When I taught in Bangkok, I would spend the hours before my lunch break lesson planning for my afternoon classes, but mainly dreaming and drooling about what fresh, cheap Thai food I was going to eat for lunch.
When I taught in Bangkok, I would spend the hours before my lunch break lesson planning for my afternoon classes, but mainly dreaming and drooling about what fresh, cheap Thai food I was going to eat for lunch.
Walking down the street in Bangkok and just hearing the ploppity, plip, plat of Thai spring rolls frying up to golden perfection made my mouth water. I couldn’t resist buying a little baggy of them, and hearing that loud crunch after my first bite into their crispy layers as the tender steaming hot goodness of bean vermicelli noodles, shredded cabbage and ground pork flooded my mouth.
A potluck charcuterie hike to an epic view of the Blue Ridge Mountains where we feast on our spread and celebrate my friend’s birthday? Yes please! I was over the moon to attend. But I was stumped because I wanted to bring something Thai, but all the fancy cheeses, dried apricots, figs, salami, crackers, bread and such that are on a charcuterie are more European and rarely seen on a Thai table.
You are an ex-pat in Bangkok walking on a cluttered sidewalk under a night sky whose darkness is drowned out by the loud multitude of city lights.
Your eyes used to sparkle with wonder at the city life waking up right when you finished work, and you’d merrily jump into the melee, but now your eyes are glazed over from the stress fog of living in a culture that’s not one you grew up in, plus you’re feeling hangry angst.
Thai Hubby’s favorite mornings as a kiddo were when he’d wake up to the sound of his Yaa (grandma) bok bok-ing garlic and chiles to make Pad Krapaw Gai, Spicy Thai Basil Chicken.
The irresistible smell of garlic and Thai chilies was the one thing that would rouse him from his sweet dream of finally getting to level 12 on the game he’d played the night before at his town’s Internet cafe.
“We are going to fly to Seattle, hang out with our friends there, and road trip to Mt. Rainer National Park, Olympic National Park, Grand Teton National Park, Yellowstone National Park, and Glacier National Park!”
After we told our friends our summer plans, most of them looked at us with a glazed look, thinking, “Wow, you are going to do that with four young kids? Good for you, I’d never do that if my kids were 8, 6, 4, and 2 like yours!”
When you want Thai food every day like Thai sticky rice, but don’t live in Thailand, and can’t afford to go to a Thai restaurant every day, and don’t have room for all the gadgets Thai street vendors have, you make do.
If you saw one of my Thai sticky rice cooking methods, you’d think, “What is this girl doing with all these pans stacked up and a splatter guard in the middle and steam coming out of it?”
I was at the small, cozy Asian Supermarket that we drive an hour and half to (the closest one to us!) and waiting in a long line stretching down the curry paste and coconut milk aisle. We had a shopping cart filled to the brim of supplies like bottles of fish sauce, packets of tamarind paste, stacks of coconut milk cans, giant bags of fresh rice noodles, and more, all for my Thai cooking classes, and our every day Thai meals.
“What’s your favorite Thai dish?” I’ll ask my American friends.
“Green curry!” “Massaman curry!” “Red curry!” is usually what I hear. Would you say that too?
I totally get why!
My Thai hairdresser in Austin was trimming my hair as we chatted and dreamed about the Thai food we long for. I said I was craving Som Tum, a spicy Thai papaya salad packed with my favorite Thai flavors: spicy, sweet, sour, savory and umami.
