tea rose dumplings
Thai food is interesting to me. From the time the first Thai restaurant arrived in Greenville in the late 90’s, ubiquitously named “Bangkok”, I’ve been in love with the flavor combinations. Salty soy sauce, sweet chili sauce, funky fish sauce, and fiery curries, garnished with lime and cilantro. It’s a flavor lover’s dream.
But lately when I’m feeling like getting adventurous with some Asian food, rarely do I end up eating Thai food. I think the problem for me is that 95% of Thai menus are all the same, with the exact same presentation, preparation, and taste as a dozen other Thai restaurants in town. It’s as if the food is dumbed down for us, catered for the American palate that can’t handle the heat, that isn’t familiar/comfortable with the street food, and just looooooves to order Pad Thai every time, just like when ordering the General Tso beef every time from Chin Chin.
I don’t mean to be holier than thou, and I’m not saying I don’t ever eat these same dishes – I love some spicy as hell Penang curry, with tons of sauce for spooning over my rice, but it doesn’t excite me so much any more. It’s my Thai “safety order”. What I order when I call for delivery and I haven’t even looked at a menu.
My taste for Thai food may have developed, the offerings seem to all be the same, and I don’t think I’m alone in this interpretation, which is why I think Kokai Thai Bistro and Tuk Tuk have become successful. Am I over thinking this or does anyone else feel the same way?
This post really isn’t a review of Kokai (there are plenty of reviews here), I was just curious about what people think about Thai food. Is it tired to you? Do you order the same thing every time you order Thai? Are you clamoring for more?
ginger chicken – whoa intense ginger flavor!
beef jerky
chicken larb – common dish, but done better than I’ve had elsewhere
boat noodles
kee mao noodles
Thanks to Chloe for meeting me for this lunch. No one else knows this part of town and cuisine like she does.
Bon Appétit Series Background Recap: I was tired of reading the magazine each month, saying, “Oh that looks great, I’ll make that”, then the magazine ends up in the cupboard or trash, never to been seen again. Never more! Now I’m holding myself publicly accountable; each month I will cook at least one recipe from Bon Appétit and post it on here.
As soon as I saw the recipe for this month’s post, I ear marked the page and knew this would be the recipe I’d make. I’ve been wanting to deep fry an egg for a while, well, because I love deep frying, and I love eggs. Double bonus that this recipe comes from Jeremy Fox, chef at Ubuntu.
I started by soft boiling the egg in lightly simmering water. Like a dumbass I didn’t gently lower the egg into the water, I dropped it in there, and it cracked when it hit the bottom. Instead of cooking another egg I just let it go, curious if it would still work. The egg spilled out of the shell slightly, but cooked instantly and created a seal in the opening. After plunging in the ice bath, I peeled the egg, and though the egg is shaped funny in the bottom, it all worked out.
For the bed I quickly sautéed some kale and turnip greens.
Then breaded the egg in the panko/flour mixture. Instead of semolina, I used Korean potato starch.
The egg didn’t get quite the exterior that is shown in the recipe photo, so perhaps using the exact instructions will provide that more even and rich coating.
The remoulade was easy and tasty. I didn’t have mayonnaise so I quickly made my own using a method I found online last year. Crack one egg in a tall, plastic measuring cup, add 1 Tbsp of cider vinegar (lemon juice is often used, but I didn’t have any – any acid will do), 1 tsp of Dijon mustard, and a pinch of salt. Then stand up a hand held immersion blender in the cup and pour in 200mL of olive oil. Mix until it’s whipped into mayonnaise. Easy.
Note – I didn’t add cornichons, tarragon, or hard boiled eggs to my remoulade because I didn’t have some of that stuff and it seemed a bit tedious for a sauce that tasted great without them. Though, this recipe comes from a restaurant, and that’s one great thing about restaurants – they take the time to do things I’m too lazy/busy to do.
How did it taste? Fantastic. Deep fried eggs, with a creamy yolky center, spiced up with sriracha…that one is quickly being added to the super easy yet cool repertoire.
Thanks to my brother Thomas for the chopstick/plate/spoon set seen in these photos.
My brother Thomas told me he was going to be in Birmingham last weekend, and asked if I knew of any dining destinations. Instantly Kool Korners came to mind. Thomas didn’t know they had relocated in Birmingham (Alabama? WTF?) and he quickly added a visit to the new (and apparently improved interior) Kool Korners to his agenda. His photos are below. I’m very glad to see owner Silvesonso Ramirez is still doing his thing. I used to love when he would take the sandwiches from the press, bag them, then throw them on the deli scale and exclaim, “Over one pound!! How am I making any money!?!”
Damn, I’m jealous Thomas.
