Showing 61 - 70 of 189
Surviving the tempest of time
B Magazine, Suthon Sukphisit, Published on 02/10/2016
» Even though historical knowledge concerns facts and events that are often long behind us, they continue to hold interest and can be enlightening. The history of food is just one example. When eating kaeng khio waan nuea (the popular, coconut cream-based spicy beef curry), we may wonder where it came from and what it tasted like its original form. How has it changed over the years? Answers to these questions found in old recipes can help in appreciation of its combination of flavours and aromas.
Sushi on a roll
B Magazine, Suthon Sukphisit, Published on 04/09/2016
» Sushi, the Japanese rolled rice favourite, has made itself completely at home in Thailand. It has quickly acquired the status of a younger sibling of sukiyaki, which arrived here more than 50 years ago. Over half a century, sukiyaki has adapted to local preferences and become completely naturalised in Thailand, now having little in common with the original Japanese dish.
A culinary melting pot
B Magazine, Suthon Sukphisit, Published on 28/08/2016
» Think of a favourite dish and then consider the various ingredients that come together to make it. You'll see that they are drawn from many different sources, some of them borrowed from other culinary traditions. One good example is pad Thai. Almost everything that goes into it is Chinese, from the small-gauge rice noodles to the tofu, beansprouts, hua chai po (Chinese turnip), Chinese leeks, dried shrimp, peanuts and even the duck eggs (in the past, ducks in Thailand were raised by Chinese). In terms of its ingredients, this familiar dish is Chinese from top to bottom, although whether it was a Thai or a Chinese cook who first prepared it, I don't know.
Having enough on your plate
B Magazine, Suthon Sukphisit, Published on 14/08/2016
» By the term "one-dish meal", most people mean a meal where a single plateful will fill them up. But using satiety as the basis if the definition doesn't really work, because people have different capacities. Some eat very little, while others prefer a big meal. For example, some food shop customers might not feel full after finishing off a plate of pork fried rice and order a plate of kui tiao sen yai raad naa (broad rice noodles with meat in gravy) as a follow up, or start off with pork noodles and then move on to a bowl of yen ta fo. Both examples show that it takes a combination of these dishes to fill up some members of the clientele, and that both cooked-to-order food shops and noodles shops will offer a variety of dishes.
Gone but not forgotten
B Magazine, Suthon Sukphisit, Published on 07/08/2016
» Many old Thai dishes that were familiar to people of a few generations ago are gone now, but among the old dishes, a number have been revived and are appearing on menus again. In many cases there have been revisions and adaptations, however, with new ingredients introduced as substitutes for original ones that are hard to find now, or that may no longer be available at all.
You've tried the restaurants, now try the best
B Magazine, Suthon Sukphisit, Published on 24/07/2016
» Living in Bangkok for a while can create the impression that the city is a world culinary capital. There are offerings of every kind from countries all over the globe, available in every price range, whenever you want them. Atmosphere and style in the city's restaurants run the gamut. After experiencing all of this over a period of time it isn't hard to assume that living in Bangkok has taught you all you really need to know about food and dining.
Old names for a new sensation
B Magazine, Suthon Sukphisit, Published on 10/07/2016
» When a popular food or way of eating remains a favourite over time, it lodges deep in people's memories. Even if the food in its original form changes or disappears completely, new ones that come in to replace it will often be referred to by the famous old name.
Where there's smoke
B Magazine, Suthon Sukphisit, Published on 26/06/2016
» It may seem a little superfluous for me to start writing today about stoves and how useful they are. After all, people have been using them for many thousands of years.
Everything but the sink
B Magazine, Suthon Sukphisit, Published on 05/06/2016
» There is no need to think that the day is coming when supermarkets in Thailand will have lured so many customers away from smaller general-purpose stores that they all go out of business. The variety of goods sold in supermarkets and general stores are different, as are the customers who visit them.
Pride and khoi
B Magazine, Suthon Sukphisit, Published on 29/05/2016
» When driving around Bangkok you'll notice long stretches of ornamental plants; dense, hedge-like bushes cut into different decorative shapes. The straight twigs and leaves at the end of the branches might be shaped into spheres, and sometimes the entire plant has been sculpted into an animal form, elephants being especially popular. Often, a row of the dense plants will be planted next to a wall to create a parallel, vegetable fence.