Stir-fried Chicken with Cashew Nuts (gai pad met mamuang him-ma-paan)
ไก่ผัดเม็ดมะม่วงหิมพานต์

One of my favourite Thai dishes is stir-fried chicken with cashew nuts. In Thai it is called "gai pad met mamuang him-ma-paan" which is a bit of a mouthful. There seems to be quite a few different recipes as this dish looks different at every restaurant that I go to. Like all the Thai dishes I have been showing you, it is worth experimenting with not only different amounts of ingredients, but also different ingredients altogether. The ingredients we used today can be seen in the picture below. Starting at the top, these are chopped onion, chicken, chopped garlic, crisp-fried spur chili, chopped spring onion, chili jam (nam prik phao) and cashew nuts in the center.

First fry the garlic until golden brown and fragant. I usually do this starting from a cold wok. If it is already hot then it will burn quickly if you don't pay attention. Add the chicken and cook until nearly done. Then add the chilli paste (nam prik phao). Not everyone add this soit is up to you. After a good stir, next comes the onion, cashew nuts, fried dried chilies and spring onion. Give it a good stir. Season it with light and dark soy sauce. The light sauce is used instead of fish sauce which is smellier. The dark soy sauce sweetens the dish a little so no need to add any sugar. I prefer not to have too much dark soy sauce. It is now ready. Garnish with sliced red spur chili and fresh coriander. You will find that the red spur chili is not as hot as the smaller type.

If you have any questions about Thai food, the you are welcome to post them in our Thai Food Forums. Feel free to suggest dishes you would like us to cook at the Paknam Web offices and we might then feature it in the future at www.thai-blogs.com. Don't forget to visit our Thai Food websites at www.EnjoyThaiFood.com and www.ThaiStreetfood.com.

This is the continuation of the weekly Thai Food Cooking Blog about the main ingredients for popular dishes. This week we cooked crab roe relish for you. In Thai this is called "nam prik khai pu". The main ingredients, as seen in the picture below, are crab, fish sauce, garlic cloves with bird's eye chillies, lime juice and sugar cane in the center. You can also use palm sugar. Some recipes also add shrimp paste (kapi) and even shredded green mango. The redness in the crab is the egg of the female crab. You need to steam or boil this in advance.

To make this relish, you need a mortar and pestle. You can see our one in the picture below. You only need to lightly peel the garlic cloves by nipping the top and bottom. Add these to the mortar together with some of the crab. Pound away and then add more crab. Season with the fish sauce, lime juice and sugar cane. We didn't use all of the seasoning as we got it just right and didn't want to spoil the taste. The taste should be salty, sour and hot. Maybe too hot!

The relish is served with some fresh vegetables such as peeled cucumbers.

If you have any questions about Thai food, the you are welcome to post them in our Thai Food Forums. Feel free to suggest dishes you would like us to cook at the Paknam Web offices and we might then feature it in the future at www.thai-blogs.com. Don't forget to visit our Thai Food websites at www.EnjoyThaiFood.com and www.ThaiStreetfood.com.

By popular demand, we will now start a series of Thai Food Blogs where we show some of the ingredients needed to cook Thai food. We are starting this week with "tom yum gai" which is something I often cook. For most people, tom yum is a hot and sour soup cooked with prawns. However, when I am cooking, I prefer to use chicken instead! The word "tom" means to boil and "yum" is to mix together. The main ingredients, as you can see in the picture below, are the kaffir lime leaves, galangal, bird's eye chilies, a lime and lemon grass stalks. I also added straw mushrooms, plum tomatoes, coriander and red shallots. I have noted that some recipes for the chicken version don't have any galangal. However, I ignored that as galangal is good for your health.

To cook is quite easy. Bring some chicken stock to the boil. Prepare the first wave of ingredients. Trim the bottom of the lemon grass and then peel away the outer layer. Then cut the lemon grass in diagonal slices. Some people discard the top two inches but I slightly crush it with the back of the knife and add it to the pot. Do about four or five fine slices of the galangal. Tear up the kaffir lime leaves which releases the flavour. I usually also add a slightly crushed red shallot. Add these to the stock and bring back to the boil. While this is boiling I am preparing the next wave of ingredients. I chop up the straw mushrooms. I sometimes use oyster mushrooms. Depends on what you have. These go in next. Then I slice the chicken into small pieces and add to the pot. I save these for last because if you cook too long it gets tough. Almost straight away I am adding the seasoning. This is fish sauce and sugar. Then I add the chili jam (nam prik pao) and a little bit of coconut milk. I usually turn the heat off by now. I then add the tomatoes and chopped coriander. Finally I add some lime juice. It is important the latter is only added at the last moment and is not cooked. The taste should be salty, sour and hot.

There are two versions of tom yum. If you don't say anything when ordering at the restaurant they will give you the clear soup version. However, I prefer the thick soup called "nam kon". To make this, you need to add some coconut milk and chilli jam (nam prik pao). The chili paste in the jar on the right is specifically for making "tom yum". I always put a good table spoon into my soup hence the red texture. You can then lighten it with the coconut milk. You need to experiment with this dish a lot in order to get the right mixture of ingredients. In Thai cooking, most cooks don't do any measurements. They add a little at a time and then give it a taste. Also, don't be afraid to experiment because that ispart of the enjoyment of Thai cooking.

If you have any questions about Thai food, then you are welcome to post them in our Thai Food Forums. Make sure that you check out the thread on lemon grass where I am posting pictures of my attempt to grow lemon grass in my garden.

Feel free to suggest dishes that you would like us to cook at the Paknam Web offices and we might then feature it in the future at www.thai-blogs.com.

Steamed Crab - pu neung

It is sometimes amazing what kind of street food you can find for a cheap price. This is steamed crab, or "pu neung" in Thai. The crab itself is not cooked in any special way. However, as usual, it is the sauce that makes the dish. In this case, it is a mixture of chillies, garlic, lime juice and fish sauce that is pounded together with a mortar and pestle. This gives you a sour, salty and spicy hot taste. This dish was only 50 baht or $1.60.

Prawns on Charcoal - kung phao

This dish has the same sauce. Though a tamarind version is sometimes used. These prawns were cooked on a grill over a charcoal fire. These were 25 baht.

Boiled eggplant with fermented soybean sauce and pork

There are a few different recipes that use eggplants. This one comes with minced pork. The eggplant is boiled in some water first together with some sugar. Then fermented soybean sauce and minced pork is fried. It is seasoned with soy sauce and sugar. This was 25 baht.

Chilli Tamarind Sauce Dip - namprik ma kham sod

Many Thai families often have nam prik of some sort served with fresh vegetables. This version has tamarind. The main ingredients include shrimp paste, chillies, tamarind and dried shrimp. This is pounded with a mortar and pestle and then seasoned with sugar and fish sauce. I am not too keen on nam prik but many people like it. I guess it depends on what you grew up with. This was 25 baht.

Breadfruit in Syrup - sakay cheum

This is another one of those Thai desserts that uses a lot of sugar. Maybe too much. You need a sweet tooth to eat something like this. This was 25 baht.

This is the last of our series of food blogs about the meals we eat on Fridays in the Paknam Web offices. We have given you over 150 different Thai food dishes so far. We ned to take a break and maybe be back later. Meanwhile, by popular demand, we will switch to a different kind of food blog where we will show you how to cook a different Thai dish each week. Visit www.thai-blogs.com next week to see what we will be cooking first. Each week you can leave your suggestions of what you want to be seen cooked in the comments section.

This week I am going to share with you pictures of the more popular Thai desserts that are easily available on the streets in Thailand. These desserts will only cost you between five and twenty baht.

(1) Khao Niew Sangkaya - Glutinous Rice with Thai Custard Topping
(2) Khanom Chun - Layered Dessert

(3) Khanom Taan
(4) Puak Kuan & Tao Kuan - Taro and Mungbean Pudding

(5) Khao Niew Dum Na Kra Cheek
(6) Sang Kha Ya Fak Thong - Thai Custard with Pumpkin

(7) Wan Kati - Jelly with Coconut Cream Topping
(8) Khao Niew Tut - Sticky Glutinous Rice

(9) Med Khanoon - Jackfruit Seed in Syrup
(10) Thong Yib - Pinched Golden Egg Yolks

You can see more of my Thai Food pictures at www.EnjoyThaiFood.com and www.ThaiStreetfood.com. If you have any questions, then please post them in our Thai Food Forum at www.ThailandQA.com.

Red Curry with Roasted Duck

The red curry with roasted duck (kaeng pet bet yang) is my favourite version of the red curry. I don't often get a chance to eat it outside of restaurants. The downside of street food is that there is usually more bones than meat. But this dish was all duck and only cost 40 baht. Pretty good value for money. What you can see in the picture is the roasted duck, plum tomatoes, eggplant peas, basil leaves and kaffir lime leaves. It also has coconut milk and is seasoned with fish sauce and palm sugar. It is actually quite easy to make as long as someone else has prepared your curry paste. You can buy this down the market or even at supermarkets like Big C and Tesco Lotus. This curry paste has ground galangal, lemon grass, red shallots and garlic amongst other ingredients. Make sure you don't miss this highlight. It is also nice with pineapple chunks.

Stems of Waterlily (tom kati sai bua)

Fish lovers might like this healthy dish. It consists of sai bua (the stems of the waterlily) cooked in coconut milk with shallots. The fish is usually a mackerel like pla tu that is seasoned with fish sauce, tamarind paste and sugar. I am afraid it is not a favourite of mine though it only cost 34 baht. A little over $1.

Stir fried chicken and chinese chives

This is a tasty dish that looks simple to cook. I might give it a go this weekend. The two main ingredients are the chicken pieces and Chinese chives. It is cooked in a seasoning of fish sauce, light soy sauce and oyster sauce. All good kitchens should have these ingredients. Add some water if it drys out during cooking. This was only 35 baht.

Red Glutinous Rice (khao niew daeng)

This is a popular dish popular during the Songkran festival. The main ingredients are sticky rice, palm sugar and sesame seeds. It is a bit tough to eat and is a bit like caramel. It reminds me of another Thai dessert called kalamae. This one was only 20 baht.

Flower Shaped Candy (khanom dowk lamduan)

This is like a cross between a cookie and candy. It is very sweet so don't eat too many at once. The dough is made from wheat flour, egg yolk, castor sugar and vegetable oil. You knead this mixture into small balls which you then shape into flowers. It is then baked in an oven for about 15 minutes. This cost us 35 baht.

Spicy Fried Egg (yam kai dao)

The first dish for our Friday Lunch was this fried egg salad. This is a seafood version. You can also do it with fried bacon. The egg is first cooked in boiling hot oil so that it is crispy. This is then put on a plate while the sauce is prepared. This consists of fish sauce, lime juice and sugar. This is stirred until the sugar dissolves and finely sliced chilis are added. This is then poured over the fried egg. A very unique taste and it only cost us 25 baht.

Prawn and Holy Basil with Coconut

This rice dish is called "khao rat grapao kung yod mapao". The rice can either be plain or fried. The prawns are stir fried with chillies and garlic. The seasoning consists of sugar, soy sauce and fish sauce. The holy basil is added towards the end. This version also has coconut flesh. This dish was 30 baht.

Stuffed Vegetable Pudding (khanom kui chai)

This next Chinese dish is really a snack but goes well with a meal. They are usually steamed or sometimes fried. The filling today was vegetable, but you can also find dried shrimp and sliced taro. It is served with soy sauce. This was 20 baht.

Fried Fish with Chili (pla tod rat prik)

As I live in the seaside port of Paknam, there are plenty of seafood dishes to find. It is a shame I am not that keen on fish. But, I appreciate that some visitors to this food blog might be interested. However, be careful as this one is very spicy! Basically, garlic, pepper, chillies and salt are pounded together in a mortar and then poured over the fish. This was only 30 baht from a roadside vendor.

Unripe Mango with Fish Sauce(ma-muang nam pla waan)

We decided to have some fruit for dessert today to be a bit more healthy. A famous dessert that foreigners like is mango with sticky rice. This one is unripe mango with fish sauce! Not quite the same but still good. At school, the students like eating unripe mango with a dip that consists of sugar and ground chili. This one is sweetened fish sauce. In a large pot, sugar is mixed with water and fish sauce and is stirred constantly until it becomes a thick syrup. Chopped shallots are then added. When these are cooked, dried shrimp and sliced chillies are added. This snack is 30 baht.