(C) Daily Kos This story was originally published by Daily Kos and is unaltered. . . . . . . . . . . What's for Dinner v18.11 - A Taste of Thailand [1] ['This Content Is Not Subject To Review Daily Kos Staff Prior To Publication.'] Date: 2023-09-16 Confession: this was not the diary I had planned for this week. However, when writing my *original* diary, it just wouldn’t come out the way I wanted. So I’m posting this one instead, as it was much easier to write—with my apologies for a lack of my own pictures. I was in college when Thai food became popular (shout-out to UC Berkeley, pixxer!), and it’s been in the regular rotation chez ghost ever since. There was a fabulous Thai restaurant in town, which unfortunately closed during the pandemic. But I did buy their cookbook and have used it for years, although none of the recipes below came from that cookbook, but from others. Tonight, I give you several selections that can be used as the makings of a Thai dinner—either some or all, depending on your level of hunger and ambition, and the number of people to be fed. None of the ingredients are ‘exotic’ or hard to find, except maybe the tea and the fish sauce, but both are easily ordered online. First up is Thai iced tea—mostly because it needs making early in the day, or the day before. I posted this one last year in my summer drinks diary. THAI ICED TEA 1/2 c black Thai tea 1 quart boiling water 2/3 c sweetened condensed milk (1/2 can) 2/3 c lowfat milk Using a coffee cone and filter (or other method), brew the tea into a quart jar or pitcher. Chill 6-8 hours. Just before serving, mix sweetened condensed milk and lowfat milk. Pour tea over ice and add milk mixture to taste (or mix it all together and serve). Serves 3-4. This is the tea I have used since forever; it’s sometimes called “boba tea” at the Asian market. Next up is cucumber salad, which, again, I’ve posted before. Mrs. Spectre is allergic to bell peppers, so if you have a similar aversion, don’t worry—this is fine without them. THAI CUCUMBER SALAD 1 1/2 cucumbers, peeled and sliced thin 1 small red onion, sliced thin and broken into rings or halved 1/2 red bell pepper, seeded and cut into matchstick pieces 1/4 pound small cooked shrimp Dressing : 3 T fresh lime juice (2 limes) 1 T chopped garlic 1 T chopped cilantro 3 T fish sauce 1 T sesame oil 2 T sugar 1/2 t crushed red pepper flakes Combine dressing ingredients in small jar or bowl. Let sit for at least 30 minutes to let flavors blend. Place salad ingredients in bowl and toss with dressing. credit to: Everybody’s Wokking, by Martin Yan, © 1991 And now one that I haven’t posted before: Thai satay and peanut sauce—and a h/t to laniusx whose recent comment about having this for dinner was the inspiration for this diary. Although I usually see this as an appetizer in restaurants, I have served this as a meal more than once—I suggest cutting it half, which is enough for myself, Mrs. Spectre, and GhostDaughter (although it doesn’t make leftovers that way). I prefer chicken, or pork; not a fan of using beef, but that doesn’t mean you won’t like it. THAI SATAY 2 pounds pork tenderloin or boneless chicken breasts or tender beef (or some of each*) 6 cloves garlic, crushed 1 T ground coriander 1 T cumin 1 T turmeric 1 t white (or black) pepper 1 T brown sugar 1 t salt 1/2 c coconut milk Soak 10-12 bamboo skewers in water for several hours. Mix all ingredients and let marinate for at least 1 hour in the refrigerator. Put meat on skewers and grill on barbecue until cooked through. Can also bake or broil in the oven for 3 minutes per side. Serve with peanut sauce. PEANUT SAUCE 3 cloves garlic, crushed or minced 2 T vegetable oil 1 c water 2 jalapenos, finely chopped 2 T fresh lime juice 1 t salt 2 T brown sugar 1/2 t shrimp paste OR 1 t fish sauce 1 c peanut butter 1 can (14 oz) coconut milk In a small pan, fry the garlic in oil until golden brown. Add the rest of the ingredients and stir to blend. Simmer for 10 minutes, stirring frequently. Serve warm or cold. Can be reheated on low. credit to: Delightful Thai Cooking, by Eng Tie Ang, © 1990 *My friend Gene has long said that the only thing better than grilling meat…. is grilling two meats. Finally, a little Thai fried rice to go with, in case you want something a little different than steamed jasmine rice—note that I use jasmine rice to make this dish, but any white rice will do. Again, this recipe makes quite a bit, so you might want to cut it in half—which is what I’m doing tonight, since I don’t need a big batch, what with the salad and satay. THAI FRIED RICE 2-3 eggs, beaten 2 T vegetable oil 1 yellow onion, finely chopped 3 cloves, crushed 1 pound ground pork 1/2 pound small shrimpmeat 1 can (6.5 oz) crabmeat 1 t salt 1 t pepper 2 jalapenos, julienned 2 T fish sauce 2 T ketchup 4 c cooked rice 1/2 c green onions, chopped 1/2 c fresh cilantro, chopped Scramble eggs as usual; set aside to cool. In wok, fry onion and garlic until golden brown. Add pork and cook until browned; drain any excess oil. Add shrimp, crab, salt, pepper, chilis, fish sauce, ketchup. Stir fry for 5 minutes. Add rice and stir until blended. Add eggs and heat through. Serve with green onions and cilantro to garnish. credit to: Delightful Thai Cooking​​​​​​​, by Eng Tie Ang, © 1990 This is what ghost is making for dinner tonight. I’m also trying (again) to make pickled vegetables, which is a common garnish at Thai restaurants. I’ve tried a few recipes but none of them were quite right. If the one I’m trying tonight is good, I’ll post it as a comment next week. Cheers to the WFD community! [END] --- [1] Url: https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2023/9/16/2193606/-What-s-for-Dinner-v18-11-A-Taste-of-Thailand Published and (C) by Daily Kos Content appears here under this condition or license: Site content may be used for any purpose without permission unless otherwise specified. via Magical.Fish Gopher News Feeds: gopher://magical.fish/1/feeds/news/dailykos/