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~Tom Yum Mama Noodle Soup Recipe, ต้มยำบะหมี่มาม่า~

Posted in Pranee's Culinary Tales, Recipes, Thai Noodle Recipe, Thai Snack & Street Food Recipe, Thai Soup Recipe, tagged , , on June 3, 2013| 5 Comments »

Good Time & Bad Time

เวลาที่ยากลำบากและเวลาที่สบาย

I had Tom Yum Mama Noodle Soup for lunch today, instant ramen noodles made from the Mama brand with Tom Yum Goong favor. I took a short break from working in the garden and went into my kitchen, but there weren’t any leftovers and I had a craving for the flavors of Tom Yum Mama Noodle Soup. It is common—but not often—that I reach into my kitchen cabinet where a few emergency instant noodles are hidden. It is an honest confession that I take pleasure in eating instant Tom Yum Mama noodles once in a while. I am not alone. One of the photos below was taken a few years back when I visited my friend Varuunee one hot and humid afternoon at her food stand in Bangtao Village, Phuket, Thailand.

Tom Yum Mama Ramen Noodle Soup

Varunee prepared our lunch –Tom Yum Mama with egg and Chinese celery – for her neighbor and me. The neighbor happened to be the head chef for the Thai restaurant at a famous resort hotel nearby. There we were, two cooks, leisurely slurping the simplest dish prepared from instant noodles – just for good time’s sake!

Oriental Style Instant Noodles Shrimp Flavour (TOM YUM)

Mama and Wai Wai are two famous brands among instant noodles

Above is my favorite, Mama Shrimp Tom Yum flavor

In Fall 2011, I was in line at the cashier’s stand in an Asian market in Seattle when I saw a food stamp shopper demand to know when Thai instant noodles would be back on the shelves. The cashier simply could not give a precise answer due to the huge domestic demand in Thailand and the shortage due to the extreme flood crisis during the late monsoon season that September. The flood effected many families; some were living on instant noodles and other foods in their emergency food supply. Instant noodles can be kept for extended periods and by adding just a small amount of warm water they can become a good emergency food source. In fact, a hike in sales of instant noodles can be use as an index for indicating bad economic events in Thailand. In general the sale of the noodles is high at the end of the month, during economic crises, and when there are extreme weather conditions—times when when every Baht (Thai currency)- ทุกบาททุกสตางค์  – is stretched -เวลาที่ยากลำบาก

Raining Season in Phuket

Raining season in Kamala, Phuket, Thailand

May 26th, 2013

Photo above is a courtesy of Niruj Kamala News

Lately my family and friends have mentioned a lot on Facebook about power shortages and heavy rain in Phuket, Thailand. Monsoons start at the beginning of May and end around September, though the weather varies from year to year as does when a storm will hit. The posts on Facebook reminded me of the story that I want to share with you from the year 2011. That year, Thailand was faced with some of the most extreme floods in its history. Perhaps you still remember the news of the difficulties people experienced who lived in the flooded areas in central Thailand. For some people it was more than two months before the water receded.

Tom Yum Mama with Egg

Instant noodles can be a fun dish that is quick and easy for students, or for the many Thais who experience a random craving for a familiar taste during good times or bad!

It tastes like tom yom soup. Ingredients: wheat flour, palm oil, salt, sugar and CMC, soup base ingredients, kaffir lime leaf powder, lemongrass powder, sugar, MSG, chili paste, chili powder, palm oil and artificial shrimp flavor. Net Weight 2.10 oz. Product of Thailand.

Tom Yum Mama with Egg and Celery

I don’t recommend instant noodles as an everyday food for anyone. I am sharing them with you today because they tell a story about how what we eat is affected by economics, politics and environment factors. Instant noodles often serve as temporary foods to alleviate hunger. For many people, sometimes hunger is real. There are proteins that you can add to your noodle soup such as ground pork or beef, shrimp, and egg. For vegetables, the options are choy sum, bok choy and bean sprouts. For the herbs, Kaffir lime leaf, lemongrass, cilantro and chives.

Tom Yum Mama Noodles

ต้มยำบะหมี่มาม่า

Tom Yum Bamee Mama

Serve: 1

Cooking Time: 7 minutes

1 package Mama Noodles Tom Yum Flavor
1 egg
1 rib or stalk Chinese celery or celery heart, chopped (use both leaf and stalk)
1/2 lime, cut into two wedges
1/2 teaspoon chili powder, optional
 

While bringing 1 cup water to a boil in small pot on high heat, open a package of instant noodles and the seasoning packet, and chop the celery. When the water comes to a boil, add seasonings and stir, then add the noodles. Cover, and let cook for 2 minutes. Stir the noodles to loosen them and make a well in the center. Crack the egg and drop it into the center. Cover and let the egg poach in the liquid for 1 minute. Stir in half of the celery and the juice from one lime wedge. Garnish with remaining celery, lime wedge, and chili power if desired. Enjoy immediately.

© 2013  Pranee Khruasanit Halvorsen
I Love Thai cooking
Pranee teaches Thai Cooking classes in the Seattle area.
Her website is: I Love Thai cooking.com 
 
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~Casava-Sweet Potato Pancake Recipe, Thai Rosti~

Posted in Pranee's Tips & Techniques, Recipes, Thai Cooking School: How to series, Thai Dessert Recipe, Thai Gluten Free Recipe, Thai Ingredient 101, Thai Noodle Recipe, Thai Recipe for Kid, Thai Vegetarian Recipe, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , on March 12, 2011| Leave a Comment »

Playing with Food: Cassava

Cassava-Sweet Potato Pancake, a delicious Thai Dessert

I noticed recently that I have told my students to play with food in almost every class. I hope they have. After learning all the essential tips and techniques, the way to become a good cook is by experiencing the ingredients and having fun.

On the weekends, I clean up the fridge and cook creatively.  This weekend I had fresh cassava and sweet potato leftover from my class. While I was holding them in my hand, I heard an echo of Rösti. Rösti is a fried, grated potato dish made in Switzerland. I made a quick decision and at almost the same time my hand reached to turn on the oven to 450°F. I will heat up my well-seasoned 8-inch cast iron pan and make this quick & easy Thai dessert, Rösti style.

Cooking with cassavas is not hard at all. After grating the cassava, Thai simply add enough sugar to sweeten to taste, and some salt to bridge the flavor; a bit of coconut milk can also be added to heighten the flavor. Then the mixture is steamed and grilled until it is cooked and translucent. But something new today that I haven’t tried before is adding grated sweet potato. Why not? It was perfect. I used about 2 parts cassava to 1 part sweet potato. The glutinous property of cassava helps the sweet potato hold up nicely, and the sweet potato gives a nice orange color and sweet compliment to the dish.

Learn something new while playing with food and discover a new excitement and a sweet reward to the lesson. Cassava-Sweet Potato Pancake makes a perfect snack or dessert with light herbal tea.

Cassava - Sweet Potato Pancake

Cassava – Sweet Potato Pancake

Khanom Man Sumpalang Oop

มันสำปะหลังมันเทศแพนเค้ก

Servings: 6-8

2 cups grated cassava, fresh or frozen (if fresh , use a 10-inch-long cassava and remove the skin before grating)
1 cup grated sweet potato, about 1 small or medium
1/2 cup palm sugar or brown sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
6 tablespoons coconut milk
2 tablespoon rice flour, optional
1 tablespoon cooking oil
 
Preheat the oven to 450 F.
 
Combine grated cassava, sweet potato, sugar, salt, coconut milk and rice flour in a large bowl; stir until well mixed.
 
Heat 8-inch cast iron pan on medium heat and cover the entire surface with cooking oil. Pour cassava-sweet potato pancake mixture into the pan and spread out evenly. Place uncovered in the center of the oven and bake for 20 minutes, until the bottom is crusty brown. Then turn the oven to broil and place the pan right underneath. The top of the pancake should be 6 inches below the heat source. Remove when the top is brown, about 3 to 5 minutes. Keep an eye on it! A nice crusty brown is the most delicious part of the cake. Let the pancake rest for 5 to 10 minutes before serving. Serve warm or cold.
Cassava (yuca) roots, the Taínos' main crop

Image via Wikipedia

Pranee’s Thai Kitchen note:

Cassava is a root from the Cassava or Tapioca Plant (Manihot esculenta Crantz). It is a bushy plant that grows to about 3 meters tall. It is an annual plant with underground food-storing root-tubers. The tuber is large and long with a dark brown skin and pink underneath to protect and keep the white flesh moist. In Thailand, cassava is usually boiled or roasted and serve with sugar. It also is made into various sweets combined with grated coconut and/or coconut milk and sugar. Raw cassava is poisonous, but when cooked it became a delicious dessert.  Pearl tapioca and tapioca starch and flour are all products of cassava roots.

© 2011 Pranee Khruasanit Halvorsen

I Love Thai cooking

Pranee teaches Thai Cooking classes in the Seattle area.

Her website is: I Love Thai cooking.com .




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~Stir-fried Thin Rice Noodle with Choy Sum Recipe, Phad Bee Htun Phuket~

Posted in Pranee's Culinary Tales, Recipes, Thai Noodle Recipe, Thai Stir-fry Recipe, tagged , , , on February 8, 2011| 2 Comments »

Eat Phuket at the 12th Annual Old Phuket Festival

Phuket Old Town Festival 2011

Last night I had a great experience traveling back to my old Phuket lifestyle with the first day of the 12th Annual Phuket Old Town Festival. We started the evening around 8pm. The first visit was to the Blue Elephant Restaurant and Cooking School. I had a chance to visit a cooking class at the restaurant which is located at the West end of the festival on Krabi Road. A block further down that road we crossed Yaowarat to get to Thalang Road where the festival takes place every year. The buildings on both sides are in the Sino-Portuguese style that was built in the 19th century.

Thalang Road, Old Phuket Festival 2011

We walked on Thalang Road where the street was full of activities related to foods and crafts that reflect the Phuket Paranakan Culture. We listened to live music. We found the Kopitiem Restaurant which has an entire menu of old Phuket foods. My niece and I ordered three dishes to share. Salad Kaek is a salad with peanut dressing with Phuket-Muslim cooking flavors. Phad Bee Htun is stir-fried rice noodles with Choy Sum and egg that looks and tastes like Singaporean Noodles. Another noodle dish that we had is Phad Mee Sua (stir-fried thin wheat noodle with seafood).

Kopitiem~Restaurant on Thalang Street, Phuket

The evening was complete when I savored the taste of home and a taste of culture. I took in the whole experience and felt my old sense of connection to our heritage. I was lost between places and tastes like a time traveler. One moment I was eating on the streets in Singapore and a few minutes later in Penang, Malaysia. But it all makes sense. Please see an excerpt below from the Thai Paranagan Association

“Baba-Paranakan culture is beautiful in both spirit and expression. It deeply blends several customs and traditions from Thai, Chinese, Malay and Western into Phuket culture, throughout many civilizations for hundreds years.”

Stir-fried Thin Rice Noodle with Choy Sum, Phad Bee Htun Phuket

Phad Bee Htun was my favorite noodle dish when I was growing up. I am proud to share this recipe with you. I hope that you can taste the flavor of Southeast Asia and the culture in that region of Paranakan.

Stir-fried Thin Rice Vermicelli with Pork and Choy Sum

Phad Bee Htun

Servings: 4 to 6

Preparation time: 15 minutes

Cooking time: 10 minutes

½ package Thai Kitchen thin rice noodles or any thin rice noodle
4 tablespoons cooking oil, or more as needed
2 eggs, lightly beaten
6 garlic cloves, minced
½ pound pork chop, sliced
1 tablespoon light soy sauce
1 tablespoon fish sauce
2 cups Choy Sum or Chinese kale
A dash dark soy sauce, optional
4 green onions, sliced diagonally, about ½ cup
4 lime wedges, to garnish

Soak noodles in hot water until softened, about 5 minutes; drain and set aside.

Heat 2 tablespoons canola oil in a wok. Beat two eggs in a bowl and then pour them into the wok. Tilt the wok so the egg will spread to make a thin omelet. Cook for one minute and flip once. Place on the cutting board and shred; set aside.

Heat wok on high heat and add 2 tablespoons canola oil and garlic. When garlic is yellow, stir in pork, light soy sauce, and fish sauce and cook until the pork is cooked. Stir in Choy Sum, cook for 30 seconds, and then stir in noodles. If desired, add a few drops of dark soy or molasses to get a tan color and a little sweet flavor. When the noodles are cooked, stir in green onion and shredded omelet; remove and serve with lime wedges and condiment below.

Condiment:

½ cup rice vinegar
½ teaspoon sugar
1 jalapeno pepper, sliced

Place rice vinegar, sugar and jalapeno pepper in a small bowl, stir.

© 2011  Pranee Khruasanit Halvorsen

I Love Thai cooking Pranee teaches Thai Cooking classes in the Seattle area. Her website is: I Love Thai cooking.com

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~Som Tum With Smoked Salmon Recipe~

Posted in Recipes, Thai Gluten Free Recipe, Thai Main Dish Recipe, Thai Noodle Recipe, Thai Salad Recipe, Thai Snack & Street Food Recipe, Thai Vegetarian Recipe, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , on September 6, 2010| 4 Comments »

Som Tum, a Green Papaya POK POK 

Som Tum - Thai Green Papaya Salad

Pok Pok is the sound made when a wooden pestle hits a clay mortar. This is a classic sound in the green papaya making process and it is a familiar sound for Thais and tourists alike because Som Tum vendors are everywhere in Thailand. When I teach papaya salad recipes, I make sure to carry my clay mortar and wooden pestle with me to my cooking classes in Seattle, Lynwood, Edmonds and even Portland. I feel that it is important for students to understand the cultural and traditional aspects of  Thai cuisine. For me, making and eating green papaya salad is a cure for homesickness. But is not easy to find green papayas outside of Thailand, so sometimes we have to improvise.

Shredded Green Papaya and Carrot for Som Tum

Carrots are always a great substitute when fresh green papaya is not available. My first experience eating Som Tum made from other vegetables besides green papaya was when I was traveling in Switzerland and France visiting friends and relatives.

In Seattle you can find green papaya everyday at the Asian markets, but at farmers market events in Washington I always enjoy making Som Tum with various farm fresh vegetables. And I am always delighted that it still makes a great impression on everyone. First the Pok, Pok sound, then the flavors of chili-lime and peanuts dressing that make all fresh salad tastes so good. My favorite vegetables and fruits for this recipe are carrots, kale, green apples, green mangos, green beans and cucumbers.

Som Tum – Thai Green Papaya Pok Pok

Yesterday I was making special version of Som Tum for a Pike Place Market Sunday Event. I combined Som Tum made from local carrots and kale with cooked rice noodles and smoked local King salmon. Combining Thai and northwest flavors together using a mortar and pestle produced a delicious dish.  Let’s cook with the Thai rhythms!

Please also see Pranee’s Somtum Recipe featured in Seattle Times, Pacific Northwest Sunday Magazine

SOM TUM PLA SALMON

Green Papaya Salad with Smoked Salmon and Rice Vermicelli

Servings: 4
 
3-6 garlic cloves, peeled
5 Thai chilies, whole
2-3 tablespoons palm sugar or brown sugar
6 tablespoons dry roasted peanuts
3 tablespoons fish sauce
3 tablespoons lime juice
¼ lime, cut into 4 small wedges
8 cherry tomatoes, halved, or 2 large tomatoes cut into wedges
½ cup green beans, cut into 1 inch lengths
2 ounce smoked salmon, sliced, about ¼ cup, divided
2 cups shredded green papaya, carrot, cabbage, kale or any fresh vegetable
1 cup rice noodles or rice vermicelli, cooked using the instruction on the package

To make a dressing, use a wooden pestle to crush garlic, chilies, palm sugar and 1 tablespoon roasted peanuts in a clay mortar until it forms a paste. Stir in fish sauce and lime juice with pestle in circular motion until blended.  With pestle, gently mix in lime wedges, tomatoes, string beans, half of the smoked salmon and shredded papaya by pushing down the ingredients against one side of the mortar and using a large spoon to lift up on the opposite side. Repeat a few times until well incorporated.  Serve right away with rice noodles and topped with the rest of the smoked salmon.

Cook’s note: If you don’t have a mortar and pestle, here is an easy way to make a salad dressing. Blend garlic, Thai chilies, palm sugar, 1 tablespoon roasted peanuts, fish sauce and lime juice in a blender until smooth. Mix the rest of peanuts, string beans, dried shrimps, tomatoes and green papaya in a salad bowl. Pour the dressing over the salad and gently mix them together by hand until salad is well coated with the dressing.

© 2010  Pranee Khruasanit Halvorsen
I Love Thai cooking

Pranee teaches Thai Cooking classes in the Seattle area. Her website is: I Love Thai cooking.com

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~Phuket Phad Thai Recipe, how to decode a precious recipe~

Posted in Recipes, Thai Gluten Free Recipe, Thai Main Dish Recipe, Thai Noodle Recipe, Thai Snack & Street Food Recipe, Thai Stir-fry Recipe, tagged , , , , , on June 10, 2010| 6 Comments »

Ten years ago, I developed the best (my students say so) recipe for Phad Thai to teach and share with my students in the cooking class. Because it is a trade secret, I can not share that version with you. However, for my Thai food blog I am in search of Phad Thai recipes from the vendors and restaurant chefs in Thailand. The fascinating thing about Phad Thai is the ingredients. They are different from town to town and region to region. For example, in Korat one of the ingredients is salted soy beans, and in Phuket we use fresh rice noodles, “chow fun”.  I hope you enjoy the discovery of Phad Thai with me.

My first step, I called my sister last week for her contribution to my blog; Phuket Phad Thai. From her e-mail, I copied her Thai barebone recipe down–this is how one Thai gives recipes to another Thai. To make a recipe work, you need to decode, experience, and record the version that you have come up with. Simply follow the principle of balancing sweet, sour, salty, and spicy. When I am done with decoding my sister’s recipe in my kitchen into an American-standard recipe, then I will share it with you in another blog entree. Please don’t wait for me, but try it on your own. I have included a slide show from a street vendor in Phuket taken a few years ago near Chalong Temple in Chalong District, Phuket, Thailand.

ผัดไทย
พริกใหญ่   แห้ง   1         ขีด                  แช่น้ำ
พริกเล็ก           1          กำ          แช่น้ำ
กรเทียม            1          หัว
มะขามเปียก         1           กำ(  แช่น้ำ  ไม่เอาเม็ด)
เกลือ               1              ช้อนชา
น้ำตาล               3            ช้อนโต๊
นำทุกอย่างมาปันรวมกัน       แล้วตั้งไฟเปาไฟ
แล้วตั้งให้เย็น       เก็บในต้เย็น
วิธีทำ
เต๋ากั๋ว หั่นเป็นสีเหลียมลูกเต๋า      แล้ว
ตั้งไฟ   ใส่กุ้ง    เต๋ากั่ว   แล้ว    ตีไข่ผัดกับเส้น   จนเส้นนุ่ม ใส่น้ำผัดไทยวีอิ๋วดำ  นิด   น้ำปลา   น้ำตาล  ออกหลายแล้วตามด้วยถ้วงอก
กุ๋ยฉ่าย

Translation 

Phad Thai 

Sauce
Large dried chili, 1/10 kg, soaked in water
Small dried chili, 1 handful
Garlic, 1 bulb
Tamarind paste, 1 handful, soaked in water
Salt, 1 teaspoon
Sugar, 3 tablespoons
 
Place everything in a blender and blend until smooth. Bring to boil in a pot. When it has cooled down, keep in the fridge.
 

Stir-fry

Heat a wok, add cooking oil, shrimp, tofu, beat the egg to stir-fried noodles until the noodle is soft. Stir in Phad Thai sauce, a little bit of dark soy sauce, a little bit of fish sauce, sugar. Finish the stir-fry with bean sprout and garlic chives.

Phad Thai - Phuket, mobile vendor

Phad Thai Phuket at Chalong Temple

Final touch with bean spout and garlic chive

Note: Rudee Piboon is my sister who owns a wok-fast food restaurant in Thalang Phuket. She is a regular contributor, you will find her recipes and cooking demo at this food blog and the I Love Thai Cooking youtube channel. .

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~Stir-fried Shanghai Noodles with Beef Recipe~

Posted in Recipes, Thai Gluten Free Recipe, Thai Main Dish Recipe, Thai Noodle Recipe, Thai Stir-fry Recipe, tagged , , , , , , on June 6, 2010| 6 Comments »

 

 Oodles of fun with Shianghai Noodles        

 

Shanghai Noodles - Phad Mee Shanghai

Phad Mee Shanghai

Stir-fried Shanghai Noodles with Beef 

Servings: 2 

1 teaspoon cornstarch
1 tablespoon soy sauce
1 tablespoon rice wine or sake
1 teaspoon sesame oil
½ pound  flank steak, thinly sliced diagonally across the grain
3 tablespoons canola oil, divided
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 cup snow peas or choy sum
1 pound Shanghai noodles or Udon noodles, about 2 cups
1 tablespoon oyster sauce
1 tablespoon dark soy sauce
1 teaspoon sugar
2 tablespoons water, or chicken broth or more as needed

 Stir cornstarch, soy sauce, rice wine and sesame oil in a medium size bowl. Stir in beef and let marinated for 30 minutes. 

Heat a wok over high heat and add 1 tablespoon canola oil and fry beef until cook, about 2 minutes, set aside on a plate. Rinse the wok with hot water. 

Heat the wok over high heat; add 2 tablespoons canola oil and garlic. Stir in a snow peas, stir for 15 seconds then stir in noodles for another 15 seconds. Stir in oyster sauce, dark soy sauce, sugar and water, mix well and cook until the water is all evaporated. Stir in beef and serve right away.

Cook note: Linguini and udon are noodle choices that work great when Shanghai noodles are not available.

Vegetarian option: omit meat and substitute it with 1/4 cup cut extra firm tofu and 1/4 sliced brown button mushroom

Gluten-Free option: use wheat free soy sauce and rice stick or rice vermicelli instead of Udon noodles (enrich wheat flour).

© 2010  Pranee Khruasanit Halvorsen  
 I Love Thai cooking
 
Pranee teachs Thai Cooking class in Seattle areas, her website is:  I Love Thai cooking.com

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~Phuket Hokkien Mee Recipe, Phuket Cuisine~

Posted in Pranee's Thai Cooking Videos, Recipes, Thai Gluten Free Recipe, Thai Main Dish Recipe, Thai Noodle Recipe, Thai Snack & Street Food Recipe, Thai Stir-fry Recipe, Thai Vegetarian Recipe, tagged , , , , , , , on February 11, 2010| 3 Comments »

Stir-fried Phuket Hokkien Mee with Choy Sum

PHUKET HOKKIEN MEE RECIPE
Stir-fried egg noodles Phuket style

Serving: 1
Prep Time: 15    Cook Time: 5 minutes

On Chinese New Year Day, I always enjoy Phuket Hokkien Mee – an egg noodle dish similar to stir-fried chow mien.

In America, I use Miki noodle or yakisoba. For this recipe you may use any fresh egg noodles but I prefer ones the size of spaghetti. For vegetable choices, select a combination of mixed vegetables that you like, personally I love Choy sum or Chinese broccoli. For meat choices, substitute pork and/or seafood combination for tofu and mushrooms.  To serve, I always enjoy eating it with chopsticks and a little kick of Sriracha hot sauce.

3 tablespoons cooking oil
1 garlic, minced
¼ cup sliced pork
¼ cup sliced pork liver, optional
3 shrimp, peeled and deveined
1 cup egg noodles, yakisoba or Miki noodles
1 cup cut Chinese kale or Choy Sum
2 teaspoons dark soy sauce
2 teaspoons light soy sauce
½ cup chicken broth
1 teaspoon sugar
A dash of white pepper powder

Heat a wok or cast iron pan over high heat; add canola oil. Stir in garlic, sliced pork, pork liver and shrimp. Continue to stir until the meat is almost completely cooked, then stir in egg noodles, Chinese broccoli, and dark soy and light soy sauces. Stir for 10 seconds, then add chicken broth. Stir and continue to cook until the broth is almost absorbed.  When the sauce has reduced to ¼ cup, add the white pepper powder. Place in a noodle bowl and serve with chopstick and spoon.

Vegetarian option: omit meat and substitute it with 1/4 cup cut extra firm tofu and 1/4 sliced brown button mushroom

Gluten-Free option: use wheat free soy sauce and rice stick or rice vermicelli instead of egg noodles.

© 2009  Pranee Khruasanit Halvorsen
I Love Thai cooking

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