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THAI: Essential Ingredients for Thai Cooking

Source of Recipe

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List of Ingredients

COCONUT MILK (Nam Gati)
You can find canned coconut milk in any American supermarket. Make sure you're buying the unsweetened kind, not the kind used for making piña coladas. Coconut milk is not the clear liquid inside a coconut but rather the creamy juice extracted from grated coconut. It adds creaminess and richness to sauces and soups.

FISH SAUCE (Nam Pla)
Perhaps the single most important ingredient in Thai cooking, fish sauce might be called the soy sauce of Thailand. Don't look for the cheapest. You want an aged sauce that smells rich and complex, not fishy.

GALANGAL (Kha)
Another vital Thai ingredient, this is a root similar to ginger, but with a deeper, more complex flavor. If you can't find it, you may substitute fresh ginger. The flavor will be different, but it's better than using dried or powdered galangal.

GREN PAPAYA (Malah Goh)
An unripe papaya, it's a crunchy, slightly sour green fruit. Almost every Thai meal includes a lightly dressed shredded green papaya salad. It's hard to find fresh, unripe papaya even at Asian markets, but ask for them. There's no substitute for the real thing.

JASMINE RICE (Kao)
A long-grain Thai rice with a seductive fragrance. It's widely available, but if you can't find it, try Indian basmati rice. The perfume is different, but the texture is similar.

KAFFIR LIME LEAVES (Bai Makroot)
Another crucial Thai ingredient, these dark green, glossy leaves impart a wonderfully perfumed lime flavor. Frequently available dried, it's best to use fresh or frozen. Grated lime zest is a pale shadow of kaffir lime leaves, but it's a suitable substitute.

LEMON GRASS (Takrai)
A tough stalk with a delicate citrus and ginger fragrance, lemon grass is appearing more and more frequently in American supermarkets. If you can find it fresh, stock up and store it in the freezer.

PALM SUGAR
A dark brown sugar made from coconut trees. Palm sugar is used in desserts and to add a hint of sweetness to savory dishes. It's sold in blocks and has a complex flavor, something like a mix of brown sugar, coconut and maple syrup. In place of palm sugar, use brown sugar with a touch of maple syrup.

THAI BASIL (Horopa)
A distinct anise flavor makes this basil very different from the usual kind sold in American stores. It's becoming more and more available in Asian markets, but if you can't find it, substitute regular green Italian basil. Holy basil is similar to Italian basil but has a more intense flavor.

THAI BIRD CHILES (Prik Ki Noo)
Tiny green or red chiles with a fierce bite, sold fresh in markets throughout Thailand. You may find them fresh in an Asian market, but if not, substitute another fresh chile, preferably one with a pungent flavor beneath the heat--habañero and serrano are acceptable.


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