Thailand Stories

Where we live in Paknam, it is close to the sea, so we have access to a large variety of seafood. Today we will show you how to cook “pla meuk tod”. Our version here is stuffed with minced pork. In the picture of the…

On the first day of every month, we have the Paknam Food Festival in our town down by the river. During the recent event they promoted the sale of traditional Thai food. One of my favourites is this glutinous rice dessert that contains a banana and black eye peas. In Thai it is called “khao tom mad” …

There are many different kinds of “tom yum” though for me I prefer “tom yum kung” which comes with fresh shrimp. This one is called “tom yum het sot” which is the sour and spicy soup with three kinds of mushrooms. In the ingredients pictured below, you can see, from the…

This week we have a crispy egg salad for you which is called “yum khai foo” in Thai. In the ingredients pictured below, you have on the left onion, bird eye chilli, palm sugar, tomatoes and two eggs. On the …

Today we have another vegetarian dish. It is Chu Chee Tofu or “chu chee tao-hoo” in Thai. As you probably know, tofu is often used as a meat substitute in many Thai dishes. In many cases, the finished product looks like the “real thing”. In the ingredients below you can see the red curry paste and coconut milk …

Today we have a simple dish called Fried Battered Mushrooms or “het nang fa thot” in Thai. As you can see in the picture below, there are only two basic ingredients. On the left there is a pack of tempura flour and on the right …

Some people might find the dish this week a bit too spicy, but it is not unbearable. It is Fried Shrimp with basil leaves or “pad krapao kung” in Thai. You could also cook it with chicken if you like. In the ingredients pictured…

It is good to have some vegetarian dishes every now and then. This is another good example that is also not spicy. It is Stir-fried beans and mushrooms or ” thua khaek phat het ” in Thai. As you can see in the ingredients below, there are two different kinds of mushrooms…

Today we are cooking a stir-fried dish with bitter gourd and egg. In Thai it is called “phat ma-ra sai khai”. It is another one of those simple dishes that doesn’t take long to prepare or cook. In the ingredients shown below, you can see two eggs and sliced bitter gourd. You need…

This week we have another plain soup for you which isn’t spicy. It is called Boiled Stuffed Bitter Gourd or “tun ma-ra yat sai” in Thai. I am not too fond of bitter gourds but it is apparently good for your health and is used a lot in natural medicines. I have to be honest and admit that we …

The largest reservoir in Central Thailand is Pasak Jolasid Dam. Is it 4.8 kms long and stretches across Lopburi and Saraburi Provinces. It has a storage capacity of up to 960 million cubic meters. The project was initiated by H.M. The King in the early 1990’s and was officially opened in 1999. Pasak Jolasid Dam is a source of water…

If you live in Samut Prakan then you might be interested in the Paknam Seafood and Trade Fair. It is going on from now until Saturday 4th April 2009. It is taking place in the area in front of the city hall, alongside the river. They have a large stage set up for concerts during the evening with …

This is a plain soup that contains mung bean noodles (wun-sen) and pork. In Thai it is called “dtom jeut wun-sen moo sap”. In the ingredients below, you can see mung bean noodles, pork balls, chopped spring onion and chicken stock cube in the middle. The transparent noodles are usually sold in dried …

The dish today is called Dried Beef in coconut Milk, or “pat neua kati”. You are supposed to prepare the beef first by drying it with salt. Then roasting it until done. Next you are supposed to pound it to separate the fibres. As you can see from the picture of the ingredients below, we just used salted dried beef. Other ingredients…

The dish we have for you today is chicken fried with ginger. You can also do it with pork. In the ingredients below, you can see spring onion, onion, straw mushroom, chicken, ear mushroom and ginger in the middle. The seasoning we used was oyster sauce, fish sauce and fermented soy…

This is another one of those simple stir fried dishes. This one is based around kale which is a green leafy vegetable. It is believed to have anti-cancer properties so a good idea to have it in your diet. In the ingredients photo below, you can see carrots, garlic, kale stalks, kale leaves and chicken in the middle. You can use mushrooms instead of carrots. You can also…

When it comes to Thai food, presentation always counts for a lot. I like experimenting with new recipes and even if I think the results might taste good, a Thai person would first comment on how it looks. Just take a look at this stir fried dish. It looks delicious even before you try it. A…

Our Thai dish today is called “buap pat moo” or Stir-fried pork and angled sponge gourd. It is also commonly cooked with prawns or chicken. The sponge gourd can grow up to three feet in length. However, you need to choose one that is young and still soft to the touch. As it grows mature it will become bitter. You can eat it raw like a cucumber…

One of the best agro-tourism projects in Thailand is undoubtedly Farm Chokchai in Nakhon Ratchasima Province. In fact it has won many awards. Farm Chokchai is situated on the Friendship Highway in cowboy country and is only 159 km from Bangkok. You can either come here as a day trip from Bangkok or as a stopover on your…

One of the dishes that I often cook is stir-fried vegetables. You can adapt this in so many different ways depending on what vegetables you have in stock. If I have bought a curry from the roadside, then I usually supplement the stir-fry with some extra meat. Either pork or chicken. In the ingredients below you can see cabbage, chicken, carrots and garlic in the center. As …