Journeys in Thai Cooking
Jun. 13, 2012 11:33 am
Updated: Jul. 12, 2012 10:31 am
I usually can't stop thinking about Thai food. Eating it, cooking it, finding new Thai restaurants, ordering it for takeout... Yes it is a sick obsession. Or maybe just my most favorite (or current favorite?) ethnic food.
In my "journeys" I try my hardest to use authentic ingredients and cooking methods. This is, in fact, what creates the food that I like so much. That and some authentic Thai love. Though I don't have that naturally, I'm fortunate to live in a major city that
has a plethora of both Thai restaurants and Asian supermarkets to supply me with those ingredients that are not so easy to find. When I lived in the suburbs I was hard pressed to find actual galangal root or tamarind. It actually took me a while to figure
out what these ingredients were. Yes, I admit, I pestered my favorite local Thai restaurant's chef to show me the ingredients. He was kind enough to oblige (actually I think he was thrilled that I had such an interest) but I was met with the answer that they
had their Kaffir lime shipped in from Florida. Really?! I sadly realized I would have to look a little harder and/or eat out more often if I wanted my Thai fill.
I am still in the early parts of my journey. I've started out with some of the dishes more commonly known to the American palate, such as red and green curry, pad thai, tom yum. I absolutely love finding new authentic Thai recipes. Any recommendations for good
ones on this site, or elsewhere?
The one thing I can't entirely figure out how to do still... HOW do I make tamarind juice from my tamarind?! I buy the actual beans/pods (I think they are beans?) not the concentrate since that is what is available. I De-seed them and take the sinewy stuff
out and soak the pulp in water, but I still don't know the correct ratio. It's been a guessing game every time though I can't say I've had poor outcomes. Is there any easier way to do this?
