coccinia grandis with Shrimp or "tam leung" in Thai. This is a kind of ivy that is fried with batter. It was actually really nice.

I will be posting pictures of other demonstrations at this event tomorrow. On Friday, I will be reporting from the Amazing Taste of Thailand Festival in Bangkok. I would like to thank the TAT for inviting us on this trip and also the owners of Kung Pen Restaurant in Samchuk District for being such kind hosts. If you want to go to this restaurant, you will find it on Highway 340, about 30 kms north of Suphanburi town. It is very close to the 100 Year Old Market at Samchuk which we also visited. I will write about that soon.

Khanom Luk Chub

2009-12-30T06:33:00.002-08:00

One of the most unusual Thai sweets are the "khanom luk chub". These desserts are made from mung-bean flour and come in various colours and shapes. They are made to look like a variety of different fruit and vegetables. These are mangosteens, oranges, cherries, mangoes, watermelons, carrots and even chillies. They have been in Thailand for hundreds of years and have long been a favourite of the Kings. I have started seeing them more often these days at the old traditional Thai riverside markets.

The main ingredients are mung bean, sugar, coconut milk, agar (agar-agar is Malay for jelly), white jasmine water and food colouring. You also need some toothpicks. The method to make starts by mixing the mung bean and sugar together. Slowly pour the coconut milk into the bowl while continuing to stir. Pour the mixture into a brass pan and on a low heat, keep stirring until the mixture no longer sticks to the base of the pan. Take out and leave to cool. Next, shape the mixture into different types of fruit. Finnish by painting it with food colouring.

The "luk chub" sweets get their glossy look by dipping it into the agar. The main ingredients are agar, water and sugar. Put the agar in water and boil for a long time. Then add the sugar and continue boiling. Turn the heat down. Dip the "luk chub" into the liquid once or twice and then leave to dry. You can finish off by adding leaves or sticks to make the miniature fruit look more authentic. I took these pictures at Kungpen Restaurant in Suphanburi. We were invited there by the Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) to watch cooking demonstrations as part of their "Amazing Tastes of Thailand" festival.

Crispy Fried Vegetables

2009-12-30T06:33:00.000-08:00

Crispy Fried Vegetables (pak chub bpaeng tod)

It is that time of year when people are eating vegetarian food for ten days. So, I thought we should kick off the festival with this simple dish. You can basically use any vegetables that you like, but in the ingredients pictured below, you can see green beans, onion rings, mushrooms, baby sweetcorn and sliced carrots at the bottom. There is also a dish of flour.

It is very simple to cook. Just mix the flour with some water to make a smooth mixture. Heat up some oil in a wok. Dip the vegetables into the batter and then into the hot oil. Starting tomorrow I will be eating vegetarian for ten days for the Chinese Vegetarian Festival. I will be posting here pictures of the religious ceremonies at the Chinese temples as well as pictures of the vegetarian food markets and the food that I am eating. I will be posting a lot of pictures over at the Samut Prakan Forums and www.Paknam.com.

Pork Soup

2009-12-30T06:32:00.001-08:00

Pork Soup (soup moo)

This is the Thai version of pork soup that is a little on the spicy side. In the ingredients below you can see diced potatoes, pork, carrots, Chinese celery, lime, stock cube, bird eye chillies and plum tomatoes. You could use chicken instead of pork.

Boil the pork in the stock until nearly cooked. Add the carrots and potatoes and continue to boil until cooked. Next add the plum tomatoes and Chinese celery. Season with fish sauce, salt and sugar. Take it off the heat and add the lime juice and slightly crushed bird eye chillies. We will have another Thai Food Recipe for you next week at www.thai-blogs.com and www.EnjoyThaiFood.com.

Nam Phrik Mamuang

2009-12-30T06:31:00.001-08:00

nam phrik mamuang

This is a dip called "nam phrik mamuang". In the ingredients pictured below, you can see palm sugar, red chilli, red shallots, dried shrimp, green mango and shrimp paste in the middle.

Put the shrimp paste into a mortar and pound in the shallots and dried shrimps. Also add the hot chilli, sugar, fish sauce and finally the shredded green mango.

25 Warm-You-Up Chili Recipes

2009-12-30T06:26:00.000-08:00

25 Warm-You-Up Chili Recipes

A simmering pot of chili is sure to warm up your kitchen -- and your family -- on a cold winter's day. Our recipes range from mild to five-alarm (REALLY hot!).

Firehouse chili

Steaming near the pumpers and the hook-and-ladders are some of the ultimate great bowls of fire. Chili, a one-pot meal, is a dinner table staple at many Midwest firehouses. These chili recipes tend to be hot -- no surprise for firefighters -- so we've included an "alarm" rating with them (mild: one-alarm; very hot: five-alarm). To tone down any of them, just decrease or omit ingredients such as jalapeno peppers or red pepper.
Three-Alarm Lansing Fire Chili comes from Lansing, Michigan's Fire Station 8. The recipe uses beef roast and pork sausage. A surprise ingredient: a chocolate bar.