This classic Thai snack will disappear fast at any gathering. A mix of peanuts, cashews, crispy garlic, makrut lime leaves, and chilies tossed in a seasoning mix that hits all the flavour notes - salty, sour, sweet, spicy and umami. Highly addictive!

Ingredients and Notes

Here are all the ingredients you'll need and important notes about them. For amounts, see the the full recipe card below.

• Raw peanuts, preferably skin-on. While you can make these with blanched peanuts, the skins do make them look better and the added fiber is a nice bonus. They also tend to taste better in my experience. Skin-on peanuts are available at most Asian grocery stores, and you'll probably see a few different types being sold—they're not all the same! My preferred peanuts are the smaller ones with the brightest red skins. Typically, they will also cost more than other types, but really not by much.
• Raw cashews. These are optional, but I find they really make the whole mix look and taste better! If raw cashews are not available at Asian stores, look for them at health food stores, and check the bulk section.
• Large cloves of garlic, we will be making garlic chips so we need large cloves for the most substantial chips.
• Makrut lime leaves. Frozen is okay for this, but be sure to dry them very well after they thaw as we will be frying them, and any water left on them will splatter aggressively in the oil.
• Lemongrass
• Small dried chilies, optional. While these are optional, they do make the mix look so much prettier so I like to add them even if I don't end up eating them. Once the chilies are fried they will be crispy and edible if they're not too spicy for you. I get the generic dried chilies from Chinese grocery stores which tend not to be very spicy, but if you want spicy, arbol chilies from Latin American stores will work.

Seasoning Mix (Tom Yum Flavour)

The classic version of these are simply tossed in salt, which you can absolutely do, but I prefer the more interesting "tom yum flavour" which I highly recommend you try!

• Salt. My recipe uses table salt, but you can use whatever salt you have, keeping in mind that larger grains such as Kosher salt measure differently, so check some online conversions to get the right amount.
• Sugar. The balance of sweet and salty is what makes these nuts incredibly addictive!
• True Lime brand lime juice powder. I specify the brand only because I have tried another brand (generic from a specialty food store) that was rather awful, and I have not seen any other brand here, though in Thailand Knorr also makes one. I love using lime juice powder as a way to add acidity and lime flavour when I don't want the liquid, and as a backup for when I'm out of fresh limes. I see True Lime sold in little packets at the supermarket, or you can also buy them on Amazon. I also use True Lime powder in my zingy and spicy Thai "Wing Zabb" recipe which I highly recommend!
• Chicken bouillon powder (optional). This is the secret to all your Asian aunties' delicious cooking! Chicken bouillon powder (most commonly Knorr brand) is a very commonly used ingredient in Asia, including Thailand. In our nut mix, it adds a the umami factor that other seasonings don't.
• Chili powder, optional, to taste. If you want the nuts to be spicy, add whatever kind of chili powder that you have on hand, though be careful with adding too much because a large amount of chili powder will dilute the other seasonings, so keep the amount no more than 1-2 teaspoons only.

How to Make Thai Chili Lime Peanuts

Here's a bird's eye view of the process. The full instructions are in the recipe card below, and if this is your first time, I highly recommend watching the video tutorial to ensure success!

1. Thinly slice garlic as evenly as you can; I recommend using a mandolin for this if you have one.
2. Dry the makrut lime leaves if needed so they are 100% dry. Fold each leaf in half and pull out the centre rib.
3. Tear the halves in half again, so for each leaf you will get 4 pieces.
4. Thinly slice lemongrass on a diagonal; no need to be precise here as we will not eat the lemongrass

5. Combine all the seasonings into a coffee grinder and grind into a powder.
6. Add about ¾ inch of frying oil into a wok or pot, then add 1 piece of garlic as you test piece. Once it starts to bubble, add the rest of the garlic.
7. Fry the garlic on low heat, stirring constantly, until they are golden (not brown) and the bubbling has almost completely stopped. Don't let them brown or they will be bitter. Drain on paper towel.
8. Fry the lime leaves on low heat until the bubbling stops, this should only take about 10 seconds. Remove and drain on paper towel.

9. Fry the lemongrass just until the bubbling has subsided significantly, but no need to wait for the bubbling to stop. Remove and discard as they are for infusion only.
10. Fry the chilies for about 15 seconds, stirring coostantly, just until they darken slightly. Remove and drain on paper towel.
11. Turn the heat up to medium and let the temperature come up to 350°F (175°C). Fry the peanuts until the are golden, about 7-9 minutes depending on the size. If peanuts have skins on, check the colour of ones that have split open. Do not let them brown or they will be bitter. Remove and drain on a paper towel lined brownie pan or casserole dish.
12. Fry the cashews until golden, 3-5 minutes. Remove and add to the peanuts to drain.

13. Pull the paper towel out from under the nuts.
14. While the nuts are still warm and oily, sprinkle the seasoning over the nuts evenly, then stir until they're all evenly coated.
15. Add the fried herbs and toss again to coat.
16. Wait until the nuts cool completely before eating. Enjoy!

Pro Tip: The Secret to Crispy Garlic

Of all the things you need to fry, the trickiest thing to get right is the garlic chips, and a common issue people have is the garlic chips nice and golden... but not crispy.

In order for something to become crispy, it has to lose most of its moisture, and this takes time. So if your heat is too high, the garlic will quickly reach temperature where it can brown, and the moisture will not have had enough time to evaporate, hence soggy garlic chips. The key is LOW heat, so there's plenty of time for the moisture to evaporate, but not so low that the garlic never turns any colour and becomes oil-sogged.

How do you know the moisture is gone? The bubbling! Bubbling of fried foods is due to water in the food evaporating. So as you fry the garlic, you'll notice that the bubbling decreases as the moisture runs low. The garlic is crispy once there is almost no bubbling left.

With the right heat, the bubbling of the garlic should be moderate, not super weak but not aggressive (see the video for a visual). And if you do it right the bubbling should start to die down before the garlic develops any colour, so by the time the garlic develops colour, the bubbling will be almost gone. It can take some trial and error to figure out the perfect heat setting, but I'd recommend starting , of your particular stove, so don't be discouraged if you fail the first time!

Frequently Asked Questions

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Thai Chili & Herb Peanuts (Tom Yum Peanuts)

These classic Thai snacks are highly addictive and frequently requested by people who've experienced them in Thailand!

Course snacks

Cuisine Thai

Prep Time 15 minutes minutes

Cook Time 30 minutes minutes

Servings 8 servings

Calories 130kcal

Ingredients

• 10 large cloves garlic peeled
• 15 makrut lime leaves large
• 1 stalk lemongrass
• 10 small dried chilies optional, to taste
• Frying oil as needed
• 12 oz raw peanuts preferably skins on (see note 1)
• 6 oz raw cashews see note 2

Seasoning

• 2 teaspoons granulated sugar
• 1 ½ teaspoon table salt
• 1 teaspoon lime juice powder see note 3
• 1 teaspoons chicken bouillon powder optional but recommended
• 1 teaspoon chili powder optional, to taste

US Customary - Metric

Instructions

• Thinly slice the garlic crosswise as evenly as possible. I recommend using a mandolin for this, if you have one, as even slices will be tremendously helpful when you fry them. Aim for a thickness of around 1-1.5 mm thick. Spread the sliced garlic out on a plate to let them dry while you prep other things, as the dryer they are the faster they fry.
  10 large cloves garlic
• Make sure makrut lime leaves are absolutely 100% dry, otherwise the oil will splatter when you fry them. Fole the leaf lengthwise and tear off the center stem, then tear each half into 2 pieces. (So each single leaf should give you 4 pieces, see the step by step photos above if you're confused.)
  15 makrut lime leaves
• Thinly slice the lemongrass on a diagonal. We will not be eating these so no need to be super precise or meticulous about it.
  1 stalk lemongrass
• Combine all the seasonings together in a coffee grinder and grind into a powder; this will help them stick better to the nuts.
  2 teaspoons granulated sugar, 1 ½ teaspoon table salt, 1 teaspoon lime juice powder, 1 teaspoons chicken bouillon powder, 1 teaspoon chili powder
• Line a large plate with a paper towel for the herbs, and line a 9x13 brownie pan with paper towel. (If you don’t have a brownie pan, a large mixing bowl will work, but the nuts will cool faster in a brownie pan).
• Put about ¾ inch of frying oil in a wok or medium size pot and heat it over low heat. Add one piece of sliced garlic as your test piece. Once the garlic start to bubble, add the remaining garlic and fry gently, keeping the heat low and stirring constantly, until the garlic is golden and the bubbling has gone almost completely. Remove with a wire skimmer and drain on the paper towel lined plate. Remember the garlic will darken slightly after it leaves the oil so take it out when it's still a little too light.
  Frying oil
• In the same oil, still on low heat, add the makrut lime leaves and fry until they stop bubbling completely, about 10-15 seconds. Remove with a wire skimmer and drain on the plate.
• In the same oil, still on low heat, add the dried chilies and stir until they darken slightly, about 10-15 seconds. Remove and drain on the plate.
  10 small dried chilies
• Using the same oil, turn the heat up to medium then add the lemongrass and fry, stirring frequently, until the bubbling has subsided. The lemongrass is for infusing only, we will not eat them as they are hard and chewy. Most Thai people will add them to the nuts cuz they look nice and it shows that lemongrass is an ingredient, but I prefer to discard them for easy eating. You can do either.
• Now it’s time to fry the nuts. Let the oil heat up to 350°F (175°C). Add the peanuts. If needed, top it up with more oil to keep the nuts barely submerged. Stir the peanuts frequently until they darken slightly, about 7-9 minutes, until the peanuts are golden (check by splitting one peanut open). The timing will vary greatly depending on the size of your peanuts and the heat of your oil, and remember they will brown further after leaving the oil. Use a wire skimmer to remove the peanuts and drain on the brownie pan.
  12 oz raw peanuts
• Now add the cashews to the same oil, still on medium heat, and fry until they are golden, stirring constantly, about 3-5 mins. Use a wire skimmer to scoop them out and add them to the peanuts. *Some cashews are higher in sugar content and take a short time to fry, so it's important not to walk away from them!
  6 oz raw cashews
• Shake the nuts pan a few times to allow all the excess oil to drain, then remove the paper towel from under the nuts. While the nuts are still warm and oily, sprinkle the seasoning evenly over the nuts, then stir or toss to coat them thoroughly. Add the fried herbs and toss again to coat. Allow them to cool completely before eating as the nuts will not be crunchy while still hot. Enjoy!

Video

Notes

1. You can find skin-on peanuts at Asian grocery stores. If available, get the smaller, redder peanuts as they taste better. Blanched peanuts will also work if skin-on ones are not available.

2. The cashews are optional, but I do find they taste better with the mix of the two. You can also change the ratio of cashews to peanuts to whatever you want. (Honestly, I only use 320 g of peanuts because my peanuts come in a 320 g bag!)

3. I use True Lime brand lime juice powder. Other brands may work but I have not tried them. 

Nutrition

Calories: 130kcal | Carbohydrates: 9g | Protein: 4g | Fat: 9g | Saturated Fat: 2g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 2g | Monounsaturated Fat: 5g | Cholesterol: 0.03mg | Sodium: 510mg | Potassium: 175mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 2g | Vitamin A: 76IU | Vitamin C: 1mg | Calcium: 17mg | Iron: 2mg

The post Chili Lime Peanuts with Thai Herbs appeared first on Hot Thai Kitchen.

Everyone's favorite Thai dessert is mango and sticky rice, and now you can have it in a festive cocktail! I came up with this recipe for the live cooking class which I hosted with my Sabai Talk Podcast co-host, chef Hong Thaimee. I wanted to make a Thai flavoured cocktail with a flavour combination that I know would be a guaranteed hit, and this was it. The secret is the clever technique called "rice washing" which makes for an exceptionally smooth cocktail

How to Make Mango Sticky Rice Cocktail

Here's a bird's eye view of the process. The full instructions are in the recipe card below. Please excuse the low quality images as these are screenshots taken from the live cooking class which I encourage you to watch!

1. Grind the pandan leaves with a splash of the vodka until the leaves are bruised and broken down slightly. You can also use a cocktail muddler.
2. Add the remaining vodka and stir or swirl to mix.
3. Strain the vodka out, discarding the pandan leaves.
4. In a shaker, combine the mango juice, pandan vodka, coconut milk, rice and ice cubes and shake until fully chilled. Pour into a serving glass through a strainer. You can serve the cocktail with ice in a rocks glass, or without ice in a martini glass.

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Mango Sticky Rice Cocktail

A popular Thai dessert mango sticky rice, now in the form of a delicious festive cocktail! Rice washing technique produces an exceptionally smooth drink.

Course Drinks

Prep Time 5 minutes minutes

Cook Time 2 minutes minutes

Servings 1

Equipment

• mortar and pestle or cocktail muddler

Ingredients

• 8 inches pandan leaf cut in 1-inch pieces
• 3 oz good mango juice
• 2 oz vodka or less if you prefer
• 1 oz coconut milk see note 1
• 1 Tablespoon raw white rice see note 2
• Ice cubes

US Customary - Metric

Instructions

• *The video tutorial for this recipe is part of a livestream. The mango sticky rice cocktail starts at minute 54:05.

  In a mortar and pestle, add the pandan leaf pieces and a small splash of vodka and grind in a circular motion to bruise and breakdown the leaves. Add the remaining vodka and give it a quick grind, then strain it into a mixing glass or cocktail shaker.
  8 inches pandan leaf, 2 oz vodka
• Add the mango juice, coconut milk, rice and ice cubes. Shake or stir vigorously until well chilled, and strain through a fine mesh strainer into a chilled serving martini glass or a rocks glass filled with ice. Garnish with a pandan leaf tip, if desired, cheers!
  3 oz good mango juice, 1 oz coconut milk, 1 Tablespoon raw white rice, Ice cubes

Video

Notes

1. I recommend Aroy D brand in the UHT paper carton for best flavour. If not available, Aroy D in cans are fine. Do not use light coconut milk.
2. You won’t taste the rice added to the cocktail, but “rice washing” cocktail is a trick to help smooth out the bitterness of the alcohol. 

The post Thai Mango Sticky Rice Cocktail appeared first on Hot Thai Kitchen.

Because of this, Chinese New Year is an important celebration in Thailand, and of course food is at the centre of this celebration! So here are some recipes that I have that could be part of your Chinese New Year table!

Lo Bak Go - Turnip Cake

An absolute classic when it comes to the Lunar New Year. If you make one thing this season, let it be this one. This recipe is my mother-in-law's famous recipe and it's the best I've ever had.

Lo Bak Go Recipe

Crispy Spring Rolls (Egg Rolls)

The filling of these is so good I can just sit with a bowl of it and have it for my whole meal. I got this recipe from my restaurant days and these are still the best spring rolls I've had anywhere.

Crispy Spring Rolls Recipe

Steamed Fish with Ginger Soy Sauce

Steamed fish is an integral part of a Chinese feast, and this is my most popular steamed fish recipe with over 1.5 million views on YouTube! And for good reasons, it is incredibly delicious and works with any white-fleshed fish. If using whole fish, the same technique applies, just scale up the sauce amount according to how big your fish is.

Steamed Fish with Ginger Soy Sauce Recipe

Aunty Jenny's Braised Chicken Wings

This recipe is perfect if you don't want a complicated meal for Chinese New Year. It's an easy and simple dish that tastes like you spent hours on it. The first time I had this dish at my mother-in-law's place, I knew I needed a recipe!

Aunty Jenny's Braised Chicken Wings Recipe

Char Siu - Chinese BBQ Pork

This char siu recipe is one of my most popular one with over 1.5 million views on YouTube! I promise you it will be better than anything you can buy, especially when you can cook it to juicy perfection and serve it still-warm from the oven. It takes some advanced planning, but the process itself is really straight forward.

Char Siu Recipe

Siu Yok - Crispy Pork Belly (no fry, no boil, no salt crust)

I don't know about you, but in my world, if you have the sweet char siu, you also gotta have the salty crispy siu yok (aka siu yuk or siu yoke) to complete the pork extravaganza. This recipe is the simplest one you'll fine, with guaranteed bubbly, crispy skin if you follow the instructions.

Siu Yok Recipe

Gai Lan Oyster Sauce Stir Fry

A Chinese New Year feast can be a bit rich and heavy, and this super popular recipe is the perfect vegetable side dish to balance it all. You'll never want to cook gai lan any other way again!

Gai Lan Oyster Sauce Stir-Fry Recipe

Steamed Spare Ribs in Black Bean Sauce

This is my husband's go-to dish at dim sum, so I decided to try to make it at home, and it turned out to be super easy and even more delicious!

Steamed Spare Ribs in Black Bean Sauce Recipe

Grandma's Hainanese Glass Noodle Stir-Fry

You GOTTA HAVE NOODLES for Chinese New Year, am I right?? This is my grandmother's signature dish, done Hainanese style, which is where she's from. I'm so happy to be able to share our family's beloved recipe with you!

Grandma's Hainanese Glass Noodle Stir-Fry Recipe

Tang Yuan - Black Sesame Rice Balls

In the world of Chinese desserts, this is easily my favourite. The chewy mochi-like rice balls are filled with aromatic roasted black sesame seeds. The best part is the soothing, warm ginger broth that they come in.

Tang Yuan Recipe

Want some more recipe ideas?

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The post 10 No-Fail Recipes for Chinese New Year appeared first on Hot Thai Kitchen.

This red sweet chili sauce glistening in bottles is one part of Thai cuisine that has permeated just about every grocery store in North America! Well you'll be happy to know that it is incredibly simple to make, it tastes better when you make it, AND it lasts forever in the fridge. It also makes the perfect edible gift!

Watch the Video Tutorial for This Recipe

Ingredients

Here are all the ingredients you'll need to make homemade Thai sweet chili sauce. It's a really simple list with mostly staples!

• Mild to medium red chilies. These make up the bulk of the sauce, and we want to be able to use a lot of it for maximum chili flavour, so we have to choose something mild so as to not make the sauce too spicy. Traditionally, spur chilies or prik chee fa are used, but anything mild will work. If nothing else, red bell pepper will be fine.
• Thai chilies. These are the small spicy chilies that we use to add heat to our sauce. Add as many as you like depending on how spicy you want the sauce to be.
• Garlic
• Sugar
• White vinegar
• Salt. I like to keep it simple with salt, but you can try adding soy sauce or fish sauce instead.
• Tapioca starch. This is added to thicken the sauce so that it will adhere to food better. Tapioca starch is traditionally used as it cooks up clear, so your sauce will remain clear and beautiful, but cornstarch will also be fine as a substitute.

How to Make Thai Sweet Chili Sauce

1. Blend both chilies, garlic, and water until it looks slushy but not smooth.
2. Transfer into a heavy bottomed pot.
3. Add sugar, vinegar and salt and stir to mix.
4. Simmer the mixture for 5 minutes over medium heat. Keep a wet pastry brush handy and if the sides of the pot starts to brown, brush it off with some water to prevent it from burning. 

5. Dissolve tapioca starch or cornstarch in water and stir the slurry into the sauce.
6. Keep stirring until it comes to a boil, then remove from heat. It will thicken further as it cools.

Recipe Tips

• When simmering the sauce, be careful not to let stuff sides of the pot burn. To prevent this, keep a wet pastry crush handy and brush off anything that starts to brown. Also, using a small burner will prevent the sides from heating up excessively.
• When choosing chilies, while red bell pepper works, if you have the option, choose a red pepper with a thinner pulp which will be less watery. I'm using a "long red pepper," pic below.
• Thai sweet chili sauce will keep indefinitely in the fridge; there is no need to freeze. You can also can it to make it shelf stable.
• This sauce makes a great homemade gift! Put them in mason jars, put a label and a maybe a bow on them, and anyone would be delighted to receive it!

Serving Suggestions

So now that you have the sauce, what can you use it for?? To give you a clue, in Thai this sauce is called nam jim gai, which literally means "dipping sauce for chicken". So fried chicken and grilled chicken are both good candidates.

It's also our standard dipping sauce for all things deep fried such as egg rolls and fried wontons. This is because the sauce is sweet and sour, and most fried foods are primarily salty, so the combination works perfectly to balance all the flavours.

Here are a few deep fried recipes you can check out: Green curry spring rolls, crispy vegetarian spring rolls, Thai fish cakes, or crispy fried wontons.

FAQ

Watch The Full Video Tutorial!

All my recipes come with step-by-step video tutorials with extra tips not mentioned in the blog post, so make sure you watch the video below to ensure success - and if you enjoy the show, please consider subscribing to my YouTube channel. Thank you!

Thai Sweet Chili Sauce (perfect for fried foods) น้ำจิ้มไก่

5 Stars 4 Stars 3 Stars 2 Stars 1 Star 5 from 8 reviews

• Author: Pailin Chongchitnant
• Yield: Makes about 1 cup

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Ingredients

• 1 cup medium/mild red chilies, chopped
• 1-3 Thai chilies, or to taste
• 8 cloves garlic, smashed
• 1 cup sugar
• ⅓ cup water
• ¾ cup white vinegar
• 1½  teaspoon fine grain salt
• 1 Tbsp tapioca starch dissolved in 3 tablespoon water (or use cornstarch)

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Instructions

1. Blend both chilies, garlic, and water until it looks slushy but not smooth—stop blending as soon as you don't see any more big chunks.
2. Transfer into a heavy bottomed pot. Add sugar, vinegar and salt and stir to mix.
3. Bring the mixture to a simmer, stirring in the beginning just until all the sugar is dissolved. Let simmer for 5 minutes. Keep a wet pastry brush handy and if the sides of the pot starts to brown, brush it off with some water to prevent it from burning. 
4. Once it is done simmering, add tapioca slurry while stirring, and keep stirring until it comes to a boil.
5. Remove from heat, taste and adjust seasoning as needed. Transfer into a jar and let cool. This will keep in the fridge for many months (I've yet to see it go bad!).
6. Serve with fried chicken, spring rolls, or any deep fried foods.

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Notes

Note: In Thailand we traditionally use spur chilies, also known as "prik chee fa", but you can use any mild-to-medium red chili pepper that you can find. We basically need this for the bulk of the chili flavour and colour, so as long as it's not too spicy!

The post Homemade Thai Sweet Chili Sauce น้ำจิ้มไก่ appeared first on Hot Thai Kitchen.

There are no better gifts than ones that are handmade with love and care, and this recipe is just the perfect one to make for friends and family! I made these date truffles (some people call them bliss balls) a couple of years ago and gave them to all my friends for Christmas, and everyone loved them. They also last a long time, so you can make them well in advance.

These date balls are made with only dried fruits and nuts, with no added sugar, fat or flour, so if you don't want to indulge in too many Christmas cookies, tame your sweet tooth with these instead! Customize these with your choice of nuts, fruits, spices, flavourings, etc. You can make them more chocolatey by adding more cocoa powder along with a bit of extra hot water (cocoa powder dries up the balls). Enjoy!

Watch The Full Video Tutorial!

Date Truffles (a.k.a. Bliss Balls) DIY Gift

5 Stars 4 Stars 3 Stars 2 Stars 1 Star 5 from 1 review

• Author: Pailin Chongchitnant
• Yield: Makes about 24-26 1-inch balls

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Ingredients

• 300 g pitted dates (see note)
• ¾ cup your favourite mix nuts or seeds, roasted and chopped so the pieces are no larger than ¼-inch
• ⅓ cup your favourite mix of dried fruits, chopped into ¼-inch pieces (choose ones that are tart such as dried cherries)
• 3 Tbsp cocoa powder
• 1 tsp cinnamon (optional)
• ¼ tsp nutmeg (optional)
• Other flavourings/spices of your choice (optional)
• A pinch salt
• Coating: Finely shredded coconut, finely chopped nuts, cocoa powder, or even sprinkles!

Note: I prefer medjool dates which tend to be softer and more moist, making them easier to process, but other dates would work just as well. I usually buy whole dates and remove the pits myself (it's easy to do), I just find that these ones tend to be better quality than ones already pitted. 

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Instructions

Remove pits from dates, if any, then process them in a food processor just until they gather into a ball. If your food processor is small, process half at a time so as to not wear out the motor. If you find that the dates are too dry and they're not coming together into a ball, add a splash of very hot water (1 tablespoon at a time) and let it soak into the dates for a minute to soften them. (What I have done in the past when I use dryer dates is soak them in hot water first for just a couple of minutes to soften them. If you do this, the dates can become too moist and will be hard to shape, and you will have to add more cocoa powder to absorb the moisture, which is not necessarily a bad thing!)

In a large mixing bowl, combine all your nuts and dried fruit. Sift the cocoa powder and spices into the mixing bowl, add salt, and then stir everything together, making sure all the dried fruit pieces are well separated.

Add dates, and with CLEAN hands, knead everything together until there are no more dry cocoa. You can add more hot water if the mix seems too dry, or add more cocoa powder if the mix seems too wet. Once mixed, taste the mixture and at this point feel free to add more fruit, nuts, spices, salt or cocoa powder. If you want to add more cocoa powder for a more chocolatey taste, you may need to add more water as well because cocoa absorbs moisture.

Using a disher or a spoon, portion out the dates into desired size. Wet your palms with water then roll the dates into round balls. Toss the balls into your coating of choice and press the coating onto the balls slightly. You can now serve or pack them into a package!

Storage: These will keep at room temperature for a several days in an airtight container, and they are better served at room temp, but I recommend putting them in the fridge for longer term storage.

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The post Date Truffles (Bliss Balls) DIY Gift appeared first on Hot Thai Kitchen.

Upside Down Tako = "Crystal Pudding"

Tako ตะโก้, (also called kuih tako in Malaysia, Indonesia and Singapore), is a coconut pudding with 2 layers. Traditionally, the top is always the same: a white, creamy, salty-sweet coconut pudding (pic below). The bottom, however, can be made with a variety of ingredients and determines the flavour of the tako. Think of it as different flavours of cake using the same frosting - they all look the same...the real flavour is a surprise!

But for this recipe I wanted to turn it upside down, revealing the side that is more colourful and shiney. Upside-down tako is a recent trend in Thailand, and during my last trip home, my cousin brought me some ... and I didn't even recognize them as tako at first! The glossy beauties immediately reminded me of gemstones, so I came up with the nickname "crystal pudding." I thought it was brilliant and became inspired to make it the "wrong" way myself!

Tako is the perfect party dessert. Here's why

Bold claim, but let me explain. These little creamy pudding cups are:

• Vegan, gluten-free, and most allergen-free
• Require no baking or any special equipment
• Easy and quick, no dessert experience required
• Endlessly adaptable - a great recipe for creative minds!
• Can be prepped ahead
• Are super tasty!

Now that you're intrigued, let's see how they're made.

Ingredients

There are 2 components to tako: the creamy coconut pudding (usually the top, but for us it is the bottom), and the glossy pudding which can be made into any flavour you can dream up. I have given you 3 options for the top layer, but feel free to come up with your own ideas as well!

Bottom Layer - The Coconut Pudding

• Rice flour
• Water
• Coconut milk, being dessert it is important to use good quality full-fat coconut milk as it will make a difference. See my post here on how to choose good coconut milk.
• Sugar
• Salt

Top Layer Option 1 - Green Pandan Young Coconut

Pandan with young coconut are a classic dessert combination in Thai cuisine. The flavour will give you the most traditional flavour profile, and it is my personal favourite of the bunch.

• Pandan leaf, fresh or frozen will work fine. If not available you can substitute a combination of coconut and vanilla extract.
• Water
• Green food colouring (optional)
• Mung bean starch (more on this below)
• Tapioca starch
• Sugar
• Young coconut meat, I use one that's canned in syrup, but if you have it fresh from a young coconut, even better.

Top Layer Option 2 - Red Water Chestnuts

Water chestnuts are another popular tako filling, but I have made them red here as inspired by another classic Thai dessert, "red rubies". If water chestnuts are not your thing, switch them out for young coconut, cooked taro cubes, or sweet corn!

• Water
• Beet, for colour, food colouring is okay too.
• Jasmine extract, coconut extract, vanilla extract, or another flavouring of your choice
• Mung bean starch
• Tapioca starch
• Sugar
• Cooked water chestnuts, canned

Top Layer Option 3 - Golden Pineapple

This is an unconventional tako flavour that I created, but it works super well because...pina colada, anyone? This also goes to show you that the sky's the limit when it comes to creating your own flavours! Anything that goes with coconut will work, (and a LOT of things go with coconut)!

• Coconut water (pineapple juice will also work for a more pronounced pineapple flavour)
• Gold dust, optional, just for some flare!
• Mung bean starch
• Tapioca starch
• Sugar
• Pineapple, canned

How to Make Crystal Tako

The instructions are incredibly simple, and can be summed up in just one word: stir. That's it, folks. That's all you need to do! Here's a bird's eye view of the process, but I strongly suggest watching the full video tutorial to get a better idea of how it comes together and the texture that you are looking for - especially if you've never made it before!

For the Coconut Layer:

1. In a small or medium saucepan, combine the rice flour with water and whisk until the flower is completely dissolved.
2. Add the coconut milk, sugar, and salt and stir to combine.
3. Stir the mixture over medium high heat, and once it starts to steam, turn it down to medium heat and cook until it's fully thickened. About 5-8 minutes.
4. Immediately spoon into cups until they are about half full. Do this while the pudding is hot, as it stiffens up once cooled; but if it does cool, simply reheat it on the stove to soften. Let cool while you make the topping.

For the Glossy Layer:

1. Blend the pandan leaf with room temp or cold water until fine, then strain through a fine sieve.
2. Combine the pandan leaf juice with the mung bean starch, tapioca starch, and sugar; then stir until the starch is dissolved.
3. Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly with the rubber spatula until the mixture becomes thick and translucent; about five minutes.
4. Once fully translucent, stir in the young coconut and cook for another minute to heat it up.
5. Immediately spoon this over the coconut pudding, aiming for roughly the same amount for each layer. Do this while the pudding is hot as it stiffens up once cooled; but if it does cool, simply reheat it on the stove to soften.
6. Let cool to room temp before serving. You can also garnish them with a little toasted coconut or coconut flakes to let people know of the presence of coconut if you like.

Want to try other flavours? The process for cooking the top is the same, you simply need to switch out the liquid and the mix-ins. You may need to reduce the amount of sugar if the liquid is already sweet, so do use some judgement as you make changes. Detailed instructions for the water chestnuts and pineapple versions are in the recipe card.

What is Mung Bean Starch?

Let's talk about our main ingredient, mung bean starch, which is responsible for the "crystal" quality of our pudding.

You know those bean sprouts in noodle soups and pad thai? Those are mung bean sprouts. And mung bean starch, is extracted from those beans. Mung bean starch is used in many Asian countries, but in Thailand it is used only in desserts and for making glass noodles.

Mung bean starch is used in tako because it has a tender texture, and the magical quality of being clear when cooked (hence, "glass" noodles!). So whenever clarity and translucence are required, mung bean starch comes to the rescue.

If I were to use cornstarch or rice flour for the top layer, for example, I would get a pudding, but it would be cloudy and not nearly as pretty as the ones you see here. Not to mention the mix-ins will not be clearly visible.

Tapioca starch also cooks up clear and has a chewier texture, so I add a small amount for added elasticity, but I want the mung bean starch to be our primary starch to maintain tenderness. You can omit the tapioca starch and replace it with the same amount of mung bean starch.

Once you have mung bean and tapioca starch, try making these bubble tea noodles and these no-churn Thai tea ice cream bars!

Where to buy mung bean starch and tapioca starch?

My preferred brand of mung bean starch is Pine Brand (sponsored), a popular Thai brand who also make my favourite glass noodles! You can look for it wherever you get your Thai groceries, check out this map of Asian grocery stores to find one near you.

Korean grocery stores also carry mung bean starch as it is also used in Korean cuisine; and any store that sells a lot of Southeast Asian groceries is a good place to look as they also use it in Malaysia, Singapore, and Indonesia as well.

Tapioca starch is much easier to find and is usually available at any Asian grocery stores, or even some health food stores. Arrowroot starch can also be used instead of tapioca starch.

IMPORTANT: Do NOT buy "mung bean flour" or "tapioca flour" (vs "starch"). These are not pure starches and will not work as a substitute.

What if I can't find mung bean starch?

If you can't find mung bean starch at all, there are a few options. First, you can use rice flour or cornstarch BUT...you will end up with a cloudy pudding that isn't as pretty. In that case, consider sticking with the traditional version with the coconut side on top. If making the traditional version though, reduce the amount of rice flour in the coconut pudding to 30 g.

Or, consider doing something entirely different. Take a look at these colourful tako that I had in Thailand!

• You can make a tapioca pudding. The blue tako in the pic above is topped with tapioca pudding coloured with butterfly pea flowers (any food dye will also work). You can then stir in any of the mix-ins I've mentioned. See my video here for basic instructions for how to make tapioca pudding (as part of my "Is Your Sago FAKE or REAL?" video).
• The black one on the top left was my favourite of this bunch. It's a black sticky rice pudding, and you can simply use my black sticky rice pudding recipe here! The orange threads on top is just a garnish of candied egg yolk threads, which you don't need.
• FYI: The pink one is similar to the red water chestnut one I shared in my recipe, and the white one is the traditional tako, with candied water chestnut garnish on top to indicate that the bottom has water chestnuts inside.

Tips for Advance Prep

There are many ways to prepare tako in advance, but there is only 1 thing to keep in mind: the mung bean starch becomes cloudy when refrigerated, but the pudding will still taste great. So if the translucent look is important to you, it's best not to chill them. The pudding will last all day at room temperature, and here are ways to get lots done ahead of time:

• Make the bottom coconut pudding layer and fill the cups up to one day ahead. Keep them covered in plastic wrap and refrigerate until serving day.
• Prep all your ingredients for the top layer ahead of time. The top layer only takes a few minutes to cook, so once you have the bottom done and the ingredients for the top prepped, you can finish it really quickly in the morning.
• If you have a dinner party, finish the pudding in the morning and they will last well into the evening without refrigeration.
• If you NEED to refrigerate them, that's fine! You will lose the clarity, but they will still taste great, and some people even prefer them cold. You can also consider making the traditional version with the coconut layer on top, and you won't have to worry about chilling them.

Storage

If you have tako leftover, keep them covered in the refrigerator and they will last at least 3 days. The top will turn cloudy as mentioned above, but they will still taste great. I find they even taste a bit better the next day because the ingredients have had time to mingle - especially the water chestnuts one.

You may find that a small amount of water pools around the top after a few days. This is normal and is totally fine; it's just water seeping out of the pudding, and you can eat it or use paper towel to dab it.

They do not freeze well.

Other Flavour Ideas

I have given you a few different options to choose from, but here are some more ideas in case you want to branch out.

• Taro. I don't always like taro, but I LOVE taro in tako. It will work as a sub for the young coconut in the green version. Simply peel and dice taro, and steam it for about 10 minutes or until tender (check often as you don't want them turning into mush).
• Sweet corn. Another classic tako mix-ins. The canned stuff is fine here, and it would also work well with the green pandan base. I would even add it in addition to the young coconut for something prettier.
• Longans. Longans are a cousin to lychee, and you can find them canned at many Asian grocery stores. They are flavourful and juicy in themselves, so they'll work with a neutral base of just water, coloured with whatever your heart desires.
• Fresh mango (or other sweet fresh fruits). I have not personally tried this, but I KNOW this is going to be so delish. This doesn't even need to be cooked. Simply top the coconut pudding with some sweet, ripe mango pieces that are slightly mashed to get that creamy effect as done in this mango royale recipe. Sweeten it a little with honey as needed, and you're good to go.

Choosing Containers for Tako

Tako is traditionally served in individual banana leaf cups, but any kind of small cups such as sauce cups, mini ramekins, mini foil tart pans, or silicone cupcake liners will work. The ideal volume, for me at least, is 2 oz (60 ml) or smaller.

Do not use paper muffin liners as they will just flop open and eventually the moist pudding will soak through. You need something that can hold their shape and is waterproof.

How to Make Your Own Banana Leaf Cups

If you're feeling ambitious and want to make the traditional banana leaf cups, it's not hard. Here are the supplies what you'll need:

• Banana leaves, frozen or fresh
• A wet kitchen towel and a dry one.
• a round pattern about 3.5-4 inch in diameter. This can be a bowl, a jar lid or a cardboard cutout. Larger is okay, but not smaller.
• A small stapler
• Scissors
• A chef's knife

1. Tear the banana leaves into 4-inch wide strips along the grain of the leaves. You may need to use scissors to snip off the end if it's stuck to the rib. Each tako cup will take 2 pieces, but cut a few extras in case of tears.
2. Wipe both sides of each leaf clean with a wet towel, and dry them off again with a dry towel.
3. Stack the banana leaf strips, lining them up along the short edge. Place your round pattern on top of the stack, then use a sharp chef's knife to chop off excess around the pattern, so you will end up with a stack of round banana leaves in the end.
4. Take two round pieces and place them on top of each other, making sure the grains of the leaves are perpendicular to each other. This will make them less likely to tear. (See pic below)
5. Fold a small pleat about 1 inch long and use a small stapler to secure the pleat together. Make another pleat on the opposite side of the first pleat (pic step 3). Then make two more pleats in between the first 2 pleats (pic step 4). Your cup is done! These will last a few days in the fridge in a covered container.

Thai Crystal Coconut Pudding Recipe - Tako

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Crystal Coconut Pudding (Tako)

These traditional Thai layered coconut puddings have a creamy coconut base and a glossy "crystal" top that you can make into all kinds of flavours. They're naturally vegan, gluten free, no-bake, super easy, and of course totally tasty - perfect for the holidays! I've given you 3 flavour options, but feel free to experiment!

Course Dessert

Cuisine Thai

Prep Time 15 minutes minutes

Cook Time 20 minutes minutes

Servings 12 muffin size cups

Author Pailin Chongchitnant

Equipment

• Small cups such as sauce bowls, espresso cups, mini aluminum tart pans, or silicone muffin cups. You can also make it in a big casserole dish or cake pan and scoop or cut to serve. Ideal volume for 1 cup is about 2 oz (60 ml) but it can be any size you want.

Ingredients

Base Layer - Coconut Pudding

• 1.5 oz rice flour (about ⅓ cup + 2 Tbsp) (see note 1)
• ½ cup water
• 1 ½ cups coconut milk
• ¼ cup granulated sugar
• ¾ teaspoon table salt (see note 2)

Top Layer Option 1 - Green Pandan Coconut

• 1 pandan leaf about 18 inches
• 1 ⅓ cups water
• Few drops green food coloring optional
• 3 tablespoon mung bean starch (see note 1)
• 1 tablespoon tapioca starch (see note 1)
• ⅓ cup sugar
• ¾ cup julienned young coconut meat canned in syrup or fresh

Top Layer Option 2 - Red Water Chestnuts

• 1 ¼ cups water
• A quarter of a beet or sub red food colouring
• ¼ teaspoon Jasmine extract or coconut extract optional
• 3 tablespoon mung bean starch (see note 1)
• 1 tablespoon tapioca starch (see note 1)
• ⅓ cup + 1 tablespoon sugar
• 1 cup cooked or canned water chestnuts small dice (see note 3)

Top Layer Option 3 - Golden Pineapple

• 1 ¼ cups coconut water no added sugar see note 4)
• ¼ teaspoon edible gold dust optional
• 3 tablespoon mung bean starch (see note 1)
• 1 tablespoon tapioca starch (see note 1)
• ⅓ cup sugar
• 1 cup canned pineapple rings cut into small pieces

US Customary - Metric

Instructions

• Prepare the containers and have them all ready, lined up on a tray. You will need to fill them as soon as the pudding is done.

Bottom Layer - Salted Coconut Pudding:

• In a small pot, combine the rice flour with water and stir until completely dissolved. Add coconut milk, sugar and salt and stir to mix.
  1.5 oz rice flour (about ⅓ cup + 2 Tbsp), ½ cup water, 1 ½ cups coconut milk, ¼ cup granulated sugar, ¾ teaspoon table salt
• Cook the mixture over medium high heat, stirring constantly with a rubber spatula or a whisk, scraping the bottom as you go. Once the mixture starts to steam, lower the heat to medium and keep stirring. You will notice the mixture gradually getting thicker - keep stirring until it doesn’t look like it’s getting any thicker for at least 15 seconds - this means the mixture has fully thickened. If you stop stirring, the mixture should be bubbling. For this amount the process should take 5-8 minutes, depending on your heat. The final consistency should look like greek yogurt (I highly recommend watching the video to see what it should look like).
• Right away, while the pudding is piping hot, spoon into your containers until about half full. Work quickly, as the pudding will stiffen as it cools, but if becomes too stiff simply heat it back up while stirring constantly over medium heat to soften it. If it’s hot and still feels too stiff, you can add a splash of water or coconut milk to loosen it up.
• Let these cool at room temp while you make the top layer.

Top Layer option 1 - Green Pandan Coconut

• Blend the pandan leaf with the water until fine. Strain into a liquid measuring cup and discard the fiber. Check to see that you have at least 1 ¼ cup of pandan juice; a little more is okay, but if you have less, add more water to make up the shortfall. If you want, add a few drops of green food coloring to intensify the colour.
  1 pandan leaf, 1 ⅓ cups water, Few drops green food coloring
• Pour the pandan juice into a small pot, then add the mung bean starch, tapioca starch, and sugar; stir until all the starch has dissolved.
  3 tablespoon mung bean starch, 1 tablespoon tapioca starch, ⅓ cup sugar
• Turn the heat on medium and stir constantly with a rubber spatula. As the mixture heats up, it'll gel up bit by bit. Keep stirring constantly until the whole mixture has become thick and translucent. Once the mixture doesn’t look like it’s changing for a good 15 seconds, the pudding has fully cooked. Add the coconut meat and stir for a minute or so to allow the mixture to heat back up before turning off the heat.
  ¾ cup julienned young coconut meat
• Right away, spoon the pudding over the coconut layer, aiming for roughly the same amount for each layer. If for some reason the mixture has cooled down and become too stiff to spoon, simply heat it back up while stirring constantly over medium heat to soften it.
• Allow the pudding to cool to room temp before serving. (See storage notes in the blog post.)

Top Layer option 2 - Red Water Chestnuts

• If you have a flat grater, grate the beet directly into the water until the colour intensity is the way you like it. If you have a box grater, grate about ¼ of a medium beet and put it into the water. Stir to extract the colour and strain the liquid into a small pot, pressing out all the water.
  1 ¼ cups water, A quarter of a beet
• Stir in mung bean starch, tapioca starch, sugar, and flavouring of your choice, if using; stir until the starch is all dissolved.
  ¼ teaspoon Jasmine extract or coconut extract, 3 tablespoon mung bean starch, 1 tablespoon tapioca starch, ⅓ cup + 1 tablespoon sugar
• Turn the heat on medium and stir constantly with a rubber spatula. As the mixture heats up, it'll gel up bit by bit. Keep stirring constantly until the whole mixture has become thick and translucent. Once the mixture doesn’t look like it’s changing for a good 15 seconds, the pudding has fully cooked. Add the water chestnuts and stir for another minute to allow the mixture to heat back up before turning off the heat.
  1 cup cooked or canned water chestnuts
• Right away, spoon the pudding over the coconut layer, aiming for roughly the same amount for each layer. If for some reason the mixture has cooled down and become too stiff to spoon, simply heat it back up while stirring constantly over medium heat to soften it.
• Allow the pudding to cool to room temp before serving. (See storage notes in the blog post.)

Top Layer option 3 - Golden Pineapple

• In a pot, combine the coconut water and the gold dust (if using) until it looks the way you like it, adding more gold dust if desired. Then add the mung bean starch, tapioca starch, and sugar; stir until the starches have completely dissolved.
  1 ¼ cups coconut water, ¼ teaspoon edible gold dust, 3 tablespoon mung bean starch, 1 tablespoon tapioca starch, ⅓ cup sugar
• Turn the heat on medium and stir constantly with a rubber spatula. As the mixture heats up, it'll gel up bit by bit. Keep stirring constantly until the whole mixture has become thick and translucent. Once the mixture doesn’t look like it’s changing for a good 15 seconds, the pudding has fully cooked. Add the pineapple pieces and stir for another minute to allow the mixture to heat back up before turning off the heat.
  1 cup canned pineapple rings
• Right away, spoon the pudding over the coconut layer, aiming for roughly the same amount for each layer. If for some reason the mixture has cooled down and become too stiff to spoon, simply heat it back up while stirring constantly over medium heat to soften it.
• Allow the pudding to cool to room temp before serving. (See storage notes in the blog post.)

Video

Notes

1. I recommend weighing the starch and flour in this recipe (use the metric toggle at the top of the ingredient list to show weight in grams), but if measuring by cup/tablespoon, fluff the starch to lighten it, then gently scoop without compacting and level it off with a straight edge. If you scoop into densely packed starch, or compact it as you scoop, you will end up with more than you need.
2. If making the pineapple flavour, reduce the salt to ½ tsp. The salt is there to balance the sweetness of the top layer, but the acidity in the pineapple will also help balance the sweetness.
3. Water chestnuts are rather plain tasting, so if you'd like to sweeten them soak them in hot simple syrup while you prep and make the bottom layer. You can also soak them a day ahead.
4. You can also use pineapple juice instead of coconut water for a more pronounced pineapple flavour. If using, you will need to reduce the sugar to just 2 Tbsp; or omit it altogether if the juice is very sweet. If unsure, you can taste the cooked mixture and add more sugar as needed.

Want more delicious vegan coconut desserts?

Thai cuisine is filled with naturally vegan desserts, and almost all of them include coconut and are gluten free. So check out all of my dessert recipes, but I've highlighted a few vegan ones here:

The post Thai Layered Coconut Pudding - Tako appeared first on Hot Thai Kitchen.

If you love bubble tea, you are going to love this too. "Lod chong Singapore" is made from chewy tapioca noodles in refreshing iced coconut milk and coconut water flavoured with pandan leaves! Similar to cendol, this is a popular dessert in Thailand, especially in open air markets as a sweet cold treat while you peruse. It's vegan, gluten free, and easy to make; much more so than homemade bubble tea!

Why is it called Lodchong Singapore?

Lod chong is our term for cendol, the green dessert noodles popular all over Southeast Asia that are pressed and extruded rather than rolled and cut like these. For a long time I thought that this was the Singaporean version of cendol; but turns out, the reason for "Singapore" in the name is because the shop that popularized it was situated in front of a movie theatre called "Singapore Theatre." So, no relation to Singapore the country here! (*I believe they not only popularized but actually invented the dessert, though I am not 100% sure on this.)

What You'll Need

Here are the ingredients you'll need to make lod chong Singapore:

Step-By-Step: How to Make Lod Chong Singapore

Some FAQs about ingredients

Advance Prep & Storage

This part is a bit tricky because the noodles don't keep well. I've detailed how to store each component below, but here is my general "best practice": Make the syrup and coconut milk in advance. Make the dough the day-of, and don't refrigerate. Roll out and cook the noodles within a few hours of serving. Do not freeze anything.

Syrup & Coconut Milk. Make the syrup and the coconut milk well in advance to allow enough time for them to cool before using. The syrup will last indefinitely in the fridge, and the coconut milk at least a week.

The Dough. Unfortunately the dough does not keep well. In the fridge the starch will stiffen and become brittle, making it hard to work with. You can, however, make the dough up to 4 hours in advance, keep it tightly wrapped at room temperature until you're ready to roll (pun totally intended!).

The Uncooked Noodles. Once the noodles are cut, you should cook them as soon as possible. Left out they will dry and become brittle and break; and they might also stick together, especially if you have them sitting on top of each other in a big pile. But if you need to leave them for a bit, keep them covered with plastic wrap.

Cooked Noodles. Once the noodles are cooked, the clock starts ticking! It's a little tricky, but here are a few things to keep in mind:

• Once you drain the noodles, serve or assemble the dessert right away or they will start to clump together.
• If not serving right away, assemble the dessert with the jackfruit, syrup and coconut milk, but add ice only when ready to serve. The liquid will prevent the noodles from clumping, and even though they will slowly swell up, they will still be good for a few hours.
• Do not refrigerate the cooked noodles or the texture will harden and lose that soft chew.

Tips for Optimal Deliciousness

Once you've cooked the noodles, even if you're ready to eat, hold off for a bit. Assemble and let the noodles sit in the syrup and coconut milk "broth" for about 15 minutes. The texture will still be perfect, but the noodles will have had time to absorb some sweetness from the syrup and taste better. Again, the noodles will be good for a few hours in the broth, but they will continue to swell and become less chewy as time goes by. Do not refrigerate to maintain the best noodle texture.

When ready to eat, add lots of ice and stir really well to allow everything to completely chill and to dilute the coconut milk; the resulting liquid should be light enough to drink.

You might also like...

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Bubble Tea Noodles in Coconut Milk (Lod Chong Singapore / Cendol)

Chewy tapioca noodles and sweet jackfruit in chilled pandan-scented coconut milk

Course Dessert

Cuisine Thai

Prep Time 15 minutes minutes

Cook Time 1 hour hour

Servings 6 servings

Calories 270kcal

Author Pailin Chongchitnant

Equipment

• Rolling Pin

Ingredients

Lod Chong Noodles:

• 4.2 oz Pine Brand tapioca starch plus extra for dusting about 1 cup
• 0.9 oz Pine Brand mung bean starch about 3 Tbsp
• ⅔ cup water
• 5 drops green food colouring

Pandan Syrup:

• 1 ¼ cup coconut water or water
• ¾ cup sugar (see note)
• 1 pandan leaf

Coconut Milk:

• 1 cup coconut milk
• ½ cup coconut water
• ⅛ teaspoon table salt
• 1 pandan leaf

For serving:

• 5 pieces sweet jackfruit, fresh or canned julienned against the grain (see note)
• Lots of ice

US Customary - Metric

Instructions

Make the syrup:

• Add coconut water or water into a small pot. Tie the pandan leaf into a knot or two until it’s short enough to fit nicely into the pot and add it to the coconut water. Cover and simmer on low heat for 5 minutes to infuse.
• Add the sugar and stir until dissolved. Cool completely.

Make the coconut milk:

• Combine coconut milk, coconut water, and salt in a small pot. Tie the pandan leaf into a knot or two until it’s short enough to fit nicely into the pot and add it to the coconut milk. Cover and simmer on low heat for 5 minutes to infuse. Cool completely.

Make the noodles (please watch the video for technique!):

• Whisk the starches together in a large, heat-proof mixing bowl.
• Bring the water to a full boil, and once boiling, turn off the heat immediately (I do this in the microwave in a glass measuring cup). Add the food colouring and stir to mix.
• Working with the water right away while it's still hot, drizzle roughly 3 tablespoons of the hot water over the flour, then quickly toss with a spoon to distribute the hot water. The parts where the flour touches the water will clump up immediately. Repeat with more hot water, again 3 tablespoons at a time, until all of the flour starts to look clumpy. You should use MOST of the hot water, but you may not need all of it.
• Use your hand to squeeze the flour into a ball. It should be very rough but it should come together easily. If there is still dry flour, add a little more water. If it is too wet and sticks to your hand too much, you can add a little more tapioca starch, 1 tablespoon at a time.
• Once a rough dough forms, transfer it onto a clean work surface dusted with tapioca starch. Dust the top of the dough lightly with more starch and then knead until a smooth dough forms, adding more starch if the dough sticks to your hands. If there are little lumps of flour in the dough, do not worry, this will all cook away.
• Separate dough into 2 pieces, and cover one with a tea towel while you work with the other. Re-dust the work surface and roll the dough out into a rectangle about 2mm thick (1/16 inch). Don’t worry too much about the dimensions.
• Once you have the right thickness, cut down the sheet so you have long strips that are 2-3 inches wide. Then generously dust the strips and cut them into noodles, about 3-4 mm wide.
• Toss the cut noodles with a little extra tapioca starch to ensure that they do not stick together. Repeat with the remaining dough.
• Bring a large pot of water to a full rolling boil, and meanwhile prepare a large bowl of very cold water. Once the water is boiling, “sprinkle” all of the noodles into the pot. Once the noodles float, keep them boiling for another 1-2 minutes or until cooked through.
• To check doneness, put a piece of noodle into the cold water; it should be translucent all the way through and it should be nice and chewy with no starchiness left in the centre. If you find it too chewy, you can cook it a bit longer.
• Once done, scoop the noodles out with a wire skimmer and put them immediately into the cold water. Once cool, drain them immediately and place them into a bowl. Do not let them linger in the water unnecessarily or they will swell up.

If serving right away:

• Divide the noodles into a serving bowl or cup, add jackfruit, then add syrup to your liking (start with 2 tablespoon per serving), and about 4 tablespoon of the coconut milk. If possible, let it sit for 15 mins or so and the noodles will absorb some of the sweetness and will taste better overall.

  Add a lot of ice and stir well, allowing it to really chill before you eat. Eat with a big bubble tea straw or a spoon. Put out extra syrup for people to add more if desired.

If not serving right away:

• Once the noodles are cooked, you need to keep them in liquid or they will eventually stick together into a big clump. So place the noodles into a large bowl, add the jackfruit and pour all of the coconut milk over them. Add the syrup to taste, but make it a little sweeter than you like because the ice will dilute it some. Stir to mix and keep at room temp until ready to serve, ideally no longer than 2 hours. The longer they sit the more they will swell up with liquid and the texture will be less chewy.
• When ready to serve, portion the noodles out into bowls or cups and add a lot of ice and stir well, allowing it to really chill before you eat. Eat with a big bubble tea straw or a spoon. Put out extra syrup for people to add more if desired.

  For advance prep and storage: please see post above for details!

Video

Notes

1. If using water for the syrup instead of coconut water, use 1 cup of sugar.
2. Canned jackfruit has more persistent fibers, so it's best to cut against the direction of the fibers. If using fresh jackfruit, you can cut it in any direction.

Nutrition

Calories: 270kcal | Carbohydrates: 50g | Protein: 1g | Fat: 8g | Saturated Fat: 7g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 1g | Sodium: 131mg | Potassium: 267mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 27g | Vitamin A: 1IU | Vitamin C: 2mg | Calcium: 25mg | Iron: 2mg

The post Bubble Tea Noodles in Coconut Milk (Cendol) appeared first on Hot Thai Kitchen.

Adding Asian Flavours to Your Cookie Swap

These cookies are buttery and almost melt in your mouth, with the iconic aroma of toasted black sesame seeds, and a slight crunch from cashews.

There may be no in-person cookie swap this year, but Redpath Sugar is hosting a “Share the Sweetness” Virtual Cookie Exchange instead! So rather than sharing actual cookies, you can share cookie recipes that you want friends and family to try. And you can even enjoy them together over video chat, which I think is a brilliant way to still celebrate together while staying safe!

So here’s one I made using Redpath’s snowball cookie recipe as a base and adding my own Asian twist. The original recipe uses almonds, but I made mine with toasted black sesame with chopped cashews for some added texture. Black sesame seeds (well-toasted ones) are so flavourful in and of themselves so you don’t need any other flavourings which simplifies things.

Shortbread-type cookies like these are also great in that they stay fresh-tasting for up to a week, so you can make them in advance and even package and gift them!

Black Sesame Snowball Cookies

5 Stars 4 Stars 3 Stars 2 Stars 1 Star 5 from 1 review

• Author: Pailin Chongchitnant
• Yield: 40 small cookies

Print Recipe

Pin Recipe

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Description

Here's the original recipe from Redpath from which I based this one.

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Ingredients

Cookies

• 1 cup (227g) butter, unsalted
• ½ cup (60g) Redpath Icing Sugar
• ¾ tsp salt
• 1 ½ cups (200g) all-purpose flour
• ¼ cup (25g) cornstarch
• ¾ cup (75g) black sesame seeds
• ¼ cup (35g) whole roasted cashews, finely chopped (or sub another nut of your choice)

Coating:

• 1 - 1 ½ cups (120g - 180g) Redpath Icing Sugar

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Instructions

1. Toast the sesame seeds in a dry saute pan over medium heat, stirring constantly. Listen for the popping. Once the popping is fast and quite aggressive, let them continue to pop for another 15 seconds and remove from heat.
2. Grind the sesame seeds using a coffee grinder by pulsing and shaking the grinder frequently until they are finely ground. Be careful not to over grind them as they will start releasing the oil and become wet and clumpy.
3.  In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream butter on medium speed until light and fluffy; 2 minutes, scraping the sides once in between.
4. Sift the Redpath® Icing Sugar into the creamed butter and beat on medium-low speed until smooth and pale in colour, scraping once in between. 
5. Whisk together the flour, cornstarch, salt, ground sesame seeds and chopped cashews until thoroughly combined.
6. Add half of the dry ingredients into the mixer bowl and blend on low until just combined. Add the other half of the dry ingredients and mixed until just combined. Transfer into a bowl, cover and chill in the fridge for 30 minutes.
7. While the dough is chilling, preheat oven to 325°F (163°C). Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper.
8. Using a small ice cream scoop (I use one that has a 10mL/2 teaspoon capacity) and scoop even-sized balls of dough. Roll the dough into balls, using the warmth of your hands to help shape the dough, and put them on a plate or container (you can stack them at this point). Place into the fridge to chill until firm; 20 minutes.
9. Place cookies onto the prepared baking sheet, about 2 inches apart, and bake for 15 to 18 minutes, until bottoms are light golden in colour. 
10. Allow to cool slightly on pan; 5 to 10 minutes. Meanwhile, prepare the icing sugar for coating in a shallow dish.
11. Gently roll the still-warm cookies in the Redpath® Icing Sugar. Place onto a wire cooling rack to cool completely.
12. Roll or dust the completely cooled cookies again with icing sugar and they’re ready to be enjoyed! Cookies can be kept in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 1 week.

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The post Black Sesame Snowball Cookies appeared first on Hot Thai Kitchen.

What is Mango Royale?

Mango royale, also known as mango float, is a classic Filipino mango dessert made with layers of sweet whipped cream, Manila mangoes, and graham crackers. It's then frozen and served slightly thawed. It's a version of another popular Filipino dessert called crema de fruta, which is similarly layered, but uses fruit cocktail instead of mangoes, and sponge cake or ladyfingers instead of graham crackers.

I first became aware of mango royale listening to a Good Food podcast episode featuring Isa Fabro, a Filipino-American chef who is well-known for her sell-out mango royale popups in Los Angeles. But instead of making it in a cake pan or a casserole dish, as is more commonly done, she makes hers in a pie plate, which I think is brilliant. This recipe is based on one she has shared publicly, with a few of my own modifications.

Ingredients You'll Need

You really need only 5 ingredients; the lime is optional but I like the acidity and brightness that it adds. Because it is so simple, the quality of your mangoes is of utmost importance. More on that below.

• Graham cracker crumbs. You can buy the crumbs, or grind up whole crackers.
• Butter, unsalted (though salted is fine, too)
• Sweetened condensed milk
• Heavy whipping cream
• Manila mangoes
• Lime juice (optional)

How to Make Mango Royale

Here's a bird's eye view of the process, but be sure to check out the full video tutorial in the recipe card below to ensure success!

1. Melt and brown the butter until very dark and nutty
2. Pour into the graham cracker crumbs and mix
3. Press about ⅔ of the crumbs into a pie plate which has been sprayed with nonstick spray, and chill.
4. Score mango cheeks into cubes and scoop into a bowl.

5. Squish the mangoes with a gloved hand until it looks like half-chunks, half-purée.
6. If the mango tastes like it could use a little extra acidity to brighten up the flavour, add some lime juice.
7. Combine the condensed milk and whipping cream.
8. Whip on medium to medium-low speed until firm.

9. Spread half of the cream onto the chilled crust.
10. Spread half of the mango on top of the cream.
11. Sprinkle on half of the remaining crumbs (or however much you like; I like only a little bit of crumbs here.)
12. Repeat the layers one more time.

13. Once completed, freeze the pie for at least 8 hours.
14. Before serving, thaw for about 1 hour at room temp or overnight in the fridge.

Pro Tip: Slow-Whip the Cream

Chef Fabro stresses that the cream should be whipped slowly for more stability. You can whisk it by hand if you're looking for an arm workout, or if using an electric mixer, use medium or medium low speed. Using high speed creates a lot of air bubbles which makes the cream less stable. Think about the aerosol whipped cream, it's whipped instantly and is the flimsiest whipped cream ever...yeah, we want the opposite of that!

Choosing the Best Mangoes

This pie is so simple, so your mangoes have to be very good. Remember: your pie is only as good as your mangoes! You want them ripe, sweet, juicy, and erring on the side of overripe. If they're wrinkly with black spots on them, even better. This is partly because once the mangoes are frozen, their flavour and sweetness will be dulled slightly.

What type of mangoes should you use? You should use Manila mangoes of course, which in North America are in season around April. If that's not available to you, you can use Ataulfo mangoes which are very similar, and in N. America these are sometimes both labeled as “Manila” mangoes. Ataulfo are also known as champagne mangoes. If neither is available, go with whatever is sweet, fragrant and juicy, but not fibrous.

What are Manila Mangoes?

Manila mangoes are teardrop-shaped, bright yellow mangoes that are native to the Philippines. When ripe they should be very sweet with very little acidity (which is why I like to add a little lime juice to the pie) and are not at all fibrous. The seeds are also wonderfully thin, so they're a good bang for your buck! Ataulfo mangoes (aka champagne mangoes) are descendants of Manila mangoes and are very similar so can also be used.

How to tell if Manila mangoes are ripe

If you want to eat Manila mangoes fresh, wait a few days after they have turned completely yellow. If there's still any green on the skin, they are not ready to eat and will be sour. They should also feel soft when gently squeezed.

If you want to make Mango Royale, however, wait longer until the skin starts to get wrinkly. As mentioned, for a frozen dessert you want them overripe for maximum flavour, fragrance, and sweetness.

How to Store Mango Royale

Mango royale is a frozen dessert, so obviously you need to keep it frozen. The only problem is, what if you thaw it to serve, and then have leftovers? Can you refreeze the thawed dessert?

Freezing and thawing most foods multiple times is never a good idea. In the case of creamy things such as this, the multiple freeze-thaw cycles cause the texture to become more icy and less creamy. So if you're not going to eat the whole pie at once, here's my suggestion:

1. Freeze the whole pie initially as per the recipe.
2. The first time you serve the pie, and after it has thawed just enough for you to cut into it (about 30 minutes at room temperature), cut the entire pie into slices. Do not let it thaw any more than necessary, so check it early.
3. Put the pieces that you will save for later into a container with a lid and put them straight back into the freezer. Try not to let the pieces touch each other so they will not stick together; you can also put pieces of parchment in between them.
4. With the pieces that you will be eating today, now that they are cut, they will take only a few more minutes to get to that ideal semi-thawed serving temperature.

With this method, you will have pieces of mango royale cut and ready to serve anytime, and while the whole pie can take an hour to thaw at room temp before it reaches a good serving temperature, each small piece will only take 10-15 minutes.

Frequently Asked Questions

Other No-Bake Mango Desserts for Mango Lovers

If you've got more mangoes after making mango royale, here are a few other desserts you should try.

• Mango and sticky rice. If you only made one dessert form my site, this famous Thai dish should be it.
• Mango Coconut Jelly Cubes. This was my first viral recipe, and for good reason! See what the hype was all about!
• Hong Kong Mango Pancake. If you love the combination of mangoes and cream, try this dim sum classic. Your mango also has to be very good for this.
• Mango Pudding. Soft, silky, luscious mango pudding is a dream. Light and not too sweet, perfect for a sweet ending to a big meal.

Before you start, be sure to watch the video tutorial to ensure success! I always include little tips and tricks not mentioned in the blog post. The video is in the recipe card below, but you can also watch it on YouTube!

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No-Bake Mango Cream Pie - Filipino Mango Royale

One of the simplest mango desserts you can make - yet one of the best. This Filipino classic frozen treat combines sweet, juicy Manila mangoes with fluffy whipped cream, sweetened condensed milk, and a nutty brown-butter graham cracker crust.

Course Dessert

Cuisine Filipino

Prep Time 10 minutes minutes

Cook Time 50 minutes minutes

Freezing time 8 hours hours

Servings 8 servings

Calories 522kcal

Author Pailin Chongchitnant

Equipment

• 9-inch pie plate
• Nonstick cooking spray
• Parchment paper (optional)

Ingredients

• 5.5 oz butter unsalted
• 2 cups graham cracker crumbs
• 25 oz very ripe manila mango flesh see note 1
• 1 tablespoon lime juice optional
• 4.5 oz sweetened condensed milk see note 2
• 1.5 cups whipping cream cold

US Customary - Metric

Instructions

• Spray the pie plate with non-stick spray, and if you want you can line bottom with parchment. (The parchment isn't totally necessary but it does make it easier to remove.)
• For the brown butter graham crust, place the graham cracker crumbs into a large mixing bowl.
  2 cups graham cracker crumbs
• Brown the butter by melting it in a stainless steel pot or skillet over medium heat. Once melted, keep stirring until the butter becomes very dark brown and looks almost burnt, about 5 minutes. Remove from the heat. (Note: There will be a lot of foam on top of the melted butter, this is normal, but if you keep stirring you will be able to see the colour of the butter through the foam.)
  5.5 oz butter
• Pour the brown butter over the graham crumbs and mix well.
• Put about ⅔ of the graham crumbs into the pie plate and spread it around, then press the crumbs up the sides of the plate making them a little less than ¼ inch thick. Then press them into the bottom of the pie plate firmly. You can take more of the reserved crumbs to fill the crust as needed, as it's most important that you have an even, sturdy bottom crust. Chill the crust in the fridge while you make the filling.
• For the mango filling: Slice mango cheeks off the fruit, then use a paring knife to score the flesh into ½-inch cubes and use a spoon to scoop them out into a large mixing bowl. You can remove the flesh around the seeds, or just snack on them - as long as you have at least 700 g (25 oz) of flesh.
  25 oz very ripe manila mango flesh
• Use a gloved hand to squish the mangoes until it looks like a chunky mango sauce (about half chunks half puree). Taste, then add lime juice if it feels like it could use a little extra acidity.
  1 tablespoon lime juice
• For the condensed whip: Combine condensed milk and cold whipping cream in a medium mixing bowl and use a hand mixer to beat them on medium to medium-low speed until firm peaks form. To check for doneness, lift your beater, and whatever sticks to your beater should be able to hold its shape against gravity with gentle shaking. Be careful not to over-whip; once your beater starts leaving clear trails you're almost there, so pay attention and check often.
  4.5 oz sweetened condensed milk, 1.5 cups whipping cream
• Build the pie: The layers are built in this order: cream -> mango -> crumbs -> cream -> mango -> crumbs.

  Spread about half of the cream into the chilled crust, then spoon half of the mangoes over the cream, followed by about half of the remaining crumbs. Repeat the layers with the remaining filling, and if you don't end up using everything, that's fine. You can use whatever's left to make a mini version.
• Freeze overnight (at least 8 hours), then allow to thaw for 1 hour at room temp or thaw in the fridge overnight before serving. If your schedule will allow, you can also serve it after 5-6 hours of freezing. Essentially you want to serve it semi-frozen or partially thawed.

  Tip: If freezing for more than 1 night, to prevent it from drying out and absorbing freezer smell I recommend covering it with a double layer of plastic wrap after the exterior has firmed up.

Video

Notes

1. This is about 5 medium-sized manila mangoes. Manila mangoes are also known as ataulfo or champagne mangoes. If they are not available you can use other varieties as long as they are very sweet and juicy. Your pie is only as good as your mangoes, so make sure they are super sweet and ripe, even overripe, as the flavour will be dulled slightly when it's frozen. 
2. By volume this is about 100 ml of sweetened condensed milk, ⅓ cup + 1 ½ Tbsp, or ⅓ of a can.

Nutrition

Calories: 522kcal | Carbohydrates: 47g | Protein: 5g | Fat: 36g | Saturated Fat: 22g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 9g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 98mg | Sodium: 319mg | Potassium: 147mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 34g | Vitamin A: 3322IU | Vitamin C: 13mg | Calcium: 106mg | Iron: 12mg

The post No-Bake Icebox Mango Pie (Filipino Mango Royale) appeared first on Hot Thai Kitchen.

These pork meatballs are so tasty, easy and kid-friendly. For the adults, I recommend some sweet chili sauce to take it up a notch. They make the perfect party appetizers and can be prepped ahead of time. They can also accommodate a few modifications as discussed in the FAQs below.

Be sure to watch the full video tutorial before you start to ensure success, as I often include additional tips you might find useful.

A favourite of Thai children everywhere

This dish in Thai is called "moo tod woonsen" which means "glass noodles fried pork". It's a popular dish for kids in Thailand, and is often served in school cafeterias because it's a satisfying item that's not spicy. (And also...what kid doesn't love meatballs?!)

A plain version without glass noodles also exists, but I prefer these because of the added texture and crispiness - and also because these are more cost effective!

Why add noodles to meatballs?

If adding noodles to meatballs is an unfamiliar concept to you, let me convince you as to why it's a great idea. Glass noodles do a few things in meatballs:

1) They lighten the meat mixture. So you can actually snack on a bunch of these without feeling instantly full. 

2) When fried, the noodles on the exterior become crispy. No need to mess with panko or any other breading.

3) They add a fun texture, especially when you first bite the meatballs! You can feel them pull and tear, no wonder kids love them!

4) It's a great way to reduce cost! The noodles help extend the meat without introducing any new flavours.

5) They reduce the number of calories per meatball...not that this would make them "low calorie" by any stretch of the imagination!

But why glass noodles?

If you're thinking about substituting other noodles, hold up. There's a reason - many reasons actually - we only use glass noodles for mixing with meat instead of rice or wheat/egg noodles. 

1. Glass noodles have a completely neutral flavour.

So they will not impart any flavour of their ow,n and are only there to serve the purposes above. If it weren't for the texture, you wouldn't even know they were there.

2. They cook perfectly inside the meatballs.

This is probably the most important reason: glass noodles can simply be added raw (but rehydrated), and they will cook perfectly as the meatballs cook. They also do not overcook easily, making them essentially foolproof. Adding rice or wheat noodles would not be nearly this straightforward.

3. They keep the "meaty chew".

You might think this is similar to adding breadcrumbs to meatloaf or meatballs, but it's actually quite different. When you add breadcrumbs, they "merge" into the meat and cause the mixture to become softer and have a finer texture. Glass noodles on the other hand remain separated from the meat, and so the meat retains its satisfying meaty chew.

4. They are extremely resilient.

You would have to work really hard to break glass noodles, even when rehydrated. So you can mix it in and knead as much as your heart desires, and they will still remain intact.  

Ingredients You'll Need

Here are all the ingredients you'll need. See the FAQ for some substitutions information.

Step-By-Step:

Here's a bird's eye view of the process, but be sure to check out the full video tutorial in the recipe card below to ensure success!

Pro Tip: Prepping Noodle Meatballs in Advance

These make great party appetizers! And there are many ways you can prep these ahead of time:

- The meat mixture can be made 1 day in advance and kept in the fridge. You can also form it into balls ahead of time and keep them all on one layer so they don't get squished.

- Cook them up a few days in advance. Though the crispy texture is best when freshly fried, if you're short on time on serving day you can quickly reheat cooked meatballs in a 350°F (175°C) oven for about 5-8 minutes - depending on their size and how cold they were to begin with.

- For long term storage, you can freeze cooked meatballs for a few months and reheat them in a 350°F (175°C) oven. This will probably take 12-15 minutes, but I have not tried it myself (yet).

Frequently Asked Questions

Like this recipe? You'd also love these!

Before you start, be sure to watch the video tutorial to ensure success! I always include little tips and tricks not mentioned in the blog post. The video is in the recipe card below, but you can also watch it on YouTube.

Print

Crispy Meatballs with Glass Noodles & Sweet Chili Sauce

Noodles IN meatballs! If you haven't tried it, get ready to be blown away. Glass noodles give texture, lightness, and a crispiness on the exterior (no need to mess with breading!). They're so delicious and kid-friendly, but adults can add some sweet chili sauce to take it up a notch!

Course Appetizer

Cuisine Thai

Prep Time 20 minutes minutes

Cook Time 15 minutes minutes

Servings 16 meatballs

Calories 100kcal

Author Pailin Chongchitnant

Ingredients

• 1.4 oz dry glass noodles
• 5 cloves garlic
• 1 teaspoon white peppercorns
• 6-8 cilantro stems or 3 cilantro roots, chopped
• 1 lb ground pork (see note 1)
• 2 tablespoon soy sauce
• 1 tablespoon oyster sauce
• 1 tablespoon sugar
• 1 egg large or medium (see note 2)
• 3 tablespoon cornstarch (see note 3)
• 1-2 green onions chopped
• Frying oil as needed
• Thai sweet chili sauce for serving
• cucumber slices for serving (optional)

US Customary - Metric

Instructions

• Soak glass noodles in room temp water until pliable - about 7-10 minutes, though this may take longer if the brand's noodles are thicker.
  1.4 oz dry glass noodles
• Meanwhile, pound the garlic, peppercorns and cilantro stems into a fine paste in a mortar and pestle.
  5 cloves garlic, 1 teaspoon white peppercorns, 6-8 cilantro stems
• Put the ground pork in a mixing bowl and add the herb paste. Add the soy sauce, oyster sauce, sugar, egg and cornstarch. Knead with your hands for a few minutes until thoroughly mixed and the mixture becomes thicker than when it started. Once ready, the mixture will seem soft but should be able to hold its shape; if not, you can add a bit more cornstarch.
  1 lb ground pork, 2 tablespoon soy sauce, 1 tablespoon oyster sauce, 1 tablespoon sugar, 1 egg, 3 tablespoon cornstarch
• Drain the glass noodles and place them on a towel to absorb excess water. Use scissors to cut the glass noodles into 2-inch pieces.
• Add the glass noodles and chopped green onions into the mixture and mix just until the noodles are well distributed.
  1-2 green onions
• Form the meatballs into roughly 1.5 inch balls; tucking in any long pieces of noodles that protrude out. If you see any green onions sitting on the surface you can push them inside so they will not burn or fall off during frying - though this is not a big deal if you don’t have the patience! If you want, you can dip your hands in water and the meatballs will not stick to your hands and will be smoother, but I prefer them to stick to you a bit as they get a more interesting rough surface.
• Heat about 1.5 inch of frying oil in a pot or wok to about 325°F. Add the meat balls one at a time; you can even crowd them a bit here as they will not get oil-soaked even if the temperature drops a lot. Let them fry for about 20 seconds to firm up and gently stir to make sure they’re not sticking. Fry them for about 5-6 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the internal temp is 160°F (71°C) - or you can cut one open to check doneness. Remove from the oil and drain on a rack or paper towel.
  Frying oil
• Allow them to cool for about 5 minutes before serving. They’re great on their own, but better with sweet chili sauce and a side of fresh cucumber.
  Thai sweet chili sauce, cucumber slices

Video

Notes

1. Ground chicken or turkey can be substituted, but  make sure it is made from dark meat with enough fat in it, otherwise it would be too lean and dry. Ground beef can also be used.
2. Extra large eggs might make the meat mixture too wet, which means you might have to add a little more cornstarch to keep the mixture firm enough to form into balls.
3. You can substitute equal amounts of potato starch or tapioca starch. To sub all-purpose flour, use 1 ½  tablespoon to start and add more only if the pork is too soft to form into balls. 

Nutrition

Calories: 100kcal | Carbohydrates: 5g | Protein: 5g | Fat: 6g | Saturated Fat: 2g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 3g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 31mg | Sodium: 115mg | Potassium: 95mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 1g | Vitamin A: 24IU | Vitamin C: 1mg | Calcium: 10mg | Iron: 1mg

The post Crispy Meatballs with Glass Noodles & Sweet Chili Sauce appeared first on Hot Thai Kitchen.

I got the idea for this recipe because I realized that we have a Thai dessert called kanom maw gaeng that is structurally very similar to pumpkin pie - a baked custard with a mashed vegetable mixed in. Typically we would use mashed taro or mung beans mixed with coconut milk, palm sugar and pandan leaves.

So I wondered how it would turn out if I replaced the taro or mung beans with pumpkin puree and then bake it into a pie. 🧐

Well, it turned out delicious beyond expectation. You get the flavour, creaminess and richness of the coconut, the caramel notes of palm sugar, and the floral aroma of pandan leaves, all with the silky, soft texture of pumpkin. And the crust adds an element of crunch that kanom maw gaeng doesn't have but certainly would benefit from!

What Makes This Recipe Work

• Reducing the coconut milk by half concentrates its flavour and richness, so you can squeeze more coconut flavour in without more liquid than the pie can handle.
• The ratio of pumpkin, coconut, and eggs is designed to create a soft, luscious, creamy custard that just holds together well enough to slice, but melts in your mouth instantly. No dense, solid, cloying pumpkin pie here!
• Topping the pie with toasted coconut adds texture and complimentary flavour to the pie. The key is to make sure you toast the coconut DARK to develop a nutty flavour, then mix in a little untoasted coconut for better colour contrast.

Important Notes on Ingredients 

• Pandan leaves are key to the Thai flavour of this pie, and they're the most common flavour added to Thai desserts. You can find the leaves fresh or frozen at Asian grocery stores that carry a good selection of Southeast Asian ingredients (Thai, Vietnamese, etc.). You can also use pandan extracts, though it's not as good as the real thing. If you really cannot find them, substituting a teaspoon of vanilla will do.
• Palm sugar. Not all palm sugars are created equal, and if you have a choice of a few different brands I always suggest going with the most expensive one as it's a sign of a more pure palm sugar with less white sugar mixed in. For more on how to choose the best palm sugar, watch this video: The Ultimate Guide to Palm Sugar
• Coconut milk. Quality of coconut milk varies significantly between brands on the market, and you'll want to choose the best one, especially for desserts. Watch my video on The Ultimate Guide to Coconut milk to see my recommendation on brands and also how to identify "good" vs "bad" coconut milk. While we're on the subject of coconut milk, check out my mini documentary on How Coconut Is Made: From Farm to Can!
• Pumpkin purée. For this recipe I used E.D. Smith brand (not sponsored), which is widely available in Canada. I want to caution you though that when you buy the pumpkin make sure you're buying "pure pumpkin" and NOT "pumpkin pie filling"! I didn't really pay attention when I was shopping and grabbed the wrong one because the packaging looks so similar. Pumpkin pie filling already has sugar and spices mixed in, so it will NOT work for this recipe.

What To Do With Leftover Pumpkin Purée

It's inconvenient, but this recipe does not use whole cans of pumpkin puree, so you're bound to have some left over. Here are some ideas on what to do with it:

• Soup. You may not have enough left to make pumpkin soup, but you can add it into any other soup (like chicken soup) and it'll act as a thickener.
• Smoothies. Pumpkin is nutritious and high in vitamin A - so after you feel guilty about eating pie, go make yourself a healthy smoothie with the remainder.
• Pasta sauce. Stir it into your regular tomato-based pasta sauce for something richer and creamier. This works especially well for lasagna.
• Thai curries. Yes! It's a perfect addition to this red curry with chicken and squash recipe and vegan red curry recipe. Just add it to the sauce and it will make a richer, creamier curry. Totally not traditional - but it works!
• Have young kids? I mix pumpkin puree into my 20-month-old son's yogurt but you can mix it into many other foods your kids are eating, especially ones that are saucy like mac and cheese or casseroles. For younger babies you can just feed it to them straight up as baby food.
• Don't want any more pumpkin? Freeze it! It'll last in the freezer for a few months.

Watch the full video tutorial!

All my recipes come with step-by-step video tutorials with extra tips not mentioned in the blog post, so make sure you watch the video below to ensure success - and if you enjoy the show, please consider subscribing to my YouTube channel. Thank you!

Coconut Pumpkin Pie

5 Stars 4 Stars 3 Stars 2 Stars 1 Star 4.6 from 5 reviews

• Author: Pailin Chongchitnant
• Prep Time: 30 mins
• Cook Time: 1 hour
• Total Time: 1.5 hours + 2 hours cooling time
• Yield: 8-10 servings

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Description

This recipe takes the traditional Thanksgiving pumpkin pie and combines it with some of the iconic flavours of Thai desserts: coconut, palm sugar, and pandan leaves. The result is an incredibly tasty pie with a unique touch that still gives you the rich, creamy, silky pie experience you want for the holidays.

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Ingredients

• 1 single pie crust, unbaked (see this recipe for my easy pie crust)
• 1 ½ cup coconut milk 
• 1 pandan leaf (18 inches), cut into 1-inch pieces
• 225g finely chopped palm sugar 
•  ¾  teaspoon fine salt
• 2 cups pumpkin puree, canned
• 3 large eggs, lightly beaten
• ~¼ cup shaved coconut for garnish, or another garnish of your choice
• Optional: whipped cream or coconut whipped cream for serving

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Instructions

Parbake the Crust: 

1. Preheat the oven to 375°F (190°C) and set the rack on the lowest rung. 
2. Line the pie plate with your pie dough, dock (poke) it all over with a fork to prevent puffing, and then chill for 2 hours or freeze for 30 minutes. 
3. Cut a piece of parchment paper so it’s at least 2 inches bigger than the pie plate on all sides. Crumple it up well and then smooth out and place it on top of the pie crust. Fill the parchment / pie crust with your "pie weight" of choice (ex. sugar, dry rice, or dry beans) and then place the pie plate onto a baking sheet.
4. Bake for 20-25 mins or until the edges look cooked but have very little to no colour on them (make the filling while this bakes).
5. Remove from the oven, grab the parchment on all corners and lift the pie weight off and rest it in a bowl. Then put the crust back into the oven for another 4-5 minutes to dry up the bottom. (If using rice or beans for weight you can save them up for future pie crusts, but they will not cook up the same otherwise. If using sugar, you can cook with it again, though some of the sugar at the bottom might harden a bit due to the absorbed moisture. )

Make the Filling:

1. Add coconut milk and chopped pandan leaf to a pot and bring to a boil over medium heat. Boil for about 10 minutes or until reduced by exactly half (you will need to measure it). Keep an eye on it so it does not boil over (if the sides are burning your flame is too high and is licking the sides of the pot).
2. Once reduced, strain the coconut milk into a measuring cup and see if you have ¾ of a cup (180 ml) left. If you have a little less, that’s okay. If it’s a lot less just add a bit of water back in to get it to ¾ cup. But if you have more you want to keep reducing it, otherwise your filling might be too soft.
3. Discard the pandan leaves and return the ¾ cup of coconut milk to the pot. Add salt and palm sugar and cook over medium heat for 1-2 more minutes, just until the sugar is dissolved.
4. Remove from heat and whisk in pumpkin puree until combined.
5. Add the eggs and stir until well combined, making sure to scrape the edges and bottom of the pot with a rubber spatula to ensure everything is mixed in.
6. Pour the filling into the parbaked crust and bake on the bottom rack for about 1 hour, or until it reaches an internal temp of about 170°F. It should look puffed up, and when you jiggle the pan the center should jiggle a bit like jello but it should not “ripple” like liquid. You can always stick a knife into the center and pry it open slightly to see whether it has set.
7. Let cool completely (at least 2 hours) before garnishing and slicing. 
8. While the pie cools, you can toast the coconut for garnish by spreading it out on a sheet pan, leaving an empty space in the middle for more even baking. Bake in the same oven (350°F) for 5-7 minutes or until the coconut has a deep golden brown colour. (It may take less time if using a different shape of coconut - and keep an eye on it as the coconut burns quick!). If you want you can mix the toasted coconut with a little bit of untoasted for a more colourful garnish. 
9. Once the pie is cool, sprinkle the toasted coconut on top of the pie. This pie will keep at room temp for 1 day, but will keep in the fridge for up to a week.

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The post Thai Coconut Pumpkin Pie appeared first on Hot Thai Kitchen.

This is a mashup of Thai and Canadian flavours that work beautifully, and happens to be easy and quick, perfect for when you're busy with all your other Thanksgiving prep! Fish sauce is full of umami, which gives depth and complexity to these vegetables. The sweetness from the maple syrup helps soften the slight bitterness inherent to Brussels sprouts (also known as Brussel Sprouts), and balances the saltiness of the fish sauce.

The fried garlic is optional, but really recommended, and the golden sprinkles really up the presentation game. You can also make the fried garlic a few days ahead and store in the fridge. If not, a little bit of granulated garlic added along with other seasonings will do the trick!

Pan-Searing Brussels Sprouts is the BEST Way (if you don't have a lot to cook)

I learned this technique from America's Test Kitchen, and I will not cook Brussels sprouts any other way again. Pan searing allows them to fry and brown beautifully while still keeping the al dente texture that I like. If you oven roast them, they will be soft all the way through by the time this level of browning is achieved.

It only takes 5 minutes per batch, and for 1 lb of sprouts you will need to do 2 batches if you have a 12-inch skillet. Because of the batch size limitation it's not ideal if you have a ton of sprouts to cook, so in that case I would consider oven roasting and then tossing them in the seasoning as per the recipe. Due to the pandemic this year though, most of us are not going to having large gatherings, so 1 lb is going to be enough for most of us!

Some Useful Links

• Now is the time to bring out your best fish sauce. Here's my video on how to choose the best fish sauce and just about everything else you need to know about my favourite seasoning of all time.
• For something lighter and brighter in flavour, try my other Thai Brussel Sprouts recipe that's tossed in a spicy and tart lime dressing.
• Complete your table with a Thai-inspired coconut pumpkin pie or for something more traditional, try my white chocolate pumpkin pie with candied pecans.

Watch The Full Video Tutorial!

All my recipes come with step-by-step video tutorials with extra tips not mentioned in the blog post, so make sure you watch the video below to ensure success! And if you enjoy the show, please consider subscribing to my YouTube channel. Thank you!

Maple Fish Sauce Brussels Sprouts

5 Stars 4 Stars 3 Stars 2 Stars 1 Star 4.3 from 7 reviews

• Author: Pailin Chongchitnant
• Prep Time: 15 minutes
• Cook Time: 20 minutes
• Total Time: 35 minutes
• Yield: 4 servings
• Diet: Gluten Free

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Description

These brussels sprouts are browned to perfection with no oven required! The sweetness of maple syrup and umami of fish sauce combine to make the perfect side to your Thanksgiving feast, Christmas dinner, or any meal on any regular day.

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Ingredients

• Neutral flavoured oil, as needed
• 1lb (450 g) Brussels sprouts (trimmed weight)
• 4 tsp (20 ml) fish sauce
• 1 Tbsp (15 ml) maple syrup
• ¼ tsp white or black pepper
• Fried garlic (optional) or sub ¼ teaspoon granulated garlic

Fried Garlic

• 5-6 cloves garlic, chopped
• 4 Tbsp (60 ml) neutral flavoured oil

Ingredients and Kitchen Tools I Use

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Instructions

For The Fried Garlic:

1. In a small pot or a round-bottomed wok set over medium low heat, add the oil and one little piece of chopped garlic as a "heat tester". Once the tester garlic starts to bubble, add the rest of the garlic. There should be enough oil to just cover the garlic; if not, add more oil.
2. Fry the garlic, stirring frequently, until golden (not browned) and the bubbling has subsided.
3. Either strain the garlic through a metal sieve or use a fine mesh skimmer to remove it from the oil, then put the garlic on a paper towel lined plate to absorb excess oil. Keep the oil for frying the Brussels sprouts.

For the Brussels Sprouts

1. In a large skillet (the biggest one you have) add just enough oil to completely coat the bottom. Place the Brussels sprouts, cut side down, and fill the pan completely while making sure all pieces are making full contact with the pan. You will need to do this in 2 batches if using a 12 inch skillet.
2. Turn heat on medium high and let them cook without stirring until well browned on the bottom side, about 4 minutes. (A mesh splash guard would come in handy here.) Flip the sprouts and cook the other side for just one more minute. I recommend tossing the pan for faster flipping, then go back and turn over any that did not cooperate.
3. Remove the sprouts from pan with tongs, leaving the oil behind, and put them in a bowl for now. Make sure there are no stray bits of sprouts left in the pan, then add more oil and repeat with the second batch.
4. Once the second batch is done, put the first batch back into the pan, toss just for 10-15 seconds to heat the first batch of sprouts. (Note: In the video, as you saw, we had a bit of smoke alarm drama to deal with (!!!) so I removed the second batch of sprouts from the pan and didn't turn the heat back on to finish. You do not need to remove the second batch of sprouts from pan; just add the first batch back in and toss with seasoning. And ideally your pan would be hotter than mine when you add the seasoning so the sauce will cook a bit.)
5. Turn off the heat and immediately add fish sauce, maple syrup, and white pepper and toss well to thoroughly coat all pieces with the sauce.

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Thai Marinade, Universally Delicious

The main stars of this marinade are oyster sauce and soy sauce, with just a touch of sweetness added in. This combo creates intensely umami flavours that compliment the beef perfectly - and the little bit of sugar is the secret to balancing the salt and giving you those smokey-flavoured grill marks. These sauces are Asian, but they have relatively neutral flavours that won't make you go, "woah, SO Asian." So they will not clash with say, mashed potatoes.

This is also endlessly customizable, so that if you do want it to have a distinct flavour of any particular herbs or spices, you can totally add them to this base marinade. So use what's given as the base ratio, then get creative from there!

What is "Crying Tiger"?

"Crying Tiger" is the way the steak is served. You might have seen this name on Thai restaurant menus, or maybe it was Tiger Cry, Weeping Tiger, or some variation on that theme. This is a direct translation from the Thai name "seua rong hai", which refers to a marinated grilled steak, sliced thinly and served with the ultimate dipping sauce for grilled meats: nam jim jeaw. Sticky rice is usually served as a side.

Technically crying tiger calls for a specific cut of beef; the brisket. There are many stories explaining the origin of the name, but the one I like best is that the brisket is so chewy even the tiger cannot eat it ... so it cries!! How sad! But the chewiness is why the steak is always very thinly sliced.

Nowadays people make crying tiger using other (better) cuts that don't involve any tears or jaw pain (and I don't recommend you use brisket for this), but really the most important thing here is the marinade; the dipping sauce if you want something very Thai.

More classic must-try Thai recipes for the grill

FAQ About This Marinade Recipe

Have leftover steaks? Try using them in these recipes!

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Thai Marinated Grilled Steak with "Jeaw" Dipping Sauce (Crying Tiger)

Even though this is a classic Thai steak marinade, it's for a neutral enough flavour that it will work with any meal, Thai or not. Loaded with flavours, endlessly customizable, it's the only marinade recipe you need. The dipping sauce is also a classic that no Thai person would go without!

Course Main Course

Cuisine Thai

Prep Time 15 minutes minutes

Cook Time 10 minutes minutes

Marinating time 3 hours hours

Servings 4 servings

Calories 468kcal

Author Pailin Chongchitnant

Ingredients

Marinated Steaks

• 1.5 lb steaks see note
• ½ teaspoon black peppercorns
• 2 cloves garlic
• 2 tablespoon soy sauce
• 1 ½ tablespoon oyster sauce
• 2 teaspoon sugar
• 1 tablespoon lime juice
• 2 tablespoon neutral oil
• Sticky rice for serving, see note

Nam Jim Jeaw Dipping Sauce

• 2 tablespoon tamarind paste
• 1 tablespoon fish sauce
• 1 tablespoon lime juice
• 1 tablespoon palm sugar very finely chopped
• 2 tablespoon minced shallots or chopped green onion
• ½ teaspoon roasted chili flakes or to taste
• 1 tablespoon uncooked jasmine or sticky rice (for toasted rice powder)
• 3 sprigs cilantro or mint chopped

US Customary - Metric

Instructions

• To make the marinade, pound the black pepper in a mortar and pestle into a powder, then add the garlic and pound into a fine paste. Add all remaining marinade ingredients and stir to mix well.
  ½ teaspoon black peppercorns, 2 cloves garlic, 2 tablespoon soy sauce, 1 ½ tablespoon oyster sauce, 2 teaspoon sugar, 1 tablespoon lime juice, 2 tablespoon neutral oil
• Place the steaks into a dish just big enough to hold them in one layer, or put them in a freezer bag. Add the marinade and move the steaks around to ensure they're thoroughly coated.
  1.5 lb steaks
• Marinate the steaks for a minimum of 3 hours and up to overnight. Bring the steaks out 1 hour before grilling so they will not be too cold and will cook more evenly.

  Note: Marinated steaks, especially ones with sugar like this, are better suited for the grill. Pan searing is fine but the marinade will more easily burn with direct contact to the hot oil. So without a grill, I would recommend doing a quick sear on the pan just to get it nice and browned, then finishing it off on a rack in the oven.
• Grill the steaks to your preferred doneness. I like grilling them on high heat with the lid open to ensure they have nice grill marks. See the video above for more grilling tips.

For the Nam Jim Jeaw dipping sauce

• In a small bowl, combine the tamarind, fish sauce, lime juice and palm sugar and stir until the sugar is mostly dissolved. Stir in the shallots and the chili flakes and set aside while you make the toasted rice powder; don't worry about any undissolved sugar chunks.
  2 tablespoon tamarind paste, 1 tablespoon fish sauce, 1 tablespoon lime juice, 1 tablespoon palm sugar, 2 tablespoon minced shallots or chopped green onion, ½ teaspoon roasted chili flakes
• Make the toasted rice powder: In a dry skillet, add the rice and toast it over medium high heat, stirring constantly, until the grains are deep brown (see video for the colour you're going for). Pour onto a plate to cool, then grind in a mortar and pestle or coffee grinder into a mostly-fine powder.
  1 tablespoon uncooked jasmine or sticky rice
• Close to serving time, stir the sauce; the sugar should now be completely dissolved, and if there are a few stubborn chunks, they can be easily smushed with the back of a spoon. Stir in the toasted rice powder and cilantro or mint.
  3 sprigs cilantro or mint

Video

Notes

1. Any cut of steaks you like for the grill will work. Keep in mind that for marinated steaks, you want to stick with something thin. I'm using flatiron in the video, but flank, skirt and hanger steaks are examples of great cuts for the grill. 
2. Sticky rice is a classic accompaniment to Thai steaks, but these would go with any sides, Thai or not.

Nutrition

Calories: 468kcal | Carbohydrates: 13g | Protein: 35g | Fat: 31g | Saturated Fat: 12g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 2g | Monounsaturated Fat: 17g | Cholesterol: 104mg | Sodium: 898mg | Potassium: 556mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 9g | Vitamin A: 35IU | Vitamin C: 3mg | Calcium: 29mg | Iron: 3mg

The post The Only Steak Marinade You Need + Thai "Jeaw" Dipping Sauce appeared first on Hot Thai Kitchen.

In this post I'll share with you 3 keys to the perfectly crispy, puffed noodles that STAY crispy for weeks! It's not a hard recipe, but it does require precision in order for the noodles to have the right balance of flavours and, most importantly, be the perfect degree of crrrrrrrispy.

What You'll Need:

Here are all the ingredients for mee krob. One note: I'm using lime zest, but traditionally, a rare kind of citrus called som sa is used. If you want you can replace the lime zest with orange, lemon, yuzu, or grapefruit zest; or a combination.

Step-By-Step: How to Make Mee Krob

I highly recommend you check out the full video tutorial in the recipe card below to ensure success, as it really helps to see how the noodles should behave and what the sauce should look like when it's ready. But here's a bird's eye view of what you'll need to do.

3 keys to perfect mee krob that stay crispy

1. Weigh Your Ingredients. This is not a recipe you can eyeball, because the ratio of noodles to sauce is everything. Too much noodle and it’ll be bland, and not enough will get you noodles that are overwhelmed with too much sauce; making them too sweet, too sour, too sticky, too ... everything. Not to mention the sauce itself needs to have a good balance of sweet, salty and sour.
   
   So make the recipe exactly as I show you here to start with - you can always tinker with the sauce ratio to better suit your taste next time around. It will not be helpful if you are not precise the first time, because you will have no baseline for modification going forward.
   
2. Fry Noodles in HOT oil. I'm talking about 450°F/230°C, or at the very least 430°F/220°C. This is much higher than you’ll ever fry most things, but it is what’s going to get you noodles that are light, crispy, and not oily - as opposed to dense, hard, and oil-clogged.
   
   I highly recommend you watch the video where I show noodles fried at temperatures ranging from 350°F/175°C to 450°F/230°C, so you can see how the noodles SHOULD behave even if you don't have a thermometer. You’ll also see that I’m not kidding that you NEED high temp. (It’s also highly satisfying to watch!)
   
   Try to keep your oil below 475°F /245°C to avoid smoking. The noodles will fry up fine at that temp, but the smoking will deteriorate your oil quality faster than necessary. If it starts to smoke, just turn off the heat and keep frying the noodles with the heat off until the temperature comes down.
   
   On that note, I recommend ventilating your place as much as you can so it doesn't smell like a fast food joint for days! #experience
   
3. Cook your sauce until it reaches 240°F/115°C (the soft ball stage in candy making). This is perhaps the most important thing, and it is absolutely key for noodles that STAY crispy.
   
   At this temperature, there is no more moisture (water) left in the sauce, and the sugar is at the stage where it is firm but still pliable when cool. If you do not cook all of the water away, the noodles will turn soggy. But if you cook the sauce for too long, the sugar will harden too much when cooled, which is not what we want either.
   
   So a good instant-read thermometer such as this one that I use is super important for this part. While professional mee krob vendors can go by the way the sauce looks and behaves (very thick with slow, small bubbles), they have a LOT of experience that we don’t have, and it’s definitely not foolproof. Having said that, you can take a look at how the sauce bubbles in the video at 9:20.

Frequently Asked Questions

Related Recipes

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Mee Krob - Sweet & Sour Crispy Noodle Treats

Crispy rice noodles coated in a sweet, sour, umami sauce. It's a popular Thai snack that keeps really well. Gluten-free.

Course Appetizer, snacks

Cuisine Thai

Prep Time 30 minutes minutes

Cook Time 45 minutes minutes

Servings 16 pieces

Calories 114kcal

Author Pailin Chongchitnant

Equipment

• Instant-read thermometer
• An 8- or 9- inch square pan or casserole dish

Ingredients

The Noodles:

• Oil for frying
• 3.2 oz dry thin rice vermicelli see note 1

The Sauce:

• ¾ cup shallots thinly sliced and cut in short pieces
• 2 tablespoon neutral oil
• 1 egg
• 5.3 oz palm sugar roughly chopped
• 2 tablespoon fish sauce
• ½ teaspoon table salt
• 2 tablespoon tamarind paste
• 2 tablespoon lime juice
• 2 tablespoon Sriracha hot sauce (see note 2)
• Grated zest of a lime

Optional Add-Ins

• ½ cup roasted cashews split in half (recommended)
• 2 tablespoon roasted pumpkin seeds
• A handful of fried dried chilies for garnish
• A handful of fried makrut lime leaves for garnish see note 3

US Customary - Metric

Instructions

For the noodles:

• In a wok or a pot over high heat, add at least 1 ½ inches of frying oil, but leave at least 2 inches of room in the pot to accommodate puffing noodles. If you're also frying the chilies and makrut lime leaves for garnish, heat the oil first to 325°F/160°C. If only frying noodles, heat it to 450°F/230°C. Prepare a large mixing bowl or baking sheet lined with paper towel to put the noodles into after frying.
  Oil for frying
• While the oil heats, pull the rice noodles apart into small bundles, then cut them in half with scissors. The smaller your frying vessel, the smaller the bundles need to be so they have room to expand. (Best to see the video for this part so you know how big the should be and how much they puff up.)
  3.2 oz dry thin rice vermicelli
• If you’re frying makrut lime leaves and dried chilies, make sure they are DRY, and once the oil reaches 325°F/160°C, fry the lime leaves until they stop bubbling, this takes only several seconds. *They may bubble aggressively so stand back a bit. Remove and drain on paper towel. Then fry the dried chilies just until they darken slightly, this also takes only a few seconds. Drain on paper towel.
  A handful of fried makrut lime leaves for garnish, A handful of fried dried chilies for garnish
• Once the oil reaches 450°F/230°C, turn the heat down to medium to medium-low and add a small bundle of noodles into the oil; it should puff up immediately into fluffy, airy white noodles. As it puffs up, push the middle down slightly to make sure that everything has had a chance to completely fry. Once the noodles are puffed (this takes literally 2 seconds) remove with a slotted skimmer or tongs, shake off excess oil, and place it in the prepared mixing bowl. Repeat with the remaining noodles.

  *Make sure the noodles always puff up immediately; if they’re getting slower, the oil temp has dropped too much. If the oil smokes, it's getting too hot; turn off the heat and fry a few bundles of the noodles with the heat off which will help drop the temp more quickly.

For the sauce:

• Before you start the sauce, first prepare your mold which can be a cake pan, a casserole dish, or any kind of containers to shape the noodles. This recipe fits a 9-inch square pan perfectly, but you can use multiple containers or even half-fill a bigger pan. Line the bottom of the pan with parchment or foil to help it come out more easily, though this is not necessary as you can cut them right in the pan.
• In a large non-reactive wok or skillet, saute the shallots in the oil over medium low heat until soft and caramelized, 5-6 minutes.

  *Ideally you want to use a large non-reactive wok (so not carbon steel or cast iron) so you can mix the noodles right in there. If you don't have it, you can make the sauce in a stainless steel skillet, and then toss it with the noodles in a large mixing bowl.
  ¾ cup shallots, 2 tablespoon neutral oil
• Once the shallots are done, add the egg and scramble into tiny pieces.
  1 egg
• Add the palm sugar, fish sauce, salt, tamarind, sriracha, lime juice and lime zest; keep cooking on medium low heat, stirring constantly, until it reaches a temperature of 240°F/115°C. I do not recommend you eyeball this; use a thermometer to be sure otherwise your noodles might not stay crispy after tossing with the sauce. See post above for more details.
  5.3 oz palm sugar, 2 tablespoon fish sauce, ½ teaspoon table salt, 2 tablespoon tamarind paste, 2 tablespoon lime juice, 2 tablespoon Sriracha hot sauce, Grated zest of a lime
• Once the sauce is ready, turn the heat down to the lowest heat and add all of the noodles to the wok. Crush the noodles down so that they will fit into the wok, then use 2 spatulas to quickly but thoroughly toss the noodles with the sauce until they are evenly coated. If the pan you're using for the sauce is not big enough, drizzle the sauce over the noodles in a large mixing bowl, then toss.

  *IMPORTANT: Keep an eye out for any clumps of sauce and break it apart. These clumps will end up being overpowering bits that are too sweet, and it will take away sauce from the other parts of the noodles. This is another reason why ideally you want to toss noodles in the wok, so we can keep the heat on for a bit to keep the sauce from stiffening as it cools, making it easier to mix.
• While still warm, put half of the noodles into the parchment-lined square cake pan or casserole dish and spread it out to fill the pan evenly. Sprinkle half of the cashews and pumpkin seeds over, if using, then spread the remaining noodles on top, followed by the remaining cashews and pumpkin seeds. Then use a measuring cup with a flat bottom to push the noodles down to pack them so they will hold together when cut, but without crushing the noodles.
  ½ cup roasted cashews, 2 tablespoon roasted pumpkin seeds
• Let cool completely, then either cut it in the pan or unmold it and cut it on a cutting board. Keep the pieces in an airtight container along with fried lime leaves and chilies, if desired. You can enjoy them now, but if possible wait at least half a day before serving to allow the flavours to settle into the noodles. You can eat the fried chilies if you like it spicy, but do not eat the dried lime leaves, they're just for aroma and garnish!
• Storage: They will keep for at least a week in an airtight container at room temperature. Put them in the fridge if you're in a humid climate. See FAQ above for more details.

Video

Notes

1. These are the super thread-thin rice vermicelli; not the thicker kind used in Vietnamese spring rolls. Typically two brands are available, "Wai Wai" and "Erawan", make sure they are made in Thailand to be sure it is the right kind.
2. I use Thai sriracha (Sriraja Panich brand). If you use the Huy Fong (rooster) brand it will be a little spicier, but still works fine. For less spicy, you can use half ketchup and half sriracha.  
3. The dried chilies and makrut lime leaves are for garnish, but if you keep them in the mee krob's container for a day or two, the aroma really does infuse into the noodles!

Nutrition

Calories: 114kcal | Carbohydrates: 18g | Protein: 2g | Fat: 4g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 3g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 10mg | Sodium: 333mg | Potassium: 97mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 9g | Vitamin A: 20IU | Vitamin C: 3mg | Calcium: 12mg | Iron: 1mg

The post Mee Krob - Sweet & Sour Crispy Noodle Treats appeared first on Hot Thai Kitchen.

Here are 4 of my favourite ways to use up leftover roasts that are quick and easy (we don't want more work after the big feast, right?!), and so delicious it might make you wonder why you didn't just do this for the dinner to begin with!

Watch: Video Tutorial for All 4 Recipes

You can read on, but if you prefer to watch, here's a video where I go through all 4 different recipes! If you enjoy the show, please consider subscribing to my YouTube channel. Thank you!

1. LAAB - Turn it into a Thai Salad

This is my favourite way because it is quick and it makes a light and refreshing dish to offset the rich, heavy meal you just had. In this post and in the video I show you how to make a "laab" (no, it is not laRb ... you do not pronounce any r!) but you can quite easily turn it into a "yum" which is another type of Thai salad.

Check out this recipe for a Thai roast pork salad as a guide for making a "yum" with your leftovers. But you can explore any Thai salad recipes and substitute your leftovers.

GET THE LEFTOVER LAAB RECIPE HERE

2. TOM - Turn it into a Thai Soup

"Tom" is our term for soups, and you may be familiar with the famous tom yum goong and tom kha gai. In this post I share with you a recipe for a basic tom yum that would work with any leftovers, but luckily many of our soups are quite similar, so here are a few modifications you can make to turn them into a different type of soup.

• Tom Kha (coconut galangal soup): Substitute ⅓ of the stock with coconut milk, or more if you want a richer soup, and use only 1 stalk of lemongrass and 15 slices of galangal. Omit tomatoes. See this recipe for tom kha gai as a reference.
• Tom Sap (Northeastern style soup): Use dried chilies instead of fresh, and add 2 tablespoon of toasted rice powder to the soup at the end. If you can find sawtooth coriander (culantro) use that instead of cilantro. If you have my cookbook, I have this recipe on p. 127.
• Tom Kloang (smoked fish soup): Use half tamarind and half lime juice for the acidity, and add a loosely packed ⅓ cup of bonito flakes. This is a cheat; typically in Thailand we use smoked dried fish which is not available here, so the Japanese katsuobushi (bonito flakes) works perfectly as a substitute. See this recipe for tom kloang as a reference.

GET THE TOM YUM LEFTOVER ROAST RECIPE HERE

3. JEAW - Dip it in a Spicy Thai Sauce

This recipe is perfect for the perfectly cooked roast beef that you're super proud of and still want to enjoy the roast as is, but maybe with a bit of a different, lighter flavour. Or maybe you ran out of gravy ... isn't that always the case? There's never enough gravy?

"Jeaw" or "nam jim jeaw" is our universal dipping sauce for grilled or roasted meats. Chicken, beef, pork, or even fish; if it was grilled or roasted, we can dip it in jeaw.

I've given you a basic recipe here, but know that you can vary it a lot, especially with how sweet you want the sauce to be. Add more sugar or less sugar, it's completely up to you. You can also substitute some of the lime juice with tamarind paste for a thicker, richer dipping sauce.

If you're not familiar with tamarind, check out this video: Everything You Need to Know About Tamarind. Or watch this video on how to make tamarind paste at home.

GET THE JEAW RECIPE HERE

4. PAD - Turn it into Fried Rice

Finally, we cannot talk about leftovers in the context of Asian food without talking about fried rice! "Pad" means to stir fry (yes, that's the same pad as pad thai). It is THE ultimate easy way to use up just about anything in the fridge.

PRO TIP: If you have any delicious meat juice collected on the serving platter, save it and use it as part of the sauce in the rice. If your rice is well cooked (i.e. not too soft) and you don't crowd the pan, you can add about 2 tablespoon of extra meat juice per recipe without worrying about making your rice too soft. Just be sure to adjust the seasoning accordingly - if your meat juice is on the salty side, cut down on the fish sauce or soy sauce slightly.

GET LEFTOVER FRIED RICE RECIPE HERE

The post 4 Thai Recipes For Your Leftover Roast appeared first on Hot Thai Kitchen.

Following up on my previous episode where I showed you how to make a beautiful roast beef (link to that video here), here's a classic Thai beef noodle soup that is the perfect way to use up any leftovers!

Noodle soups are a great way to use leftovers from the holiday table because you don't even need to worry about reheating the meat, it'll heat up perfectly in the hot broth. And it's just so nice to have a pot of steaming broth in the kitchen when it's cold this time of year!

Don't have any leftover roast beef? No problem! Making the beef from scratch is pretty easy, and I include instructions in the written recipe as well.

This video is sponsored by THINKBEEF.CA who has also provided lots of useful information about roast beef including how big of a roast you should buy for the party size you have. Get all of that info right here: ROAST BEEF E-BOOKLET FROM THINKBEEF.CA

Watch The Full Video Tutorial!

All my recipes come with step-by-step video tutorials with extra tips not mentioned in the blog post, so make sure you watch the video below to ensure success - and if you enjoy the show, please consider subscribing to my YouTube channel. Thank you!

Thai-Style Beef Noodle Soup

5 Stars 4 Stars 3 Stars 2 Stars 1 Star 5 from 2 reviews

• Author: Pailin Chongchitnant
• Yield: 4-6 servings

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Ingredients

Thai-Style Beef Broth

• 2 lb beef or veal bones
• 3 L water
• 1 onion, halved
• 6 cloves garlic
• ½ tsp black peppercorns, cracked
• 3 cilantro roots or 8 cilantro stems
• Optional aromatics: 5 pc white cardamom or a few slices galangal
• 2-3 tablespoon fish sauce
• 2-3 tablespoon soy sauce
• 1-2 teaspoon granulated sugar

Noodle Soup Components:

• 350 g thin dry rice noodles (see note)
• 2 cups bean sprouts
• Thinly sliced roast beef (if not using roast beef, see instructions below)
• Green onion and/or cilantro for garnish
• Fried garlic & garlic oil (recipe below)
• Chili flakes, chili oil, or any spicy condiment if you want it spicy

For fried garlic (optional but highly recommended!)

• 1 head garlic
• Neutral flavoured cooking oil

Shop Ingredients & Tools I Use

If not using leftover roast beef...

Choose any cut of beef that is tender, which is any cut that would work as a steak, 100g per person would be plenty. There are 2 ways to do this:

1. This is my preferred way but not traditional, it'll give you slightly pink meat: Simply salt and pepper the steak and sear the outside until nice and brown, leaving the inside rare or medium rare (remember that the hot broth will cook the meat further). Let the steak cool completely, then THINLY slice, against the grain if possible. It's now ready to be assembled into your soup.
2. The second way is if you like well-done meat: THINLY slice the steak, marinate it in a bit of soy sauce, then when you're assembling the noodle soup, cook the beef it in the hot broth and pour it over the noodles. If you want to do it this way just be careful not to overcook the meat, you literally need a few seconds and it will continue to cook in the hot broth!
   (Yes, I put THINLY in all caps cuz it's important. Otherwise it will be tough and/or overwhelm the noodles.)

Ingredients and Kitchen Tools I Use

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Instructions

To make the broth:

Rinse the bones and add to a large stock pot. Cover with cold water and simmer for 1.5 hours, skimming off the scum from the surface as needed. (You can make the fried garlic in the mean time.)

After 1.5 hours, add the onion, garlic, cilantro stems, black pepper, and any other aromatics you’re adding. Simmer for another 1 - 1.5 hours, uncovered.

Use a slotted skimmer to fish out all the bones and aromatics from the broth. At this point if it has reduced too much and you have less liquid than you need, feel free to add more water to make up the volume. Season with fish sauce, soy sauce and sugar, then taste and adjust seasoning as needed.

Make the fried garlic: 

Chop 1 head of garlic and add to a small pot or pan. Add just enough of a neutral flavoured oil to cover the garlic, then fry on low heat (gentle bubbles) until the garlic is golden and the bubbling has significantly slowed down. Be careful not to let the garlic get too brown or it will become bitter. Strain the garlic from the oil. You can keep them separately in the fridge in an airtight container for several weeks. Use over noodle soups or any dish that can use some extra garlic flavour!

Assembly:

Soak the rice noodles in room temp water for 15-20 minutes or until the noodles are soft and pliable. Meanwhile slice the beef thinly and gather all your components.

Bring a big pot of water for blanching noodles to a full boil. Meanwhile, heat the broth until it's gently bubbling.

*If making several bowls of noodle soup, I find it easier to separate the noodles while they’re uncooked and blanch them one at a time since it only takes 5 seconds to blanch, rather than trying to separate hot, cooked noodles.

Place one portion of noodles and beansprouts in a metal sieve or an Asian style noodle strainer and place it in rapidly boiling water and shake it around for 5 seconds. If you’re using bigger noodles, or you have under-soaked your noodles and they are still a bit stiff, you will need to cook them longer. Lift it from the water, drain off as much water as you can, and place the noodles into a serving bowl. Repeat with the remaining portions.

Arrange the beef slices over the cooked noodles and ladle the hot broth over; the beef will heat up and cook a little bit more. If you want the beef well-done, simply add them to the broth and let it cook for a few seconds, and then pour the broth and the beef over the noodles.

Finish it off with chopped green onions and/or cilantro, garlic oil, fried garlic and chili oil/flakes if desired. Enjoy!

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Notes

1. Noodles: The type I use is the same type used in Vietnamese pho and it is about 2 mm wide when dry. You certainly can use other types of noodles for this, but the noodle blanching instructions below will NOT apply to you. So make sure you adjust accordingly to make sure the noodles are cooked through. 

The post Thai-Style Beef Noodle Soup appeared first on Hot Thai Kitchen.

I alway recommend that people think about the balance of the meal, and the traditional Western holiday feast is often rich and lacking in acidity. These Brussels sprouts are fantastically bright with a little kick, and they will help lighten the whole meal. It has become a staple for many viewers over the years!

Watch The Full Video Tutorial!

All my recipes come with step-by-step video tutorials with extra tips not mentioned in the blog post, so make sure you watch the video below to ensure success - and if you enjoy the show, please consider subscribing to my YouTube channel. Thank you!

Brussel Sprouts Thai-Style ยำกะหล่ำดาว

5 Stars 4 Stars 3 Stars 2 Stars 1 Star 4.9 from 9 reviews

• Author: Pailin Chongchitnant
• Yield: 4 servings

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Ingredients

• 3 cloves garlic
• 1-2 Thai chilies, or to taste
• 6-8 cilantro sprigs, leaves and stems separated, stems chopped
• 1 ½ Tbsp palm sugar, chopped, tightly packed
• 1 ½ Tbsp good fish sauce
• 2 Tbsp lime juice
• 1 small head shallots, julienned
• 1 lb Brussel sprouts, small to medium size, cut in half
• A pinch of salt
• ¼ cup roasted peanuts or cashews, roughly chopped

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Instructions

Make the dressing:

Using a mortar and pestle, pound garlic, Thai chilies, and chopped cilantro stems together into a paste.

Add palm sugar and pound to melt it.

Add fish sauce and lime juice and stir to mix.

Stir in shallots and let it sit until ready to use. Store in the fridge for up to 1 day in advance.

Stove-Top Skillet Method (better for those who like al dente Brussels sprouts):

In a large skillet, add enough vegetable oil to thoroughly coat the bottom of the pan and heat over medium high heat. Add Brussel sprouts (you can do this before the pan gets hot), add a pinch of salt and toss the sprouts with the salt.

Flip all the sprouts flat side down. And let them cook until a nice dark browning develops. Add more oil if the pan seems too dry, it will help with browning. If you want more tender sprouts, lower heat to medium and cover the pan.

Once the sprouts are browned on one side, give them a toss, then go back and flip any sprouts that did not flip up. Cook the other side for just a minute or so. Check doneness with a fork—I like it so that when you pierce the sprouts with a fork, it goes through with some resistance in the middle. You may want it more cooked than that, it's up to you.

Remove from heat and transfer into a mixing bowl.

Oven method (better for those who like tender Brussels sprouts):

Preheat the oven to 450°F. Toss the brussel sprouts in oil and a pinch of salt then lay them flat on a baking sheet lined with parchment. Roast for about 15 minutes or until the sprouts are well browned and tender.

Assembly:

Toss the sprouts with the dressing and cilantro leaves, and dish it out onto a plate. Don’t use a deep bowl or the dressing will pool and soak the bottom pieces. Sprinkle with cilantro leaves and roasted peanuts.

Enjoy!

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The post Spicy Thai Brussel Sprouts appeared first on Hot Thai Kitchen.

Sweet, creamy roasted kabocha squash glazed with soy sauce caramel, topped with roasted garlic, and drizzled with Thai basil oil. It's a fancy looking dish, but it's actually much easier and simpler than it sounds, I promise! It's a great side dish that adds subtle Asian flavours into your Christmas or Thanksgiving table, but it will still pair well with a traditional holiday feast.

This dish was inspired by a traditional Thai classic, kabocha squash with Thai basil stir-fry which was one of my favourites growing up. The combination of creamy kabocha squash, a salty-sweet-umami sauce, and Thai basil is one of the best I can think of. So I wanted to take this combo and present it as a vegetable side dish that would work with any traditional holiday meals; and the results were fantastic!

How To Make Soy Caramel Roasted Squash

1. Saute garlic chunks and remove from the oil.
2. Caramelize palm sugar in the garlic oil
3. Add soy sauce to dissolve the caramel and turn off the heat.
4. Brush squash with the glaze
5. Roast the squash and the garlic (meanwhile make the basil oil)
6. Glaze the sqaush again halfway through.
7. Drizzle with basil oil
8. Enjoy!

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Soy Caramel Roasted Kabocha Squash

A Thai-inspired veggie side dish for the holiday season or any time of year. The soy caramel glaze can be modified by using fish sauce or miso instead of soy sauce, and you can change up the squash too. This is also vegan and gluten-free if using gluten-free soy sauce. Be sure to watch the full video tutorial above before you start!

 

Course Side Dish

Cuisine Thai

Prep Time 10 minutes minutes

Cook Time 25 minutes minutes

Total Time 35 minutes minutes

Servings 4 servings

Author Pailin Chongchitnant

Ingredients

• 1.5 lb Kabocha squash (about half a medium squash)
• 5-6 garlic cloves or as much as you'd like
• 2 tablespoon vegetable oil
• 3 tablespoon palm sugar chopped
• 1 ½ tablespoon soy sauce
• ¼ teaspoon ground black or white pepper

Thai Basil oil

• 3 tablespoon neutral flavoured oil
• A pinch of salt
• ¼ cup finely julienned Thai or regular basil

US Customary - Metric

Instructions

• Preheat the oven to 425°F (220°C).
• Scoop out the seeds and fiber from the cavity of the squash with a spoon, then cut into 1-inch wedges (no need to peel it, and watch the video for safe cutting techniques). Place the squash on a large plate.
  1.5 lb Kabocha squash (about half a medium squash)
• Prep the garlic:

  Cut the root end off the garlic and crush the cloves with the flat of your knife until the cloves are broken into big chunks. Remove the peel, and tear apart or chop any chunks that are too big.
  5-6 garlic cloves
• Make the glaze:

  In a small pot, add the oil and garlic and turn heat on to medium low. Once the garlic is bubbling, cook for about 2 minutes, stirring frequently, until they start to turn golden. Turn off the heat and remove from the oil.  Be sure to remove ALL the little bits of garlic otherwise they will burn in the next step.
  2 tablespoon vegetable oil
• To the same pot, add palm sugar and cook until it melts, then turn off the heat. OR if you want a deeper caramel flavour, keep the sugar cooking a bit longer until the colour darkens slightly and then turn off the heat.

  (If you chose to further caramelize the sugar, then when you add the soy sauce it will splatter aggressively, and you may need to add a splash of water to thin out the glaze)
  3 tablespoon palm sugar
•  Take the pot off the heat then add the soy sauce, (it will splatter vigorously), and once the splattering settles you can stir to mix. If it is thick, add about 1 tablespoon of water to thin out the glaze so it can be easily brushed onto the squash. Add the pepper, then throw the garlic chunks back in to coat in the glaze.
  1 ½ tablespoon soy sauce, ¼ teaspoon ground black or white pepper
•  Brush this glaze over the squash on both sides, then place them on a parchment-lined baking sheet in one layer. Be careful to get as little glaze as possible on the baking sheet cuz it'll just burn in the oven.
• Put the garlic chunks inside the curve of the squash pieces, shaking off excess glaze before placing them down—this will protect them from over-browning.
• Roast for 10 mins, then take the squash out and brush with more glaze on both sides; then roast them for another 10-15 minutes or until fork-tender. If the garlic is starting to get too dark, you can take them out first. To check for doneness, pierce the thickest piece with a fork and it should go right through without resistance.
• While the squash roasts, make the basil oil: Add the basil, a pinch of salt and oil into a mortar and pestle and grind to bruise and blend the basil with the oil. You can also just blend everything in a small food processor, but you may need to make a bit more basil oil than you need to make it blend effectively.
  3 tablespoon neutral flavoured oil, A pinch of salt, ¼ cup finely julienned Thai or regular basil
• Assemble

  Place the squash on a serving platter in one layer and scatter the garlic pieces on top. Brush or drizzle the remaining glaze on the squash, then drizzle with basil oil. Serve warm or room temperature.

Video

The post Soy Caramel Roasted Squash with Thai Basil appeared first on Hot Thai Kitchen.