Thai

__Introductio​n/History__ **  Thai cuisine is influenced by various cultures. Thailand cuisine is infused with Persian and Arabian elements, as it was the cross roads of East to West sea routes. Approximately 4,000 years ago, between sixth and thirteenth centuries, the Thai people migrated from Southwest China (now known as Yunnan province) to Siam (modern-day Thailand). Thai food is therefore influenced by Chinese cooking techniques and has similarities to Szechwan Chinese dishes. In addition, the influence of the Indian cuisine due to the foreign trade allowed Thai food to develop one of its most popular food, which is the curry (Gang).
 * T h a i 

__Typical Foods__   Fish: Thai food consists of variety of fish such as crab, shrimp, salmon, scallop, oyster, scallops, mussels, clams, and squid. = = =Vegetables: Thai uses fresh vegetables such as bean sprouts, garlic, beans, corns, baby corns, pumpkin, eggplants, broccoli, Chinese cabbage, and carrots. = = = =Rice: There is difference in rice of the Northern and Southern Thai people. The Northerners eat short-grain or ‘sticky’ rice and the Southerners eat long-grain rice. One of the most famous rice is the fragrant rice, Jasmine. <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 12pt; font-weight: normal; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"> = =<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 12pt; font-weight: normal; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"> = =<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 12pt; font-weight: normal; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">Curry: Thai uses <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 12pt; font-weight: normal; mso-bidi-font-size: 24.0pt;">curry paste (Krung gang) and makes <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 12pt; font-weight: normal; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"> masaman curry, red curry and yellow curry. = =<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 12pt; font-weight: normal; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"> = =<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 12pt; font-weight: normal; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">Spices: <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 12pt; font-weight: normal; mso-bidi-font-size: 24.0pt;"> Some spices Thai utilize are coconut milk (Ga Ti), soy, chili, lemon grass, galangal, basil, cilantro, cayenne, and black peppers. <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 12pt; font-weight: normal; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"> = =<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 12pt; font-weight: normal; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"> = =<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 12pt; font-weight: normal; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">Beverages: The popular Thai beverages are lime and lemon juices, tamarind juice, and coconut milk = <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 12pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: 바탕; mso-fareast-language: KO; mso-font-kerning: 1.0pt;"> Desserts: Some Thai desserts are fresh fruits, such as pineapple, mango, banana or something more exotic, such as colorful rice cakes, pudding, and coconut ice cream. <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 12pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: 바탕; mso-fareast-language: KO; mso-font-kerning: 1.0pt;">

__<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive; font-size: 12pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: 바탕; mso-fareast-language: KO; mso-font-kerning: 1.0pt; msoansilanguage: EN-US; msobidifontsize: 10.0ptmso-fareast-font-family; msobidilanguage: AR-SA; msofareastfontfamily: 바탕; msofareastlanguage: KO; msofontkerning: 1.0pt;">Famous Dishes __

Rad na: Rice noodles, pork, chicken, shrimp, cooked in spicy gravy.

Pad thai: Pan fried rice noodles with sugar, fish sauce, chopped peanuts, lime juice, seafood, egg combined with chicken and tofu.

Pad see ew: Fermented sausages with fried rice.

Pad kee mao: Stir fried noodles with Thai basil.

Khanom Chin Namya: Boiled round rice noodles eaten with a host of curry sauces, fresh vegetables and leaves.

// Khao man kai //: Rice steamed with garlic, with boiled chicken, chicken stock and a dipping sauce. <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 12pt; mso-ansi-language: EN; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"> //<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; mso-ansi-language: EN; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">Mi krop //<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 12pt; mso-ansi-language: EN; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">: Deep fried rice vermicelli with a sweet and sour sauce. //<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; mso-ansi-language: EN; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: 바탕; mso-fareast-language: KO; mso-font-kerning: 1.0pt;"> Kuai tiao rat na: W //<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 12pt; mso-ansi-language: EN; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: 바탕; mso-fareast-language: KO; mso-font-kerning: 1.0pt;">ide rice noodles in gravy, with beef, pork, chicken, shrimp, or seafood. <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 12pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: 바탕; mso-fareast-language: KO; mso-font-kerning: 1.0pt;">

// Kaeng phet // (spicy curry): Also known as // red curry // in English, is a coconut curry made with copious amounts of dried red chilies in the curry paste.

__<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive; font-size: 12pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: 바탕; mso-fareast-language: KO; mso-font-kerning: 1.0pt; msoansilanguage: EN-US; msobidifontsize: 10.0ptmso-fareast-font-family; msobidilanguage: AR-SA; msofareastfontfamily: 바탕; msofareastlanguage: KO; msofontkerning: 1.0pt;">Foreign Influences __

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 12pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: 바탕; mso-fareast-language: KO; mso-font-kerning: 1.0pt;">Indian: curry (Gang), Masaman curry, yellow curry, and red curry <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 12pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: 바탕; mso-fareast-language: KO; mso-font-kerning: 1.0pt;">

Chinese: // chok // (rice porridge), // kuai tiao rat na // (fried rice-noodles), // khao kha mu // (stewed pork with rice), the form of stir-frying (Phad), and noodles

Arabian and Persian: cooking with peanuts <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 12pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: 바탕; mso-fareast-language: KO; mso-font-kerning: 1.0pt;"> Portuguese: Chili and custards

__<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive; font-size: 12pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: 바탕; mso-fareast-language: KO; mso-font-kerning: 1.0pt; msoansilanguage: EN-US; msobidilanguage: AR-SA; msofareastfontfamily: 바탕mso-font-kerning; msofareastlanguage: KO; msofontkerning: 1.0pt;">A Typical Meal __

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 12pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: 바탕; mso-fareast-language: KO; mso-font-kerning: 1.0pt;">The typical Thai meal consists of soup, a curry dish, and fish with fresh vegetables. One important food that must not be excluded in Thai meal is rice (Kaow). The rice is like the bread (Ka Nhom Phun) the Westerners eat in every meal. There is difference in rice of the Northern and Southern Thai people. The Northerners eat short-grain or ‘sticky’ rice and the Southerners eat long-grain rice. One of the most famous rice is the fragrant rice, Jasmine. The target of the Thai cuisine is that the tastes of the individual dishes should be harmonic to one another. <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive; font-size: 12pt;">__<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive; font-size: 12pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: 바탕; mso-fareast-language: KO; mso-font-kerning: 1.0pt; msoansilanguage: EN-US; msobidilanguage: AR-SA; msofareastfontfamily: 바탕mso-font-kerning; msofareastlanguage: KO; msofontkerning: 1.0pt;">

Recipe of the most popular Thai Noodles, "** Pad Thai" ** __ Ingredients: 1 pack dried rice stick noodles or "sen lek" 1/2 cup dried shrimp 1/2 cup baked tofu cut into small strips 1/2 cup ground peanut 1 cup fresh beansprouts 1/2 cup chives cut into 1 inch pieces 1 pound chicken meat cut into small bite-sized pieces 6 eggs 2 teaspoons pepper powder 1/2 cup fish sauce 1/2 cup soy sauce 1/4 cup sugar 1/4 cup vegetable oil 2 tablespoons smashed garlic 2 tablespoons smashed onion 1/2 cup of water

Preparation: 1. Soak the rice stick noodles in tepid water for roughly 15 minutes. Then cut the noodles into 4-inch pieces. Strain the noodles, then set them aside. 2. Using a large skillet (preferably a wok) heat the vegetable oil and add in the garlic, onion and tofu. 3. After stirring for 2 minutes, add in the dry shrimp, and stir. Then, one at a time add in the peanuts, fish sauce, soy sauce, sugar, pepper and chicken, stirring the mixture the entire time. 4. Add the eggs and continue to stir the mixture. Then add in 1/2 cup of water. 5. Add the noodles, and be sure to stir! The noodles tend to burn if not continuously stirred. 6. Check to see if the taste of the dish is suitable to you, if not, then add in either fish sauce (salty), sugar (sweet), or soy sauce (salty). Here is where a matter of preference comes into play. 7. The final step is to add in the bean sprouts and chives, just before turning off the burner. Pad Thai is normally garnished with a heaping portion of uncooked bean sprouts on the side as well as a sprig of cilantro on top.

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 12pt; mso-ansi-language: EN; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: 바탕; mso-fareast-language: KO; mso-font-kerning: 1.0pt;">"Thai-food.com recipe section." //Thai-food.com - Recipes, Restaurants and More!// Web. 18 Jan. 2010. <http://www.thai-food.com/recipes/pad_thai.html>.