ASIAN CUISINE: Thailand

Hello ladies and gents this is the viking telling you that today we are going to the land of ties yes we are going to.

Thailand

Thai cooking places emphasis on lightly prepared dishes with strong aromatic components and a spicy edge. Thai chef McDang characterises Thai food as demonstrating "intricacy; attention to detail; texture; color; taste; and the use of ingredients with medicinal benefits, as well as good flavor", as well as care being given to the food's appearance, smell and context. Australian Thai food critic and enthusiast Lawrence Emanuel observes that unlike many other cuisines, Thai cooking rejects simplicity and is about "...the juggling of disparate elements to create a harmonious finish, particularly in Som Tum Pu Pla Ra".

GREEN PAPAYA SALAD (SOM TAM)

Ingredients

• Dressing:
• 1 tablespoon honey
• 1 tablespoon light or dark brown sugar
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 3-4 limes
• 3 tablespoons fish sauce
• 4 bird's eye (Thai chilies), stems discarded and diced

Salad:

• 10 green beans, sliced in half
• 4 cups julienned papaya
• 7 cherry tomatoes, sliced
• 2 tablespoons minced cilantro
• 2 tablespoon crushed peanuts
• 2 green onions, sliced

Directions

1. To a small bowl, mix together the honey, sugar, garlic, juice from 3 limes, fish sauce and thai chilies. Mix and set aside.
2. Set a small pot of water over high heat. When it reaches a boil, add the green beans and cook for 5 minutes, until bright green. Remove and rinse under cold water to stop the cooking. Give them a dry with paper towels and transfer them to a medium bowl. Add the julienned papaya, tomatoes, cilantro and peanuts.
3.  Pour the dressing over the salad and toss until thoroughly coated. Wrap the bowl in plastic and transfer to the refrigerator and allow to marinate for 2 hours or so or up to one day. Note: the longer you allow it to sit, the spicier it will be so just be sure to check at the 1 hour mark to make sure it's not getting too spicy. If it's at the perfect point, feel free to remove the chilies if you're going to serve much later.
4. Just before serving, I adjusted the flavors a big. I added a few pinches of salt, the juice from one more lime and a dash more of fish sauce. Do the same to your liking! Top with green onions and serve.