Showing 31 - 40 of 47
A tale of two markets
B Magazine, Suthon Sukphisit, Published on 10/08/2014
» In Thailand when we talk about a market, the term is too broad to give a clear picture of the kind of place we mean. But if we specify a fruit market, or a market for vegetables, flowers or seafood, or maybe a floating or weekend market, listeners get a better idea of what we’re talking about and what types of goods are sold there.
A good cook knows his chops
B Magazine, Suthon Sukphisit, Published on 15/06/2014
» Last week, this column took a look at one of the most familiar pieces of equipment in a Thai kitchen, the pestle and mortar. Most households will own just one of these, but a cook who owns several, in different sizes and made of different materials, will find that choice offers advantages. Each can be selected for the task that suits it best.
No stairway, But there is a heaven here
B Magazine, Suthon Sukphisit, Published on 25/05/2014
» I have a list of desirables for a trip that’s relaxing and satisfying, a getaway that leaves stress back in the city. First is an unspoiled natural environment with a quality all its own. Then comes a peaceful social environment that is in harmony with the natural one, and where the lifestyle and occupations of the local people have a special, local character. There should also be a chance to taste food that is different from that in other parts of the country.
Two standouts from the throng of thai cookbooks
B Magazine, Suthon Sukphisit, Published on 01/12/2013
» Cookbooks exist in countless volumes and they will always be with us, but the number of really valuable and useful ones is much smaller. It would save culinary devotees time, money and shelf space to know of some of the outstanding Thai cookbooks, and today I would like to recommend a pair of volumes that I think of as gems of the genre.
An oasis of calm
B Magazine, Suthon Sukphisit, Published on 24/11/2013
» Ratchaburi province, with its distinctive character and many attractions, is so close to Bangkok, about 100km or a two-hour drive, that it makes it an ideal choice for a place to spend a few days out of town.
Handling the floodwaters
B Magazine, Suthon Sukphisit, Published on 27/10/2013
» Ayutthaya has been flooded again, but that is hardly news. The inundations have been taking place throughout recorded history. The thing that has made recent floods unusual has been their severity and violence, caused by environmental change and, in part, by the increased population. With more land being developed, the rivers and canals can no longer handle the amount of water flowing into them.
King of prawns on the comeback trail
B Magazine, Suthon Sukphisit, Published on 18/08/2013
» The premiere meat in Thailand is not Mutsusaka beef, Kurobuta pork (aka black Berkshire) or sable fish. Most Thais would give the award to the river-dwelling kung kam kram, or giant Malaysian prawn, and would be especially enthusiastic if the prawn were large, male and fat, with big, long claws and a colouration that combined green with deep blue.
Termites make right with mushrooms
B Magazine, Suthon Sukphisit, Published on 19/05/2013
» Many of the mushrooms found in Thailand are particular to one region. There are a wide variety of mushroom types, and they vary according to the local terrain and weather. Some mushroom thrive in soil nourished by rotted leaves, other grow in heaps of rice straw, decaying wood, or crevices in rocks. Local people know where to find each type, and which to select for a given dish. But sometimes they make dangerous mistakes. There are poisonous mushrooms that strongly resemble the familiar, edible ones, and incorrect choices have resulted in death.
This big city went to the markets
B Magazine, Suthon Sukphisit, Published on 14/04/2013
» Bangkok is a huge city that continues to expand on a daily basis. Some parts of the city are so densely populated that there is hardly room for grass to grow. When the crowding reaches that point, some people move out to surrounding provinces such as Nonthaburi, Pathum Thani, Nakhon Pathom, and Samut Prakan. The city's growth involves both people from metropolitan Bangkok who move to the suburbs to escape the crowding, and those from the provinces who are unable to find places to live in the city and therefore settle in the surrounding areas.
Rustic ratchaburi: Old style treats and traditions
B Magazine, Suthon Sukphisit, Published on 13/01/2013
» Modern lifestlyles depend so much on speed. Communications technology and the social media it fuels race ahead at such a pace that it seems that after a single night's sleep the world will be changed in the morning. Transport systems are opening up wide roads that go practically everywhere, and that development has had a strong effect on my subject here _ food, which often feels the impact of an incoming barrage of new ingredients and techniques.