An Intro to Thai Ingredients and Cuisine

Rice for sale

One of the things that Chiang Mai is famous for is their cooking classes.  We were standing at an information kiosk, with three or four different pamphlets in our hands, trying to choose which one to do.  As it happened, two girls walked by and saw the yellow brochure in Aron's hand.  "We just did that one yesterday and it was awesome!"  So we talked for a bit, thanked them for their help and booked the class for Thursday.  It turned out there were only two other participants that day which made for an almost one-on-one experience.  Our teacher, Noi, first showed us around the bustling local market introducing us to common Thai ingredients, vegetables and herbs.  Who would have thought there were so many different types of rice?  

Khao Laam

We watched as fresh coconuts were run through a machine, producing fragrant shreds.  The meat and seafood stalls had everything imaginable, from pig heads to live fish.  Fresh vegetables, herbs, prepared condiments, desserts, snacks... the khao laam was surprisingly delicious.  It's made by cooking sticky rice, coconut cream and black or red beans in hollow bamboo tubes.  To eat, you peel the stringy bamboo like a banana, revealing a very thin layer of bamboo clinging to the rice, which adds to the interesting flavor.

Located in Sankhampaeng village, just outside Chiang Mai, "Cooking at Home Thai Culinary School" is in a lovely rural setting.  When we arrived, three water buffalo were grazing in the nearby rice field.  The classroom consisted of stainless steel workstations equipped with a propane burner and the usual knives, cutting board and so on.  Aside from the recipes, we learned how to make a tomato rose and green onion curls and we were given ideas on how to attractively plate the food.  Noi corrected my up-and-down method of chopping, showing me how to rock the blade forward instead.  

Fried Rice with Tomato Rose garnish

Noi would demonstrate first, with an angled mirror above so we could see what was happening, and then it was our turn.  We started with Fried Rice with Pineapple and Prawns.  When you crack the egg into the hot wok, just break the yolk and then use a circular wrist motion to swivel the wok around, ensuring the egg is spread as thinly as possible.  This is something I didn't notice when I made Nasi Goreng (fried rice) with Lili and Aka at my impromptu Malaysian cooking lesson.  Noi told us that this method ensures you don't end up with scrambled eggs in your fried rice.  

Aron's perfect Red Curry Paste

We made Thai Red Curry Paste from scratch, in a heavy mortar and pestle.  It takes five to ten minutes and some serious muscle - Aron's paste was definitely smoother than mine!  Then we used the curry paste in a Roasted Duck Soup with Fresh Fruit.  Sweet and Sour Vegetables with Fish was next.  We were both secretly disappointed that something so boring was on the agenda, but boy, were we wrong.  It's so much better when you make your own sauce from scratch, tweaking the various elements to your own personal taste (too sweet?  add a bit more vinegar or fish sauce).  And the veggies were crisp - not soggy.  

Laab Moo - made with ground pork

The following dish, Laab Moo, is a traditional Isaan recipe (Isaan is the north eastern region in Thailand).  It's one of our new favorites:  spicy minced pork salad with mint, coriander leaves and roasted ground rice.  We've decided this would be a great appetizer, with rice crackers and cucumbers on the side.

Last, but not least, we made Steamed Banana Coconut Cakes.  We began with a small arts-and-crafts project: making the cupcake holder out of two banana leaves cut into circles.  When the simple batter was prepared, it was scooped into the banana leaf cup and placed in a steamer for 10 minutes or so.

Steamed Banana Coconut Cakes

We ate all of our creations, so needless to say by the end of the course, we were absolutely stuffed.  And we have a bunch of great recipes to add to our ever growing recipe file!