Most of the time, we want Thai restaurants. Thai food masterfully walks a delicate line between salty, spicy, sour, and sweet, perhaps no better demonstrated than in pad Thai. Undeniably the most ubiquitous and oft-ordered dish in American-Thai restaurants, it's perfection. From the slight funk of fish sauce to the peanutty topping to the just-a-little-chewy noodles to the fresh squeeze of lime juice brightening it all up… sorry, what were we saying? Oh, right. Pad Thai. While it's an American favorite, there are a lot of other sleeper hits waiting to be discovered on your local Thai takeout menu. We asked the chefs at our favorite Thai restaurants to ID the best dishes you're not ordering…yet.
Next time you go out for Thai, choose my favorite go-to dish, Pad Kra Pow
Pad Kra Pow
"Everyone in Thailand eats this once a week," says chef Jet Tila of this spicy basil stir-fry.This dish is made by sautéing chiles and garlic in a hot wok, then adding ground meat along with peppers, onions, fish sauce, and palm sugar—all hit with a big handful of sweet or Thai basil. "The dish has been adapted regionally," explains Tila, so you'll sometimes see it with mint instead of basil. "Order it by saying 'Kra Pow,' and then the protein of your choice," says Tila—"but you have to eat it with a hard-fried runny egg on top, and over jasmine rice."
Laad Naa
"Tasty and comforting," is how Ann Redding, co-owner of NYC's Uncle Boons restaurant describes this street food dish. Also often listed as lard na or lad na, it's comprised of wide rice noodles in a gravy—usually with Chinese broccoli, Redding adds. If you can find it on your takeout menu, order it! Just don't forget Redding's rule: "Must request the chiles soaked in vinegar to season [it] with. Otherwise it's just not right."
Pad Kee Mao
The name means "drunken noodle." It's a dish Thai street vendors sell to tipsy party-goers, and it's also Leah Cohen of NYC's Pig and Khao's pick for a satisfying late night meal. Like Laad Naa, this dish is made with wide rice noodles. "They're similar to Chow Fun noodles," explains Cohen: "Spicy, sweet, and salty, with Chinese broccoli, eggs, onion, meat, chiles, garlic, soy, fish sauce… a little oyster sauce." In other words: A little bit of everything. This dish is saucy and sticky and indulgent, which makes it ideal for both sopping up too much booze and for random Tuesday nights after a long day of work.
Khao Pad Kapi
This dish is briny and funky, thanks to shrimp paste. It's fried rice that's typically accompanied with sweet pork, shrimp, egg, green mango, shallot, and long beans. Redding calls it out as one of her all-time favorites.
Larb
"The first time I had larb in Thailand was insane," says Cohen, explaining why she loves this simple dish so much. It's comprised of ground meat (duck is Cohen's favorite, but you'll also frequently see pork, chicken, or beef) that's been cooked in water and mashed up with a spoon and lime juice, shallot, cilantro, fish sauce, and tons of chiles. It's seriously spicy and aggressively seasoned—which is why it comes with a side of raw veggies, like cabbage, carrots, and lettuce. "The raw veg cuts through the heat level and acts as a palate cleanser." Unlike sautéed ground meat, larb doesn't become caramelized, but what it lacks in crispy bits, it more than makes up for in flavor.
Massaman Curry
This spice-forward curry from Southern Thailand is one of the country's most famous dishes, and a great break from the green curry routine. "It's a Southern-style curry," explains Alex McCoy of D.C.'s Alfie's restaurant." Its influenced by Arabic cooking in that the spices—green and black cardamom, nutmeg, cinnamon, and nutmeg—are deeply toasted in the pan before being cooked down with garlic and shallots. "It has a wonderful roasted flavor," he says, adding that it has raisiny-tart notes thanks to tamarind, palm sugar, and fish sauce. A flourish of chopped peanuts adds crunch. Still on the fence? Take it from McCoy: "If you like beef stew, you'd love Massaman curry."
Kai Jeow
Don't discount this egg omelet. It's dynamite in its simplicity, according to Tila. The eggs are whipped to a frothy, airy frenzy with fish sauce, sugar, and soy sauce. Unlike a classic French-style omelet, Kai Jeow should be golden-brown. It's eaten with rice, a protein, and sriracha. "People put sriracha on everything and that's bullsh*t," says Tila. "But this is one thing your really should eat it with."
Pad See Ew
Are you sick of those wide rice noodles yet? (No.) "These are basically pan-fried rice noodles with egg, Chinese broccoli, and your protein of choice," says Tila. The star ingredient is what sets this dish apart from laad na: a sweet soy sauce made with molasses. "It's nice and dark, with a sweet-salty balance." In fact, Tila thinks this dish is a shining example of the inherent complexity of Thai food. "I don't think that Americans have made Thai food too sweet—it's just that the spice and acid are often missing. And anyway, if it's not a little sweet it's not authentically Thai." This dish often hits the bullseye.
Papaya Salad with Roast Chicken and Grilled Pork
You may have encountered papaya salad, but Ngam's Hong Thaimee encourages you to take it to the next level: "This is a traditional Thai pairing," she explains. "The three are frequently eaten together." The chicken is often skewered, and sticky rice will come with. "At Thai street carts, the spice level is often customized," she explains. "People think Thai food is spicy, but it's a matter of taste."
Nam Tok
"If you like spicy foods, this is for you," sats McCoy. It's sometimes referred to as waterfall pork (or beef, etc.), due to the puddle of delicious juices at the bottom of the plate—a mix of lime juice, fish sauce, and the meaty cooking liquid, laced throughout with chiles and fresh herbs like mint. You know you're at a real-deal Thai restaurant if it's garnished with the toasted rice powder called khao khua—that's what gives this dish such great crunch. It's "aggressively spicy," says McCoy. "Everything just pops; it's like 'I don't want another bite…okay, I want another bite." Pro tip: Many Thai restaurants will cook this for you even if you don't see it on the menu.
Crab Fried Rice
Kris Yenbamroong of L.A.'s Night + Market Song recommends crab fried rice. It's ideal for delivery because it travels well and is "delicious after being reheated in a microwave." It also plays nice with the other random assortment of ingredients in your fridge, Yenbamroong explains—a major plus for all takeout. Here's his best argument for the sweet-spicy combination of crab meat and fried rice: "I love pad thai, but it’s so much about the technique and the texture of the noodle that it's best enjoyed at the restaurant. Meanwhile, fried rice I can reheat three days later and it’s just as good.”
Beer drinkers enjoy more variety in their beer options today than at any point in history and Sacramento Breweries are providing plenty of options. The Beer Judge Certification Program recognizes over a hundred distinct styles, many of them mere umbrellas for a wide range of profiles, but increasingly American brewers are treating these style descriptions as quaint suggestions rather than lines they must color within. We recently enjoyed a 7.1% ABV “Imperial Gose” brewed with watermelon, black sesame seeds, black Hawaiian sea salt, Persian lime, and coriander. Go ahead and decide which classic style group that one should fit in. We’ll wait. While innovation and experimentation have yielded some phenomenal and hard-to-categorize beers, both professional and home brewers should know the rules they’re breaking before they break them. Let’s take a few moments to familiarize ourselves with the most common classic ale styles that have defined modern American craft brewing over the years
Pretend like you're at one of Sacramento's Mexican Restaurants ... Margarita A margarita is a cocktail consisting of tequila, orange liqueur, and lime juice often served with salt on the rim of the glass. The drink is served shaken with ice, blended with ice, or without ice. Main alcohol: Tequila Ingredients: 2 oz Tequila, 1 oz Lime juice, 1 oz Cointreau Preparation: Rub the rim of the glass with the lime slice to make the salt stick to it. Shake the other ingredients with ice, then carefully pour into the glass (taking care not to dislodge any salt). Garnish and serve over ice. Served: On the rocks; poured over ice Guacamole & Chips When you've made delicious homemade guac, here’s how to keep guacamole green: Place your leftover guacamole in a storage container and pat it down with a spoon so it’s nice and flat on top. Add about 1/2 inch of water on top (I used cold water). Place the lid on the storage container and store it in the fridge. That’s it!
Who doesn't love the taste of a tender steak fresh off the grill? A great-tasting steak begins with a good cut of meat. Use this guide to get the meaty details you need! Whether you're barbecuing at home or ordering at a great steakhouse restaurant , here' what you need to know. PORTERHOUSE This is the classic steak house steak that features both a strip steak and filet mignon, separated by a bone. T-BONE A T-bone is just like a porterhouse except the piece of filet mignon is not as big, because this steak is cut a little farther forward on the animal. FLAT IRON The flat iron is nestled into a tender area of the shoulder, so it's an exception to the rule that shoulder steaks are always tough. Plus it's cheap. FILET MIGNON Pricey and velvety soft, filet mignons make a nice splurge for special guests, though it's really the tenderness you are buying. BONE-IN RIB EYE This incredibly tender and succulent steak includes an actual rib, which ad
Comments
Post a Comment