 |
Thai Food
 Introduction
Eating
and ordering Thai Food
What
Comprises a Thai Meal
Preparing
Thai Food
Introduction
 Thai
food is internationally famous. Whether chilli-hot or comparatively
bland, harmony is the guiding principle behind each dish.
Thai cuisine is essentially a marriage of centuries-old
Eastern and Western influences harmoniously combined into
something uniquely Thai.The characteristics of Thai food
depend on who cooks it, for whom it is cooked, for what
occasion, and where it is cooked to suit all palates. Originally,
Thai cooking reflected the characteristics of a waterborne
lifestyle. Aquatic animals, plants and herbs were major
ingredients. Large chunks of meat were eschewed. Subsequent
influences introduced the use of sizeable chunks to Thai
cooking.
With their Buddhist background, Thais shunned the use of
large animals in big chunks. Big cuts of meat were shredded
and laced with herbs and spices. Traditional Thai cooking
methods were stewing and baking, or grilling. Chinese influences
saw the introduction of frying, stir frying and deep-frying.
Culinary influences from the 17th century onwards included
Portuguese, Dutch, French and Japanese. Chillies were introduced
to Thai cooking during the late 1600s by Portuguese missionaries
who had acquired a taste for them while serving in South
America.
 Thais
were very adapt at 'Siamese-ising' foreign cooking methods,
and substituting ingredients. The ghee used in Indian cooking
was replaced by coconut oil, and coconut milk substituted
for other daily products. Overpowering pure spices were
toned down and enhanced by fresh herbs such as lemon grass
and galanga. Eventually, fewer and less spices were used
in Thai curries, while the use of fresh herbs increased.
It is generally acknowledged that Thai curries burn intensely,
but briefly, whereas other curries, with strong spices,
burn for longer periods. Instead of serving dishes in courses,
a Thai meal is served all at once, permitting dinners to
enjoy complementary combinations of different tastes.
A proper Thai meal should consist of a soup, a curry dish
with condiments, a dip with accompanying fish and vegetables.
A spiced salad may replace the curry dish. The soup can
also be spicy, but the curry should be replaced by non spiced
items. There must be a harmony of tastes and textures within
individual dishes and the entire meal.
Eating
and ordering Thai Food
Thai food is eaten with a fork and spoon. Even single dish
meals such as fried rice with pork, or steamed rice topped
with roasted duck, are served in bite-sized slices or chunks
obviating the need for a knife. The spoon is used to convey
food to the mouth.
Ideally, eating Thai food is a communal affair involving
two or more people, principally because the greater the
number of diners the greater the number of dishes ordered.
Generally speaking, two diners order three dishes in addition
to their own individual plates of steamed rice, three diners
four dishes, and so on. Diners choose whatever they require
from shared dishes and generally add it to their own rice.
Soups are enjoyed concurrently with rice. Soups are enjoyed
concurrently with other dishes, not independently. Spicy
dishes, not independently. Spicy dishes are "balanced"
by bland dishes to avoid discomfort.
The ideal Thai meal is a harmonious blend of the spicy,
the subtle, the sweet and sour, and is meant to be equally
satisfying to eye, nose and palate. A typical meal might
include a clear soup (perhaps bitter melons stuffed with
minced pork), a steamed dish (mussels in curry sauce), a
fried dish (fish with ginger), a hot salad (beef slices
on a bed of lettuce, onions, chillies, mint and lemon juice)
and a variety of sauces into which food is dipped. This
would be followed by sweet desserts and/or fresh fruits
such as mangoes, durian, jackfruit, papaya, grapes or melon.
What
Comprises a Thai Meal
Titbits
These can be hors d'oeuvres, accompaniments, side dishes,
and/or snacks. They include spring rolls, satay, puffed
rice cakes with herbed topping. They represent the playful
and creative nature of the Thais
Salads
A harmony of tastes and herbal flavours are essential. Major
tastes are sour, sweet and salty. Spiciness comes in different
degrees according to meat textures and occasions.
General Fare
A sweet and sour dish, a fluffy omelette, and a stir-fried
dish help make a meal more complete.
Dips
Dips entail some complexity. They can be the major dish
of a meal with accompaniments of vegetables and some meats.
When dips are made thinly, they can be used as salad designs.
A particular and simple dip is made from chillies, garlic,
dried shrimps, lime juice, fish sauce, sugar and shrimp
paste.
Soups
A good meal for an average person may consist simply of
a soup and rice. Traditional Thai soups are unique because
they embody more flavours and textures than can be found
in other types of food.
Curries
Most non-Thai curries consist of powdered or ground dried
spices, whereas the major ingredients of Thai curry are
fresh herbs. A simple Thai curry paste consists of dried
chillies, shallots and shrimp paste. More complex curries
include garlic, galanga, coriander roots, lemon grass, kaffir
lime peel and peppercorns.
Single Dishes
Complete meals in themselves , they include rice and noodle
dishes such as Khao Phat and Phat Thai.
Desserts
No good meal is complete without a Thai dessert. Uniformly
sweet, they are particularly welcome after a strongly spiced
and herbed meal.
Preparing
Thai Food
Titbits
A simple kind of titbit is fun to make. You need shallots,
ginger, lemon or lime, lemon grass, roasted peanuts and
red phrik khi nu chillies. Peeled shallots and ginger should
be cut into small fingertip sizes. Diced lime and slices
of lemon grass should be cut to the same size. Roasted peanut
should be left in halves. Chillies should be thinly sliced.
Combinations of such ingredients should be wrapped in fresh
lettuce leaves and laced with a sweet-salty sauce made from
fish sauce, sugar, dried shrimps and lime juice.
Dips
Mixing crushed fresh chillies with fish sauce and a dash
of lime juice makes a general accompanying sauce for any
Thai dish. Adding some crushed garlic and a tiny amount
of roasted or raw shrimp paste transforms it into an all-purpose
dip (nam phrik). Some pulverised dried shrimp and julienned
egg-plant with sugar makes this dip more complete. Serve
it with steamed rice, an omelette and some vegetables.
Salad Dressings
Salad dressings have similar base ingredients. Add fish
sauce, lime juice and sugar to enhance saltiness, sourness
and sweetness. Crushed chillies, garlic and shallots add
spiciness and herbal fragrance. Lemon grass and galanga
can be added for additional flavour. Employ this mix with
any boiled, grilled or fried meat. Lettuce leaves, sliced
cucumber, cut spring onions and coriander leaves help top
off a salad dressing.
Soup Stocks
Soups generally need good stock. Add to boiling water crushed
peppercorns, salt, garlic, shallots, coriander roots, and
the meats or cuts of one's choice. After prolonged boiling
and simmering , you have the basic stock of common Thai
soups. Additional galanga, lemon grass, kaffir lime leaves,
crushed fresh chillies, fish sauce and lime juice create
the basic stock for a Tom Yam.
Curries
To make a quick curry, fry curry or chilli paste in heated
oil or thick coconut milk. Stir and fry until the paste
is well cooked and add meats of one's choice.Season with
fish sauce or sugar to taste. Add water or thin coconut
milk to make curry go a longer way. Add sliced eggplant
with a garnish of basil and kaffir lime leaves. Make your
own curry paste by blending fresh (preferably dried) chillies,
garlic, shallots, galanga, lemon grass, coriander roots,
ground pepper, kaffir lime peels and shrimp paste.
Single Dish Meals
Heat the cooking oil, fry in a mixture of crushed chillies,
minced garlic, ground pepper and chopped chicken meat. When
nearly cooked, add vegetables such as cut beans or eggplants.
Season with fish sauce and garnish with kaffir lime leaves,
basil or balsom leaves. Cooked rice or fresh noodles added
to the frying would make this a substantial meal.
Content
by Tourism Authority of Thailand
|
|
