Thanks for the Thai....

A neighborhood friend made a dish of homemade thai noodle salad for me.  Thai is my favorite kind of food and this one had great flavor.  I was really impressed.  I have been working really hard on my scrapbook gift (that I'll show you tomorrow) but I put this card together quickly for her.  I believe I got this image at Digi'swith Attitude.  The sentiment came from Scrappy  Mom's.

 Amuse-bouche:
Tom Kha Gai

This is the best soup ever. I've made it several times and I'm never disappointed. It is very labor intensive (for me) but SOOOO worth it.  I get a lot of the ingredients at asian markets ("99 Ranch" in California).  I have printed the recipe below because I'm afraid one day the link will be gone but as of now... here it is:    Yes, it is an Emeril recipe but don't be discouraged.  I sure was but I just took my time and it came out wonderfully.  I actually changed up a few of the ingredients (took out the mushrooms).  The broth is just the best because of the coconut milk. Sweet and spicy.

 

Ingredients

• 1/4 cup chopped fresh lemongrass, tough outer leaves removed
• 2 tablespoons peeled and thinly sliced fresh ginger
• 5 small Thai chiles, stemmed and lightly crushed
• 4 Kaffir lime leaves, crushed
• 3 cups shrimp stock or fish stock
• 1 cup fresh shiitake mushrooms, sliced
• 1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
• 3 tablespoons Thai nam pla, or Vietnamese nuoc nam (fish sauce), or more to taste
• 1 pound medium shrimp, peeled and deveined
• 1 1/2 cups coconut milk
• 2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh cilantro
• Salt
• Steamed jasmine rice, accompaniment, recipe follows

Directions

In the center of a 6-inch square piece of cheesecloth, place the lemongrass, ginger, chilies and lime leaves. Draw up the sides to form a pouch and tie with kitchen twine.

In a large pot, combine the stock, mushrooms, fish sauce, and sachet in a large pot. Bring to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer for 5 minutes. Add the shrimp, coconut milk, and cilantro, and simmer until the shrimp are cooked, 3 to 4 minutes.
Remove from the heat and discard the sachet. Season, to taste, with salt or additional fish sauce. Serve with jasmine rice.

• Steamed Jasmine Rice: Khao Suoy
• 2 cups jasmine rice, other long-grain white rice can be substituted
• 3 cups water

In a 2-quart saucepan, combine the rice and water and bring to a boil. Cover tightly, reduce the heat to low, and cook undisturbed until the water is absorbed, 20 minutes. Remove from the heat and let sit undisturbed for 10 minutes. Fluff with a fork before serving.

I also make a great Green Papaya Salad.  That one is super easy to make (just labor intensive shredding the green papaya, even with a cuisinart).