Thai rice soup with Shrimp-Khao Tom Goong

2 cups water
1 cup cooked Thai jasmine rice
1 cup thinly sliced Chinese celery (including the leaves), or spring onion
half teaspoon preserved cabbage
2 tablespoons fish sauce
1 tablespoon Maggi seasoning
1 tablespoon garlic, thinly sliced
Shiitake mushrooms, sliced (optional)
1 teaspoon Thai pepper powder
fried garlic to taste, and a half teaspoon of salted radish always adds a nice taste

You also need 4 large (8 to the pound) shrimp, or half a pound of smaller ones, shelled, deveined, and butterflied, or half a pound of other flavor ingredient.

Method

In a very small amount of oil saute the garlic until golden brown and beginning to crisp up. Pour in the water, and bring to the boil. Next add the celery, Maggi sauce, and fish sauce and pepper powder, and stir until it boils again. Now add the rice, preserved cabbage, shiitake, and return to the boil, continuing to simmer, stirring occasionally. Now add the shrimp, and cook until they turn pink.

Transfer to a serving dish, sprinkle fried garlic over each serving, and garnish with chopped coriander/cilantro leaves, we like to add a few thin slices of fresh ginger also (see picture below). It is also popular to serve a small dish of moo yong dried pork on the side with this soup.

Thai Spicy Ground Chicken with sticky rice-Larb Gai

Ingredients

1 lb ground chicken
2 tablespoons sliced shallot
2 tablespoons finely chopped spring onion
1/4 cup chopped mint leaves
3 tablespoons roasted rice powder (khao koor)
2 tablespoons ground Thai chile (be sure to use real Thai ground chile)
3 tablespoons lime juice
2-3 tablespoons fish sauce


Garnish

Always serve with a good portion of fresh cabbage, and add green beans, parsley, sliced radish, cucumber, & coriander leaves if you like.

Method

You can use ground chicken from the supermarket, or chicken ground in your food processor. Cook the chicken with 2 tablespoons lime juice in a pan over moderate heat. Stir until done. Transfer cooked chicken into medium mixing bowl. Add the remaining ingredients, and mix well. Taste and season as desired. You might want more or less ground chile and/or fish sauce, etc. Serve with fresh vegetables (as shown) and warm, freshly-steamed sticky rice (or if you prefer you can use Thai jasmine rice). Note: if you like chicken giblets, cut them up into small pieces and cook in boiling water. Drain then add to cooked ground chicken before you add the other ingredients.

The usual way to eat this is to get a small ball of sticky rice in the fingers and use it to pick up a little lawb, then eat it with the raw veggies. You can also use a fork and spoon as a lot of Thais do.

Panang Chicken Curry-Panang Gai

Penang is a dry curry, probably originally "imported" from Malaysia. It can be prepared with any meat, and many fishes. This variety uses chicken.

Ingredients

1 cup chicken, cut into bite sized pieces
1/2 cup coconut milk
1 tablespoon chopped garlic
2 to 3 tablespoons Penang curry paste
2 tablespoons fish sauce
sugar to taste
3 kaffir lime leaves, shredded
10-15 Thai basil leaves, finely shredded

Method

Place a wok over medium high heat, and warm the coconut milk, but don't let it boil. Add the curry paste, and stir it until the oil begins to separate out and form a thin film, to bring out the maximum flavor. Add the remaining ingredients except the lime leaves and basil leaves, and simmer until the sauce is absorbed and thickened. Add the lime leaves and basil leaves and stir fry briefly before serving.

Garnish with julienned red chili, with Thai jasmine rice, and the usual Thai table condiments.

Note if you particularly like your curries hot, then replace the fish sauce in the cooking with nam pla prik (chillies marinated in fish sauce), that has had at least a week to mature.

Thai Prawn and Pineapple Curry-Kaeng Khua Saparot

The pineapple adds a touch of tart sweetness to this dish. It has a rich creamy texture, and a red coloration that is an attractive complement to the shrimp. If you want to be a little fancy you can serve it in pineapple skin bowls.

Ingredients

1 tablespoon garlic finely chopped
2 tablespoons red curry paste
2 tablespoons of chopped tomato
2 cups of coconut milk
1 cup pineapple (cubed or pulped)
4 tablespoons fish sauce
2 teaspoons palm sugar
1 teaspoon lime juice
16 prawns about 3" long
2-3 kaffir lime leaves, shredded
1 tablespoon Thai chile peppers, slivered
15 fresh basil leaves

Method

Peel, devein, and behead the shrimp, leaving only the small tail shells on. Drop two tomatoes into boiling water for about a minute, then remove to cold water, peel, quarter, discard the seed pulp, and chop the flesh. You want 2 tablespoons of chopped tomatoes.

In a little oil in a medium hot wok briefly saute the garlic and basil, removing it and reserving it when the aroma is fully developed. Cook the curry paste briefly to develop the aroma, then add half the coconut milk, the fish sauce, tomatoes, pineapple, lime juice and sugar. Stir to combine fully. Add the prawns and cook until they turn slightly pink and opaque. Add the remainder of the coconut milk, the lime leaves and slivered chili, at the same time returning the sauted garlic and basil to the pan.

Transfer to a serving dish and serve with steamed Thai jasmine rice.

Clay Pot Baked Thai Rice-Khao Op Mor Din

This is a tasty baked rice that you might find in a fancy Thai-Chinese restaurant. We like how the chicken and ham blend with the rest of the flavors, but you can omit the meat or use less. Use the vegetables of your choice. To make this dish we used the authentic Thai clay pot as shown, and that really does enhance the flavor because the lid allows slight airflow. We heated the clay pot in the oven before adding the rice also.

Ingredients

2 tablespoons vegetable oil
1.5 tablespoons fish sauce
1 tablespoon oyster sauce
1 teaspoon sugar
1 tablespoon mirin (or Chinese alcohol of your choice)
1/2 teaspoon Thai pepper powder
1/2 cup broccoli florets
1/2 cup fresh mushroom
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 cup diced carrot
1/2 cup sliced red bell pepper
1/4 cup fresh ginger or baby ginger strips in brine
1/2 cup diced (or shredded) ham. Use less if desired.
1/2 cup chicken into bite-sized pieces. Use less if desired.
2 cups steamed jasmine rice

Method

Pre-heat oven to 375 and heat the clay pot. On the stovetop, in a wok or skillet heat vegetable oil over medium-high then add chicken and cook, then add ham, garlic, carrot, bell pepper, ginger, mushroom, broccoli. Stir. Add fish sauce, oyster sauce, sugar, mirin, pepper powder.

Fry for just a minute or two, until the vegetables begin to soften then add rice. Turn off heat, and combine all ingredients well. Transfer this to the warm clay pot, put the lid on and bake it for 20 minutes. Serve and enjoy!