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Yellow Curry – Kaeng Kari (แกงกะหรี่)

By on October 15, 2012 in She Deglutenizes, She Simmers, She Thais
thai yellow curry

Kaeng Kari Chicken with Rice and Ajat

Of all the recipe requests that have come into my mailbox, the so-called “yellow curry” has got to be one of the top five. I’ve written about it in my weekly column on Serious Eats. But before you head over there, there are two remarks I’d like to make:

1. Nobody in Thailand calls this curry, “yellow curry” (kaeng lueang). If you order kaeng lueang (a name which leads to another possible confusion — more later) in Thailand, you’ll definitely get a different curry. I’d stick with calling it, “kaeng kari.” It’s a funny name, because literally it says, “curry curry.” But at least, there’s no confusion. Knowing that there are two curries that aren’t always clearly distinguished from one another helps you to avoid the mistake of not only ordering the wrong kind of curry at a restaurant, but also buying the wrong kind of curry paste.

2. Kaeng kari is almost always served with a small bowl of ajat in Thailand — the same kind of cucumber relish that comes with your satay. Even though most Thai restaurants overseas don’t do so, you may want to try it. The acidity of the vinegar, the cool and crunchy cucumber, the bite of the shallots, and the heat from the fresh pepper help kill the unpleasant feeling/flavor of “lian” (เลี่ยน) — a Thai word used to describe a rich, oily, and mostly bland-ish (for the Thai standard, anyway) dish.

Here’s a very basic recipe for kaeng kari made with boneless, skinless chicken breasts. Not exactly my favorite cut of meat for this particular curry, but it seems to work for a lot of people.

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Nang Let, Khao Taen: Thai Sweet Crispy Rice Cakes with Cane Sugar Drizzle (ขนมนางเล็ด ข้าวแต๋น)

By on September 24, 2012 in She Deglutenizes, She Drizzles and Smears, She Fries, She Thais, She Veges

They’re everywhere — these little rice cakes with cane sugar drizzle: on the streets, in the supermarket, in snack stores from the upscale ones to the not-so-upscale ones. The only explanation for this is that people like them. A lot. And it’s not difficult to see why.

With these sweet rice cakes being so ubiquitous, I’d never learned to make them until I came to the US. Nobody in my family made/make them either. Many street foods — most of them, if you ask me — are best left to the pros. Pad Thai, for example, is not generally a family dish which people make at home. Nang Let (also spelled Nang Led) or Khao Taen (in the Northern dialect) isn’t either, though it’s possible that it might have begun in the Northern (or even Northeastern) region as a way of repurposing old, leftover sticky rice in the pre-microwave days.

But I had to learn how to make these, because they’re not available in the US. Trader Joe’s used to import them from Thailand, but they had dropped this product after a while — at least that’s the case with the stores in my area. This post is brought to you by — that’s right — desperation and deprivation. Continue Reading →

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Lon Pla Salmon: Salmon Coconut Milk Relish (หลนปลาแซลมอน)

By on September 13, 2012 in She Deglutenizes, She Drizzles and Smears, She Rants and Muses, She Simmers, She Thais

Unless you grew up/have lived in a Thai household or are a non-Thai who regularly eats Thai home-cooked meals with a Thai family, chances are you’re not familiar with a family of coconut milk-based relishes called lon1 (หลน). After all, this is not something readily available on the streets of Bangkok; it’s not something Thai restaurants overseas usually serve either. This, to me, is Thai home cooking through and through.

So, if I were to start a series of posts on traditional Thai dishes beyond Pad Thai that have remained largely obscure to Thai food enthusiasts worldwide, lon, especially this one, would be the perfect series premiere. It’s quite mild and made of ingredients which aren’t generally considered acquired tastes. It’s also delicious, and that’s the most important factor.

Dishes categorized as nam phrik 2 (น้ำพริก) and khrueang jim 3 (เครื่องจิ้ม) are awkwardly rendered “relishes” and “dips” —  probably the best English words for them mostly due to a lack of better alternatives. Most Thai restaurants don’t even put dishes in this family on the menu, perhaps because they’re afraid their diners won’t know how they fit into a traditional Thai meal ensemble. Are they stand-alone appetizers? Are they main dishes? Are they dipping sauces? How do you eat them — like you do curry? Do you ladle it over a plate of rice and eat it like that? Or do eat it one spoonful at a time? Do you eat them in the manner of carrot sticks and ranch dressing? Are they used as condiments the way the Korean use their gochujang? Continue Reading →

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