Yum Mama (ยำมาม่า) / Instant Noodle Salad

Here is another super fast, super easy, super amazing dish for a Thai menu! You definitely won't be able to find this dish in most Thai restaurants.

The use of instant noodles in this dish makes it very affordable and very popular too in Thailand.  Being a yum, it is a little bit sweet with a bit of sour from some kick of lime, and of course a little bit spicy from chili powder.  Add that all flavor to wonderfully chewy instant noodles and dry sautéed pork and you've got an amazing dish on your hands.  

Every year when it the weather gets a bit too warm and hazy, my youngest daughter will suddenly have little to no appetite.  When this happens, I will suddenly also be completely out of ideas of what to cook.  This year, my mom told me to try this recipe because now that my youngest daughter is all grown up, she can enjoy more spicy food.  Let's try! My mom has never been wrong.

This dish is supposed to be quick and easy, utilizing anything you have on hand.  Let me know if this cures your food sluggishness as well!

- Daisy

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I love this dish.  I definitely did not appreciate the yums, or a type of Thai salad, until I was much older.  The blasts of all the flavors; sweet, salty, spicy, sour, that is what I really think Thai food is all about.  You can read more about them and other types of Thai salads on wikipedia.

What really makes this dish special though is the instant noodles.  I would definitely recommend you stick to the Mama brand.  It is readily available in most, if not all, Asian supermarkets and is essential to this dish.  Try to replace it with any other type of noodles and it will be a completely different dish.  And be careful not to overcook it.  I would actually tell you to make sure its a bit al dente.  Yea, its the Italian in me.  This can be shared as an appetizer or a light meal for one.

This version uses ground pork, which is very classic Thai, but my favorite version is a seafood version I love to order whenever I go to the beaches in Thailand.  It will usually come with fresh squid and shrimp and is absolutely DELICIOUS and oh so very refreshing in the Thai heat!

- Darin

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Yum Mama

ยำมาม่า

Instant Noodle Salad

1 tbsp Vegetable Oil

1/4 lb Ground Pork

1 Shallot, sliced

1/4 tsp Salt

1 package Instant Noodle, Mama brand
1 tsp Fried Garlic Oil
1 tsp Cayenne Pepper
1 tbsp Prik Manow Num Pla (this is essentially fish sauce, lime juice and sliced Thai chilies)*
2 tbsp Cilantro, chopped
1/2 tsp Sugar
1 Boiled Egg, quartered

1) Put some oil in the pan, swirl the oil around then pour it out, we're only looking for a light coating.  Then, heat up the pan and stir in ground pork, cooking until no longer pink (no need to brown). Mix in the shallots and salt and set aside to cool in a mixing bowl. 

2)  In a pot, boil the noodle according package directions, but cut the cooking time by a minute or so. Omit all the flavor packages.  Drain when it's done and rinse with cold water and drain very well, otherwise the flavors will be diluted. 

3) Stir in garlic oil (if you don't have any feel free to use the oil included with the instant noodles), then mix in the Prik Num Pla, cayenne and sugar.  Adjust to taste.

4) Put the noodles in a beautiful dish and top with the boiled egg, and garnish with cilantro.  Aroy-Ka!

*You can make this very easily and to your own tastes.  Start off with half a lime and 1/2 tbsp of fish sauce.  Then add in 1-2 thinly sliced Thai chili (bird's eye chili) and adjust to your taste.  You can also sprinkle in a bit of sugar.

Beef Panang Curry (พะแนง)

This dish is not complicated but it does require a bit of time. The time spent, however, is absolutely worth it.  It is a curry dish that is not too spicy, is a bit on the sweet side, and has a lot of coconut flavor. My son loves it so much and always applauds me on not cooking the beef too soft, but just tender enough. He sure knows how to enjoy. It feels good how to have somebody believe in you. The beef that you will be looking for is the kind of beef that you would use for a stew.  The cut I got is the leg from the Chinese market but Chinese cuts are different from American cuts. The Chinese leg cut has both meat, some tendon and some fat which is suitable for this kind of long stewing.

My son especially loves this dish because this dish does not have anything else (he's never been a fan of vegetables) but the meat.  Try shrimp, pork, fish.  And don't forget about the kaffir lime leaves on top.  I've found that using scissors to cut the leaves into thin strip is most convenient to me.

Please try it, I know you will love it, just like my son.

- Daisy

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My mother isn't kidding when she says my brother loves this dish.  He generally loves any meat dish with sauce but this really is his favorite.  I know that when he visits, this dish will always be on the menu at least twice before he leaves.  Although my mother loves cooking for my sister and I, she always gets extra excited making this dish for my brother and to see her beaming when he tells her how much he loves it is so sweet to see.  I really am convinced that mothers have soft spot for their sons, much like how fathers have a soft spot for their daughters. 

The key thing to really note in this recipe is the kaffir lime leaves.  It may seem like just a garnish but I find that it really elevates the dish and gives it a unique taste to the curry that no other cuisine can come close to.  The leaves are hard to find but check in the frozen or refrigerated sections of Chinese markets or any Southeast Asian markets.  It really is worth it.  Promise.

- Darin

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Beef Panang Curry

พะแนง

Serves 2-3

3-4 lbs. Beef Brisket/Shank/Chuck, cut into big chunks
1/2 can Panang Curry Paste (Mae Sri is recommended)
1 [250ml] Coconut Milk (Aroy-D is recommended)
3-4 Kaffir Lime Leaves, cut in thin strips or chiffonade
2-3 Red Chilies, cut diagonally
1/2 tsp Palm Sugar (you can substitute regular sugar but it won't be the same)
1 Fish Sauce
1tbsp Vegetable Oil

1) On low heat, simmer the beef in coconut milk for about 45mins, or until cooked through and tender.  Keep the pot covered and stir it from time to time.  Make sure it is a simmer, you really don't want a rolling boil for this recipe.  

2) In a small sauté pan, heat up the vegetable oil and add in the curry paste.  Stir until fragrant then throw in the beef mixture and combine.  Add in the fish sauce and palm sugar. 

3) Top with kaffir lime leaves and red chillies and serve with Thai Jasmine rice.  Enjoy.

Stir Fried Duck with Black Pepper and Fried Garlic

Simple, straight forward, delicious.

- Daisy

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Stir Fried Duck with Black Pepper and Fried Garlic

2 Duck Breasts, sliced
1 Tbsp Fried Garlic
1 Medium Sweet Onion, diced
1-2 Jalapeños, cut into match-sticks
1 Tbsp Black Pepper, pounded not finely ground
1 1/2 Tbsp Light Soy Sauce
1/2 tsp Salt
1/2 tsp Sugar
2 Tbsp Vegetable Oil

1) Heat up the oil and slide in the duck meat, frying until browned and flip.

2) Stir in fried garlic, onion and salt until are soft and translucent.

3) Add in the black pepper and jalapeño and flavor with soy sauce, sugar, adjusting to your taste.

4) Enjoy with rice or noodles.

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Fried Garlic

7-8 Garlic Cloves, large, sliced evenly
3/4 cup Vegetable Oil

1) Put frying pan on medium heat and stir in the garlic when the vegetable oil is still warming out. When it starts to make noise, keep stirring until the garlic started to turn brown. Take it off the heat.

2) The garlic will still be bubbling. Let it cool down.

3) Right when it has stopped bubbling, use a slotted spoon to remove it to drain on a paper towel.

Khao Mok Gai (ข้าวหมกไก่)/Thai Chicken Biryani

Biryani is an typical dish in Middle East cuisine.  Historians believe that the dish was invented in a Mongol Emperor's kitchen.  Generally, the two main ingredients, the rice and the meat, are first cooked separately and then combined together to finish cooking.  The separation is absolutely necessary because the rice and the meat have significantly different cooking times and the final process of slow steaming the rice and the meat together until done allows the flavors to mingle.  The final product, then, should be pretty dry or at the very least minimally moist.

For years that I have been trying to find the best way to make a good Khao Mok Gai, the Thai version of Chicken Biryani.  I've experimented with so many different ways to no avail that I gave up and just used the instant powder, which unfortunately has mostly artificial flavors but is the closest I ever get to a good Khao Mok Gai.  Besides the basic method of cooking a good Khao Mok Gai, I want to figure out the tiny nuances of cooking a good Khao Mok Gai.  It more than just what spices or how much of each spice that should be used, but more like key to cooking through the rice through until fragrant without burning or leaving the rice mushy.  Or making sure chicken is done but still moist, yet not soggy at the same time.

The really indispensable part to this dish is Nam Jim Gai, or the dipping sauce.  The traditional ingredients are all green foods, green chili or green chili pepper or jalapeño, cilantro, green onion.  None of which my daughter likes as much as the store-bought version more commonly known as sweet chili sauce, which is fine for me.  It is delicious and is more convenient.

- Daisy

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This dish was my favorite childhood dish.  I used to beg my mom to take us to the tiny Khao Mok Gai restaurant behind our house after school so I could gorge myself.  She would always say I should have been born Indian for how much I loved this dish.  

It wasn't until years later that I tried a real Biryani and tasted the differences between the traditional Biryani and the Thai Khao Mok Gai.  I, of course, prefer the Thai style to the real thing but you can decide for yourself.  This recipe leans towards more of a real biryani instead of a Khao Mok Gai with the addition of raisins in the rice but the chicken was wonderfully moist , even several days later when my mom delivered a tupperware of the dish to me in my apartment.  I think was really makes this dish Thai is the dipping sauce.  Nam Jim Gai is essential to this dish for me and is distinctly Thai.  You know we love our dipping sauces!  The one I grew up eating and prefer is 

While you guys are busy cooking up this recipe, my mom and I will continue our quest for the perfect Khao Mok Gai...although this recipe comes pretty damn close.

- Darin

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Khao Mok Gai

ข้าวหมกไก่

Thai Chicken Biryani

For the Chicken and Fried Garlic:
2 Whole boneless Chicken Legs, cut in half (or 2 chicken thighs and 2 chicken drumsticks)
8 tsp Curry Powder
6 tsp Ground Turmeric
4 tsp Ground Coriander
2 tsp Ground Cumin
2 tsp Cinnamon Powder
2 tsp Salt
2 tsp Sugar
1/3 cup Half & Half or Coconut Milk or Evaporated Milk
4-6 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1/3 cup canola oil

For the Rice:
3 cups Thai Jasmine Rice
1 [14.5oz] can Chicken Broth, preferable Swanson
2 Bay Leaves
2 Cinnamon Sticks
4-6 Shallots, sliced
1/2 cup Raisins
1/3 cup Canola Oil

1) Combine the spices and divide the mixture into 2 parts.

2)  Wash the chicken and pat it dry.  Pierce the chicken all over and place in either into a large ziplock bag along with the marinade (try to get as much air out as possible) and refrigerate for overnight.

3) The next day, heat up the oil over medium heat, pan fried the chicken pieces until almost done and the skin is crispy. Set aside.

4) Using the same pan with the oil left over from the fried chicken, fry the garlic.  When the garlic turns golden brown, drain on a paper towel.  Keep the oil.

5) Heat up a pan on medium low and fry the shallot until golden brown. Drain on a paper towel. The trick is to go low and slow, otherwise the shallot will burn.

6) In the rice cooker, wash the rice 3 times then pour in the rest of the spice mixture (leftover from the chicken marinade) and stir well.   Add cinnamon sticks, bay leaves and 2 cups of chicken broth.  Let it cooked till it's al dente or with a bit of a bite.

7) In a 23-26 cm pan or a shallow pot, heat up the oil in medium low.  Lay down the chicken pieces, skin side up, then the fried garlic, cover with yellow rice, and lastly sprinkle with raisins and the fried shallots.  Slowly pour in the leftover oil from the fried garlic.

8) Pour 1/4 cup of chicken broth, cover, and let it cook for 20 minutes or until the chicken is done and the rice is fragrant.  The rice should still hold its shape but completely cooked through as well as the chicken.

9) Garnish with slices of English Cucumber, Tomato, Cilantro and Green Onion and serve!