¼ cup chopped mint leaves
Chopped unsalted peanuts (optional)
In a small bowl, stir together all of the salad dressing ingredients; set aside.
In a large bowl, toss together all of the salad ingredients. Add dressing to taste and toss until well coated. Sprinkle chopped peanuts over the top of each salad, if desired.
Thai Salads
Thai salads are often light, flavorful, and work fantastically to get you ready for the main meal. Many of the all-vegetable salads are too light to be a meal of their own, but by simply adding some sautéed chicken, shrimp, or tofu to any salad, you've got yourself a nice lunch!
Serves 2–4
This salad gets its Thai character from the mint and cilantro in the salad and the fish sauce, rice wine vinegar, and red pepper flakes in the dressing. It's not fancy, but it's a great start to any meal.
Sweet-and-Sour Cucumber Salad
5 tablespoons sugar
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup boiling water
½ cup rice or white vinegar
2 medium cucumbers, seeded and sliced
1 small red onion, sliced
2 Thai chilies, seeded and minced
In a small bowl, combine the sugar, salt, and boiling water. Stir to thoroughly dissolve sugar and salt. Add the vinegar and allow the vinaigrette to cool to room temperature.
Place the cucumbers, onion slices, and the chili peppers in a mediumsized bowl. Pour the dressing over the vegetables. Cover and let marinate in the refrigerator at least until cold, preferably overnight.
Seeding Cucumbers
Seeding a cucumber is simple! Cut the cucumber in half lengthwise. Using a small spoon, scoop out the soft inner flesh and seeds in one quick swoop. That's it!
Serves 2–4
This is a terrific summer salad to bring on a picnic. It's great served alongside grilled chicken, chops, even burgers!
Cucumber Salad with Lemongrass
½ cup white vinegar
1 Thai chili, very finely minced
1 garlic clove, very finely minced
2 stalks lemongrass
3 cups thinly sliced cucumber
1 cup bean sprouts
1 cup cubed tart apple (such as Granny Smith)
½ cup shredded carrot
¼ cup minced mint
¼ cup minced parsley
1 tablespoon fish sauce
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
In a small saucepan, combine the vinegar, chili, and garlic. Bring the mixture to a boil. Cover the pan, remove it from the heat, and let cool.
Trim and finely chop 1 lemongrass stalk. Place it in a small saucepan with ½ cup of water, cover, and bring to a boil. Turn off heat and let cool.
Trim the remaining lemongrass stalk, peel off the tough outer layers, and finely mince the white portion of the tender stalk within. Reserve approximately 1 tablespoon.
Combine the cucumber, bean sprouts, apple, carrot, mint, and parsley in a large mixing bowl. In a small bowl combine the fish sauce, oil, minced lemongrass, the vinegar mixture, and the lemongrass water.
Toss the vegetables with the lemongrass vinaigrette to taste.
Preserving Fresh-Cut Apples
To keep the apple pieces from turning brown before you use them, put them in a small container of cool water to which you have added a couple of drops of lemon or lime juice. The citric acid prevents the apple from discoloring.
Serves 6–8
I think the Thai have figured out more ways to use cucumber than anyone else on the planet, and each one seems better than the last. The cucumber and apple in this salad yield a great contrast of flavors.
Papaya Salad
1 medium papaya, peeled and julienned, or cut into small pieces
½–1 teaspoon salt
3 jalapeño peppers, seeded and thinly sliced
4–6 cloves of garlic, chopped coarsely
½ cup long beans (green beans), cut into 1–inch pieces
2 teaspoons fish sauce
4 tablespoons Tamarind Concentrate (see recipe on page 18)
2 tomatoes, thinly sliced
Sticky rice, cooked according to package directions
Place the papaya on a sheet pan and sprinkle it with salt. Let the papaya stand for 30 minutes. Pour off any juice and then squeeze the fruit with your hands to extract as much fluid as possible. Place the pulp of the papaya in a large food processor.
Add the chilies and pulse briefly to combine. Add the remaining ingredients except the tomato and pulse again until mixed.
Transfer the papaya mixture to a serving bowl and garnish with tomato slices. Serve with sticky rice.
Serves 4–6
This recipe calls for salting the papaya in order to extract some of its liquid. This is the same method used to prepare eggplant slices for the grill or for use in an Eggplant Parmesan.
Zesty Melon Salad
6 cups assorted melon cubes
2 cucumbers, peeled, halved, seeded, and sliced
6–8 tablespoons lime juice
Zest of 1 lime
¼ cup honey
1 serrano chili, seeded and minced (for a hotter salad, leave the seeds in)
¼ teaspoon salt
In a large mixing bowl, combine the melon and the cucumber.
Mix the remaining ingredients together in a small bowl. Pour over the fruit and toss well to coat.
Serve immediately, or if you like a zestier flavor, let the salad sit for up to 2 hours to allow the chili flavor to develop.
Serves 4–6
A lively looking and tasting salad, it's a sure winner at a picnic. Using a hollowed out watermelon as a serving dish makes an impressive, yet easy and inexpensive, serving dish.
Crunchy Coconut-Flavored Salad
1 cup julienned jicama
1 medium cucumber, peeled, seeded, and julienned
2–3 tablespoons chopped fresh basil
1 recipe Coconut Marinade (see recipe on page 14)
Place the jicama, cucumber, and basil in a large bowl. Pour the marinade over the vegetables and let rest in the refrigerator for at least 2 hours before serving.
Jicama
Jicama is indigenous to the Americas and looks like a big brown, rather unappetizing, root. But beneath the ugly skin is a light, crunchy vegetable with a slightly sweet taste reminiscent of apple.
Serves 2–3
The cucumber and the jicama offer very different crunches — one rather juicy and one rather snappy — in this appealing salad. The basil adds just enough bite to balance the sweetness of the coconut marinade.
Thailand Bamboo Shoots
1 20-ounce can of bamboo shoots, shredded, liquid reserved
Juice of ½ lime
1 teaspoon ground dried chili pepper
2 green onions, sliced
1 teaspoon fish sauce
2 tablespoons finely crushed peanuts, divided
Sticky rice, cooked according to package directions
Place the shredded bamboo shoots and approximately ¼ cup (half) of the reserved bamboo liquid in a medium-sized saucepan. Bring the contents of the pan to a boil, reduce heat, and let simmer until tender, about 5 minutes. Remove from heat.
Stir in the lime juice, chili pepper, green onions, fish sauce, and 1 tablespoon of the peanuts.
Serve with sticky rice, sprinkled with the remaining peanuts.
Serves 4
Bamboo is a great plant. Humans throughout the world have used it as a food, a building material, and in hats, just to name a few uses. Here we use it as a simple salad ingredient.
6
Meat Dishes
Green Curry Beef
Curried Beef and Potato Stew
Red Beef Curry
Hot and Sour Beef
Grilled Ginger Beef
Thai Beef with Rice Noodles
Minty Stir-Fried Beef
Chilied Beef
Pork and Eggplant Stir-Fry
Pork with Garlic and C
rushed Black Pepper
Bangkok-Style Roasted Pork Tenderloin
Chiang Mai Beef
Barbecued Pork on Rice
Lemongrass Pork
Pork and Spinach Curry
Thai-Style Beef with Broccoli
Pork with Tomatoes and Sticky Rice
Cinnamon Stewed Beef
Green Curry Beef
2 cans coconut milk, thick cream separated from the milk
¼ cup (or to taste) Green Curry Paste (see recipes in Chapter 1)
1½ pounds sirloin, cut into thin strips
¼ cup brown sugar
¼ cup fish sauce
1 pound eggplant (Japanese, Thai, or a combination), cut into ¼-inch slices
6 serrano chilies, stemmed, seeded, and cut in half lengthwise
1 cup basil
Place the thick cream from the coconut milk and the curry paste in a large soup pot and stir to combine. Place over medium-high heat and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer for 2 to 3 minutes.
Add the beef and the coconut milk, stirring to combine. Return the mixture to a simmer.
Add the sugar and the fish sauce, stirring until the sugar dissolves, about 2 minutes.
Add the eggplant and simmer for 1 to 2 minutes.
Add the serrano chilies and cook 1 minute more.
Remove from heat and stir in the basil.
Hot Stuff
Let your guests know that the chilies are hot and are not to be eaten by the faint of heart. They add plenty of heat and flavor just being on the plate!
Serves 4–6
This quick and easy curry is a great introduction to Thai cuisine. It contains most of the key Thai ingredients — coconut milk, fish sauce, chilies, and basil. Serve with lots of steamed Jasmine rice.
Curried Beef and Potato Stew
2–3 tablespoons vegetable oil
1½ pounds beef stew meat, cut into bite-sized cubes
1 large onion, chopped
1 large russet potato, peeled and cut into bite-sized cubes
2 (14-ounce) cans coconut milk
½–¾ cup prepared Massaman Curry Paste (see recipe on page 6)
½ cup brown sugar
7 tablespoons fish sauce
¼ cup Tamarind Concentrate (see recipe on page 18)
1 cup chopped fresh pineapple
Jasmine rice, cooked according to package directions
½ cup unsalted roasted peanuts, chopped
Heat the oil in a large soup pot over medium-high heat. When the oil is hot, brown the meat on all sides. Add the onion and cook until translucent, about 2 to 3 minutes.
Add enough water to just cover the meat and onions. Bring to a boil, reduce heat, cover, and simmer for 30 to 60 minutes.
Add the potatoes and continue to simmer for 15 more minutes. (The potatoes will not be quite cooked through at this point.)
Strain the solids from the broth, reserving both.
In another soup pot, combine the coconut milk with the curry paste until well blended. Bring the contents to a simmer over medium-high heat and cook for 2 to 3 minutes.
Add the reserved meat and potato mixture, the sugar, fish sauce, and tamarind, stirring until the sugar dissolves. Add some of the reserved broth to thin the sauce to desired consistency.
Stir in the pineapple and continue to simmer until the potatoes are cooked through.
To serve, place some Jasmine rice in the middle of individual serving plates and spoon the stew over the top. Garnish with the chopped peanuts.
Serves 4
Who doesn't like beef stew on a cold winter evening? This one isn't quite like Mom used to make (unless your mother is Thai), but it's still satisfying and comforting with tender chunks of beef and silky potatoes.
Red Beef Curry
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
2 tablespoons Red Curry Paste (see recipes in Chapter 1)
½ cup plus 2 tablespoons coconut milk
1 pound lean beef, cut into thin strips
2 tablespoons (roughly) ground peanuts
1–3 tablespoons (to taste) fish sauce
Sugar to taste
1 green or red sweet pepper, seeded and cubed
¼ cup chopped basil
Rice, cooked according to package directions
Heat the oil in a large sauté pan over low heat. Add the curry paste and cook, stirring constantly, until fragrant, about 1 minute.
Stir in the ½ cup of coconut milk and bring the mixture to a simmer. Add the beef strips and poach for 5 minutes.
Add the peanuts and continue to poach for an additional 5 minutes.
Add the fish sauce and sugar to taste; continue to cook until the mixture is almost dry, then add the sweet pepper and basil and cook for 5 more minutes.
Serve with rice.
Chili Varieties
The most typical fresh chilies used in Thai cuisine include jalapeños, serranos, Thai bird, and Scotch bonnet. The jalapeño is the mildest of the bunch, adding more flavor than actual heat. Serranos are a bit more searing.
Serves 4
This curry is slightly milder than the green version. The primary flavor difference comes from the bell peppers, which are not as common in Thai recipes as the more intense varieties of peppers.
Hot and Sour Beef
1 tablespoon lime juice
1 tablespoon fish sauce
1 tablespoon dark, sweet soy sauce
3 tablespoons chopped onion
1 teaspoon honey
1 teaspoon dried chili powder
1 green onion, trimmed and thinly sliced
1 teaspoon chopped cilantro
1½ pound sirloin steak
Salt and pepper to taste
Make the sauce by thoroughly combining the first 8 ingredients; set aside.
Season the steak with salt and pepper, then grill or broil it to your preferred doneness. Remove the steak from the grill, cover with foil, and let rest for 5 to 10 minutes.
Thinly slice the steak, cutting across the grain.
Arrange the pieces on a serving platter or on 1 or 2 dinner plates. Spoon the sauce over the top. Serve with rice and a side vegetable.
Adjusting Flavors
Don't be afraid to adjust the amount of curry paste you put in a recipe. If you want the end product to be a bit more flavorful, add a bit more; if you are looking for a more delicate taste, reduce the amount a bit
Serves 1–2
This flavorful dish couldn't be any easier. It's great to serve when you are introducing your guests to Thai flavors, because they can add as little or as much of the sauce as they prefer.
Grilled Ginger Beef
8 cups low-salt beef broth
2 stalks lemongrass
5 cloves garlic
1 (3-inch) piece ginger, cut in half
1 onion, cut in half
1 cinnamon stick
2 dried red chili peppers
1 (2-inch) piece of ginger, minced
1 small package of rice noodles
1 pound green vegetables
2 tablespoons (or to taste) soy sauce
6 (6-ounce) strip steaks
Salt and pepper to taste
6 scallions, minced
Place the beef broth, lemongrass, and garlic in a large pot; bring to a boil.
In the meantime, place the ginger and onion halves, cut-side down, in a dry skillet over high heat and cook until black. Add the onion and ginger to the broth mixture.
Place the cinnamon and dried chili peppers in the dry skillet and toast over medium heat for 1 minute; add to the broth mixture.
Reduce the heat and simmer the broth for 1 to 2 hours. Cool, strain, and refrigerate overnight.
Before you are ready to eat, remove the broth from the refrigerator and skim off any fat that may have accumulated. Bring the broth to a simmer and add the minced ginger.
Soak the rice noodles in hot water for 10 to 20 minutes or until soft; drain.
Blanch the vegetables for about a minute.
Using a slotted spoon, remove them from the boiling water and shock them in cold water.
Season the broth to taste with the soy sauce. Season the steaks with salt and pepper and grill or broil to your liking.
To serve, slice the steaks into thin strips (cutting across the grain) and place them in 6 large bowls. Add a portion of noodles and vegetables to the bowls and ladle the broth over the top.
Serves 6
This may be my favorite recipe in this book. Its complex, aromatic overtones will make your taste buds beg for more. It's well worth the effort.
Thai Beef with Rice Noodles
¾ pound sirloin, trimmed of all fat, rinsed and patted dry
½ pound dried rice noodles
¼ cup soy sauce
2 tablespoons fish sauce
2 tablespoons dark brown sugar
Freshly ground black pepper
5 tablespoons vegetable oil, divided
2 tablespoons minced garlic
1 pound greens (such as spinach or bok choy), cleaned and cut into ½-inch strips
2 eggs, beaten
Crushed dried red pepper flakes to taste
Rice vinegar to taste
Slice the meat into 2-inch-long, ½–inch-wide strips.
Cover the noodles with warm water for 5 minutes, then drain.
In a small bowl, combine the soy sauce, fish sauce, brown sugar, and black pepper; set aside.
Heat a wok or heavy skillet over high heat. Add approximately 2 tablespoons of the vegetable oil. When the oil is hot, but not smoking, add the garlic. After stirring for 5 seconds, add the greens and stir-fry for approximately 2 minutes; set aside.
Add 2 more tablespoons of oil to the wok. Add the beef and stir-fry until browned on all sides, about 2 minutes; set aside.
Heat 1 tablespoon of oil in the wok and add the noodles. Toss until warmed through, approximately 2 minutes; set aside.
THE EVERYTHING® THAI COOKBOOK Page 8