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Thai Foods
Source of Recipe
CF
Follow the link below for very good Thai recipes.
Here is a link that might be useful: Enjoy Thai Food - recipes and cooking videos
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RE: Thai Dinner Party
Posted by: jannie (My Page) on Wed, Mar 29, 06 at 15:30
Pad thai is very good, but a lot of work. Imagine noodles and sprouts and peanuts together. It's listed in the link above.
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RE: Thai Dinner Party
Posted by: bubbeskitchen (My Page) on Wed, Mar 29, 06 at 15:41
I don't have menu items but the decor is easy enough. Thailand is known for their silks so scarves draped down the middle of the table might do. Woven straw and bamboo, I bought elephant hangings when there so if you can get some carved elephants. Brass items, lacquered bowl, mother-of-pearl inlay, carved wood, paper umbrellas, and incense. Faux palm leaves might be available, depending where you live, stores like Pier 1 carry stuff like this from time to time.
Most of the Southeast Asian countries have similar themes while the food varies.
Hope this helps you.
Renée
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RE: Thai Dinner Party
Posted by: publickman (My Page) on Wed, Mar 29, 06 at 15:54
Here's how I make Pad Thai, which in fact I am doing this evening. I also make this Thai shrimp soup, which is much easier.
For the decor, since you are in Florida, I would bring some real palm fronds inside or maybe use some banana leaves. Maybe find some Buddha statues.
Lars
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RE: Thai Dinner Party
Posted by: alison (My Page) on Wed, Mar 29, 06 at 16:24
This is from a fantastic cookbook I got in a swap here -- I loooove this recipe.
DRUNKEN NOODLES WITH SEAFOOD
Gkuay Dtiow Pad Kee Mao
1 lb fresh wide rice noodles
½ - ¾ lb bite sized pieces of several different kinds of seafood (firm-fleshed fish, shrimps, scallops, squid, shelled mussels, etc.)
3-4 T. peanut oil for stir frying
8-10 cloves garlic, chapped
½ c. sliced onions
10-15 Thai chilis, cut into small pieces and crushed in a mortar and pestle
2-3 c. Chinese broccoli (I have no idea what that is, so I used bok choy – yum!
2-3 T. Thai oyster sauce
2-3 t. black soy
2-3 T. fish sauce
1 t. sugar, to taste
½ to 1 cup fresh basil (holy basil or Thai basil are best – have a bit more of a camphor taste)
1 small tomato, cut into wedges
Separate the block of fresh noodles into individual strands. Keep the different kinds of seafood separate. Make sure they are well drained before stir-frying. Prepare the remaining ingredients as indicated.
Heat a well seasoned wok over high flame until it is hot and smoking. Swirl the oil to coat the surface. Allow the oil to heat up before adding the garlic, followed shortly by the sliced onion. Sauté 10-15 seconds. Toss in the fish pieces, stir a few seconds, then add the shrimp, scallops and mussels. Stir-fry another 10-15 seconds before tossing in the squid. Sauté a few seconds more, then add the Thai chili and stir again. Try to keep the wok surface as hot as possible over a high setting during the entire stir-fry.
Next, toss in the noodles and broccoli pieces (or cabbage). Stir to mix all the ingredients together, and then sprinkle in the oyster sauce and toss to distribute evenly. Follow with the black soy sauce; stir and toss some more. Spread the noodles up along the heated sides of the wok so that the strands have equal contact with the hot metal. Let them pan-fry a short while before stirring again and re-distributing the strands over the hot wok surface. Then, sprinkle in the fish sauce, a little sugar and white pepper. Stir and toss well. Taste and adjust flavours to desired saltiness and sweetness. Add the basil and tomato wedges, continue to stir-fry until the basil is wilted. Serve while still warm.
This is one I think I got from this forum -- or maybe another site. It's more work, but really good!
THAI CHICKEN WITH ROASTED PEANUTS IN LETTUCE CUPS
SERVES: 8
INGREDIENTS
1 tablespoon olive oil
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 pound boneless skinless chicken breasts
1/2 cup chicken broth
1/2 cup whole salted dry roasted peanuts
2 tablespoons Thai fish sauce
2 tablespoons soy sauce
4 tablespoons fresh lime juice
1 can water chestnuts, finely minced
1 medium red onion, finely minced
3 green onions, finely diced
3 tablespoons fresh ginger, minced
1 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
1 head iceberg, green leaf, or red leaf lettuce
COOKING INSTRUCTIONS
Add oil to small skillet and sauté garlic until golden brown, about 1-2 minutes. Remove from heat and set aside.
Finely mince chicken breasts either with knife or in food processor. Heat chicken broth in large skillet over moderate heat 1 minute. Add chicken and stir 2-5 minutes, until broth is nearly evaporated. Remove from heat. Stir in garlic and remaining ingredients, except lettuce. (Can be prepared 2 days ahead, covered, and refrigerated, however omit roasted peanuts. Reheat just before serving and add peanuts.)
To serve, carefully separate lettuce into leaves. Mound chicken mixture in center of large platter. Arrange lettuce leaves in a circle around chicken. Have each guest spoon chicken mixture into lettuce leaf and fold the leaf over to eat.
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RE: Thai Dinner Party
Posted by: arabellamiller (My Page) on Wed, Mar 29, 06 at 16:32
I had a little Thai party a while back and the CF folks were amazingly helpful with recipes. Here's what I made - some of them are credited and some are not - I apologize for any that are missing the name of the kind person who gave me the recipe.
NAM SOD
(Jay’s recipe, via Sunny 8/01)
Steamed white rice
2 TB lime juice
1-2 TB sugar
2 TB fish sauce
1 tsp. ginger, freshly grated
2 TB peanuts, raw, unsalted
¼ tsp. dried chili pepper (whole)
¼ - ½ lb. meat
1-2 green onions, finely chopped
¼ large white onion (or 1 little onion)
2 TB cilantro (optional)
6 leaves romaine, cut in approximately ½ " strips
Cook rice first! Place the lime, sugar, fish sauce and ginger together in one bowl (don’t need to mix); set aside. *Fry peanuts and chile in about 2 TB oil; remove from pan and set aside, reserving oil in pan; finely chop the ¼ tsp. chili when cool enough to handle (add at end). Stir-fry meat (in same oil); turn off heat. While pan is still hot, add lime, sugar, fish sauce and ginger. Taste sauce; it should be a tart, sweet and salty balance (or to your preference); add more lime (for more tart), sugar (for more sweet) or fish sauce (for more salty flavor) if needed. Mix all ingredients (except rice) together. Serve over rice on plate.
*Peanuts and chilis are done very quickly at very high heat setting– between 20 seconds to 2 minutes, depending on your stove (don’t turn your back for a second!)
Commentary
We didn’t have cilantro in our batch and it was delicious; Best when served immediately after mixing together, lettuce is then only slightly wilted.
Thai - Spiced Cilantro Chicken
==============================
Adjusted from recipe in the Creative Cooking Thai Cookbook
4 boneless/skinless chicken breasts
2 garlic cloves
1 fresh green chili, deseeded
3/4 inch piece fresh ginger
finely grated rind of 1 lime
3 tablespoons lime juice
2 tablespoons light soy sauce
3/4 cup coconut milk
1/4 cup chicken broth.
Using a sharp knife, cut 3 deep slashes into the skinned side of each
chicken breast.
Place the breasts in a single layer in a glass dish.
Put the garlic, chili, ginger, cilantro, lime rind and juice, soy sauce, and
coconut milk in a food processor or blender and process until smooth.
Spread half the puree over both sides of teh chicken breasts, coating
evenly. Cover the dish and leave to marinate in the refrigerator for 1 to 2
hours. Lift the chicken from the marinade, drain off the excess and place on a baking sheet.
Roast in a 450°F oven for 10 minutes. Drain off any juices
that have gathered into a sauce pan and add the remaining reserved marinade to sauce pan as well.
Return chicken to oven and continue to cook under the broiler until golden approximately 5 to 10 more minutes.
Add 1/4 cup chicken broth to marinade and bring Marinade to a boil. Simmer
for a several minutes. Serve with chicken breasts. Servings: 4
Spicy Chinese Noodles
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Mique's recipe posted April 30th/2002
l lb. Chinese noodles (same ones as above) cooked, rinsed in cold water, and drained SAUCE:
½ Tahini or peanut butter or a combination
½ c. water
1/3 Tamari or soy sauce
2 T. toasted or dark sesame oil
1-2 T. Chili paste
1-2 T. Honey
1-2 Grated fresh ginger
. Mix sauce ingredients. Toss noodles with the sauce. Top with scallions.
Tommy Tang’s Santa Fe Chile Pasta (this one's from DLundin and it is absolutely to die for. Truly yummy. My guests couldn't get enough)
3/4 pound penne or other short tubular pasta
1/4 teaspoon salt
3 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoons finely chopped red onion
1 tablespoon finely chopped garlic
1 tablespoon chili powder
2 teaspoons roasted chile paste
1 cup coconut milk
1 1/2 tablespoons Thai fish sauce
1 cup whipping cream (I used soy milk to make it non-dairy)
4 sundried tomatoes, packed in oil, drained and cut into 1/4-inch strips
4 sprigs fresh basil (optional)
Cool pasta in abundant boiling salted water until al dente, about 7 minutes. Drain and set aside.
Heat olive oil in heavy saucepan over high heat. Add onion and garlic and stir until lightly brown, about 2 minutes. Add chili powder and chile paste and stir 1 minute. Add coconut milk and fish sauce and bring to boil. Add cream and return to boil.
Reduce heat to low and simmer 5 minutes, stirring. Increase heat to medium, add cooked pasta and stir until well coated with sauce. Transfer to platter and top with sun-dried tomatoes. Garnish with basil and serve. Makes 4 servings.
This is a Malaysian soup, called "laksa". It's from Organic Style magazine. It was delicious.
1 package soba noodles, rice-stick or vermicelli
1 T canola oil
1 shallot, thinly sliced
1 T plus 1tsp grated ginger
1 12/ T red curry paste (adjust to spicyness desired)
1 14 oz can unsweetened coconut milk (I use lite)
4 cups vegetable stock
4 T fish sauce
Juice of 1 1/2 limes
12 oz skinless wild salmon, cut into pieces
4 oz snow peas, ends trimmed
bean sprouts, cilantro and lime wedges for garnish
Cook noodles
stir fry shallot until soft, add ginger and curry paste, then coconut milk and stock. Bring to a boil, then simmer 10 minutes.
Add the fish sauce, lime juice and salmon, stir gently. Simmer until fish is cooked through (5 - 6 minutes). Add snow peas and remove from heat.
Divide noodles into bowls, add soup and garnish.
AM
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RE: Thai Dinner Party
Posted by: lorijean44 (My Page) on Wed, Mar 29, 06 at 17:15
I have a Chicken Pad Thai recipe you might like to try - it's good, not difficult, but lots of ingredients! The key is to get all the chopping and measuring done before you actually start the cooking process:
Chicken Pad Thai
5-1/3 ounces dried Pad Thai rice noodles
6 ounces boneless chicken breast, julienned
1 teaspoon cornstarch
1 teaspoon sesame oil
2 tablespoons fresh lime juice
1 tablespoon brown sugar
1/2 teaspoon dried red chilies, ground
1/2 teaspoon paprika
2 tablespoons bottled Thai chili sauce
2 tablespoons fish sauce
1 cup peanut oil
1 egg, lightly beaten
1/3 cup thinly sliced scallion greens
2 tablespoons Thai basil, chopped
2 tablespoons cilantro leaves
1 tablespoon ground dried shrimp
3 tablespoons chopped roasted peanuts
1 cup fresh bean sprouts
Lime wedges for garnish
Pour very hot tap water to cover the noodles and let sit 30 minutes. Drain thoroughly, rinse with cold water, and set aside.
Mix the chicken with the cornstarch, salt, and sesame oil.
Mix together the lime juice, brown sugar, ground chilies, paprika, Thai chili sauce, and fish sauce, and set aside.
In a wok or skillet, heat 1 cup peanut oil. When hot but not smoking, add the chicken. Stir to separate the pieces. When they change color, remove to drain in a colander. Reserve the oil.
Heat a clean wok or skillet to very hot. Add 3 tablespoons of the reserved oil. When hot, add the egg, and stir quickly to set (do not brown). Push to one side of the pan and add the scallion greens. Stir briefly just to coat with the oil, then add the noodles. Toss the noodles in the pan 15 seconds or so and re-add the chicken. Toss continually until the noodles soften and are well coated with the oil, and the chicken, egg, and scallion greens are mixed in. When the pan is piping hot, drizzle in the lime juice-brown sugar mixture. After 5 seconds, pull the pan from the heat and toss vigorously. Add most of the basil and cilantro leaves (reserving a pinch of each for a final garnish), the dried shrimp, and the peanuts, and toss. Add the bean sprouts and keep tossing. Transfer to a serving plate and serve with 2 lime wedges on the side. A few drips of the lime juice is recommended.
Serves 1 hungry person or 2 to 3 as part of a larger meal.
Source: Big Bowl Noodles and Rice, © 2000
Lori
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RE: Thai Dinner Party
Posted by: mustangs (My Page) on Wed, Mar 29, 06 at 17:23
Sam, So you are also in Florida. You know, Thai is my favorite cuisine.
Tommy Tang came here and gave a cooking class, I have all of his books so it was really neat meeting him.
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RE: Thai Dinner Party
Posted by: publickman (My Page) on Wed, Mar 29, 06 at 17:32
Here's a thread on Spring Rolls, if you are interested in making those.
Lars
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RE: Thai Dinner Party
Posted by: marie26 (My Page) on Wed, Mar 29, 06 at 17:45
I have never cooked this but my favorite Thai dish is Sweet Sticky Coconut Rice. I first tasted it when visiting my daughter in New York. I made her take me back to the same restaurant just to order it again.
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RE: Thai Dinner Party
Posted by: harper (My Page) on Wed, Mar 29, 06 at 18:37
I love Thai, but haven't cooked it in a while.
Lars, your pad Thai looks authentic with the tamarind paste. I bought the pods last year and was going to make my own, but never did.
AM, love Tommy Tang's Santa Fe Chile Pasta. That Thai chicken sounds familiar. I tried that or something similar and didn't care for it. Baking just didn't do it. Maybe it would have been better as a stir-fry?
Two of my favorite Thai dishes are a soup and salad ... Tom Kha and seaweed salad. I've never made the salad, but here's my recipe for the soup.
Tom Kha
(Coconut Soup)
2 cups chicken stock or broth
1 inch piece of galangal, sliced
Lemongrass, smashed (about 6 inches)
Zest of large lime
1/2 teaspoon Thai chili paste
1/2 can coconut milk
Fresh squeezed juice from one large lime
1 tablespoon fish sauce
2 teaspoons brown sugar
1/2 cup cooked chicken (or turkey)
Cilantro for garnish
Combine stock, galangal, lemongrass, zest, and chili paste in saucepan. Simmer for about 10 minutes. Strain stock, then add coconut milk, lime juice fish sauce, and brown sugar. Cook for a few minutes and check seasoning. Add chicken for a minute or two, just to heat. Garnish with cilantro.
Harper
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RE: Thai Dinner Party
Posted by: stacy3 (My Page) on Wed, Mar 29, 06 at 19:15
I totally agree with Lori. Pad Thai LOOKS intimidating, but if you prepare the ingredients beforehand it all goes together very easily. I am no gourmet chef, by any means and this is one of my favorite things to make. My Dh recently ate at Rama restaurant in San Diego (just last week) and claimed that MY pad thai was better than THEIRS! (He may have just been trying to get lucky, but DANG - that was quite a compliment - lol!)
I've made Lori's, and Harper's and another one from a former poster Lythonde. Some use tamarind - others don't. I can't always find it.
PAD THAI – harper
1 pound shrimp or chicken breast cut into thin, bite size pieces
8 oz. dried rice noodles
2 tablespoons peanut oil
2 tablespoons fish sauce
2 tablespoons fresh lime juice
2 tablespoons brown sugar
1 tablespoon hot chili sauce
1 tablespoon rice vinegar
4 cloves garlic, finely minced
1 egg, beaten
6 green onions, sliced diagonally
1 cup fresh bean sprouts
3-4 tablespoons peanuts, chopped
3 tablespoons cilantro, chopped
lime cut into wedges
Prepare everything in this order:
MAKE sauce with fish sauce, lime juice, sugar, chili sauce and vinegar.
CHOP the garlic, green onions, peanuts and cilantro; set aside in separate bowls.
SOAK the noodles in warm water to cover for 10 minutes. They should still be a little hard when drained.
HEAT wok or large skillet on high; add oil. Sauté the shrimp or chicken, then half of the green onions. Add garlic momentarily, then add the egg and scramble quickly. Add the drained rice noodles and toss to coat. Add the sauce mixture and let cook for 30 seconds. Add remaining green onions, bean sprouts, peanuts, and cilantro. Serve with lime wedges.
PAD THAI – LYTHONDE
Sorry; I don't pop over to the recipe section often, but Cindy mentioned you were looking for a Phad Thai recipe. I generally dont use a recipe, and this is out of my head, so measurements will be inexact. Make sure to taste the sauce before you go forward: you need a strong but balanced combo of salty, sweet, and sour. Adjust ingredients as necessary.
Noodles:
1 lb. thin rice stick noodles
1 lb. med. size shrimps, shelled and cleaned, last tail segment of shell left intact
(you can substitute a few sliced-up boneless, skinless chicken breasts and/or cubed deep fried tofu)
2 eggs, lightly beaten
1 c. bean sprouts
1 bunch green onion, cut into 1" lengths
Oil, for stir-frying
Sauce:
3 tbsp. Thai fish sauce
2 tbsp. tamarind concentrate
3 tbsp. lime juice
1/4 palm sugar or brown sugar
1 tbsp. ketchup
1 tbsp. minced garlic
cayenne or red chili flake to taste (go easy; you can always add more later)
Erica: "Taste the sauce – it should be a strong but balanced combination of salty, sweet and sour."
Garnish:
lime wedges
toasted chopped peanuts
fresh cilantro leaves
Additional raw bean sprouts
shredded cabbage or carrot
Soak noodles in hot water while you prepare the rest of the ingredients. Peel shrimp, chop veggies for noodles and garnish, etc.
Combine ingredients for sauce (TASTE and adjust as necessary) and set aside. Make sure all ingredients are prepped and ready to go before you begin cooking.
Get a large wok quite hot. Add a few tbsp of oil into the wok. Add shrimp or chicken and let sear. Add the white portion of the green onion and the bean sprouts and toss together for a few seconds. Push the protein and veggies up to one side on the wok and add a bit more oil to the bottom if necessary. Add eggs and allow to set gently. Scrape into curds and combine with rest of stir-fry. Add drained, soft noodles and toss to combine. Add sauce and continue to stir-fry until the noodles have absorbed almost all of the sauce. At this point add the green portion of the green onions and toss to combine. Continue to cook until the noodles have adsorbed all the sauce and are soft-chewey with good flavor.
Serve alone or with rice, if you like, garnished with wedges of lime, several tbsp. fresh bean sprouts and crunchy stuff (cabbage or carrot) and topped with ground peanuts and cilantro. This recipe will serve 2-4 hungry people, depending on how ravenous they are, or more with additional thai dishes.
A few tips: The whole cooking process might sound complicated, but it should take only about 5 minutes and is really just a question of adding things in the proper order. If you have a smaller wok or a saute pan, you can saute the shrinp and veggies in one batch and set aside, then saute the noodles and sauce in another bather and combine everything in a big bowl. If your noodles seem quite firm when you start the stir-fry process they will need more cooking time with the sauce and you might add a few tbsp of water to the wok and cover to steam them softer. However, you are looking for a texture that is still a bit chewey...not al dente, where the center of the noodle is different than the exterior, but just a sort-of all over cheweyness that comes from not over-cooking the noodles. If the noodles seem really really limp when you remove them from the hot water, let them sit a few minutes and they will dry out a bit. After you have made phad thai a few times, you will be able to tell the proper texture for the noodles just by feeling them. The beauty of Phad Thai is you can really modify it as you wish. I knew someone who liked theirs with broccoli. Green onion and bean sprouts are pretty standard as the "crunchy" factor, but you could substitute with cabbage or carrot....anything that will hold it's crunch, then top with more of the same. The peanuts round out the dish and are yummy but aren't totally necessary: I just leave them out when I don't have them. If tamarind is unavailable, add a bit more lime and palm sugar and a dash or two of worcestershire sauce (tamarind is a main flavoring). Ummmm...other than that, welcome to the wonderful world of thai food cookery. I hope your noodles turn out wonderfully!
The restaurant that DH went to has a great website. He said it was a wonderful atmosphere. Extremely high ceilings with these drapes hanging down. He said that it was much darker than the pictures make you think. There are several music tracks on the website as well. I hope you have some luck - It sounds like sooo much fun!!!
Stacy
Here is a link that might be useful: Rama restaurant
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RE: Thai Dinner Party
Posted by: trixxee62 (My Page) on Wed, Mar 29, 06 at 19:42
If you serve anything spicy, some ice cold Singha (Thai beer/lager) would be great.
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RE: Thai Dinner Party
Posted by: harper (My Page) on Wed, Mar 29, 06 at 20:10
Stacy, that's a major compliment! And I have to be honest, the only restaurant pad Thai that I really like isn't even from a Thai restaurant. It's a Louisiana chain called Semolina's. I prefer my own.
How do you rate the difference between the times you use tamarind and those you don't? I took Erica's advice and usually add more lime and sugar. Wonder how that girl's doing btw? If she ever finished that big house with a gorgeous kitchen?
Harper
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