Archive for the ‘: THAI’ Category
Thai Ginger, Prawns, and Glass Noodles
February 1, 2017 Lee
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Thai Ginger, Prawns, and Glass Noodles

This recipe comes from a friend in Singapore and is spot on as this is a Thai recipe. I have had many versions of this over the years and it is good. This can be served as is or with rice.
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Prep Time 30 minutes
Cook Time 15 minutes
Total Time 45 minutes
Course Main Dish
Cuisine Thai
Servings 4 servings

Ingredients
  

  • 80 grams dried glass noodles, see Step 1
  • 8-10 large prawn, head on preferred with legs and antennae removed
  • 1/2 teaspoon black peppercorns
  • 1/2 teaspoon white peppercorns
  • 6 cloves garlic, smashed
  • 15 slices ginger
  • 3 pieces coriander root
  • 1-2 spring onions, chopped into 2 inch pieces

For the Sauce

  • 2 tablespoons light soy sauce, IF not serving over rice, reduce this to 1 teaspoon
  • 2 tablespoons dark soy sauce
  • 2 tablespoons oyster sauce
  • 2 teaspoons sugar
  • 1 teaspoon sesame oil
  • 1/2 cup chicken stock, fresh or from powder

Instructions
 

  • Glass noodles are also known as Vermicelli and as Bean Thread, these normally come in smaller packs of 40 or 80 grams per pack and sold in bundles of 10 packs, normally. This is a common brand here in this photo. Can also find individual packs of 80 grams as well. Photo courtesy Tesco Thailand.
  • In a bowl of water at room temperature, soak the glass noodles for about 10 minutes to soften them.
  • Using a small pair of pointy scissors, cut along the back of each prawn and remove the vein. Optional, I have had this dish with deveined prawn and vein in, personal preference really.
  • Make the sauce by whisking together the Sauce ingredients, then place the glass noodles and prawn in the sauce and toss to coat well, marinate this for about 10 minutes, tossing every few minutes to make sure everything is coated.
  • Using a mortar and pestle crush the peppercorns then add the garlic and coriander root pieces and smash those lightly, set aside.
  • Add a splash of olive oil to a pot that has a lid and set to medium low heat, and add the mixture from the mortar and cook for about 30 seconds then add the ginger and cook for about 2-3 minutes.
  • Take the prawn out of the bowl they are marinating in and place the noodles in the pot along will all the sauce they were marinating in, then place the prawn on top. Cover and cook until the sauce starts to boil, then turn the heat down to low and cook for about 3-4 more minutes.
  • Then give everything in the pot a good stir, prawns can get mixed in now, cover and cook for another 3-4 minutes or until the prawns are cooked through. If the liquid is too low, ad a bit more water.
  • Turn of the heat and add the spring onion to the top and cover and the heat in the pot will wilt the spring onion. Serve.

Notes

For 8-10 large prawn, I will estimate about 100 Baht, for 4 servings this is about 74 cents per serving.
Provided by The Domestic Goddess Wannabe and the link to this recipe is here.
Singapore.
* Best Value $1 or Less per Serving,: THAI,SEAFOOD - ALL,Seafood - Shrimp/Prawn
Stuffed Chinese Bitter Gourd Soup
December 26, 2016 Lee
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Stuffed Chinese Bitter Gourd Soup

This is an easy and delicious soup. The only chilies used are in the filling of the gourd. You can prepare this two different ways. 1. You can buy the already stuffed bitter gourd complete with sliced carrot and cilantro or spring onion, this is stuffed with minced pork and chopped chilies. 2. You can just buy all the separate ingredients do the stuffing part yourself. The already stuffed bitter gourd is the basic starter method, you add to this a few items and you have a delicious soup. For this recipe, I am using the already stuffed gourd as it is very cheap to purchase, less than $1. This is a make with quantities as you see fit recipe.
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Prep Time 5 minutes
Cook Time 30 minutes
Total Time 35 minutes
Course Main Dish
Cuisine Thai
Servings 3 servings

Ingredients
  

  • 1 package stuffed Chinese bitter gourd, this is a ready to cook meal
  • 1 package Enoki mushrooms, also called Golden mushrooms
  • 1/4 carrot, sliced
  • spring onions, chopped into 1-2 inch pieces, white and green parts
  • cilantro, chopped
  • chicken stock, fresh or from powder

Instructions
 

  • In a pot, add the bitter gourd and chopped carrot, add stock to cover the bitter gourd and bring to a boil then reduce to a simmer and cook for about 20-30 minutes or so, this is to cook the pork through, adding more chicken stock as needed. The stuffing is just minced pork with chopped chilies mixed into it.
  • While this is cooking, prep the mushrooms. These come in packs of about 200 grams each, these are in big clumps, before separating the clump, cut about 1-2 inches off the root end and discard that. Now you can sort of pull the clumps apart, set aside. These mushrooms maintain a great crunchy bite to them when cooked. If you like mushrooms, add as much as you want.
  • When the carrot and gourd is cooked through as well as the pork, add in the mushrooms, spring onion, and cilantro and cook for another 10 minutes or so, again, adding stock as needed. Serve.

Notes

For the package of stuffed bitter gourd, that is 32 Baht. One 200 gram package of Enoki mushrooms is 14 Baht. For 3 servings, this 45 cents per serving.
Provided courtesy of my wife, Rrayada Thayer.
Thailand.
#1 Go-To Recipes,* Best Value $1 or Less per Serving,: THAI,MUSHROOMS,SOUPS, STEWS, CHILI
ABC Soup
December 25, 2016 Lee
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ABC Soup

This is a simple Chinese soup recommended by a good Singaporean friend, and surprisingly, this is also a Thai soup as well.
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Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 2 hours
Total Time 2 hours 10 minutes
Course Main Dish
Cuisine Chinese, Thai
Servings 4 servings

Ingredients
  

  • 500 grams pork ribs
  • 1 large carrot, sliced
  • 1 large potato, quartered
  • 1-2 tomatoes, quartered
  • 1 teaspoon white pepper
  • salt, to taste

Instructions
 

  • Ribs come in a strip as shown, cut between each bone, rinse and place ribs in a pot.
  • Cut your vegetables up and place in the same pot, add water to cover by about 2 inches. Bring to a boil then reduce to a low simmer. Simmer for about 1 1/2 to 2 hours. Alternately, put everything in a slow cooker and set on High setting for about 3-4 hours. Skim off any foam occasionally. Season with salt to taste, serve as is with a bowl of rice on the side, or serve as a side to a meal.

Notes

Pork ribs will cost about 80 Baht/500 grams. For 4 servings, this is about 59 cents per serving.
Variant: change the ribs to chicken legs and you have Thai Chicken soup, it is really that easy.
Recipe inspired by & photo provided courtesy of good friend, Grace Adamson, Gourmet Kwi-zeen.
United States.
* Best Value $1 or Less per Serving,: CHINESE,: THAI,SOUPS, STEWS, CHILI
Spicy Papaya Salad (Som Tam)
November 15, 2016 Lee
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Spicy Papaya Salad (Som Tam)

There is as many ways to make Som Tam as there is shades of white paint. This is a base recipe only but should get you in the ballpark of what Som Tam is and how it is made. My mother in law makes Som Tam her way, my wife makes it her way, and my daughter can make it her way, all three will be slightly different, and none of them share their secrets.
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Prep Time 15 minutes
Total Time 15 minutes
Course Appetizer, Lunch, Main Dish, Side
Cuisine Thai
Servings 1 servings

Ingredients
  

  • 2 cups green papaya, shredded
  • 1 plum tomato, chopped
  • 1 tablespoon lime juice, use real lime juice from a lime
  • 1 1/2 tablespoon fish sauce
  • 2 1/2 tablespoons palm sugar
  • 15 Bird's Eye Chilis, this is really up to you, go with 2-3 for less spicy
  • 2-3 cloves garlic, smashed and minced
  • 2 tablespoons roasted peanuts
  • 3 tablespoons dried shrimp
  • 2-3 small freshwater crabs, optional

Instructions
 

  • Peel the papaya, cut in half, remove seeds, and shred. Set aside.
  • Chop the garlic, and chilies, add to a mortar and pound well. Then add the dried shrimp and pound until soft, then add the roasted peanuts and gently pound. Add chopped tomatoes and gently crush those then use a spoon to mix everything together. Set aside.
  • In a small bowl, mix together the lime juice, fish sauce and palm sugar. Add this to a large mixing bowl, then add the shredded papaya and the mixture from the mortar, and mix together. Spoon onto a plate and serve with sliced cucumber and sticky rice.

Notes

This is low cost and for rural areas, rarely bought prepared as nearly everyone grows papayas and chilies.
For the freshwater crabs, these are the small purple ones that are normally preserved in soy sauce or fish sauce, add these to the mortar and simple pound them to break the main shell slightly.
Basic recipe.
* Best Value $1 or Less per Serving,: THAI
Chicken Giblets & Basil
October 13, 2016 Lee
2 Comments

Chicken Giblets & Basil

Rrayada Thayer, Thailand.
Giblets are the hearts, livers, and gizzards, even Thais refer to all these items sold together as giblets. This is how simple a Thai dish can be, and can be made to any degree of heat you like, my wife made this yesterday and she likes it on the spicy side. Minimal ingredients and takes just a few minutes to prepare.
4 from 1 vote
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Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 20 minutes
Total Time 30 minutes
Course Lunch, Main Dish
Cuisine Thai
Servings 6 servings

Ingredients
  

  • 500 grams chicken liver, heart and gizzards, (1 lb)
  • 40-60 Bird's Eye Chilis
  • 6 cloves garlic
  • 2-3 handfuls basil, roughly chopped
  • 1 tablespoon chicken stock powder
  • salt, to taste

Instructions
 

  • In a heavy mortar, grind up the chilies and garlic. Clean the chicken by removing the fat from the hearts and livers, cut the livers into 2-4 pieces. If the gizzards are fresh, clean the gizzards by splitting nearly in half and removing the lining, then chop each gizzard into smaller than bite size pieces.
  • In a large non-stick pan, heat cooking oil of your choice, when hot, add the livers, hearts, and gizzards, and the chili and garlic paste from the mortar, and just a small amount of water, cook until the liver is no longer pink inside. While cooking, sprinkle in the chicken stock powder and stir that in. Stir the giblets occasionally. When the liver is cooked through, add the basil and stir that in until it wilts. Serve with rice.

Notes

If you buy the giblets at say Tesco, the cost is about 70 Baht/500 grams. If bought from a local chicken farmer, you can probably get these for about 40-50 Baht/500 grams. The basil and chilies are free from our yard. For 6 servings (based on store bought giblets), this is about 35 cents per serving, even less for 8 servings. Excellent value per serving.
* Best Value $1 or Less per Serving,: THAI,Chicken - Giblets
Chinese Five Spice Chicken
October 5, 2016 Lee
3 Comments

Chinese Five Spice Chicken

I love Chinese Five Spice Chicken, and oddly, I like the eggs the best. Anytime I transit to Phuket and back home, the van stops at a roadside kitchen, I always get a couple of the eggs to eat as a snack. This is not a secret recipe or an internet recipe, this is from the pack of spice you can buy in every town. The Lobo brand of spices have instructions in Thai and English on every spice packet I have used from them. I made this on 16 May 2017 to get step by step photos, and it is wonderful as always, my comments below.
5 from 2 votes
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Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 1 minute
Total Time 11 minutes
Course Main Dish
Cuisine Chinese
Servings 3 servings

Ingredients
  

  • 500 grams chicken wings
  • 5 hard boiled eggs, peeled
  • 1 tablespoon 5 Spice Powder, rounded tablespoon
  • 2 cloves garlic, smashed and minced
  • 3 tablespoons sugar
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 2 teaspoons light soy sauce
  • 2 teaspoons black soy sauce
  • 3 cups water
  • olive oil, as needed
  • 1 package bean curd, this is tofu, amount is up to you, cut in 1 inch peices, optional

Instructions
 

  • Prepare your chicken wings by separating the drumette from the middle middle piece and the wing tip. Put the drumettes and middle sections in a large bowl, keep the wing tips for your dog. Or just buy middle sections or drumettes. Take the wing tips and boil them in some water to make a quick stock, and then give the wing tips to your dog, they will appreciate that. This is the spice packet I use, good brand.
  • In the bowl for the drumettes and middle sections, add the 5 Spice Powder. Rub that in with your fingers until they are all coated. This is easy, use one hand to mix the wings and the the other to sprinkle in the spice powder, they will all coat as you can see.
  • In a wok or large non-stick pan, heat a splash of olive oil then add the garlic, when the garlic is browned and the chicken, fry for a few minutes turning a few times. You are browning them, not needing to cook through.
  • Add the water, sugar, salt, light and black soy sauces, eggs, and bean curd, cover and simmer for an hour.
  • This photo was at the 1 hour mark, and some chicken and eggs already removed to a serving bowl. The longer the eggs sit in the liquid the darker color they develop.
  • Served. Spoon the broth over rice, delicious.

Notes

Chicken wing prices can vary depending on what you buy. Whole wings would be 45 Baht/500 grams. Wing stick (drummettes) is about 33 Baht/500 grams, and the middle section, the part with the 2 bones, is about 60 Baht/500 grams. Go with drummettes for 33 Baht, for 4 servings, this is about 25 cents per serving. Very cost effective.
From a recipe on a spice packet.
#1 Go-To Recipes,* Best Value $1 or Less per Serving,: THAI,CHICKEN & TURKEY,SOUPS, STEWS, CHILI
Coconut Ant Eggs (and a few ants)
August 22, 2016 Lee
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Coconut Ant Eggs (and a few ants)

This is a basic, but often hard to find dish. As the name implies, this is made from ant eggs, the ants are the red flying variety. Surprisingly enough, the eggs taste like hard boiled chicken eggs. This actually very good, I have had this many times in Northern Thailand. Measurements are approximate.
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Prep Time 20 minutes
Cook Time 20 minutes
Total Time 40 minutes
Course Breakfast, Lunch, Main Dish
Cuisine Thai
Servings 4 servings

Ingredients
  

  • 2 cups ant eggs, there will be ants in there as well, that is ok
  • 1 1/2-2 cups grated coconut
  • salt, taste

Instructions
 

  • Grate the coconut. Rinse the ant eggs.
  • Add the coconut to a pot and add water to cover by about 1 inch, bring to a boil, add the ant eggs and bring to a boil then reduce to a simmer for about 5 minutes (there, you made coconut milk), serve over rice.

Notes

Well under $1 per serving.
Provided courtesy of my wife, Rrayada Thayer.
Thailand.
* Best Value $1 or Less per Serving,5 Ingredients or Less,: THAI
Pork Leg Soup
August 17, 2016 Lee
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Pork Leg Soup

This is a non spicy Thai soup with just 3 ingredients. It is purposely made non spicy.
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Prep Time 5 minutes
Cook Time 40 minutes
Total Time 45 minutes
Course Breakfast, Lunch, Main Dish
Cuisine Thai
Servings 8 servings

Ingredients
  

  • 1 pork leg, see Step 1
  • 1 onion, quartered, OR about 3-4 shallots, also quartered
  • 3-5 handfuls Tamarind leaves, free from our yard

Instructions
 

  • A pork leg is basically a ham hock, these are large but inexpensive. Also called pork side leg. The tape measure is in view to show the size of these, and the tape measure in inches. These are cut through the bone in 4 places when you buy them.
  • Once you get the pork leg home, all you have to do is cut it the rest of the way through and the pork is ready.
  • Heat a large pot of water and add the onion and bring to a boil. Once boiling add the pork. Bring to another boil then reduce to a medium simmer and let the pork cook through, it will be fall off the bone tender when it is cooked, about 40 minutes to an hour. Use a ladle and skim off the foam at the beginning, then the broth will clear up.
  • While the pork is cooking, pull the leaves from the thick stems, small stems remain, it actually goes quickly.
  • Once the pork is tender, add the Tamarind leaves and simmer until they are wilted. Serve with a bowl of rice on the side.

Notes

The pork leg in the first photo is 1 1/2 kilos and cost 120 Baht. For an easy 8 servings, this is 45 cents per serving.
Provided courtesy of my wife, Rrayada Thayer.
Thailand.
* Best Value $1 or Less per Serving,5 Ingredients or Less,: THAI,PORK,SOUPS, STEWS, CHILI
Chicken, Chicken Blood, and Winter Melon Soup
February 17, 2016 Lee
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Chicken, Chicken Blood, and Winter Melon Soup

This is a non-spicy soup made with just 3 major ingredients. Excellent taste. Don't let the ingredients fool you. The chicken blood is congealed, not liquid form, and the vegetable, winter melon, is pronounced fuk.
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Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 30 minutes
Total Time 40 minutes
Course Main Dish
Cuisine Thai
Servings 6 people

Ingredients
  

  • 1/2 chicken, chopped into small pieces
  • 2-3 cups congealed chicken blood, cut into large cubes
  • 2 winter melon, peeled and cubed
  • 1 teaspoon powdered chicken stock
  • 4-5 shallots, smashed
  • 3-4 cloves garlic, smashed
  • salt, to taste

Instructions
 

  • Chop the half chicken and blood. If you do not have a half chicken, use thighs, legs, breasts, chopped into smaller pieces.
  • Peel the winter melon, chop into large pieces, soak in some water for a few minutes then drain. If it has small seeds that is ok, if the seeds are large, remove them.
  • Bring a medium pot of water to a boil and add the smashed scallions and garlic.
  • After it is boiling, add chicken pieces and chicken stock powder.
  • When cooked through, about 10-12 minutes, add the chicken blood. Continue to boil until the blood is cooked through about 5-10 minutes.
  • When the blood is cooked, add the winter melon and reduce heat to a simmer to heat the melon through. When melon is tender, remove from heat and serve with a bowl of rice.

Notes

Chicken would run about 100 to 140 Baht for about 1 kilo of chicken. Blood and melon, very cheap. This is about 70 cents per meal for 6 people, even less for 8 people. Nutritious and healthy.
Provided courtesy of my wife, Rrayada Thayer.
Thailand.
* Best Value $1 or Less per Serving,: THAI,CHICKEN & TURKEY,SOUPS, STEWS, CHILI
Chicken, Chili, and Basil
February 14, 2016 Lee
1 Comment

Chicken, Chili, and Basil

No set recipe here, and no measured ingredients per say. This is a typical Thai meal, spicy, and goes together quickly. Photos are mine that I took yesterday while my wife cooked this.
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Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 20 minutes
Total Time 30 minutes
Course Main Dish
Cuisine Thai
Servings 6

Ingredients
  

  • 4 chicken legs, skin and bones removed, slightly chopped
  • 20-30 Bird's Eye Chilis, slightly mashed, seeds and all
  • 4-6 cloves garlic, smashed and chopped
  • fresh Thai Basil, several good handfuls

Instructions
 

  • Heat a heavy non-stick pan (or a wok) with some oil and add the chilis and garlic and cook for a few minutes.
  • Add the chicken meat and stir to combine with the chili and garlic and cook until juices run clear, about 10 minutes, stir occasionally.
  • Rinse the basil and squeeze dry and add to the pan.
  • Cook until the basil is wilted, serve with rice.

Notes

The cost for the 4 chicken legs is minimal, the chilies came from our garden. This is probably a 30 to 50 cent meal per person, for easily 6 people.
Provided courtesy of my wife, Rrayada Thayer.
Thailand.
* Best Value $1 or Less per Serving,5 Ingredients or Less,: THAI,CHICKEN & TURKEY