You say Pummelo, I say Pomelo, and Thais say ”Som Oh”
One of my goals for the New Year is for my blog readers to learn light and easy Thai cooking and some new exotic ingredients. Thai cuisine has been famous for many centuries and I want people to have a more in-depth knowledge of it.
Pomelo, Thai Grapefruit - The Flower Market in Bangkok
One way that I hope I can deepen your culinary skills is simply by showing you some of the techniques that Thais use to handle their ingredients, methods learned from our families, our communities and our ancestors. I hope the instructions in my video demonstration will help you to open your pomelo.
Pomelos tastes so great by themselves, you don’t need to cook them. I created this simple fun recipe on New Year’s Eve to provide a zing to welcome the year 2011.
Best wishes to you all.
I love pomelo. It is in season around New Year’s time, but you can enjoy it every week to give a zing to your life. There are so many way to create a wow moment with pomelo. My favorite recipe is from Phuket, Thailand, and is made with shrimp, tamarind sauce and caramelized shallots. It is a great dish for teaching my students about the layer of flavors and textures that can be found in a Thai salad.
Yum Som Oh, Pomelo Salad with Crab
For my blog visitors, I think learning to open a pomelo is challenge enough, so I am keeping this recipe simple (which is also how I cooked during this past week). This recipe is prepared like a crab or shrimp cocktail rather than the traditional pomelo salad from Thailand.
Pomelo Salad with Crab
Yum Som Oh Khup Phu
ยำส้มโอกับปู
Serves: 6
1 pomelo (prepared as shown in the video above), about 2 cups 1 shallot, peeled and sliced 1/4 cup chopped cilantro, plus 6 cilantro sprigs for garnish 1/2 cup cooked crab meat or cooked shrimp 1 tablespoon palm sugar or brown sugar 1 tablespoon tamarind concentrate 2 tablespoons lime juice, about 1 lime 1 tablespoon fish sauce, or more as needed 1/8 teaspoon chili powderPlace pomelo, shallot, cilantro and crab in a medium size salad bowl. Whisk sugar, tamarind concentrate, lime juice, fish sauce and chili powder until well-blended, then pour over pomelo. Fold all of the ingredients together gently with a salad spoon and serve in a nice glass. Serve at room temperature or chill. Garnish with cilantro sprigs.
Vegetarian option:
Omit crab and use a few pinches of sea salt instead of fish sauce.
© 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 . Related articles- Tropical Fruit Facts and Legends: Pomelo – The Fruit of Reunion (travellingartist.wordpress.com)
- National Dish of the Week – Thailand (beatcancer2010.wordpress.com)
- ~Thai Fish Sauce Condiment Recipe, Nam Pla Prik~ (ilovethaicooking.wordpress.com)
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iLoveThaiCooking & Pranee's Thai Kitchen
Pranee's Thai Kitchen 