VIDEO POST: This episode of “Cooking with Alice” is about Massaman Curry, a very popular and tasty Thai-mixed-Indian dish that you will find in most restaurants around Thailand, but especially in the South of Thailand. Massaman Curry is typically made with meat, but if you substitute the meat with tofu or vegetables of your liking, it can become vegetarian or even vegan. For our recipe today we chose beef. Massaman Curry is usually served with rice, but Italians also like to do ‘scarpetta’ after the meal, scooping up what left in the plate with bread. Enjoy it!

The post Cooking with Alice: Massaman Beef Curry appeared first on Asian Itinerary.

This Thai steamed pumpkin custard (Sang Kaya Fuhk Thong) is spectacular to look at, and wonderful to eat. It makes a great alternative to pumpkin pie, and it’s actually a really easy recipe to make! A small pumpkin – or pumpkin-like squash – is filled with an easy Thai custard – a healthier and lower calorie version than traditional custard. When Thai people think of things to give to monks as offering, Sang Kaya Fuhk Thong sometimes are used. This particular dessert is considered as a good treat that once is given to monks, the blessing in return would be gold and riches to the giver. There are many different desserts that are consider good in similar manner and are used for special religious occasions such as Open House, New Year Day, birthdays or weddings. INGREDIENTS 1 pumpkin (8-9 inches in diameter) 6 duck eggs 1 cup thick rich coconut milk ½ cup palm sugar ½ teaspoon salt 5 pandanus leaves COOKING 1. Clean the pumpkin well. Use brush to clean away the dirt. 2. Cut the top of pumpkin about 4 inches in diameter 3. Remove the seed from the pumpkin and clean it well. Dry it well. 4. Beat eggs and add coconut milk, palm sugar, and salt in a bowl. Tear the pandanus leaves and put into the bowl. Squeeze everything together. 5. Pour the mixed eggs into a strainer. After that pour it into the pumpkin. 6. Place it into the steamer and let it cook for 20 minutes. Serve warm with a splash of maple syrup or brandy and a cup of strong tea or coffee. Watch how to make it on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oHdJ0mLKQ-Y

The post Sang Kaya Fuhk Thong appeared first on Asian Itinerary.

It was mid-morning on Koh Phi Phi’s Pum Cooking School and Restaurant. After marinating the chicken morsels in the paste I had prepared earlier, I tossed them in the steaming hot oil that was sizzling in a giant wok. Nui the teacher handed me an aluminium spoon with a flat end: with that I was supposed to squeeze and turn the meat until crispy on both sides and ready to be dipped in the peanuts sauce. The utensil was heavier than I expected and the way it had to be handled made it hard to control. After a few strikes, some of the chicken jumped out of the pan, flying up in the air before landing on the floor nearby. This caused a stir in the kitchen: Bunny, Nui and the rest of the team burst in laughter and my co-student Hans Peter from Norway could not help it and took a picture of embarrassed me… That morning-cooking-madness had started when, bored in Koh Phi Phi with the usual daily routine of appointments to go to, articles to write and phone calls to answer, I decided that learning to cook some Thai dishes would appeal to my tired brain. For that purpose I had chosen Pum Cooking School and Restaurant after reading a few positive reviews on the internet about them. I was met by Khun Nui, the smiley teacher, who explained the program to us: after choosing from one of Pum’s cookery books the dishes we wanted to cook, we would go through some of the ingredients and start putting them together. Nui wore the school’s orange t-shirt, a black bandanna and an apron. We were geared up as well and it was time for the class. Thai food, by its very nature, is fresh and quick, at times very complex, at times very simple. One of its characteristics is that it always combines a particular balance of flavours. Helpful Nui spent the first 30 minutes explaining in good English a variety of sauces, spices and different herbs used in Thai cooking. A ceramic tray filled with colourful pastes was brought to the table along with bottles of different oils and fish sauces and coconut creams, herbs and spices, all essential ingredients of Thai cuisine. Nui went through every one of them, patiently making us taste them, telling us the role of every ingredient in Thai dishes. It was both learning and a lot of fun too. Apart from Chicken Satay, I got to learn to cook a classic: Tom Ga Gai, chicken in coconut soup. We pounded the ingredients into a mortar and followed Nui’s instructions, turning meat and veggies into an edible dish in a matter of 10 minutes, and with a proper Thai taste! Of course, a class this small gave both of us lots of personal attention. We eventually enjoyed a taste of our dish, which was promising to say the least. Unfortunately for him, enthusiastic Hans Peter is a vegetarian so he did not get to taste his soup, though I did, to discover it was much spicier than mine! Friendly Bunny served us rice – at least we did not have to cook that. “Our dishes are based on traditional Thai cuisine adapted for a modern, fast paced world” explained Nui. “Quick, simple and always delicious, you can enjoy these dishes at any occasion”. Peter Hans and I both found the class very hands on; Nui and the mob turned out to be a fantastic, excellent team. I cooked a small 2 dishes course and I left wishing I had done the full class with shopping at the market included. Considering I hadn’t cooked for a while, Pum’s cooking class did me good. Hans Peter confessed he would be cooking Thai dishes for his family of four once back home, and with an orange smile in his face. As for me… Pum Cooking School Pum’s range of classes suits each individual’s budget; they offer both morning and afternoon sessions for early-birds and late-risers alike. Pum and her team have been running cooking classes on beautiful Phi Phi Island for a number of years and have taught students from all over the world. Pum and the team will teach the essential and practical side of Thai food to enable you to cook delicious dishes when you return home, and for brilliant memories of this wonderful land. Classes to suit everyone from single dishes to Grand Chef courses! 125/40 Moo7, Phi Phi Don Tel. +66 (0) 81 521 8904 http://th.pumthaifoodchain.com/restaurant-phiphi.html  phiphi@pumthaifoodchain.com

The post Pum Cooking School and Restaurant appeared first on Asian Itinerary.

Located across from the main entrance at Chiang Mai University, Isaan Laan % (Isaan 1 million % – อีสานล้าน%) is a Chiang Mai institution and certainly my favourite Isaan spot in town. Isaan is the name for the northeastern Thai provinces near Laos, home to a plethora of amazing dishes, some of them now popular all over Thailand. I have certainly had some amazing meals at Isaan Laan %; the liberal use of herbs and spices creates the right array of spicy northeastern-style Thai food – not your place if your tolerance for chillies is low… Sit in the rustic tables, enjoy the simple wall decor and be reassured that Thai people’s commendable habit of judging restaurants by the cooking rather than by the look of the place, here works. So, no haute cuisine but simple, delicious northeastern standards. Among the dishes you should sample are spicy salads, grilled fish, tom sep (a pork and herb soup), namtok (a grilled pork salad), moo/neua deat deow (sun-dried pork/beef coated with sesame seeds and deep fried): Isaan Laan % makes an excellent job of these. Hear the mortar-and-pestle music of papaya salad som tam, or its mango variation; smell the mint in laap (a minced meat in pork, chicken, catfish or duck variations, mixed with chillies, lime, spring onion, crushed dry-roasted rice and herbs). All dishes are really good, but do not miss out on Isaan Laan % signature dish: kai yang, the grilled chicken for which they are well known by locals. Add these to vegetable dishes, bamboo shoots, kao niaw (the gutinous sticky rice) and their fiery dipping sauces, and you get the picture. And of course, an iced-cold beer to wash down all the above is highly advisable. Isaan Laan % gets quite busy when everyone who leaves the university gets hungry, as they combine great food and good prices, with most dishes costing between 40 and 60 thb. Your meal will not cost over 150-200 thb, including a couple of beers. The service is decent and fast; some of the waitresses speak English and there is an English menu. Isaan Laan % is located directly in front of Chiang Mai University’s main gate, in the strip of small restaurants along Huay Kaew Road. Its front is fluorescent-lit in the evenings. Open daily 9am to 10pm, or earlier if the food is sold out.

The post Isaan Laan % – spicy northeastern-style Thai food appeared first on Asian Itinerary.