Last November, I made my first visit to Thailand, to the beautiful northern city of Chiang Mai.
While there, I visited the remarkable Royal Agricultural Station Inthanon, some 40 kilometres from Chiang Mai, where I saw vibrant green rice paddies, great greenhouses and fields of multi-hued lettuces, vineyards of table grapes, apple orchards, sweet strawberry patches and coffee plantations. This most extraordinary destination is known not only for its stunning geography and people, but also for its remarkable food.
The cuisine varies immensely from region to region, and with influences from the Indian, Malay and Chinese peoples, it shares five fundamental tastes: sweet, spicy, sour, bitter and salty.
Although rice is everywhere in Thailand, the northern regions especially favour their popular sticky rice. Numerous fresh markets showcase the region’s best produce, along with the ubiquitous tropical coconuts, bananas, and pineapples. Ingredients such as garlic, ginger, lemon grass, galangal (Siamese ginger), tamarind, pungent fish sauce and herbs are all prevalent, as they are the base of the hot soups and curry pastes that Thai cuisine is famed for.
Although these important herbs and spices are all commonly used in all Thai cooking, the Northern cuisines vary, as Northern Thai dishes have been influenced by the Burmese and Chinese and therefore use less coconut and less chili heat than those of central Thailand.
Chiang Mai also has its own style of street food, the most popular of which is khao soi, a Chinese-influenced dish made with flat egg noodles, served in a hearty broth with either chicken or beef. Somewhat like a Malaysian laksa, it’s basically a suit-your-own-taste noodle soup as it’s accompanied with a thick chili paste, limes, shallots, chopped chilies, bean sprouts and fresh herbs to allow you to season it yourself. You’ll also find crispy pork skin (like the Mexican chicharron), served with nahm prik num, the spicy Chiang Mai chili relish.
Another local specialty is Sai ua, or Chiang Mai, sausage, which you’ll find coiled and being grilled and barbecued in the markets. This slightly spicy pork sausage is made with red curry paste and spices, and is heady with finely shredded kaffir lime leaves, coriander leaves and lemon grass.
Being such a culinary destination, Chiang Mai has some wonderful cooking schools for travellers interested in Thai cuisine. Both the Four Seasons Chiang Mai as well as the Mandarin Oriental Dhara Dhevi have excellent hands-on teaching facilities, each with individual cooking stations.
I had a chance to take a cooking lesson at the Culinary Academy at the Mandarin Oriental with chef Amara Chaiprasert. Students are taken on a market tour and shown the various Thai ingredients, then head back to the spacious school for hands-on classes. In my four-course class I made a simple spicy beef salad with grapes and mint dressing (Yam Nue Yang A-Ngun), a sublime chili-infused coconut soup with chicken and galangal (Tom Kha Khai), prawns with garlic and pepper sauce (Goong Kratiem Prik Thai) ending with luscious mango sorbet atop a crispy rice cracker (Mamuang).
There are also a number of smaller schools that offer private lessons, such as the Wanlamun Restaurant and Cooking School where they teach up to four students in an intimate setting. It’s here I learned to make a miang (salad) of pomelo with dried and fresh shrimp. Shredded pomelo, the large Asian grapefruit, is tossed together with pounded dried shrimp, crisp fried garlic, shallots and fresh chopped shrimp, then tossed together with a lime and chili dressing atop betel leaves.
This was my first trip to Thailand, and what better way to be introduced to this food-obsessed country than to visit Chiang Mai. With its plethora of fresh wet markets, produce markets, street stalls and restaurants, I was like a kid in a candy store.
Khao Soi (Chiang Mai Curry Noodles)
This regional noodle soup dish is synonymous with Chiang Mai. Somewhat like Maylasia’s famed laksa, this dish is typically made with chicken and tinted with turmeric and curry powder.
2 tablespoons (30 mL) canola oil
1 tablespoon (15 mL) finely chopped garlic
2 tablespoons (30 mL) red curry or panang curry paste
¾ pound (350 g) boneless, skinless chicken thighs, cut into 1-inch pieces
2 cups (500 mL) chicken broth
2 cups (500 mL) coconut milk
2 teaspoons (10 mL) ground turmeric or curry powder
2 tablespoons (30 mL) soy sauce
1 teaspoon (5 mL) sugar
2 tablespoons (30 mL) fish sauce
2 tablespoons (30 mL) lime juice
1 pound (454 g) fresh wide Chinese egg noodles
1/3 cup (80 mL) coarsely chopped shallots
1/3 cup (80 mL) coarsely chopped cilantro
1/3 cup (80 mL) chopped green onions
Fried noodles, for garnish
Heat the vegetable oil in a large saucepan over medium heat. When hot add the garlic and sauté until fragrant, about a minute. Add the red curry paste, and stir until fragrant, about another minute. Add the chicken and cook 1 to 2 minutes, stirring to brown evenly and mixing it with the curry paste.
Add the coconut milk, chicken broth, turmeric, soy sauce, sugar and salt and stir well. Bring to a gentle boil and adjust heat to maintain a strong simmer. Cook about 10 minutes until meat is cooked through.
Stir in lime juice, remove from heat and cover to keep curry warm while you prepare the noodles.
Cook the noodles in a large pot of rapidly boiling salted water until tender but still firm, about 2 to 3 minutes for fresh noodles. Drain, rinse well in cold water, drain again and divide the noodles among individual serving bowls. Ladle on hot curry, and sprinkle each serving with the shallots, cilantro and green onions. Serve hot and garnish with fried noodle.
Yam Nue Yang A-Ngun (Spicy Beef Salad with Grapes and Mint Dressing)
I learned to make this salad at The Culinary Academy at the beautiful Mandarin Oriental Dhara Dhevi. After a glorious morning at Thanin Market, which showcased some of the area’s wonderful produce, live seafood, mountains of spices and curry pastes, we headed back to the school to learn four simple dishes. This was the first, a wonderfully refreshing blend of grilled meat tossed in a spicy dressing contrasted with the cool sweetness of fresh grapes.
6 to 8 green Thai chilies, coarsely chopped
8 to 10 mint stems, coarsely chopped
8 coriander roots, coarsely chopped
6 garlic cloves, coarsely chopped
5 tablespoons (75 mL) fish sauce
¼ cup (60 mL) lime juice
2 tablespoons (30 mL) palm sugar
1 pound (454 g) beef tenderloin, or substitute chicken breast
½ pound (225 g) green or red grapes
1 large bunch fresh mint leaves
2 stalks lemon grass, trimmed and finely sliced
8 kaffir limes leaves, finely julienned
Place chilies, mint stems, coriander roots, and garlic into a mortar and pound until it becomes a paste. Alternatively, add to a small food blender and process until smooth. Add the fish sauce, lime juice, and palm sugar and process until well blended.
Heat a barbecue or gill to a high heat. Season beef or chicken with salt and pepper and grill until desired doneness. Remove and allow to rest a few minutes. Slice thinly and place into the dressing along with the grapes, mint leaves, lemon grass and kaffir lime leaves. Toss well to mix and serve over baby lettuce leaves.
Serves 4 as part of a multi dish meal
Tom Kha Khai (Coconut Soup with Chicken and Galangal)
Another Thai classic, this simple and luscious coconut milk infused broth is aromatic with lemon grass, shallots, chilies, galangal and kaffir lime leaves. Galangal is a rhizome related to the ginger family that looks like ginger but has a completely different smell and taste. More fibrous than ginger, it has almost medicinal notes to its taste. It is available at most Asian specialty markets.
2 cups (500 mL) chicken stock
1 teaspoon (5 mL) palm sugar
2 stalks lemon grass, trimmed, cut into ½-inch slices
3 shallots, peeled, thinly sliced
2 to 3 red Thai chilies, finely sliced
10 slices galangal
4 kaffir lime leaves, finely sliced
3 oz (90 g) straw (sliced) or oyster mushrooms (sliced)
3 oz (90 g) skinless chicken breast or thigh meat, sliced
2 cups (500 mL) coconut milk
2 to 3 tablespoons (30 to 45 mL) fish sauce
1 tablespoon (15 mL) lime juice
1 tablespoon (15 mL) chopped cilantro
In a saucepan combine chicken stock with palm sugar, lemon grass, shallots, chilies, galangal and lime leaves. Bring to a boil, then add mushrooms and chicken slices. Cook 1 to 3 minutes or until chicken is cooked, then add coconut milk, fish sauce, lime juice and cilantro. Simmer a couple of minutes, then ladle into warm soup bowls.
Goong Kra-Tiam Prik Thai (Prawns with Garlic and Pepper Sauce)
This simple dish was one of the courses I learned at The Culinary Academy at The Mandarin Oriental Dhara Dhevi. Thai cuisine uses a lot of coriander roots, which unfortunately are usually trimmed off when they get to the produce section here. They have a unique potent flavour, more so than the rest of the cilantro plant. If you can’t get them, use the stems instead.
12 garlic cloves
8 coriander roots
¼ cup (60 mL) canola oil
2 cups (500 mL) chicken stock
2 teaspoons (10 mL) ground white pepper
4 tablespoons (60 mL) mushroom soy sauce
1 tablespoon (15 mL) soy sauce
4 teaspoons (20 mL) palm sugar
4 teaspoons (20 mL) tapioca flour or corn starch
¼ cup (60 mL) water
8 to 12 large whole prawns
½ cup (125 mL) tapioca flour
½ cup (125 mL) all-purpose flour
Place garlic cloves and coriander root into a mortar and pound until it becomes a paste or use a small food processor. Heat the oil in a wok over medium heat. When hot, add the garlic-coriander paste and fry until fragrant, about a minute. Slowly add the chicken broth and bring to a boil. Add the white pepper, mushroom soy sauce, soy sauce, and palm sugar. Mix together the tapioca flour with the water and add to the mixture. Bring to a boil, stirring until thick. Remove to a small saucepan and keep warm.
Clean wok and add enough oil to a 1 ½-inch depth. Heat over medium-high heat to 350F. In a mixing bowl, mix together the tapioca flour and all-purpose flour. Dredge the prawns in the flour mixture and carefully add a few to the hot oil to deep fry. Cook, turning once, until golden brown. Transfer to a paper towel-lined baking sheet. Continue with remaining prawns. Transfer prawns to serving dish and top with warm garlic pepper sauce.
Serves 4 as part of a multi-dish meal.
Kao Pat Sapparot (Curried Fried Rice with Pineapple, Prawns and Cashews)
One of the best meals I had in Chiang Mai was at The Whole Earth Restaurant, a local fixture serving Thai and Ayurvedic Indian cuisines for the past 35 years. I’m usually somewhat cautious when I see a dish served in a somewhat kitschy pineapple shell but this curried fried dish was wonderful, slightly spiced with curry powder, with the sweetness of pineapple and a crunchy texture from the roasted cashews.
4 garlic cloves, finely chopped
¼ cup (60 mL) canola
2 teaspoons (10 mL) curry powder
½ small onion, finely chopped
6 to 8 medium prawns, peeled and deveined, cut into ½-inch (13 mm) pieces
2 large eggs
½ teaspoon (3 mL) sugar
4 tablespoons (60 mL) light soy sauce
½ cup (125 mL) to 1 cup (250 mL) diced fresh pineapple
2 cups (250 mL) cooked jasmine rice
½ cup (125 mL) roasted cashew nuts
¼ cup (60 mL) finely chopped green onion
2 tablespoons (30 mL) chopped cilantro
Heat oil in a wok over medium-high heat. Add garlic and fry until fragrant and just starting to colour. Add curry powder and chopped onion, and when fragrant, the chopped prawns. When prawns are nearly cooked, add the egg and scramble for a minute. Season with sugar and soy sauce. Add pineapple and rice, turn down heat, and toss well. When hot, stir in the cashews and green onions. Garnish with cilantro.
Serves 4, as part of a multi-dish meal
Miang Som (Pomelo with Prawns)
A miang is a traditional snack from Thailand and is often sold at street stalls in plastic bags. This miang of pomelo (Asian grapefruit) was made for me by chef-owner Kanchana “Tim” Ubolsootvanich at her elegant and intimate Wanlamun Restaurant and Cooking School in the centre of Chiang Mai.
Her miang consists of pomelo with dried and fresh shrimp, which is refreshing and simple. Shredded pomelo, the large Asian grapefruit, is tossed together with pounded dried shrimp, crisp fried garlic, shallots and fresh chopped shrimp, then tossed together with a tamarind chili dressing atop betel leaves. Betel leaves aren’t available here so substitute with lettuce or large spinach leaves.
6 to 8 slices galangal
½ teaspoon (3 mL) salt
4 to 5 Thai bird’s eye chilies
½ teaspoon (3 mL) shrimp paste
2 tablespoons (30 mL) dried shrimp
6 tablespoons (45 mL) grated unsweetened coconut, roasted
2 tablespoons (30 mL) roasted peanuts
Pound together in a mortar until you get the consistency of a paste, or alternatively place into a small food processor and process until smooth.
1 cup (250 mL) palm sugar
¼ cup (60 mL) water
4 tablespoons (60 mL) fish sauce
3 tablespoons (45 mL) tamarind water
Heat the palm sugar with the water over medium heat until dissolved. Simmer until thick. Add the fish sauce, then stir in the paste and continue to simmer until it becomes fragrant. Stir in the tamarind water to combine. Remove and set aside to cool.
4 tablespoons (60 mL) grated unsweetened coconut, roasted
4 tablespoons (60 mL) crispy fried garlic or shallots (available at Asian supermarkets)
2 tablespoons (30 mL) finely chopped shallots
2 tablespoons (30 mL) diced young ginger (optional)
¼ cup (60 mL) chopped cilantro
2 to 3 Thai red chilies, finely chopped
8 medium prawns, blanched, peeled, deveined and sliced
2 cups pomelo flesh
large spinach leaves (optional)
Toss all ingredients except for the spinach leaves with the sauce to combine and serve on individual spinach leaves.