Thai Cuisine Recipe

Green Papaya Salad
(Som Tam Thai)

Originally an lsan dish from the northeast, this healthy mixture of raw vegetables is now prepared by roadside vendors all over the county. Som Tam captures the essentail flavors of Thailand: chili hot, redolent with garlic and fish sauce, and sour with lime juice. The basic ingredient, unripe papaya, contrasts in texture with crunchy raw beans and peanuts. If unripe papaya is not available, very thinly sliced cabbage may be substututed.

Ingregients (serves 4)
2-5 bird's-eye chilies

2 tablespoons unsalted roasted peanuts or cashew nuts

1 tablespoon dried shrimp or prawns, soaked in warm water for 5 minutes and drained

5 cloves garlic

10 oz (300 g) unripe green papaya, peeled and shredded using a sharp knife or vegetable grater

1/2 cup (50 g) long beans or gree beans, cut in 1/2-in (1 cm) pieces

6 ripe cherry tomatoes, quartered, or 1 large tomato, in wedges

3 tablespoons lime juice

1 tablespoon chopped palm sugar or dark brown sugar

1 tablespoon fish sauce

2 cups raw vegetables (cabbage, water spinach, broccoli, as paragus)

3 spings Thai basil (horapa)

Preparation
1 Take the chilies, peanuts, dried shrimp and garlic and pound roughly in a mortar and pestle or process very briefly in a blender. The mixture should be coarse, not smooth.

2 Cmobine mixture in a bowl with the shredded papaya, bean and tomato. Mix well and add the lime juice, palm sugar and fish sauce.

3 Serve accompanied by other row vegetables (cabbage, water spinach, broccoli or asparagus) and and sprigs of Thai basil. For a complete meal, add glutinous rice and Barbecued Chicken

Tips -- Prepare the salad immediately before serving, otherwise the papaya will lose it firm texture.

Stir-fried Assparagus with Shrimp
(Pad Nor Mai Farang)

Preparation
1 Heat a wok until very hot then add the oil. When oil is hot, add garlic and stir-fry until fragent, about 1 minute. Add asparagus and shrimp and stir-fry until asparagus is hust tender and shrimp turn pink, 3-4 minutes.

2 Add soy sauce, oyster sauce, fish sauce and sugar. Stir-fry then add Thai Chicken Stock and corn starch mixture and simmer for 1 minute.

3 Transfer to a plate

Tips -- It is important to measure out all the sauces before cooking, as this dish cooks very fast.

Ingregients (serves 6-8)
8 oz (225 g) Chinese broccoli (kailan) or broccoli stems

3-4 cabbage leavers, sliced

1/2 cup (100 g) sliced carrots

1/2 cup (100 g) cauliflower florets

1/2 cup (50 g) snow peas

1/2 cup (50 g) baby sweet corn

2 tablespoons oil

3 tablespoons minced garlic

5 fresh shiitake or Chinese mushroom, stems removed and sliced

1/2 cup (125 ml) Thai Chicken Stock or water

3 tablespoons oyster sauce

1/2 tablespoon soy sauce

1/2 teaspoon black soy sauce

1 tablespoon fish sauceDash of rice wine, sherry or sake

1/2 teaspoon ground white pepper

1/2 teaspoon sugar

Preparation
1 Heat a wok until lightly smoking and add the oil. When hot, add the garlic and stir well for 1 minute, or until fragrant. Add mushrooms and stir-fry for 1 minute.

2 Add the vegetables and chicken stock or water to the wok and stir-fry for about 8-10 until just cooked; the vegetables should still be slightly crisp. Add the oyster, soy and fish sauces and wine, then sprinkle with pepper and sugar. Mix well and cook for 1 minute.

3 Serve accompanied by rice.

Tips -- Use maximum heat to stir fry the vegetables to ensure the right texture and flavor. If using dried Chinese mushrooms, soak in warm water for 15 minutes before slicing.

The dish makes a wonderfully healthy dish because it is made without oil and eaten with raw vegetables and herbs (and rice). It may by served with a chili sauce like Nam Jim

Ingregients (serves 4-6)
10 oz (300 g) ground chicken

3 cloves garlic, finely chopped

1/4 cup (60 ml) fresh lime or lemon juice

11/2 tablespoons fish sauce

2 tablespoons uncooked long grain or jusmine rice

2-3 bird's-eye chilies, minced

1 medium onion, thinly sliced

2 sprigs coriander leaves (cilantro), finely chopped

1 cup (20 g) fresh mint leavesAn assortment of letuce leaves, cabbage, fresh Thai basil (horapa), cucumber and long beans or green beans

Preparation
1 Dry roast the rice grains in a wok or pan over medium heat until lightly browned. Remove from the pan and grind the roasted rice lightly in a mortar and pestle or blender. Set aside

2 Cook the meat and garlic without oil in a non-stick wok or frying pan over medium heat until the meat turns white. Remove from the heat to cool.

3 Add the lime juice, fish sauce and salt, stirring to mix well. Stir in the rice powder, minced chilies, onion, scallion, cilantro and mint leaves.4 Arrange the chicken mixture on a serving platter and surround the chicken with raw vegetables and herbs, as desired.