Soy Scallion Dipping Sauce

1/4 cup soy sauce

2 Tbsp rice vinegar

1 Tbsp honey

2 Tbsp water

2 Tbsp dark sesame oil

2 teaspoons Korean red pepper flakes

2 Tbsp crushed roasted sesame seeds

1/4 cup green onions

Mix.

Pine Nut Porridge

Ingredients:
Pine nuts, rice, salt, and water.

Directions (for 1 serving):

Soak 1/3 cup of short-grain rice in cold water for 1-2 hours.

Rinse and drain and put it into a blender.

Add 2 tbs pine nuts (with the tips removed) and 2 cups of water to the blender.
Blend the mixture finely for about 3 minutes, until it turns into a milky white liquid.

Pour the liquid into a heavy bottomed pot.
Cook it over medium high heat. Keep stirring with a wooden spoon.
It’ll get thicker in about 3 minutes. Add ½ ts of kosher salt, lower the heat to medium low, and stir for 5 more minutes. The porridge will get thinner and a little soupy.

Transfer the finished porridge to a serving bowl and garnish with a few pine nuts on top.

Steamed Tofu With Sesame Oil

Ingredients

• 2 tbsps rice vinegar
• 1 tsp toasted sesame oil
• 1 tsp ginger (grated peeled)
• 14 tsp red pepper flakes
• coarse salt
• ground pepper
• 4 ozs extra firm tofu (drained)
• 4 ozs snow peas (ends trimmed)
• 2 scallions (thinly sliced)
• 1 red bell pepper (ribs and seeds removed thinly sliced)
• 1 carrot (thinly sliced)
• rice

Put tofu in simmering water (enough to cover bottom of pan), and cover. After 2 minutes, take off lid and flip over tofu. Replace lid and steam 2 more minutes. Take out and cut into triangles.

While tofu is cooking, combine everything else, then toss and pour over tofu.

Skillet Soba, Baked Tofu and Green Bean Salad With Spicy Dressing

For the tofu:

Tofu Recipes Here - 10 of 'em, and they all sound pretty interesting (from Sunset, no less!

Here's the first one-

Grilled Tofu, Bacon, and Avocado Sandwiches

Ingredients

• 2 in. unpeeled fresh ginger
• 2 teaspoons sugar
• 2 pinches pepper
• 1/4 cup low-sodium soy sauce 
  
• 1 tablespoon dark (black) soy sauce 
  
• 3 tablespoons toasted sesame oil
• About 1 tbsp. canola oil
• 4 ciabatta rolls, split horizontally, or 4 thick slices ciabatta loaf (about 3 1/2 in. wide), with most of insides of bread scooped out
• 2 zucchini, cut lengthwise into 1/4-in.-thick slices 
  
• About 3 tbsp. mayonnaise
• About 4 tsp. Sriracha chili sauce
• 12 to 14 cilantro sprigs, roughly chopped
• 4 slices cooked bacon, halved crosswise 
  
• 1 avocado, sliced 
  

Preparation

1. Cut 4 lengthwise slices from block of tofu, each about 1/2 in. thick. Transfer to a 9-in. square baking pan.

2. Grate ginger with a Microplane, then press solids through a fine-mesh sieve into a bowl to get juice. Measure 2 tsp. ginger juice into another bowl. Whisk in sugar, pepper, both kinds of soy sauce, sesame oil, and 1 tbsp. canola oil, then pour over tofu. Turn tofu to coat and set aside, uncovered, 1 to 2 hours, turning halfway through.

3. Brush a cast-iron grill pan lightly with more canola oil and heat over medium-high heat until pan is hot enough to evaporate a bead of water. Sear tofu, 2 pieces at a time (reserving marinade), until grill marks appear and tofu releases from pan easily, 3 minutes per side. Transfer to a plate.

4. Toast rolls or bread, cut sides up, in a 300° oven until crisp, about 15 minutes. Meanwhile, toss zucchini in leftover tofu marinade and grill until tender and browned, about 4 minutes per side. Save remaining marinade.

5. Spread about 1 tsp. mayonnaise on each half of roll, then drizzle about 1/2 tsp. of reserved marinade and 1/2 tsp. Sriracha on each. Sprinkle half of cilantro on bottom roll halves. Add tofu, bacon, zucchini, and avocado. Top with remaining cilantro and tops of rolls.

Bulgogi

This is a great way to use your leftover pulled pork or roasted chicken. The BBQ Sauce from Kogi BBQ was created by Chef Roy to be strong flavored enough to match the smokiness of BBQ’d pork or roasted chicken. You can add use kimchi (spicy pickled Korean cabbage) to top the tacos, or make a quick cucumber pickle like I have. The recipe for the quick cucumber pickle is below.

serves 4

1 pound cooked pulled pork, cooked shredded chicken
12 corn or flour tortillas
1/4 cup Quick Cucumber Pickle (below) or prepared kimchi (Korean pickled, spicy cabbage)

For the Kogi BBQ Sauce
2 tablespoons Korean fermented hot pepper paste (gochujang)
3 tablespoons sugar
2 tablespoons soy sauce
1 teaspoon rice wine vinegar
2 teaspoons sesame oil

Whisk all ingredients together until sugar has dissolved and mixture is smooth. You can make this a few days in advance and store tightly covered in the refrigerator.

For the Quick Cucumber Pickle
I like using English cucumbers or Japanese cucumbers – the skin is thinner and they have less seeds. If you have a Mandoline Slicer it certainly will make the job much easier.

1 large English cucumber (or 2 Japanese cucumbers), sliced very thinly
2 tablespoons rice vinegar
1/2 teaspoon sugar
1/2 teaspoon finely minced fresh chili pepper (or more depending on your tastes)
generous pinch of salt

Mix together all ingredients. You can make this a few hours in advance and store in refrigerator, however the longer it sits, the less “crunch” you’ll have. I like making this cucumber pickle 1 hour prior, storing in refrigerator and serving it cold on the tacos for texture and temperature contrast.

Recipes of Burma- 'Nuff Said, True Believer!

I know what you mean, Vietnamese to me is the most well-balanced and healthy cuisine in the world (any other Asian gets my no.2 place).

If you click that link and punch vietnamese in the search engine, more cool stuff will pop up. Think that's where I found the Korean tacos, too...

Thanks for this one, I love Pho and I was under the impression it was a two day process as far as prepping the broth. This looks doable.

dave said:

Pho (Vietnamese Beef Noodle Soup) Recipe

This Woman's site has a ton of great tips, check it out!

Ingredients:

THE BROTH
2 onions, halved
4" nub of ginger, halved lengthwise
5-6 lbs of good beef bones, preferably leg and knuckle
1 lb of beef meat - chuck, brisket, rump, cut into large slices [optional]
6 quarts of water
1 package of Pho Spices [1 cinnamon stick, 1 tbl coriander seeds, 1 tbl fennel seeds, 5 whole star anise, 1 cardamom pod, 6 whole cloves - in mesh bag]
1 1/2 tablespoons kosher salt (halve if using regular table salt)
1/4 cup fish sauce
1 inch chunk of yellow rock sugar (about 1 oz) - or 1oz of regular sugarTHE BOWLS
2 lbs rice noodles (dried or fresh)
cooked beef from the broth
1/2 lb flank, london broil, sirloin or eye of round, sliced as thin as possible.
big handful of each: mint, cilantro, basil
2 limes, cut into wedges
2-3 chili peppers, sliced
2 big handfuls of bean sprouts
Hoisin sauce
Sriracha hot sauce

Directions:

Char: Turn your broiler on high and move rack to the highest spot. Place ginger and onions on baking sheet. Brush just a bit of cooking oil on the cut side of each. Broil on high until ginger and onions begin to char. Turn over and continue to char. This should take a total of 10-15 minutes.

Parboil the bones: Fill large pot (12-qt capacity) with cool water. Boil water, and then add the bones, keeping the heat on high. Boil vigorously for 10 minutes. Drain, rinse the bones and rinse out the pot. Refill pot with bones and 6 qts of cool water. Bring to boil over high heat and lower to simmer. Using a ladle or a fine mesh strainer, remove any scum that rises to the top.

Boil broth: Add ginger, onion, spice packet, beef, sugar, fish sauce, salt and simmer uncovered for 1 1/2 hours. Remove the beef meat and set aside (you'll be eating this meat later in the bowls) Continue simmering for another 1 1/2 hours. Strain broth and return the broth to the pot. Taste broth and adjust seasoning - this is a crucial step. If the broth's flavor doesn't quite shine yet, add 2 teaspoons more of fish sauce, large pinch of salt and a small nugget of rock sugar (or 1 teaspoon of regular sugar). Keep doing this until the broth tastes perfect.

Prepare noodles & meat: Slice your flank/london broil/sirloin as thin as possible - try freezing for 15 minutes prior to slicing to make it easier. Remember the cooked beef meat that was part of your broth? Cut or shred the meat and set aside. Arrange all other ingredients on a platter for the table. Your guests will "assemble" their own bowls. Follow the directions on your package of noodles - there are many different sizes and widths of rice noodles, so make sure you read the directions. For some fresh rice noodles, just a quick 5 second blanch in hot water is all that's needed. The package that I purchased (above) - needed about 45 seconds in boiling water.

Ladling: Bring your broth back to a boil. Line up your soup bowls next to the stove. Fill each bowl with rice noodles, shredded cooked beef and raw meat slices. As soon as the broth comes back to a boil, ladle into each bowl. the hot broth will cook your raw beef slices. Serve immediately. Guests can garnish their own bowls as they wish.

Chinese Hot Mustard (so simple!)

1. Place 1/4 cup dry mustard powder (Colman's is good) in a bowl.
2. Gradually stir in 1/4 cup of cold water.
3. Stir in 1/8 teaspoon of salad oil.
4. Cover the mustard and let stand for at least one hour.

Bulgogi Recipe

My bulgogi recipe is a very simple dish to make, it takes a small bit of preparation and then a quick fry

The best bit is you can keep the sauce for months, I tend to make it up in batches and then add a little to the meat I want to use. As you will see throughout this site the Bulgogi sauce is very versatile and used throughout Korean cooking.

Bulgogi Ingredients

I have used the following ingredients for the bulgogi sauce:
300ml Soy sauce
1 medium Apple
1 Asian Pear (use 2 normal pears if Asian pears are not available)
1 medium onion
5 cloves of Garlic

Bulgogi sauce in jars
Put all the ingredients into a blender, I whisk until the veg and fruit are very small. Then keep the sauce into jars.

The bubbles will set in a short time, this sauce can be kept in the fridge for several weeks, and used in my other recipes instead of soy sauce, alternatively you can marinate most meats and cook for a great tasting meal.

 Ingredients

To make the beef dish I use about 350g of beef for 2-3 people. Thin sliced is best (2-3mm) I ask my butcher for sliced feather-blade, but cubed beef is good, and can be cut in to smaller pieces very easily.

I add a thin sliced carrot, half an onion sliced and 3 mushrooms, I pop this all in to bowl and add about 5 tablespoons of the sauce from the jars followed by a tea to a tablespoon of honey.

Bulgogi Korean in a bowlI mix this all together and put into a freezer bag then into the fridge to marinate overnight. (You don't need to, but I feel it improves the flavour. If you are short of time I recommend a minimum of 30 minutes to marinate.)

Bulgogi in Frying panThe next day put some oil in a pan, and empty the bag in to the hot pan, fry until well cooked and serve on a plate.

This Bulgogi recipe is best eaten with Rice, Salad and some side dishes. You can make lettuce wraps like the picture below, simply add rice and meat to a piece of lettuce, add some ssamjang if you have any. And Enjoy, you could make lettuce wraps with most Korean Main dishes.

Pho (Vietnamese Beef Noodle Soup) Recipe

This Woman's site has a ton of great tips, check it out!

Ingredients:

THE BROTH
2 onions, halved
4" nub of ginger, halved lengthwise
5-6 lbs of good beef bones, preferably leg and knuckle
1 lb of beef meat - chuck, brisket, rump, cut into large slices [optional]
6 quarts of water
1 package of Pho Spices [1 cinnamon stick, 1 tbl coriander seeds, 1 tbl fennel seeds, 5 whole star anise, 1 cardamom pod, 6 whole cloves - in mesh bag]
1 1/2 tablespoons kosher salt (halve if using regular table salt)
1/4 cup fish sauce
1 inch chunk of yellow rock sugar (about 1 oz) - or 1oz of regular sugarTHE BOWLS
2 lbs rice noodles (dried or fresh)
cooked beef from the broth
1/2 lb flank, london broil, sirloin or eye of round, sliced as thin as possible.
big handful of each: mint, cilantro, basil
2 limes, cut into wedges
2-3 chili peppers, sliced
2 big handfuls of bean sprouts
Hoisin sauce
Sriracha hot sauce

Directions:

Char: Turn your broiler on high and move rack to the highest spot. Place ginger and onions on baking sheet. Brush just a bit of cooking oil on the cut side of each. Broil on high until ginger and onions begin to char. Turn over and continue to char. This should take a total of 10-15 minutes.

Parboil the bones: Fill large pot (12-qt capacity) with cool water. Boil water, and then add the bones, keeping the heat on high. Boil vigorously for 10 minutes. Drain, rinse the bones and rinse out the pot. Refill pot with bones and 6 qts of cool water. Bring to boil over high heat and lower to simmer. Using a ladle or a fine mesh strainer, remove any scum that rises to the top.

Boil broth: Add ginger, onion, spice packet, beef, sugar, fish sauce, salt and simmer uncovered for 1 1/2 hours. Remove the beef meat and set aside (you'll be eating this meat later in the bowls) Continue simmering for another 1 1/2 hours. Strain broth and return the broth to the pot. Taste broth and adjust seasoning - this is a crucial step. If the broth's flavor doesn't quite shine yet, add 2 teaspoons more of fish sauce, large pinch of salt and a small nugget of rock sugar (or 1 teaspoon of regular sugar). Keep doing this until the broth tastes perfect.

Prepare noodles & meat: Slice your flank/london broil/sirloin as thin as possible - try freezing for 15 minutes prior to slicing to make it easier. Remember the cooked beef meat that was part of your broth? Cut or shred the meat and set aside. Arrange all other ingredients on a platter for the table. Your guests will "assemble" their own bowls. Follow the directions on your package of noodles - there are many different sizes and widths of rice noodles, so make sure you read the directions. For some fresh rice noodles, just a quick 5 second blanch in hot water is all that's needed. The package that I purchased (above) - needed about 45 seconds in boiling water.

Ladling: Bring your broth back to a boil. Line up your soup bowls next to the stove. Fill each bowl with rice noodles, shredded cooked beef and raw meat slices. As soon as the broth comes back to a boil, ladle into each bowl. the hot broth will cook your raw beef slices. Serve immediately. Guests can garnish their own bowls as they wish.

Cold Tofu Salad

Dressing:

3 tablespoons rice vinegar
2 tablespoons light soy sauce
1 tablespoon soy oil
1 tablespoon white sesame seeds
1/2 cup roughly chopped cilantro
1 generous tablespoon finely grated fresh ginger
2 green onions, finely sliced
Salt to taste
2 blocks of tofu (about 20 ounces), drained on paper towels

Directions

Combine the dressing ingredients in a mixing bowl and set aside.

Cut the tofu into 1 inch cubes and arrange on individual plates. Cover with the dressing and serve immediately.

Recipe: Bún Chay (Vietnamese Vegetarian Noodle Salad)

2009_07_17-bun.jpgEscape the heat, escape from rigid recipes, escape to new flavors ... It's Escapes Month at The Kitchn, and here's one of the most relaxed and refreshing dishes we can imagine.

Vietnamese cuisine excels at contrasts of taste and texture, and bún, or noodle salad, is a shining example. With slender rice noodles, a generous handful of fragrant herbs, crunchy bean sprouts, savory protein, and a salty-sour-sweet sauce, this dish is delightfully complex, yet incredibly simple to make.

Think of this more as inspiration and guide than a recipe. We like serving bún with deep fried tofu, which is quick and easy to cook, and the crispy texture is a nice contrast to the other salad ingredients. However, you could also use marinated tofu to add more flavor, baked tofu for a healthier version, or beef, pork, or shrimp for a non-vegetarian version. Feel free to include more lettuce, omit the cucumber, add a shredded carrot, use the herbs you like and have on hand. Most of all, enjoy your escape!

A note on the sauce: Traditionally, bún is served with a sauce called nuoc cham, which includes nuoc mam, or fish sauce. This is a quick vegetarian version using soy sauce. If you want, substitute real fish sauce or vegetarian fish sauce (available at Asian markets) for the soy sauce.

Bún Chay (Vietnamese Vegetarian Noodle Salad)
Serves 2

Noodles
4 ounces dried rice sticks or vermicelli

Tofu
1/2 pound extra firm tofu
Vegetable oil

Greens
1 1/2 cups shredded lettuce
1 cup mung bean sprouts
1/2 cup julienned cucumber
Large handful of mixed herbs, coarsely chopped or torn (basil, mint, cilantro; if available: rau răm or Vietnamese coriander, tiá tô or Vietnamese perilla)

Sauce
2 tablespoons fresh lime juice
2 tablespoons soy sauce
2 tablespoons sugar
4 tablespoons water
1 clove garlic, crushed

Garnish
2 tablespoons peanuts, chopped

For the noodles
Bring a large pot of water to a boil and add rice sticks. Stir and cook until noodles are white and tender but still firm, about 3-5 minutes. Drain in a colander and rinse under cold water, fluffing the noodles to separate the strands. Drain again completely.

For the tofu
Cut tofu into bite-size pieces and press between clean kitchen towels or paper towels to rid of excess water. Heat oil in a skillet and fry tofu until crispy and golden. Drain excess oil.

For the greens
Prepare the greens and set aside. (May be prepared ahead of time and kept in the refrigerator.)

For the sauce
In a small bowl, whisk together ingredients for sauce. Set aside. (May be prepared ahead of time kept in the refrigerator.)

To serve
Divide the noodles between two bowls. Arrange greens and tofu on top and garnish with peanuts. Just before eating, drizzle with sauce to taste and toss.

Vegetarian Mul Naengmyun (Korean Cold Noodles)
Serves 2

Broth
4 cups vegetable broth
1-inch piece of ginger root, peeled and sliced
1 clove garlic, peeled and sliced
1 green onion, cut into 1-inch pieces
1/4 cup white vinegar
5 teaspoons sugar
2 teaspoons soy sauce

Toppings
1 small cucumber
1/4 pound Korean radish or daikon
1 small Asian pear
3/4 teaspoon salt, divided
1 teaspoon sugar, divided
1 teaspoon vinegar, divided
1 egg
1/2 cup crushed ice

Noodles
1/4 pound Korean buckwheat noodles or Japanese soba noodles

Garnish
Sesame seeds
Korean mustard sauce or other hot mustard

For the broth
Combine broth ingredients in a large pot. Bring to a boil, reduce heat, and simmer, uncovered, for 30 minutes. Strain and cool. Refrigerate until cold, at least an hour.

For the toppings
Cucumber: Thinly slice or julienne. Sprinkle with 1/4 teaspoon salt, 1/2 teaspoon sugar, and 1/2 teaspoon vinegar and toss to combine. Let sit for at least 10 minutes.

Radish: Peel and thinly slice. Sprinkle with 1/4 teaspoon salt, 1/2 teaspoon sugar, and 1/2 teaspoon vinegar and toss to combine. Let sit for at least 10 minutes.

Pear: Peel and thinly slice or julienne. Toss with 1/4 teaspoon salt to prevent discoloration.

Egg: Hard boil, peel, and slice in half.

For the noodles
Cover noodles with boiling water and let sit for 3 minutes. (If using soba noodles, cook according to package directions.) Drain in a colander and rinse under cold water, using your hands to separate the strands. Drain again completely.

To serve
Divide the noodles between two bowls. Pour about 2 cups of broth into each bowl. Add crushed ice and arrange toppings over noodles. Sprinkle with sesame seeds. Serve with mustard on the side, which diners should add to taste.

Korean Spicy Cold Noodles Recipe

Prep time: 20 minutes
Cook time: 10 minutes

Japanese soba (buckwheat) noodles are used for this recipe, which you can usually find in the international section of the grocery store. You can also use somen noodles, Korean wheat noodles (guksu), arrow root noodles, sweet potato starch noodles, or even spaghetti or angel hair pasta. The toppings are flexible as well. Add, subtract, adjust to your taste and availability.

Ingredients

1 lb soba (buckwheat) noodles (can sub practically any favorite noodle)

Choose from assorted toppings:

Lettuce, thinly sliced
Green and/or red cabbage, thinly sliced
Cucumber, julienned
Carrot, julienned
Asian pear, julienned
Green onions, thinly sliced
Sesame (perilla) leaves, thinly sliced (while traditional for this dish, you can skip)
Radish sprouts
Cabbage and/or radish kimchi
2 hard boiled eggs

Sauce:

4 Tbsp Korean red chili paste (gochu jang)*
4 Tbsp rice vinegar (un-seasoned or seasoned will both work)
2 Tbsp soy sauce
2 Tbsp honey
2 Tbsp brown sugar (light or dark)
2 Tbsp toasted sesame oil
2 Tbsp toasted sesame seeds

* Korean red chile paste is a thick, sweet, and slightly garlicky paste made of fermented red chiles. It is available at some asian food stores and at Korean markets. If it is unavailable in your area feel free to use this substitute with similar results:

1 tablespoon hot paprika (or can use 1 tablespoon Hungarian sweet paprika plus 1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper)
5 teaspoons corn syrup (light or dark)
1 teaspoon miso paste (miso is fermented and will help approximate the flavor of the gochu jang, if you don't have it, you can omit)
1 mashed garlic clove
1 tablespoon water
Salt, to taste
Method

1 On the stovetop, fill a medium large pot with water and bring to a boil. While the water is heating, prepare toppings and the sauce. Prepare the lettuce, cabbage, cucumber, carrots, asian pear, sesame leaves and radish sprouts. Set aside. Cut each hard boiled egg in half. Set aside.

2 In a small bowl, combine red pepper paste, rice vinegar, soy sauce, honey, brown sugar, sesame oil and sesame seeds. Stir to combine and set aside.

3 Once the water is boiling, add buckwheat, or other type, of noodle and cook according to package instructions, or about six minutes, until al dente. When noodles are finished cooking, pour into a collander and rinse with cold water and drain. To quickly cool your noodles you may also place a few ice cubes in the collander or place the drained noodles into the freezer for a short time, just don't forget them!

4 To serve, place cooled noodles in a medium sized bowl. Top with dressing and vegetables/fruit of your choice. Place one of the hard-boiled egg halves on top and a few radish sprouts.

Yield: Serves 3-4.

Myong’s Kim Chee (Hot, Garlic-y Pickled Veggies)

1 Daikon radishes (or more)
1 Head bok choi (napa, etc)

2 Carrots; shredded 8 Garlic cloves (or more)

2 Garlic cloves; crushed

1 1/2 cups Sea salt

1/2 cup Flaked dried red peppers*

1/3 cup Fresh ginger root slices*

1 cup Coarsely chopped scallions

1 Japanese horseradishes *

2 cups -water (boiled)

2 cups Rice vinegar

3 tablespoons Sesame seeds

Preparation

Mix all dry ingredients together. Place in a large crockery or glass container that can be sealed airtight. Pour liquids over them, vinegar first. If the veggies are not covered by the liquid add more vinegar…NOT water- Seal jar and place into refrigerator for 2-12 weeks. *** NOTE *** The refrigeration is necessary to prevent spoilage.

Easy Thai Coconut Rice

Coconut rice makes a terrific accompaniment to many Thai and Indian dishes, but it’s equally wonderful with many Western-style entrees. Quick and easy to make, this coconut rice recipe will come in handy for those times when you want to make dinner extra special without going to a lot of extra work. ENJOY! (Note: For coconut rice made in a rice cooker, see link below).
Yield: SERVES 4

Ingredients:

2 cups Thai jasmine-scented white rice (for brown coconut rice, see link below)
2 cups good-quality coconut milk
1 3/4 cups water
2 heaping Tbsp. dry shredded unsweetened coconut (baking type)
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. coconut oil, OR vegetable oil
Optional: 1-2 Tbsp. toasted coconut for garnish (see instructions below recipe)

Preparation:
For a step-by-step version of this recipe, see: Easy Thai Coconut Rice Recipe. To Make Brown Coconut Rice, see my: Brown Coconut Rice Recipe.

Rub oil over the bottom of a deep-sided pot. You will also need a tight-fitting lid.
Place rice, coconut milk, water, shredded coconut, and salt in the pot and set over medium-high to high heat. Stir occasionally to keep rice from sticking to the bottom of the pot and burning.

Once the coconut-water has begun to gently bubble, stop stirring and reduce heat to low (just above minimum). Cover tightly with a lid and let simmer 15-20 minutes, or until most of the liquid has been absorbed by the rice. To check, pull rice aside with a fork. If most of the coconut milk-water is gone, go on to the next step.

Replace the lid and turn off the heat, but leave the covered pot on the burner to steam another 5-10 minutes, or until you’re ready to eat. Tip: Your Coconut Rice will stay warm this way for up to 1 hour or more, great for when you’re expecting company!

When ready to serve, remove the lid and fluff rice with a fork or chopsticks. Taste-test the rice for salt, adding a little more if needed. Serve right out of the pot, or transfer to a serving bowl. This rice is excellent served with a variety of both Thai and Indian dishes, such as curries or seafood recipes. If desired, top your rice with a sprinkling of toasted coconut and ENJOY! (see below for toasted coconut instructions). To Toast Coconut: Place 1 Tbsp. dry shredded coconut in a frying pan over medium-high heat and stir (“dry fry”) until light golden brown (see: Toasting Shredded Coconut.). For a more savory coconut rice, see: Saffron Coconut Rice Recipe (with Spices).

How to Make Thai Sticky Rice at Home

Thai sticky rice, (called Khao Niew in Thai) is an essential and integral element of Thai cooing and cuisine, and is a must have accompaniment for certain dishes such as Laarb or Som Tam (papaya salad, preferably with a little grilled chicken). It's also something rarely made in home kitchens outside of Thailand, and that's a shame, cause sticky rice is easy peasy and really really good.

Sticky Rice Cooking Instructions

Take the sticky rice and soak covered in water. The time needed for soaking depends on the age of the rice, and the older the rice, the drier it becomes and the longer the soaking period needed. New rice may only need an hour or so, but older rice is best soaked overnight, or for 8 hours or so. Since most rice sold outside of Thailand has endure some lengthy travels and processing times, you are probably safer with the longer soak. Call it 8 hours to be on the safe side.

A tricky trick, if you are in a hurry and forgot to get your soaking started, is to soak the rice in hot water, and thereby cut the soaking time in half.

In Thailand, the rice is then placed in a conical woven bamboo steamer thingy. If you have one of those, use it, and if you don’t, you can just use any form of steamer.

To keep the rice from falling through the holes in the steamer, first line the steamer area with cheesecloth. If you don't have cheesecloth, just use the thinnest cloth you have. Once the cheese cloth is covering the steamer area completely, throw in the soaked rice, cover and set heat to high.

One thing to think about is that you don't want to overfill the bottom part of your steamer with water. Once the water gets to a rolling boil, you don’t want the bubbling water to leap up and soak the bottom of your rice.

Sticky rice cooks fairly quickly. Check it once about 10 minutes after the water has come to boil. It should be sticky at this point. Ideally, you should flip the rice over now for another 5-10 minutes of cooking.

The best way to judge doneness is by taste. Different batches of rice will require slightly longer cooking times. When it is very sticky and all clumped together and soft and chewy to taste – it is done.

Once finished – before serving you should give it a real good stir, letting some of the steam escape and ensuring that the rice won't be overly wet while eating.

Sticky rice is a staple food of the north and north-eastern parts of Thailand. To eat, grab a small portion of rice and smoosh it into a little ball. You will then use the rice like an eating utensil, and dip and grasp in shared dished of food on the table.

Forget about trying to eat sticky rice with a fork or spoon!

It's delicious, quite different from Jasmine rice and well worth making at home. Enjoy!

Nam Prik Ong Recipe. Spicy Northern Thai Ground Pork Dip

Cooking wise, Thailand is a very regionalized country - and Thai food can be split into 4 distinct and very different categories:

1. Southern (The spiciest)
2. Central (Bangkok)
3. Isaan or North Eastern Food (Many would argue the finest!!!)
4. Northern Thai (Food with Burmese influence)

Here is a recipe for Northern Thailand's famous red minced pork nam prik. A spicy pork based dipping sauce for raw and steamed vegetables and one of Northern Thai cooking's signature dishes.

Although the dish is traditionally made spicy, those with tamer palates may choose to omit or reduce the chili as desired.
Nam Prik Ong Recipe (A Starter for 4)

* 1 lb ground pork
* 4 plum tomatoes
* 5-6 cloves of garlic
* 5-6 small shallots (A half red onion in slices can be substituted if shallots are unavailable
* 1 Tbls vegetable oil or neutral oil of your choice
* 3 Tbls fish sauce
* 1- 1 1/2 Tbls of sugar
* 1 key lime or ½ of a larger lime
* 20 Thai bird chilis (or less if you don't care for mouth fire)
* ½ cup of water

Easy steps

1. Heat a heavy skillet over medium heat. When pre heated, toss in your whole tomatoes to dry roast them (No oil is needed) Let cook turning occasionally until cooked through and browned/blackened all over – 5 – 10 minutes. Remove and set aside
2. Repeat the same dry roasting procedure with the shallots, chilis and onions. Again, remove and set aside.
3. Add the pork to your skillet (if it is too blackened, get a new skillet fired up) and cook through.
4. In a mortar and pestle, squish squash the chili, shallots and garlic very well (you may use a blender if you don’t have a mortar and pestle here). When well smashed up, add in the tomatoes and squish them up too.
5. Throw another heavy skillet on the stove top, and heat it up to medium high. When hot, add in the Tbls of oil and the pork, the chili-tomato-garlic-shallot paste, and the remaining ingredients, the water, fish sauce, sugar and lime juice.
6. Heat it all up to a vigorous boil, and then reduce the heat and simmer until it is well combined and uniform, and has the consistency of a thick Bolognese pasta sauce.
7. Taste for seasoning and serve with fresh cut slices of cucumber and wedges of crisp cabbage (pork rinds are also a traditional accompaniment.

This works very well as an appetizer before a Thai style or better yet, a Northern Thai style dinner. Enjoy!

Moo Gratium. Thai Fried Garlic Pork. An Easy Recipe

A very tasty and quick one dish Thai dinner – perfect for an easy meal for one or two, moo gratium can be prepared in about 10 minutes.
Fried garlic pork (It tastes as good as it sounds!)

* ½ lb of lean pork, chopped into one inch by half inch by half inch pieces (pork loin or tenderloin works well here).
* 1 Tbls of finely SLICED garlic
* 2 tsps of ground black pepper
* 1 tsp of sugar
* 1 tsp of fish sauce
* 1 tsp of soya sauce
* 2 tsp of oyster sauce
* Cilantro as garnish
* ½ cup of vegetable oil

1. In a frying pan, heat the oil over medium, and when hot, add in the pork. Fry for about 3 minutes, or until the pork is cooked well (Thai people don’t much care for a pink center in their pork)

2. Take all the pork out of the oil with a slotted spoon and reserve.

3. In the still medium-hot oil, add in the garlic slices, and fry them until they turn a golden brown. Watch carefully – it should only take 10-20 seconds. When just golden brown (it will continue to cook and color for a bit after you remove it from the oil – so be careful!) take out of the oil using a slotted spoon and toss on the reserved pork.*

4. Discard the hot oil.

5. In the still hot fry pan, add in the pork, garlic, and all other ingredients, and stir fry until the pork is well coated with the other ingredients (kind of a sheen)
6. Serve over rice (very good with a single fried egg as a meal for two) or as a part of a larger Thai style dinner.
7. Garnish with the cilantro sprigs and with slices of cucumber.

This can be scaled down by about half to make an easy meal on rice for one.

*To be totally authentic, the garlic should be fried before the pork, thus infusing the oil with the garlic flavor. It's risky though! If you are not used to frying garlic (something that seems innate to most Thai people…) you are at risk to burn the garlic and stink up the oil - and so doing the pork before the garlic lowers the risk. If you are a confident garlic fryer, you would fry the garlic first.

A side note…

This is one of the meatier Thai dishes (boasting nothing but meat) and yet even still the serving size of meat protein per portion is modest. In general, Thai cooking is better when you hold off on the meat a little bit – and many Thai recipes are ruined by a modification for North American audiences to include much more meat than they otherwise would.

The Thai way to cook with meat would be to buy about 1lb of pork or beef or chicken at the supermarket and cut off what was needed from the piece of meat for each meal, saving the rest for future meals.