Khao Maew (ข้าวแมว)/ Cat's Rice

Pla tu (ปลาทู) is a kind of mackerel only found in the Gulf of Thailand. It is known to be one of the fish referred to in the Thai idiom, "wherever there is water, there is food." It is usually very simply prepared. You can fry it or steam it. You can eat it hot, eat it cold, either way it will be very tasty! Pla Tu (ปลาทู) is about the length and size of your standard TV remote. No bigger than that.

I think this recipe has been around a long time and must be a very country style. Now everybody eats a lot of western food and very few people still consume this type of food. Thais in the olden days, when the weather gets really hot, sometimes they eat only rice and watermelon. If the mango is in season they eat mango with rice. Not that they do not have money or poor, but just because when the harvest was so fruitful that you had to keep eating the fruit aside from just selling it. Or the weather is so hot that they don' t feel like eating anything else.

This dish is one of those dishes that makes me think of when our family moved back to Bangkok after living in San Francisco for a while.  My children were still toddlers and sometimes, or I should say most of the time, me and my two children will be dinner with my mom. When my mom told them that we are going to have Khao Maew (ข้าวแมว) they would always excitedly look at each other. It sounds funny but it is truly good. No Thai can turn down a dish with Nam Pla, Prik, Manao or fish sauce, bird's eye chili, lime juice. Mine also has a bit of sugar in it too. Reloaded!

- Daisy

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This dish reminds me of my childhood in Bangkok. Completely dreamy and idyllic. My best childhood memories include running around my uncle's house watching my grandma prepare the fish for steaming and hand mixing the rice and fish in a ginormous bowl. Whenever I ate it I would imagine growing some whiskers and silently meow in my mind. Truly my grandma's love in a bowl. Meow!

- Darin

**EDITOR'S NOTE: After posting this recipe, Mom called Grandma to tell her about it and we found out that this recipe was actually Grandma's very own recipe!  Mom and I had always thought it had to have been around forever--a classic Thai dish long forgotten.  Hard to believe Grandma just made it up one day because she had two hungry kids at home.  CRAZY!  Now I know where Mom and I get our insane-kitchen-experiments genes from.  So here is an original family recipe for you all! **  

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Khao Maew 

ข้าวแมว

Cat's Rice

Serves 3-4

2 Pla Tu (Thai Mackerel)
1 Knob of Ginger
1 Bird's Eye Chili (or more if you're a champ like my mom)
2 Tbsp Thai Fish Sauce
1/2 Lime (DO NOT substitute with a lemon)
1/2 tsp Sugar
4 cups of Jasmine Rice (don't even think about using any other kind of rice)
3-5 Shallots, sliced
1 English Cucumber, quartered and sliced

1) Firstly, get the rice going in the rice cooker and clean the Pla Tu.



2) Use a regular steamer and steam the fish with a couple slices of ginger for about 15 minutes. Begin checking at the 10 minute mark. You're looking for the flesh to turn white and become firm. After they have cooled down, careful debone them and with two forks, shred the fish into small pieces.

I used two spoons. It was much more difficult. Please learn from my mistake and use forks.

3) In a small bowl, combine fish sauce, lime juice and sugar and stir until the sugar completely dissolves. Have a taste. It should be salty and a bit sour. Lastly add the chili. Save a quarter of the sauce to serve on the side.

TIP: After handling fish, the best way to get rid of fishy smell is lemon or lime. Just use the rest of lime after squeeze out juice to brush every finger then wash with regular soap again.

4) Put the hot rice in a big bowl, and follow it with Pla Tu pieces and fish sauce mixture.  Combine and adjust to your taste. Serve with the sliced cucumber and the leftover sauce on the side.

Love.