Thai Palm Sugar (Coconut Sugar) Golden brown to light tan in color and sweet like granulated sugar with a hint of caramel. Made by boiling the sap of a palm tree (sometimes a coconut palm) down to a syrup, then crystallized into a sugar. Not only is it sweet, it really has a notable flavor, used to sweeten and enhance a dish, sweet or savory. Formed into disks, ranging from 2–6 inch (5–30 cm) or packed in plastic containers. Pay close attention to the color as there are several varieties of palm sugar distinguishable only by flavor and color. Thai style (as is Vietnamese) palm sugar is light brown whereas palm sugar from Malaysia or Indonesia is dark brown and should not be used as a substitute. Light brown sugar is the best substitute. Keep in an airtight container at room temperature. When you bring some home from the market, use a hand grater or set up your food processor with grating/ shredding attachment and grate all the sugar, store in a covered plastic container and scoop it out when you need it.
Tofu (Bean Curd) Entire books are and should be dedicated to the vast array of soybean protein based tofu. In Thailand they use most major varieties of tofu, such as curd, silken, sheets, and fried. This books uses silken tofu that is gelatinized soy milk, making it silky smooth. Silken tofu is sold in aseptic-boxes—no refrigeration is needed and curd tofu is sold fresh, basking in water. Once fresh tofu is opened it needs to be used within a few days.
Thai Sweet Chili Sauce Hailing from the northern region of Issan, and traditionally served with Gai Yaang (a spice marinated grilled chicken) its sweet syrupy texture is speckled with chili flakes and garlic yielding a mostly sweet and slightly sour mildly spicy sauce. It’s commonly used as a dipping sauce straight from the bottle. It’s easy to make your own (see Thai Sweet Chili Sauce, page 35). If I buy it, I usually fortify it with some chopped coriander leaves (cilantro), minced ginger, and add a touch of fish sauce or soy sauce to calm the sweetness. I also like using it to glaze grilled ribs (see Sweet-n-Spicy Pork Ribs, page 47). Once a container is open it keeps in the refrigerator for months.
Turmeric Powder The dried rhizome that is ground into a fine powder. utilized primarily for its bright orange-yellow color rather than its subdued almost chalky taste. This spice imparts its color to just about anything, including fingers (some people wear gloves when handling turmeric). It is used to tint curries, marinated meats, and even tofu throughout the region (Grilled Tofu Curry, page 85). Purchase turmeric in its powder form as the dried whole rhizomes are hard to use and have no real benefit to them. Fresh turmeric is becoming more common and it has a different taste and strength. For every 1 teaspoon of dried I use 1 tablespoon (½ oz/14 g) of fresh grated.
Yellow Bean Sauce (Yellow Bean Paste, Brown Bean Sauce) Deep brown in color, this thick salty paste is made from ground and fermented soybeans. Packing a sodium and umami laden punch it provides a depth of flavor. Fermented and salted yellow soy beans can be chopped or mashed. This flavorful paste is a byproduct of soy sauce production. Store in the refrigerator for up to a couple of months.
Thai Cooking Tips
Cooking is easy. Yet, superior cooking requires paying attention to each and every step in the process. If you have been cooking for a long time, you unconsciously have already made hundreds of decisions every time you are in the kitchen. This does not require more cooking time, in fact it is easier and more enjoyable, especially once you get a grasp on the fundamental techniques used to create the authentic tastes of any region and Thai food is no different. Once you master the basics, you can modify recipes and create your own dishes with ease. The first stage of a recipe often requires some preparation of the raw ingredients. In the following section you will find some of the most common techniques explained. Once you get everything prepped, then it’s time to cook.
Recipes are merely guidelines. The variance of the raw ingredients and the use of different equipment requires adaptation to the changing situation in the kitchen. Sometimes it’s good to get ahead. I have provided you with tips for preparing lemongrass, chilies, rhizomes, and peanuts. All of these actually freeze rather well, nothing tastes like fresh, but depending on your location this may be the difference of making something with what you have stored away or not making it at all.
For the lemongrass, chilies, rhizomes, if they are whole, I peel them first and place in a thick, air-tight plastic resealable bag. When I need some, I pull it out and cut it as needed otherwise using a rasp or other grater to grate off exactly what I need. When you have already prepared them I suggest you spread them out on a baking sheet, then freeze. This keeps the individual piece separate, once frozen, gather up quickly (avoid defrosting) and refreeze in a bag, allowing you to easily retrieve what you need, when you need it.
I recommend that you read the recipe first, you may even want to follow it the first time you make it. Take the time to read through the recipe, a couple of times if possible. I gather everything I am going to use and get organized. Take a few minutes now, it will make cooking easier and more enjoyable.
What stove do you have? All the recipes in the book were tested extensively on a standard gas range. The traditional recipes were adapted to work at home. Electric ranges can be used, frankly a electric cook-top can often have more heat than a gas home range, but the big down fall is the lack of response (delayed really) making cooking on these difficult. When you need to begin on high heat and then lower it quickly, I turn on two burners—one high and one low so I can move the pan when I need to “lower the heat” immediately.
Can you spell Thai? Since the Thai language is not based on the Roman alphabet, translating into the written English language gives way to numerous spellings for recipes and ingredients alike. There may be a government standard but ingredient labels, menus, books, and website spellings vary, keep alert so you can recognize the recipe or ingredient.
I have given you weights (in grams) for any dry ingredients with a ¼ cup or more per recipe. Depending on how you pack a measuring cup with basil the amount can vary greatly. (A cup of basil averages 25 grams but when testing the recipe we had as little as 30 grams and as much as 40 grams) Don’t worry about it, it’s cooking after all, use what you feel is correct, you can always add more!
Preparing Ginger and Galangal
These underground stems are very fibrous and hence may need to be cut a certain way to ensure the best texture for your recipes. Whether they are whole or prepared already, you can freeze these successfully.
Peeling First: I like to use the edge of a spoon to scrape away the peel.
Slicing: Large wafers can infuse broths and curries. I recommend cutting them into ¹⁄8 inch (3 mm) thick to extract the maximum flavor and still thick enough to pull them out later.
Mincing: Trim off one edge creating a flat surface to stand it up on, slice large thin slabs ¹⁄16 – ¹⁄8 inch (1–3 mm). Restack these up, then cut into very thin, ¹⁄16 – ¹⁄8 inch (1–3 mm) strips, gather these up, turn them 90 degrees and cut across. Then cut each half lengthwise into fine long strips. Turn these 90 degrees and cut perpendicular (¹⁄8 inch/3 mm) to create a minced ginger. Then cut back and forth a few times to make sure it is all cut evenly.
Preparing Lemongrass
Usually store-bought lemongrass has the long leaves trimmed from the top. The hearty stalk’s bottom 4–6 inches (10–15 cm) is the most tender and aromatic and they are the part most often used in cooking.
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