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How to Cook Sticky Rice the Easy Way and without a Steamer

By on August 11, 2012 in She Deglutenizes, She Steams, She Stocks a Thai Pantry, She Thais, She Veges

thai sticky rice how to
Sometimes, I feel like all the brilliant friends I am fortunate to have, but perhaps don’t deserve, should be the ones writing this blog. My friend B very recently allowed me to share her Khao Na Gai recipe with you. Then a few weeks ago, my friend L showed me the only way he had been making perfect Thai sticky rice for the past several months. It’s done without a steamer.

I’ve tried this method many times since then, mostly just to prove him a misguided heretic. But in the end, I, too, have willingly joined the cult of splatter guard. And the post I had written and kept in the draft folder on 5 ways to perfectly steam sticky rice has suddenly been rendered obsolete. Continue Reading →

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Thai Fish Sauce Taste Test

By on July 2, 2012 in She Explores, She Rants and Muses, She Stocks a Thai Pantry, She Thais, She Uncooks


I have recently done a taste test on seven Thai brands of fish sauce that, according to a private poll, are the easiest to find in the United States. Though there are many other brands in the US market, we’re going to focus on these Thai brands. This is because they are made specifically for Thai food, and Thai food is what this blog covers — well, most of the time. I’ll write about the non-Thai brands, which are intentionally excluded, in the sequel to this post.

Here’s the result. Continue Reading →

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Fruit Dips, Thai Style

By on June 4, 2012 in Featured Posts, She Deglutenizes, She Drizzles and Smears, She Stocks a Thai Pantry, She Thais, She Uncooks, She Veges


Quite a few readers have written me regarding Thai-style fruit dips saying how they wish there wasn’t any dried fish or fish sauce involved. Actually, the way the comments were worded is a little more interesting, a weird cross between disbelief and curiosity with a tiny, tiny tinge of disgust. I don’t blame them; I know how that feels. When I was invited to my first American thanksgiving dinner, I swallowed hard — and not in a good way — when I saw roasted turkey with gravy sitting between a pile of candied yams with broiled marshmallow topping and a quivering blob of fruit jelly called, “cranberry sauce.” I, of course, grew more accustomed to that combination and even came to like it. But, admittedly, the first encounter was pretty rough.

Our view regarding what should and shouldn’t be is all conditioned by culture. Tart green mangoes and a sticky dip containing fish sauce, palm sugar, and dried shrimp together are to most Thai people what apple pie and vanilla ice cream are to most Americans. In other words, fish and fruits work for us.

But if you don’t like it, there’s absolutely nothing wrong with that. Besides, there are other Thai-style fruit dips that don’t have fish products in them. Please allow me to introduce to you the most common three that go very well with tart fruits. Continue Reading →

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