Go Eat, Go Out!The bars, clubs and restaurants of Thailand, and especially Bangkok, make the destination an excellent stopover - or even home base - for those who enjoy a wide variety of cuisine and a good night out of culture or clubbing. Get ideas and gain insights on dining (Go Eat!) and entertainment (Go Out!) in the kingdom.
I had the privilege of participating in an exclusive private cooking class recently at Bussaracum, one of Bangkok's best known restaurants for the preparation of Royal Thai cuisine.
Bussaracum also holds regular group classes, too, so if you're interested in learning more about the kingdom's culinary arts, the restaurant can offer plenty of options to meet your specific requirements.
On arrival at the spacious restaurant, I was whisked off to a room where the cooking classes are held and then welcomed by Mongkol Vongsawan, the restaurant's manager, and Susie, an experienced female chef.
Mongkol has experienced of working overseas in Canada, while he also studied for a number of years in Germany, so I found him to be remarkably accessible in terms of being able to respond to my questions. Susie was always on hand throughout in the case that I struggled with any of the cooking. Fortunately, for the most part, I seemed to manage reasonably well.
A comprehensive introduction
Before attempting any cooking, Mongkol provided me with a comprehensive briefing on Thai cuisine, pointing out that it is supposed to be a kind of 'celebration of the senses'. In other words, the aroma and the presentation of the food is as important as the taste, particularly with reference to Royal Thai cuisine.
We then took a look at the three dishes we were scheduled to prepare – a starter (Cho Muang [Flower-shaped dumpling with minced chicken]), main course (Gaeng Kari Gai Haeng [a chicken curry]) and a dessert (Bua Loy Sam Si [Taro, pumpkin and pandanus served in sweetened coconut milk]). This menu was particularly appealing since I have always sought to learn to cook these dishes, and was developed in conjunction with the restaurant.
Mongkol then went through the ingredients and was able to offer me a good deal of insight, given his rich experience in this field. True blue
Bussaracum kindly suggested the inclusion of Cho Muang, a particularly striking dish given its rich blue color. I have to admit that I was not familiar with this starter, so getting the chance to prepare it provided the course with a much-needed 'unknown' element.
The blue color, Monkol explained, was made by soaking lavender flowers and then pressing them – for practical purposes, this had been carried out prior to my arrival. The juice from the flower is combined with rice flour, tapioca flour, all purpose flour and water and heated over a low flame until it becomes smooth and thick.
Just for the record, one thing I really enjoyed about this course is that, unless you are really struggling with something, your supervisors will expect you to do everything, although many of the ingredients have already been prepared for you to save time and for greater convenience.
Once you have the correct consistency, which Susie can advise you on, it's time to start kneading the blue, dough-like substance. Once ready, you can leave this to one side as you prepare to cook the filling for these flower-shaped dumplings.
To prepare the filling you combine soybean oil with garlic, pepper and coriander root over a medium-high heat until the mixture turns yellow. You then add the onion, ground chicken, salt and sugar and stir fry this mixture until it is dry and powdery. For practical purposes, we would use some mixture prepared earlier to fill these dumplings since cooking the mixture to the correct, almost powdery consistency required can actually take several hours.
Hands on
Next you roll the dough into small, flat medallion-shaped ovals. You add the powdery chicken mixture to the center (about one to two level teaspoons) and then roll it into a ball, while trying to press out any air caught inside. This ensures that they can be cooked evenly and properly.
A small metal implement, not unlike
some tweezers, allows you to make the petal-shaped decorative feature.
On completion, you place each flower in a steamer and steam the
dumplings for about three minutes. This dish is served with chili,
lettuce and parsley.
Frying time
I have always wanted to discover how to make Gaeng Kari Gai Haeng, a
chicken-based curry that has Muslim roots. Monkol explained that it is
possible to produce pork (moo) or beef (ngua) versions, or even a
tofu-based type for vegetarians. He was also able to offer me a good
deal of insight when it comes to brands of fish sauce and other details
related to the preparation of Thai cuisine. He even told me that when
it comes to potatoes, for example, North Americans would list Idaho
(US) and Prince Edward Island (Canada) as producing the best specimens
in terms of quality.
I began by mixing over a low flame thickened coconut milk, red curry
paste and curry powder. In this case, the ingredients had been prepared
due to time constraints, however, your guides will be happy to offer
further insight into how to prepare such ingredients for yourself,
which is also very comforting to know.
To this creamy mixture, you add sliced chicken, fish sauce, a thinner
coconut milk mixture (as required, depending on consistency), palm
sugar, onions and potatoes. You usually cook this for another three to
five minutes before serving it up with rice a simple sauce made from
diced cucumber and onions in vinegar.
Regular classes
Menu A of the restaurant's regular cooking classes features the 'true blue' starter called Cho Muang, featured during my private course, while Menu B offers a slight variation on the dessert featured in this article (learn more).
Sweet tooth
Our dessert dish is a very sweet and creamy affair, but if you are looking to produce a 'lighter' version, Mongkol or your tutor will be happy to offer some tips. I have no particular weight problem, so I chose to prepare the 'real deal'.
Known as Bua Loy Sam Si (Taro, pumpkin and pandanus in sweetened coconut milk), the Sam Si part means 'three colors' referring to the distinct colors provided by the tiny balls of taro, pumpkin and pandanus.
You begin by separating the sticky rice flour into three equal piles. The first step is to mix one pile with pandanus juice into a smooth, malleable mixture. Follow the same procedure, while adding water to the other two piles of sticky rice flour, which are then mixed with taro and pumpkin, respectively. Don't rush since it's more important that you achieve the correct consistency. These three mixtures will then be used to produce small beads, which are dropped into boiling water. Once the beads rise to the top of the boiling water, you transfer them into cold water before draining them on completion.
Separately, I mixed the coconut milk with palm sugar, regular (white refined) sugar and salt in a small pan, while bringing it to the boil. You then drop the beads into the mixture and cook for about two to three minutes. This is eventually served up in small dessert dishes.
The program took about two hours to complete, and I can honestly say that it was not just enjoyable, it was a real experience.
All that was left for me to do, after expressing my sincere appreciation to the master chefs, was to sample the fruits of my labor. The final test will be to see if I can produce something of a similar quality without the benefit of having such experienced hands close by in my own home.
Steve Thompson was the guest of Bussaracum restaurant, Soi Thonglor (opposite Soi 25). For further information visit http://www.bussaracum.com.
Go Eat, Go Out! 
Go Eat, Go Out!
The bars, clubs and restaurants of Thailand, and especially Bangkok, make the destination an excellent stopover - or even home base - for those who enjoy a wide variety of cuisine and a good night out of culture or clubbing. Get ideas and gain insights on dining (Go Eat!) and entertainment (Go Out!) in the kingdom.
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