Thai Fried Noodles with Fresh Shrimp (pad thai talay)
ผัดไทยทะเล
Probably the most famous of the Thai dishes is this one called
simply "pad thai". You often see them making this in bulk at temple
fairs for only 10 baht a plate. Though you obviously don't get the
fresh shrimp or the quantity as in this picture. There are several
versions. This one is "pad thai talay" which means it has seafood too.
You can usually choose between fresh and dried shrimp. The latter is
obviously cheaper. I actually prefer the texture of having dried
shrimp. It is relatively easy to prepare. The main ingredients are rice
noodles (sen lek), seafood, egg, bean sprouts, spring onion and tofu.
You cook it in a sauce of palm sugar, fish sauce and tamarind juice. It
usually comes with a side helping of roasted ground peanuts, dried
chili and a cut lime. Very delicious though the taste varies between
vendors. I miss my local one who has gone somewhere else. The cost is
25 baht for dried shrimp and 30 baht for fresh shrimp.
Fried Mussels in Batter (hoi tod)
หอยทอด
If you find a vendor selling "pad thai", then they often make this
one called "hoi tod". It is basically fried mussels in a batter. I am
not keen on mussels. I also don't like it when they do it
"undercooked". Luckily, some vendors have a version which is nice and
crispy which I enjoy a lot. I also would enjoy it more if they added
another egg. I don't have this one that often and it costs about 30
baht these days.
Fish Chili Sauce with Green Mango
น้ำพริกมะม่วง
To be honest, I am not keen on any dish that uses fermented fish. I
did have a bad experience once that laid me up for several days. This
one is different to the normal "nam prik pla" as it has green mango.
Main ingredients include shallots, garlic and chillies which are
pounded in a mortar. Fermented fish is then added to this and also the
green mango. It is usually served with fresh or cooked vegetables. This
was only 20 baht.
Fried Chicken Thai Style (gai tod baep thai)
ไก่ทอดแบบไทย
This is a different kind of fried chicken with spices that is made
at our local Muslim stall. This is not as crispy as the other Muslim
vendor which I prefer. (I mean his chicken is crispy, not the vendor is
cripsy.) This was 30 baht.
Rice Flour Strings in Coconut Cream
ปลากิมไข่เตา
Our dessert today is sweet as usual but comes with a twist. It is
called "khanom pla grim kai tao". As you can see, it has two halves -
one is sweet and the other salty. The "strings" are made with rice
flour and sticky rice flour. The salty half is made with thick coconut
milk and salt and the sweet half with thin coconut milk and palm sugar.
Not too bad and costs only 10 baht.
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