More like Pad Thai for Beginners?

by Pim under Uncategorized with 76 Comments

Thursday, February 1, 2007

I’ve been in London for nearly two weeks now and have been so busy I haven’t got time to blog! Luckily the Pad Thai for Beginners post I put up right before I left has got some staying power. So, that’s got me thinking, perhaps I should do more posts like that one. And perhaps we can brainstorm about which ones I should do here while I get my arse in gear to get on with normal posting schedule.

So, what other dishes would you like me to do a ‘Pad Thai for Beginners’ treatment to? Thai Curries? Another type of stir-fried noodles? You tell me! Leave a comment and I’ll see what I can do.

I’ll stick with Thai dishes, as there are plenty there to demystify for everyone. But should you be so burden by your craving for a non-Thai dish I might just be able to get a certain 2-Michelin Star chef to do a ‘For Beginners’ lesson for us. ;-)

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  • http://blog.sararosso.com Sara, Ms. Adventures in Italy

    Yes, yes, yes!
    I love love love yellow curry (the chicken and potatoes one or vegetarian) or the lemongrass-coconut milk chicken soup (Tom Kha Gai)

  • Regina

    Loved the instructional post! I would love to see any Thai curry done. Red Curry is my fav but any will do. You were able to explain the Pad Thai better than anyone EVER. Thanks again!

  • Gadget

    Hi Pim
    loved the Pad Thai instructions though haven’t used it yet.
    I would love to know how to make thr morthern thai sausages Sai Orh and Nam. I try to bring them back with me but I think they are not allowed through customs into the UK. So if I could make then myself that would solve mny problems.
    There is another northern dish of spiced minced pork, I think it is called Lam, that I would like to cook.
    The southern curry I like best is yellow curry and I would love to make the paste myself.
    Mark

  • Anne-Jet

    What a great idea! I would love to know more about Thai vegetables. I love them in my food but once I get to the supermarket, I don’t know what to buy or what to do with them. Here in Amsterdam we have access to some great Asian supermarkets, so anything you can teach would be great! Thanks!

  • http://www.asciiarmor.com Ryan Cox

    Thai soups!

  • MK

    Pad see ew? Pad makur? Thanks!

  • http://www.loneykitchen.blogspot.com hchie

    Great idea! Would you please feature Tom Yum Goon Soup and Red Curry Beef. Thanks.

  • http://profile.typekey.com/esoller/ Eager Eater

    I am in for Thai curry. A primer on curries and associated techniques would be welcomed. The Pad Thai post was an excellent reference guide. I am going to try it this weekend. Thanks!

  • Marieta

    What a splendid, detailed recipe…which I will soon be trying out after a litte mission to the “chinatown” of the 13th arrondissement (my ‘hood, by the way). Would love to have your version of a Tom Yum recipe, with vegetarian options if feasible.
    Milles bises pour vos paroles sublimes.

  • Marieta

    What a splendid, detailed recipe…which I will soon be trying out after a litte mission to the “chinatown” of the 13th arrondissement (my ‘hood, by the way). Would love to have your version of a Tom Yum recipe, with vegetarian options if feasible.
    Milles bises pour vos paroles sublimes.

  • http://onefoodguy.blogspot.com scott

    I too like chicken yellow curry, and massaman curry, and would love to learn how to make them! Thanks!

  • AR

    I’d love to see curries done. There’s a lot to learn there, and it’s something many people are familiar with.

  • http://www.beaskitchen.com/blog/ bea at La tartine gourmande

    Oh yes, there are plenty of things to demystify!

  • http://chezmyrtille.blogspot.com Karen

    I would love to learn more about Thai curry and soups with vinegar!
    Thanks.

  • http://chezmyrtille.blogspot.com Karen

    I’d love to learn more about Thai curry and soups with vinegar.
    Thanks.

  • Stephanie

    thai curries would be awesome! one for mango sticky rice would be divine (and easy). :)
    oh! how about that guest dish where you wrap up all of the different things in a banana leaf, dip it in a sauce, and eat?

  • http://driste.wordpress.com Jenna

    mmm… how about Pad Kee Mow (spelling??). I love that dish, but mine NEVER comes out as good as that of my favorite Thai take-out shack (Noi’s in Los Osos, CA)
    http://www.flickr.com/photos/emdot/776401/in/set-29253/

  • mehrunnisa

    chez…
    green and red chicken curry please!!! with possible substitutes like if i can’t find thai red chillies is there anything else i can use… or thai basil!! i love your blog… it’s made me fall in love with food all over again!

  • http://www.aistesite.com Aiste

    I would love to see how to cook two my favorite Thai dishes.Thai curry with shrimps and soup with shrimps “à la citronelle” . I could eat them every day :) Thanks!

  • http://www.boisdejasmin.com Victoria

    Great idea! Thanks for doing it.
    I am looking forward tp this, since I have been reading and re-reading your Thai recipes. You have done excellent posts on Gang Som, Green Curry, Panang Curry, so Red Curry might perhaps be a great choice.

  • Diana

    How about Pad See Ew and Tom Kha Gai?

  • Julian Cavanaugh

    It is slightly sad for those of us that have been reading your blog for so long, to no longer have the inside track on your travels and eats. Gee, in London for almost TWO WEEKS with nary a note on who you are seeing and what you are eating… miss the old Pim! Don’t turn this into a cooking blog – we can go anywhere for that! Folks like me just like living vicariously through you and now that is practically gone.

  • Srdjan

    A green shrimp curry recipe, a green shrimp curry recipe, a kingdom for a green shrimp curry recipe!!! PRETTY PLEASE!!!

  • http://guiltycarnivore.com The Guilty Carnivore

    I second (or third) the pad kee mow. I would say khao soi but you’ve already covered that. How about papaya salad? Larb?

  • http://www.tomatom.com Ed

    I’d be interested in recipes for what your favourite dishes – in fact, what are your top ten Thai dishes?. Thisis to get me into some new Thai dishes that I don’t usually choose. Curries would be great as well.

  • http://www.aidanbrooks.blogspot.com/ Trig

    While you’re in London it would be nice to see you come for lunch at the Escoffier Room, where I’m cooking at present. You can find details at http://www.westking.ac.uk/vincent/vincent.asp

  • Nick

    I’d love to see a photo post about Thai staple ingredients (sauces, veg, fungi, cuts of meat, spices and the like) with quick explanations of how they’re used and their flavor profiles. A list of acceptable substitutions for the harder to find ones would also be great.

  • http://www.vineyardgate.com Alex B

    How about sticky rice and mango and roti?

  • AOng

    Pim, I think we’re on the right track with this Curry thingy!!!!!! lol!

  • Joe

    I’m going to add to the Pad Kee Maow (fourth it?) request.
    I love Drunken Noodles but am weary of trying it without some instruction. Rice noodles are a pain to use. I need technique advice.
    I found an old post on eGullet, might’ve even been yours Pim, that is building my enthusiasm.

  • Darcy

    Pim, your blog is so delightful! 1) I loved that you accounted for both vegetarian and non-veg preparations of the Pad Thai. That was so nice for that kind of detailed post. 2) At my favorite Thai place they organize the menu into sections like beef, chicken, veg/tofu, and most of the dishes are the same but with a different meat component. The one that I love is with red curry I think, prig pao, and I’d love to see this dish deconstructed in that way.

  • http://huoleifeng.blogspot.com b. cheng

    I would absolutely love you doing a red curry for beginners!!!

  • faustianbargain

    i am collecting vegetarian menus. how about a complete thai vegetarian menu?

  • http://www.counterintelligenceblog.com Melissa

    What about Larb Gai? I love, love, love it. I know its easy, but I never get it quite right.

  • carla

    Dearest Pim,
    Your aunt’s famous Nam-prik Pao.

  • http://www.platform27.co.uk/nikkipolani nikkipolani

    Here’s my vote for larb!

  • http://scribbit.blogspot.com Michelle

    Anything Southeast Asian would benefit. I’m so stuck in a rut I’m easily impressed.

  • keaton

    Wow, such fabulous detailed instructions for Thai cooking. We are lucky readers, indeed!
    I’ll absolutely try any recipe you share, but I do have a special request. I may be a lone voice here, but Som Tum (green papaya salad) is my single favorite Thai dish and it is always the first thing I order at any new Thai restaurant I visit. I like it spicy and served with sticky rice and I’m fond, too, of the versions with raw blue crab. I have looked in vain for a good recipe in several Thai cookbooks. But if you were ever in the mood to demystify it for us …

  • http://guerson.wordpress.com/ Alexandra

    A red or green thai curry!!! Or maybe a Laksa?

  • Lynn

    Thai green curry please! Especially an easy way to make the green curry paste. I just read about your blog and am absolutely HOOKED. I want to be you! :)

  • Amanda

    Pim,
    I loved that you included vegetarian alternatives for pad thai. You are so sweet. I’d love to learn about red and green Thai curries. Also, is coconut oil the answer to the rich flavor? Thanks so much.

  • http://www.bitterpurl.com yahaira

    ooo how about some mussaman!?
    I can’t wait to try out the pad thai this weekend, thanks

  • http://www.gastronomicfightclub.com/ snekse

    You read my mind with that last paragraph. Maybe a certain egg perpetration or something for the home cook to impress guests at their next dinner party?

  • andre

    how about a spicy beef salad and some sticky rice for dipping. or spicy pork salad would also be good. thanks again for the excellent pad thai.

  • mdp

    Pad See Ew would be great, it is my favorite noodle dish.

  • Basic A

    Pad Kee Maow please!
    If not that, then a Tom Yum soup

  • http://www.rasamalaysia.com Rasa Malaysia

    Hi Pim, I just tagged you on “Five Things Most People Don’t Know About Me.” Hopefully we will get to know you better. Have fun in London and looking forward to learn more about Thai cooking from you. :)

  • bob

    hey pim, have you ever thought about taking a trip to Italy? I’ve heard the food is really good over there.
    Bob

  • http://profile.typekey.com/zeegirl/ Zee

    Well, you know… if you want to show us how to make your aunt’s Nam-prik Pao, that would be awesome! :)

  • Juli

    Banana fritters like from the moving carts in the streets of Bangkok.
    My favorite snack!
    This would be the bomb.

  • http://www.libromancy.org Sara

    I second (or twentieth?) the vote for curry, especially panang. I’m ok at dry curries and can make a mean green thai curry, but the magic of panang eludes me.

  • SR

    Ooh, recipes by request, so exciting?
    What about the recipe for one of my newest southern Thai favs? Squash with shallots and scramled eggs. Seems simple enough, but I can’t seem to get it quite right. Makes a wonderful compliment to spicy curries.

  • Ania

    When I visited Thailand this summer, I had these potsticker-like snacks filled with garlicky greens and served with a spicy dipping sauce . . . I have no idea what they were called (I got them from a street vendor), but they were sooooooo good! Anyway, I’d love to read something about Thai dumplings.

  • Michelle

    PAD SEE EWW! :)

  • ash

    HO w about a recipe for Spicy Thai fried rice and the deep fried banana with ice cream dessert??? BTW/ since I am vegetarian, could you also mention veg substitutes in your recipes? Thanks.

  • jenn

    shrimp and pineapple curry. and also mango sticky rice!

  • G. Mokarakorn

    Kar Moo( hog leg) or Moo Ping ( BBQ pork on stick)Or how to make curry paste rather than the can.

  • http://becksposhnosh.blogspot.com/ sam

    maitake mushroom ravioli?

  • Maria

    I’d love to learn a fool-proof way of making Thai curry (yellow, green, red – any or all)! The store-bought packaged curry pastes never taste very good so it’d be great to learn some authentic fresh curry paste recipes.
    Thanks for the Pad Thai tips too! All the times I’ve made the noodles they have been gooey, so thanks to you I know what I’ve been doing wrong! It all makes perfect sense now! :)

  • Annapurna

    I vote for more out-of-the ordinary dishes. With a decent Thai cookbook, we can all learn to make a good red or yellow curry (David Thompson’s, for example, for the intrepid, or something a little more accessible for the Thai cooking novice). I would be elated if you were to pick your brain (on our behalf) to find things that are not on your standard Thai restaurant menu. Like you did with the Pla-dook Foo. Now that is something for which we rarely–if ever–see a recipe!
    In any case, you never fail to enlighten us!

  • http://chezpim.typepad.com Pim

    Lots and lots of good ideas here. Thanks so much everyone. I will get to at least some of these when I get back to California in March.
    I might get to do some Thai cooking here in Paris as well, so we’ll see, you might see something else sooner than that.
    cheers,
    Pim

  • http://www.HansAKoch.com/ Hans A. Koch

    I say let’s get the Chef to do a video (Embed). Soft Shell Crab or whatever is has going on in the kitchen this time of year!!! I’ll Digg to that!

  • Grecia

    How about chilli jam??

  • mindy

    Veggie Mee Krob.

  • Ellie

    PLEASE yellow curry. All the yellow curry on the east coast has summer squash and pineapple and I cannot get it with potatoes and carrots like I could in California.
    And perhaps while you’re at it you can explain whether potatoes/carrots or summer squash/pineapples is the “authentic” way of making yellow curry?

  • http://fidgetybudgie.typepad.com gaile

    Ooh, i’d love to learn more about ways to successfully use those fat rice stick noodles, and maybe about a dish I had many years ago called evil jungle princess, of course the classic tom yum and tom kha gai, but especially am interested in learning about traditional thai fish dishes like the pomfret fish and or fishcakes! Thank you for sharing your talent with us!

  • http://thedepartmentofme.blogspot.com Kt

    I’m waving my hand frantically for larb and mee grob…

  • Joe

    Hi Chez, Love your pad thai for beginners. i had cooked pad thai before but had always used pre-packed cooking tamarind, was not as good as making my own tamarind paste! sorted my dried noodles too now. i find the best way is to soak them in warm water for a while, then just before adding them to the wok, pour some boiling water over them for a few seconds, brings them out perfectly!!
    as for other recipes, as the guy said above, i would really like to see Pad kee Mao. i have made it a lot but never seems to come out like my favourite restaurant. is is served in a kind of light red oil with a lot of chili. it’s not too hot though surprisingly! mine always comes out a bit like pad thai but i use yellow bean sauce with oyster sauce, sesame oil and fish sauce, do you know what the “real” combination is? any help would be much appreciated. I am only a 19 year old university student but i love cooking thai noodles! (and currys and soups!)
    email me if you prefer
    Many Thanks, Joe x

  • Amber

    I say red or yellow curry– or any sort of Thai style fried rice.

  • Jason

    Please please please teach me drunken noodles. I have had it at many thai restaurants and they all have a similar flavor that is missing from every recipe I have tried.

  • Navpreet

    Dear Pim – the pad thai information was AWESOME – but the noodles still get gooey…I would love detailed info on how to cook green curries and thai veggies – could you recommend premade thai green curry pastes? Looking forward to more….

  • tiffany

    Red, Green or yellow thai curry would be on my definite list. Then dishes that include a ground meat of some kind.
    thanks for asking

  • Joyce

    Pad kee Mao / Drunken Nooldles!

  • Katie

    I would LOVE to see instructions on curries…my heart is with the green.
    The Pad Thai was amazing.

  • Missy

    I would love to see Pad See Ew. I have yet to find a good recipe for this!

  • amy

    Loved this post!! I would love to see a recipe for drunken noodles!! And some pointers for making spring/salad rolls!