Well, its been awhile folks, but this blog is back in action!!
It’s probably no surprise, but Thai food is one of my absolute favorite things to eat. Spicy, sweet, healthy, on every corner, Thai food is the gateway drug of adventurous eaters! My favorite thing about Thai food is the interesting flavor combinations. Thailand’s tropical, so you’ve got a lot of citrus, avocado, and coconut milk. At the same time, though, Thai food wouldn’t be Thai food without spicy fish sauce and powerful chiles! Then you add in the peanuts and the cilantro . . . these things don’t seem like they should go together but somehow they become intoxicating when you combine them all together with some Thai spirit.
Last winter, I had the opportunity to go to Thailand, and I totally fell in love with the country, food and all. Everyone smiles and laughs all the time – in fact they call it the land of a thousand smiles! It took me a few days to realize that everyone wasn’t laughing at me, but once I adjusted, I just joined right in!
In fact, I don’t know if I’ve ever been as happy as I was in Thailand. We went to the Buddhist temples every day to just get our heads straight. After that, we would hike, or rock climb, or ride bikes – it’s such an active country! And then the food – oh the food! I’ll describe in detail later in this post, but suffice it to say for now that there’s nothing like settling down with a plate of Thai food and a Chang beer after a day of the hot Thai sun.
On our last few days in Thailand, we hit the jackpot with a beach called Ton Sai! If anyone is going to Thailand, GO TO TON SAI!!! I just can’t say it enough. I genuinely believed, before going to Ton Sai, that no place in the world was as beautiful as rural Hawaii. Well, Ton Sai gives rural Hawaii a run for its money—and that’s saying something.
There are a few awesome things about Ton Sai. First, it’s completely secluded. You have to “hike” into town, and by hike I mean climb straight up and over this rocky cliff. It’s the kind of thing that if you were in the United States there would be like 15,000 signs warning you DANGER! KEEP OUT!, but its honestly not that dangerous, and in Thailand it’s just how you get around. Second, the water and the cliffs are just mindblowingly beautiful. There are these huge cliffs that just jut out of the crystal blue water, and you can see straight to the bottom of the ocean even 20 feet down. Awesome. Third, it’s so ridiculously cheap. You can stay in a bungalow in Ton Sai for 200 baht per night, or $7. That’s right, I said $7 for freaking paradise. Fourth, Ton Sai is a world famous rock climbing haven. I’m not a good rock climber myself—although I did take a lesson in Ton Sai—but the beauty of Ton Sai being a rock climbing haven is that it is full of rock climbers! Rock climbers tend to be really cool, fun, active people, and they’re a great group to chill with on your vacation.
So there’s my plug for Ton Sai, but now back to the food . . . .
One of my favorite Thai dishes is tom yum soup. I had it every day for lunch and dinner in Thailand, and even though I ate as much of it as I could ever want, it’s so healthy that I still felt great when I got back. I eat it all the time here too – it’s fantastic and really easy. Basically, all you have to do is throw a bunch of stuff in a pot and let it sit for a few hours. Its like total 15 minutes of actual work, and you can totally impress your friends. Here’s what you put in a large pot to let sit:
- 4 cans of vegetable stock
- Ginger: For the ginger, instead of dicing it, you prepare it slightly differently. Take a “thumb” of ginger and take of the skin. Then, cut the ginger into really thin sliced circles – the thinner the better. Put those in the pot. I use enough so that I’ve got like 20ish slices of ginger, but it really depends on your taste.
- Lime leaves: Technically, you should add kaffir lime leaves, and if I ever thought ahead before making this dish, I would add them. Unfortunately, I always seem to make tom yum on the spir of the moment. As a sub for kaffir leaves, I usually just zest two limes into the pot and then add the juices.
- Lemongrass: This one you really want – it just simply doesn’t work to sub in lemon zest and juice. I mean, you can do it if you absolutely have to, but most grocery stores have lemongrass. I usually end up running to the Safeway once I’ve already thrown the rest of the stuff in the bowl to pick the lemongrass up. To prepare the lemon grass, smash it with the side of your knife and then cut it into four inch pieces. Throw three stalks worth into the pot.
- Chile: How you add the chile is kind of up to you. I like to use chile paste, and I throw in a good tablespoon. You could also just use red chile flakes or even sriracha. On this one, I’d say start small and then add as you go along, but I wouldn’t exceed a table spoon. Keep in mind the soup will get MUCH spicier as it sits.
- Fish sauce: Add six tablespoons of fish sauce. Now we’re getting somewhere! All of a sudden your dish will start to taste like Thai food once you add the fish sauce. Fish sauce is so weird! Its smells awful and tastes awful on its own, but when you add it into a dish, it totally makes it happen!
- Cilantro: Cut up a bunch of cilantro – maybe a quarter cup? – and throw it in.
Once you’ve added this stuff, you basically have tom yum soup, but it’s kind of boring, so now you add in some vegetables. None of these are essential in themselves, although I feel like the mushrooms, green onions, and bok choy work really nicely. I’m not putting an amount because you just kind of have to eyeball it. It depends how much “stuff” you like in your soup.
- Mushrooms (shitake and the cheap kind both work)
- Green onions
- Bok choy
- Shredded carrot
- Shallots or onion
- Whatever else you’ve got around that you think would work
Let the soup sit for a few hours. It won’t taste right at the beginning, but the longer it sits, the more chance the flavors have to meld together. And then EAT!!! And think of Thailand! Mmmmmmmmmm
NB: Never order tom yum soup in a fancy restaurant. I’m like 0 for 4 on this . . .
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