Thai lady preparing green papaya salad along the floating market in Bangkok (Photo by author)
Thai food is one of my favorite cuisines, and even when Thai restaurants are aplenty in Metro Manila, I just cannot seem to find that one place where the food has just the right amount of heat and sweetness and saltiness in one perfect balance. So, as usual, I make it in my own kitchen.
How difficult is it to look for ingredients? It’s not. My take on it is, just work with what is readily available and adjust the recipe to your liking. And I have nothing against instant sauce mixes; I tweak the recipe as needed.
Thai papaya salad in the floating market in Bangkok (Photo by author)
Some Thai ingredients that come in handy when you’re craving for Thai food:
-
Holy basil (this is a bit difficult to source; you may substitute with sweet basil, but it will taste different.)
-
Fish sauce
Chicken basil with blue rice made with butterfly pea flower (Photo by author)
Here are two of my favorite dishes, and they’re very easy to make.
View this post on Instagram
Ingredients
Green Papaya Salad
- 2 garlic cloves
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 1 tbsp dry roasted peanuts
- 2 fresh red chilies
- 1/2 tsp raw or white sugar
- 1 tsp shrimp paste
- 2 tbsp lime or calamansi juice
- 1 tbsp fish sauce
- 2 tomatoes, sliced
- 2 pcs long beans (sitaw), sliced about an inch
- 1 medium green papaya
- 4 kaffir lime leaves
- Chopped cilantro
Thai Chili Basil Chicken
- 1 chicken breast
- 2 cloves of garlic
- 1 sliced onion
- 2 red chilis
- 2 tbsp oyster sauce
- 1 tsp soy sauce
- 1 tsp fish sauce
- 1 tsp sugar
- 1 handful of holy basil
- 1 fried egg (for topping)
- 1 cup rice
Directions
Green Papaya Salad
- In a mortar (or blender), blend or pound together garlic, salt, peanuts, chilies, sugar, and shrimp paste.
- Add in lime or calamansi juice, fish sauce (add a splash of water if too salty).
- Pound the chopped long beans and kaffir lime leaves.
- Ina bowl, mix in green papaya, tomatoes, pounded beans, and kaffir leaves and add the sauce
- Topped with chopped cilantro, sprinkle with more peanuts, and serve.
Thai Chili Basil Chicken
- Cut the chicken into small bite-sized pieces.
- Sauté garlic, onion, and red chilis (deseeded if you prefer it with less heat).
- Mix in the chicken.
- Add oyster sauce, soy sauce, fish sauce, and sugar.
- Once chicken is cooked (turned golden brown), add the basil.
- Serve with crispy fried egg and steaming bowl of white rice.
