So just had breakfast downstairs in the Lub*d.
Croissant was the best I have had yet in Asia, light and flaky like they should be. There is nowhere near the amount of butter that there should be, but it is understandable.
The coffee that came included? Just as bad as the first cup, thankfully they provided Abby with milk for her tea which she didn't use, so 2 shot glasses of UHT milk made it un-coffee-like substance at least potable.
No Name Part II
Mama's In The KitchenMakin' Up NoName
I got Mama to show me how to make it at home.
Here was a bit of a language barrier but I think I got it.
1 - 2 Tbsp of palm sugar
1 - 2 Tbsp of Naam Po (not quite sure what it is but I think it is the water used to rehydrate dried shrimp; there was a pink sludge at the bottom but clear water on top, they said it is like fish sauce but different)
1/4 - 1/2 c of white flour, enough to form a very loose dough)
add desired veg (corn, cut up green beans, peas, et.al.)
Form into rough patties.
Deep fry.
NB Mama's had more of a shredded coconut texture, others have had more of a pakora/pancake feel, I imagine you could use coconut powder and adjust wet as needed.
Here was a bit of a language barrier but I think I got it.
Veg. NoName
Shredded flesh of coconut (1 whole coconut seems to be enough for one large order)1 - 2 Tbsp of palm sugar
1 - 2 Tbsp of Naam Po (not quite sure what it is but I think it is the water used to rehydrate dried shrimp; there was a pink sludge at the bottom but clear water on top, they said it is like fish sauce but different)
1/4 - 1/2 c of white flour, enough to form a very loose dough)
add desired veg (corn, cut up green beans, peas, et.al.)
Form into rough patties.
Deep fry.
NB Mama's had more of a shredded coconut texture, others have had more of a pakora/pancake feel, I imagine you could use coconut powder and adjust wet as needed.
Lub'd
Worst. Coffee. Ever.
It tasted like dish water and used coffee grounds accidentally brushed against one another in a subway.
It was like if a malicious man (not evil like Hitler or Stalin) were reborn as a cup of joe. It actually made me miss the instant crap with non-dairy creamer and too much sugar.
It tasted like dish water and used coffee grounds accidentally brushed against one another in a subway.
It was like if a malicious man (not evil like Hitler or Stalin) were reborn as a cup of joe. It actually made me miss the instant crap with non-dairy creamer and too much sugar.
Koh Samui - Night Food
Unless you want to eat McDonald's or grossly over-priced and bland "western food" Koh Samui can be a foodie wasteland. Thankfully every night, next to the girly bars, a line of stalls sets up offering up cheap Thai dishes of varying quality.
My Favourite
Baan Lamai Night Market Food Stall
The first night Abby grabbed a Penang curry that left much to be desired, under-spiced, over salted, and tasting largely of kaffir lime.
Thankfully I scoped out this gem of a stall. Serving up freshly cooked Kebabs, satay, springroll, and most importantly to me, Noname. I first ate Noname when I visited Koh Tao (2 islands north of Samui), in that case it was Prawn Noname, since then I have only found Veggie Noname. I have tried time and time again to find a Thai restaurant at home with no luck. The closest thing I can liken it to would be an Indian Pakora, but even that isn't really close.
A heaping plate of Noname with a Kebab and a springroll topped out at a whopping 75 Baht (1$CDN = 32 Baht) so under $2.50. The next stall over is the shake stand (Thai Shakes are raw fruit, ice and a lot of sugar), mango shakes are the most expensive at 30B, all others are 25, if you opt for "alcohols" all shakes are 50B and contain 2-3 shots of Sang Som (Thai Rot Gut Whiskey)
Thai Veggie Noname
My FavouriteBaan Lamai Night Market Food Stall
Thankfully I scoped out this gem of a stall. Serving up freshly cooked Kebabs, satay, springroll, and most importantly to me, Noname. I first ate Noname when I visited Koh Tao (2 islands north of Samui), in that case it was Prawn Noname, since then I have only found Veggie Noname. I have tried time and time again to find a Thai restaurant at home with no luck. The closest thing I can liken it to would be an Indian Pakora, but even that isn't really close.
A heaping plate of Noname with a Kebab and a springroll topped out at a whopping 75 Baht (1$CDN = 32 Baht) so under $2.50. The next stall over is the shake stand (Thai Shakes are raw fruit, ice and a lot of sugar), mango shakes are the most expensive at 30B, all others are 25, if you opt for "alcohols" all shakes are 50B and contain 2-3 shots of Sang Som (Thai Rot Gut Whiskey)
Thai Veggie NonamePad Thai - Part 1 of ?
Asia is a land of amazing street food, especially so in Thailand. While many lament the loss of traditional home cooking, the quality of what is available on the streets puts Toronto to shame, even with our new expanded "healthy", "international" options. Even the worst street Pad Thai is freshly prepared to order, unlike those hot dogs that sit, drying out, on the top rack of the grill only to be finally sliced and cooked again to oblivion.
We grabbed this Pad Thai from some random stall lining the walls of a downtown Bangkok park.
We grabbed this Pad Thai from some random stall lining the walls of a downtown Bangkok park.
Temple Spice Crab
I have never really been one for seafood, for myriad reason. Foremost is our general treatment of the oceans, meaning it is at once a toilet and a pantry. The few fish species that I do enjoy eating (fresh blue fin tuna, salmon & swordfish) carry such a heavy price tag (in terms of both price and cost) that I feel more and more guilty with every bite. There is a reason why it is so hard to find decent Toro (the fatty under belly of the Blue Fin) these days; the mature tuna that yield the best cuts don't exist anymore.
Wild seafood is the one product that people have no qualms about eating into extinction. In Canada I could not hunt a moose and then serve it in a commercial kitchen (and with good reason) yet there is nothing stopping me from serving mass quantities of our dwindling salmon stock. With the exceptions of trout, carp and catfish, farmed fish is an environmental nightmare.
Another reason I eat little seafood is that often it is expensive, of poor quality and generally not overly fresh.
Anyway, enough ranting about fish. When I do eat seafood outside a sushi bar it is only because it has been out of its native waters for hours, not stored in a tank for days, or flown on ice half way around the globe. The only lobster I have eaten and liked was in Mexico and we bought it from the fisherman almost immediately after it was caught, and we ate it shortly thereafter.
The crab served up at Temple Spice Crab (in the Temple Street Night Market) was wonderfully fresh and sweet. The platter (carrying one lone crab) arrived smothered in wok fried garlic and chili peppers. The crab is market price, so we ended up paying 120 HK$ (or just under 20$CDN).
We also paired the crab with Spicy Eggplant with Pork. The eggplant is a fave from home, both Abby and I make this regularly, and first started eating it at New Ho King on Spadina St in Toronto. The eggplant wasn't as good as either our homemade version, or that from New Ho King. Not so strangely, it tasted a little fishy.
Wild seafood is the one product that people have no qualms about eating into extinction. In Canada I could not hunt a moose and then serve it in a commercial kitchen (and with good reason) yet there is nothing stopping me from serving mass quantities of our dwindling salmon stock. With the exceptions of trout, carp and catfish, farmed fish is an environmental nightmare.
Another reason I eat little seafood is that often it is expensive, of poor quality and generally not overly fresh.
Anyway, enough ranting about fish. When I do eat seafood outside a sushi bar it is only because it has been out of its native waters for hours, not stored in a tank for days, or flown on ice half way around the globe. The only lobster I have eaten and liked was in Mexico and we bought it from the fisherman almost immediately after it was caught, and we ate it shortly thereafter.
The crab served up at Temple Spice Crab (in the Temple Street Night Market) was wonderfully fresh and sweet. The platter (carrying one lone crab) arrived smothered in wok fried garlic and chili peppers. The crab is market price, so we ended up paying 120 HK$ (or just under 20$CDN).
We also paired the crab with Spicy Eggplant with Pork. The eggplant is a fave from home, both Abby and I make this regularly, and first started eating it at New Ho King on Spadina St in Toronto. The eggplant wasn't as good as either our homemade version, or that from New Ho King. Not so strangely, it tasted a little fishy.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)