A basket of Kaffir Lime leaves on sale.

The leaves are a bit odd, in that they usually appear to be two heart-shaped leaves occupying a single stem end to end. The leaves are also a bit thick and fleshy. The fruit of the kaffir lime (ma-groot) itself is rather unusual as well, in that its green colored skin is very lumpy, quite unlike other citrus fruits. You may find the fruits on sale at the curry spice stall, since the zest is used in some Thai dishes. Herbal shampoos made from the kaffir lime are widely available in most supermarkets in Thailand. It is supposed to prevent dandruff. Some people even believe that the kaffir lime wards off evil spirits (like garlic to vampires) and hang it outside their house.

Fresh Coriander for sale

The most unique aspect of coriander’s role in Thai cooking is the use of the root in many curry pastes. Ground fresh coriander root is probably the true "secret spice" in Thai cuisine. It’s what gives Thai fried chicken that extra flavor and provides the undertone to dishes ostensibly flavored with garlic and pepper. The use of the root presents a problem for many cooks trying to master the true taste of Thai food, since most western supermarkets cut the roots off. Some solve this problem by growing the herb themselves.

Coriander seeds are perhaps the least used part of the plant in Thai cuisine. The small round seeds resemble white peppercorns, although not quite as hard. When called for, the seeds are usually dry roasted in a frying pan before being ground up as part of a curry paste.

Although most of the coriander used in Thai food is similar to that used elsewhere, another strain of coriander is sometimes called for. Known as pak chee farang or "foreigner coriander" in Thai, in English it’s known as sawtooth coriander, understandably because of the herb’s long narrow grass-like blades with sawtooth edges.

Spicy Pork Salad

Larb is generally classified as a salad by western standards, mainly because it is almost always served at room temperature and with fresh vegetables like cabbage or long beans. This point makes it a good dish for a diner party, since it can be prepared in advance and simply set aside while you make other dishes that need to be served hot.

This version of larb is really the northern-eastern ("Isan") variation on the traditional recipe. It’s perhaps the most liked of all the regional variations, and is the most palpable to Western tastes. One of the key ingredients of Isan style larbs is roasted rice, which is used as a sort of binder. To make it, dry-roast uncooked rice in a pan until it begins to brown, then grind it in a mortar and pestle.

(4 – 6 Servings)

Ingredients

Preparation Method

• To make roasted rice, stir some uncooked rice in a hot dry frying pan until it begins to brown. It may puff up a little. Then grind the rice to a powder with a mortar and pestle or a food processor.
• Drizzle four tablespoons of the lime juice over the ground pork. Allow it to marinate for a few minutes. Drain the pork and brown it in a hot skillet.
• As soon as the pork is lightly browned, add the roasted rice, pepper, coriander, shallots and one or two tablespoons of lime juice.
• Once the pork is cooked through and the shallots are soft, remove the pan from the heat and allow to cool. Larb should be served at room temperature, or just slightly warm. Sprinkle the mint over the larb just before serving. Note: if the larb is too hot, it will turn the mint black.

Fresh mint on sale

The ancient Romans believed that eating mint increased intelligence and kept you from getting headaches. Mint was used by Europeans in the middle ages more as a drug than a seasoning. It was used to treat mouth sores, dog and wasp bites, whiten teeth, and prevent milk from curdling. It also repels mice and rats, reportedly.

Jade Sticky Rice – The Christmas Version

(4 – 6 Servings)

Sticky Rice Layer

Ingredients

Preparation Method

• Before cooking sticky rice, it must first be washed. Rinse the rice in a strainer until the water is clear. Traditional wisdom in Thailand is that it takes three washings to properly clean the dust off the rice.
• Here’s the tricky part: the rice must be soaked overnight (in other words, about eight hours or more) before cooking.
• Next, sticky rice must be steamed, not boiled, so you cannot use a traditional rice cooker unless it has a strainer to keep the water separated from the rice. You also get the best results if the rice is a uniform depth when cooking. I’ve gotten my best results using a round cake pan with a mesh bottom placed in a vegetable steamer. The pan allows the rice to be smoothed to an even depth, while the mesh bottom allows the steam through without letting the rice fall out. Steam the rice about 20 minutes.
• While the rice is cooking, stir together the sugar, coconut cream, pandan flavoring and food coloring. Use just enough coloring to give the mixture a light creamy green color. It helps dissolve the sugar if you warm the coconut cream for 20 to 30 seconds in the microwave before stirring in the sugar.
• As soon as the rice is cooked, transfer it to a large bowl and pour the sweet coconut cream over it. Stir it to mix and let it set. If you seem to have too much liquid, strain the mixture to remove the excess.
• Once the mixture has cooled slightly, you can transfer it to a pan or individual serving dishes. Keep it in the refrigerator to make it firm.

Coconut Cream Topping

Ingredients

Preparation Method

• To create the coconut cream second layer, mix together the coconut milk, rice flour and salt in a pan. Heat to boiling over medium flame, stirring until it thickens. Remove from heat and spoon onto the top of the first layer.
• Store in the refrigerator.

Serving note: If you refrigerate this dessert – which you will want to do if you’ve made it well ahead of time – be sure to take it out well enough ahead of time to be served at room temperature. The dish doesn’t taste very good cold, and needs to be room temperature or warmer.

I was surprised to find on my return home to Bangkok that there weren’t many references – on-line or in print – for Cambodian foods. As a result, I had to guess at the recipe, and I don’t even know what the name of this dish is, since a transliteration of it was not included on any menus I glanced at. In future trips to Cambodia, I’m going to have to look into this and see if I can find some local references. If you know the Khmer name of this dish, please leave a comment.

Chicken with Lemongrass and Holy Basil

(4 Servings)

Preparation Method

• Heat the oil in a heavy skillet or wok. Add the lemongrass, onions and spur chili, and sauté over medium heat until the onions are wilted.
• Add the chicken; continue to saut&eacut; until the chicken is browned. Add the oyster sauce and chicken stock.
• Allow to simmer for a few minutes until the liquid is reduced to a sauce.
• Stir in the holy basil leaves and continue cooking for a little while longer, until the holy basil leaves are wilted.

Crispy Basil Leaves

Some crispy basil leaves make a nice garnish for this dish. In Thailand, where holy basil is cheap and plentiful, some chefs like to completely smother the dish in these leaves. Making them is easy. Simply heat some oil in a skillet or wok until it’s very hot, then drop a few leaves into the hot oil. They will fry up in just a few seconds, so you need to remove them quickly and place on a paper towel to drain. It doesn’t take much oil, but it does take a bit more than you’ll need to stir-fry this dish. I set aside the excess oil for future use, since it will take on some of the fragrance of the holy basil.

Lemongrass on sale in the wholesale market

The English name for this herb comes easily from the lemony aroma it gives off, especially when cooked. Along with fresh lime juice, it is the key ingredient in the ever-popular Tom Yum soup, as well as with many other Thai dishes. The oil that gives the plant its aroma is supposed to be a good cure for upset stomach and indigestion. Lemongrass juice, or tea, is a popular herbal drink in Thai traditional medicine. The tea also makes for a natural insect repellent that can be used to water house plants to discourage bugs. Since only the white bulbous base of the stalk is used in cooking, the tea is an excellent way to make use of the rest of the lemongrass stalks.

Lemongrass is native to southern India and Sri Lanka. It was most likely bought to Thailand by Indian and Sri Lankan traders, who settled in southern Thailand and helped to found the ancient city of Ligor (modern-day Nakorn Si Thammarat), capital of the kingdom of Lankasuka, around the second century. Around the 13th century, the Theravada form of Buddhism, now practiced by more than 90 percent of the Thai people, entered Thailand from Sri Lanka through Ligor. From here it spread to Sukhothai and Chiang Mai.

Jasmine Pudding, served in a Martini glass; definitely not dry!

If I had to pick just one Thai sweet as my favorite, it would have to be this apparently simple recipe for a two layered sweet. The bottom layer consists of a nearly clear gelatin-like substance that typically has bits of something crunchy in it. The traditional crunchy bit is provided by water chestnuts, but you can use lotus seeds, sweet corn, steamed peanuts or even chunks of mature coconut. You can also try bits of fresh fruit, such as lichee, longan or mango.

The top layer is another sort of pudding made with just coconut milk and rice flour. It has an opaque snow white appearance, which might make it a quite appropriate sweet for the winter holidays. Since the top layer hides whatever is in the first layer, it makes these sweets something of an adventure. Most stalls that produce these sweets with several different bits of fruits or nuts in the first layer will place a bit of the fruit on top of the coconut layer.

You probably don’t have access to a pandan bush to source the raw materials for the boxes, and you may not wish to spend the time making the number of boxes that this recipe will fill. In that case, try to find some small foil cups for muffins or petite fours. Another possibility is to use something like a Martini glass, which makes a more elegant serving container.

Some additional ingredient notes: Corn flour is a perfectly acceptable substitute for tapioca flour. The two serve exactly the same purpose and have almost the same taste (which is pretty much none). There is no substitute for the rice flour. See the recipe for jasmine water to find out how to make it, as well as what to do if your jasmine bush isn’t in bloom. If you can’t find pandan juice, or extract, I suggest you just leave it out. I prefer the color of the dish without it. I’ve seen any number of descriptions of how to get coconut cream out of coconut milk, but frankly, the canned stuff works the best and tastes great.

(6 Servings)

Jasmine Pudding

Ingredients

Preparation Method

• To create the first layer, bring the sugar and plain water to a boil and cook until the sugar is dissolved, then reduce heat.
• Stir together the 40 grams of rice flour and tapioca flour. Mix in the jasmine water and pandan juice bit by bit. Pour slowly into the sugar mixture. Add in the water chestnuts and stir to mix through. Quickly pour the mixture into the leaf boxes, or whatever you are using to serve the dessert. You have to work fast, since this mixture will gel quite quickly.

Coconut Cream Topping

Ingredients

Preparation Method

• To create the coconut cream second layer, mix together the coconut milk, rice flour and salt in a pan. Heat to boiling over medium flame, stirring until it thickens. Remove from heat and spoon onto the top of the first layer, filling the leaf boxes, or whatever.

Serving note: If you refrigerate this dessert – which you will want to do if you’ve made it well ahead of time – be sure to take it out well enough ahead of time to be served at room temperature. The dish doesn’t taste very good cold, and needs to be room temperature or warmer to allow the jasmine fragrance to come out.

Pandan leaves on sale in Chiang Mai’s fresh market.

The fragrance of the leaves is so strong that they have traditionally been used as an air freshener. Even today, it is not unusual to see a few bunches of leaves laid on the ledge behind the rear seat of cars, especially taxis. The aroma released by the leaves when heated by the sun through the rear window keeps the interior of the car smelling sweet. In the heavy traffic of Bangkok, you will sometimes see people selling bunches of pandan leaves "car-to-car" at busy intersections. In the much more laid back Chiang Mai, people will buy bunches of pandan leaves at the markets. A stalk of the nearly meter-long leaves will cost just a few U.S. cents.

The leaves are also used to make small boxes which are filled with sweets. A syrupy juice extracted from the leaves is used to flavor cakes and other sweets. Pandan juice has a very buttery aroma and taste, which can be a bit surprising given its green color.

Panang Curry

Panang Curry Paste

First, you have to make the curry paste.

Ingredients

Preparation Method

• Grind all the ingredients together to form a fine paste. You can use a mortar and pestle or take the modern approach and use a food processor.

Panang Curry Recipe

(Serves 4)

Ingredients

Preparation Method

• Simmer the pork in 1 ½ cups of the coconut milk until the meat is cooked through.
• In a hot wok, heat the vegetable oil and stir-fry the curry paste together with the chopped peanuts until fragrant.
• Lower the heat and add the remaining ½ cup of coconut milk. Stir until mixed, then add the pork along with the coconut milk it was cooked in.
• Season with the fish sauce and sugar. Stir in the spur chillies. Sprinkle the kaffir lime leaves and basil over the curry and transfer to a serving dish.