My relationship with these tasty little nuggets began at a Chinese buffet way back in junior high, somewhere in Illinois.  I had no clue what they were, why they were only available for certain parts of the year, and couldn’t figure out what this goop was inside that I liked so much.  I now know the secret answers to these questions, and I’d love to reveal them to you…

These are sesame balls (similar also to the popular Japanese treat Mochi).

Click for a basic recipe.

Sesame balls are really only served during holidays, namely the Chinese New Year.  Since the New Year was celebrated on Feb 14th of this year, I have been lucky enough to find them for the whole last week here in Singapore.  This makes for a very happy me, of course.  As with many items served during the New Year celebration season, these little dumplings have a meaning behind them.  Not only are sweets meant to wish good fortune for the upcoming year, but their golden color and round shape are thought to be lucky.  Another interesting fact is that the balls of dough tend to puff up dramatically as they fry, so they also indicate a growing possibility or opportunity in the coming future, something that will start out small and become large enough to turn a profit.

Sesame balls also range in size from slightly smaller than your average doughnut hole to about the size of your fist.  No matter how big they are, it’s quite difficult to eat only one!  The outside of a sesame ball consists of a stretchy dough made from glutinous rice flour, then moistened and rolled completely in sesame seeds.  When formed and fried, the dough generally puffs up to several times its original size, remaining soft and chewy on the inside.  Depending on the method and length of time frying, sesame balls can either have a nice snap to their outer shell or be soft like a dumpling.  (It also depends on how long they’ve been sitting out on your buffet line!)

As you can see from the picture above, there’s another surprise lurking within these little fried balls of dough, and, no, it’s not jelly or Bavarian cream.  The most common filling (and the one you are likely to see on your local Chinese buffet) is red bean paste.  Wait, beans?  Yes, beans.  They are actually rather sweet, and when mashed into a paste, quite enjoyable!  These are my personal favorite.  You can also find some that are solid, without filling (where’s the fun in that?), as well as others filled with a mixture of crushed peanuts and dark sugar syrup (had one of those 2 nights ago, the size of my fist).

If you couldn’t tell already, I absolutely love this snack, and I want all of you to share in the same joy I have each time I bite into one of these little things.  Next time you’re at a Chinese restaurant or local buffet, give sesame balls a whirl.

]]> http://www.unglamorouslove.com/2010/02/tasty-tuesday-sesame-balls/feed/ 2 http://www.unglamorouslove.com/2010/02/tardy-tasty-tuesday/ http://www.unglamorouslove.com/2010/02/tardy-tasty-tuesday/#comments Wed, 10 Feb 2010 17:04:44 +0000 Sara http://www.unglamorouslove.com/?p=606 I had such great things planned for this week’s edition of Tasty Tuesday, but alas it now must wait.  I fully intended on giving you a step-by-step photo tutorial on how to make healthy homemade flour tortillas.  In fact, tonight, I taught the ladies at my school how to make these tortillas and restaurant-style salsa.  It was a ton of fun… so much fun that I forgot to quit chattering and cooking long enough to actually take the photos.  Whoops!  Another time, I suppose.

So, instead, this week we’ll talk about the Superbowl.  Now, to be completely honest, I could care less about the actual game itself.  I learned a long time ago from my mom that the food, fun, family and friends that happen to all come together on game day are way better.  But, this year, we weren’t around to take part in any of the festivities.  In fact, while the rest of you were chowing down on evening grub while watching the game, we were already beginning the next day on our side of the globe.  Instead of watching the kickoff at 6:25pm on Sunday, Brook got up early to watch it at 6:25am Monday (while I stayed happily perched on my pillow) on a live stream online.  Weird, huh?  Once I actually realized it was Superbowl time (the lack of distinct seasons kind of messes with my sense of time over here), all I could think about was all the food I would be making if we were back in the States.  All the menus, the dips, the people we would invite into our home to eat and yell at the television together…

But, we weren’t there, and there was no way I would be able to do all that cooking over here as a consolation – too expensive, wouldn’t be able to find half of what I’d need, and it would be way too much for the two of us to eat so early in the morning.  I decided instead to choose one thing that I would be able to find every ingredient for and wouldn’t break our food budget.  After all, we had to make it feel like home somehow, right?  The pea salad I made one day out of desperation (meaning only a few things in my kitchen to work with) in college won the battle.  And no, we didn’t eat it for breakfast.  We saved it for supper.

Here it is.  Simple, cold, yummy.  Inspired by the flavors I love so much in a classic 7 Layer Salad.  I think that’s what I really wanted the first time I made this, but what ended up going into the bowl was all I had on hand in the apartment.  Doesn’t matter, I still like it!  So what’s in it?  Well, I don’t have any exact measurements (because I rarely actually measure things), but I can give you a general idea of what to throw in, and you can adjust it according to your own tastes, ok?

• One bag of frozen peas, fully thawed (You may give them a brief hot water bath, if you like, to speed up the process, but don’t actually cook them, or they’ll get mushy.  They need to be crisp!)
• 5 or 6 slices of bacon, cooked, drained & crumbled (I like to dice it before cooking – easier, nicer-looking, and no crumbs)
• 2 or 3 eggs, hard-cooked & diced
• A bit of onion, whatever variety you like, diced in small pieces (not minced, not big chunks)
• Some cheese, also diced – I prefer a medium cheddar or colby
• Enough Miracle Whip to make it creamy, but not overwhelm the rest of the ingredients
• A splash of lemon juice
• Fresh ground black pepper, to taste

Like I said before, I don’t really have any exact amounts on anything other than using an entire bag of peas.  Everything else is up for interpretation, up to your own tastes.  Fun or intimidating?  I know, I know, I really ought to start writing things down when I’m cooking… it’s getting a bit difficult to replicate meals in my mind when people ask for recipes.  I promise I’ll work on this.

Now that you know what we ate to battle our homesickness during the Superbowl, it’s your turn to tell me what it was that you enjoyed back there in the States.  Did you go to a party, did you stay at home, did you even acknowledge the day or just go about your daily business?  If you hosted or attended a gathering, what did you bring?  I’m curious to know!

A few days ago, I was taking my usual look at foodgawker.com, a site that seems to collect a photo thumbnail for daily posts on a very wide range of food blogs.  It’s fun to check in each day and see what people are writing about.  This is another form of “therapy” for me, seeing as I do not have a proper kitchen of my own to work in anymore.  I seem to live vicariously through the joys of others as they seek to create quality recipes and share them with the rest of the world.  I really have learned a lot about different cooking techniques and ingredient combinations through it all as well.  This is good.

Anyways, there just so happened to be a photo of these incredibly fun looking pinwheel-type cookies and a link to a site called SprinkleBakes where I could find out the story behind them.  Naturally, I clicked and read away.  Soon after reading through the ingredients required to make such cookies, I decided I needed to bake them for myself.  I could actually find everything I needed here right in my part of town, the recipe required a bit of skill and concentration in order to properly execute the spiral design, and well, they just looked cool.  Since our weekly fellowship group was cancelled due to most of the group travelling, I had extra time and the project was slated for this evening.

This is what I made.

It’s a buttery, shortbread-like cookie with a strawberry swirl (the pink part).  Aren’t they just lovely?  This is why I had to make them.  If only you could have seen how antsy I was to get them out of the oven and cooled so I could take these photos. Something about a fun pink spiral encrusted in multi-colored sprinkles just screams “share me!”  And that is precisely what I am going to do with them.  Share.  Strangely enough, I don’t enjoy eating sweets as much I enjoy preparing them and giving them away.  I guess that’s good for the ol’ waistline, huh?

Another wonderful thing about this particular recipe is that you can pretty much use whatever colors and flavors you want!  Chocolate swirl + crushed Oreo edges, orange swirl + crushed candies, green swirl + pistachios… Hey, Colts fans, you could even make them with a blue swirl and roll the outside in blue & white sugars!  How’s that for customization.

Just look at these little beauties.

I think it would be hard to be in a bad mood with these things staring you down.

Although it’s bright magenta skin with green pointy scales may look frightening, the inside of this particular fruit is rather friendly.  There are 2 different types of pink dragon fruit – one with a white interior (the most common), and the other with a shade of pinkish red matching the outside.  The one with a darker interior is what you are probably more accustomed to seeing in the States, but in juice form.  I’ve heard that there is another variety featuring yellow flesh both inside and out, but I’ve never actually seen it for myself.  Who knows.

Another interesting bit about this fruit is how it grows.  The dragonfruit is actually the product of a certain type of cactus.  It is a long, windy variety of cactus that tends to grow upward (climbing something else, such as another tree or sturdy plant, or a pole in farming situations), then droop down much like a Weeping Willow Tree.  The fruits start out as a beautiful, large, white flower at the ends of each spine before evolving into the brightly colored orbs we can later eat.

————————————————————

When searching for the perfect piece to bring home from the market, the process used to choose a dragonfruit is quite similar to choosing a ripe avocado. It must not be too hard, able to be squeezed gently, and have a deep, rich color to it. A lady at a nearby open-air market taught me that the deeper the color of the skin, the sweeter the fruit would be. Lighter skin implies a more tart flavor, and apparently, that’s what some (in my opinion strange) people like.

The easiest way to enjoy a dragonfruit is to simply slice it in half, like the picture above, and scoop out the inside in as near to one piece as you can get.  Then, you may proceed to cut it into cubes or slices for eating.  Even cooler is that you could even re-use the skin as a bowl to serve up the pieces!  The texture of a dragon fruit is similar to that of a kiwi, in that it is scoopable and has many tiny edible seeds within it.  The flavor is quite mild, yet sweet, and tastes best when chilled.  I once heard someone else describe the taste as a cross between a kiwi and cucumber.  Whatever it is, it’s refreshing and I like it.

So, now you know about dragonfruit.  If there ever comes a time that your local supermarket carries this, you no longer have an excuse not to try it.  Go ahead, you just may like it, too!

The first time we lived in Thailand (back in 2005), I had seen this particular dish in the market many times, but as no one had ever invited me to taste it, I never did.  This time around, while at a new Thai friend’s home, this is what she offered for dessert after giving me some Thai cooking lessons.

This dessert has 2 very important elements, that must be eaten together in order get the full flavor of the dessert.  If eaten separately, the result is rather simple and bland.  We’ll start with the outside of this dessert – the pumpkin.  Now, you’ve probably already noticed that this pumpkin looks strange compared to what you usually find lurking around the States in autumn.  This is actually a Japanese variety, called the Kabocha squash.  It’s flavor is quite similar to that of the American orange pumpkins and sweet potato, but with less water content.  This is what we used for our Thanksgiving pies this year, adding a few drops of coloring to make them look a little bit more like home.

The other element of this dessert is the custard.  It is a simple, coconut-based custard, which eaten on its own may lack much interest in flavor.  It features coconut milk, as many Thai dishes do, as well as vanilla, eggs, and palm sugar.  I have had it with cinnamon, as well as cardamom.  Both are delightful.

Once the custard is made, it is poured into a cleaned Kabocha, and steamed for 45 minutes to an hour.  It is the steaming process that not only softens the flesh of the squash, but also allows the custard to leak some of its flavor into the Kabocha as it cooks inside.  Once fully cooked, it is best to allow it to cool to room temperature before slicing and serving.  If serving slightly warm, vanilla or coconut ice cream are a nice accompaniment.  You can also chill the whole squash, then slice and serve it cold.  Either way, it tastes great – just be sure to eat each bite with both custard and squash in order to get the full effect!  Trust me, it’s better that way.

If you would like to learn how to make this recipe for yourself, click here for the recipe, as well as an instructional video (also containing suitable American ingredient substitutions).  Enjoy!

]]> http://www.unglamorouslove.com/2010/01/tasty-tuesdays-thai-desserts/feed/ 3 http://www.unglamorouslove.com/2009/12/tasty-tuesdays-goes-home/ http://www.unglamorouslove.com/2009/12/tasty-tuesdays-goes-home/#comments Tue, 29 Dec 2009 15:50:34 +0000 Sara http://www.unglamorouslove.com/?p=454 If you haven’t figured it out already by my lack of blogging in the last week and a half, we’ve been doing a bit of travelling and internet has not been readily available to us. Though, rest assured, between our trip and the events of Christmas here in Thailand recently, you’ll have plenty to chew on over the course of the next few days…

But, for now, Tasty Tuesday in a slightly different format from before. Instead of introducing you to one of the many Thai culinary creations around me, or sharing my excitement with you over yet another triumph against the wily ways of my wonky old stove and lack of familiar ingredients, this will be more of a mild lament about what it is that I am missing out on back home. Oh, boo, you can stop reading if you want to, but if you’d like to continue I’m more than happy to keep the conversation going.

Seeing as the big holiday rush has past, New Year’s commences this week, and all sorts of family gatherings have closed up shop until the next season of celebration, it’s been a bit lonely around here. Sure, the Mr. and I have each other, which is a blessing beyond measure… but what about all those other faces and voices and foods that we’ve grown so accustomed to at this time of year?  In our bouts of thinking of home, we’ve started to face some of the realities of living overseas, in SouthEast Asia for that matter, and the fact that the changes in our lifestyle are not as temporary as they have been in times before – this is the long haul and things really have to change.  Wow.  Crazy.  Exciting, and not so exciting all at the very same time!  (More on this stuff later.)

So, what in the world does this have to do with Tasty Tuesday, Sara??  Well, a big part of life is eating, and when you change where you live, surely that aspect of life change must as well – and, in our case, dramatically.  When moving to a completely different culture, the items that you are used to seeing everyday, the things that are easy to find and fit well into your budget are not so anymore.  Those economy meals you used to make back home now become a luxury priced item, if you can even find what it is you were needing in the first place.  That’s a big change.

Those of you who know me well, know that I am a rabbit by nature.  I like to eat light and fresh, the things that make me feel healthy after consuming them rather than like a slug.  (Though, if you happen to put a big slab of meaty lasagna in front of me, my knees just might buckle from delight!)  So, when it’s summertime and the weather is hot (song reference, Mom?), there’s nothing better than some crisp cucumbers and tomatoes, a sliced up avocado and some sprouts, a slice of cheddar or colby-jack and a bagel with all the nuts and seeds to cool you down and cure that hunger… well, it’s summertime here all year ’round, but it’s a bowl of rice with something hot on top.  Don’t get me wrong, I thoroughly enjoy Thai food, but it’s just not what I’m used to having every day.

This, right here, is what I would be willing to pay a fortune for right now.

Photo borrowed from thepioneerwoman.com and her fabulous food blog.

Now, don’t go getting ideas of how to mail this to me, because frankly, after 2 weeks in transit this would be downright nasty.  But, the next time you delight in such a meal for yourself, please do think of me.  :)

So, if you were to move to another country, what do you think you would miss eating most?

Some of you may have been to seasonal fairs or Farmer’s Markets back in the States, so you are already familiar then with the concept of local vendors coming to hawk their fruits, vegetables, baked goods, and spice blends in custom quantities for a price differing from that of your average grocery store chain.  Good.  We have a reference point from which we can begin.

Our local Thessabaan market sells fresh fruits – dragon fruit, longan, 3 different types of oranges, 3 different kinds of apples, sometimes grapes, fresh pineapple and watermelons in varieties you’ve probably never even heard of in the States, 2 types of papaya, 3 kinds of mangoes, 6 different species of bananas, fresh young coconut, persimmons, both red and yellow pomegranates… you name it, and it’s tropical, surely somebody is going to sell it.

Another thing you will see is an incredible variety of vegetables and spices.  At any given time, you can always find red onions, white onions, yellow onions, shallots, fresh garlic (both in bulb and clove form, bunches or cloves by weight), green onions, fresh herbs – coriander (cilantro), parsley, Thai hot basil, and a bunch of others I have no clue yet of what they are!  There are various tomatoes, cucumbers in differing in size and color, purple eggplant, small globe eggplants, green, black, pink, and white peppercorns (both fresh and dried), cabbage, bok choy… and at certain times you can also find broccoli, cauliflower, asparagus, and even potatoes.  There is a vast supply of dried spices, Thai spice mixes, and even large bowls mounded 2 feet high with Thai chili pastes and wet seasoning blends.  Can you imagine the waves of smells that come over you when you walk past any of these market stalls?  It’s quite the experience!

And then there’s the meat market.  My favorite part (I’m lying).  You have not truly experienced a market until you’ve both seen and smelled “fresh” pork, poultry, seafood, and beef all sitting out on trays in the heat… in a space where despite being outdoors, feels very closed in by all of the stalls and umbrellas surrounding you.  This is the area where I like to challenge myself to hold my breath for as long as humanly possible.  Here in the meat market, you can get everything from a side of pork to a whole or pieced out chicken/ duck, multiple kinds of fresh or dried fish, eels, shrimp, and other sea creatures to eat, as well as animal heads.  Yes, I said animal heads.  I will not include a picture of what is, to me, the most horrifying sight ever (a hog’s head split down the back and flattened to the point where it almost looks like a rubber mask), but you can see a regular one at the bottom of this photo.  Most meats (I only say most), disappear by 10:00 am, as that’s when the heat generally begins to pick up – if you want meat that is actually fresh, you go to market about 5 or 6:00 in the morning.  However, there are those vendors who do remain all day long, and you can imagine the lovely aromas which come from their stalls…

Now, just when you thought you’d had enough sensory stimulation, here comes all the vendors of everyday items such as shoes, sandals, sunglasses, lottery tickets, draperies, cloth, children’s toys, new and used books, batteries, new and used car parts, containers in any shape, size, and material… all laid out meticulously in straight, even lines, hung and advertised neatly.  And just think about this – every single stall, whether it be food items or other things, is set-up and taken down every single day.  Can you imagine the time that must go into just that part of daily business?

And you thought Super WalMart was the only one-stop shop in town!

To see more photos of the Thessabaan Market in Old Town Lopburi, Thailand, please click here.

Being only a couple of the few Americans within OMF Thailand, we felt a bit lonely during this beloved holiday… but, thankfully, we did find ways to enjoy it nonetheless. The first was by joining with older missionaries in their traditional celebration last week. The other was by creating our own day of celebration (which we so cleverly named “ThanksFathersMas”), and inviting our friends, the Ruggles, to leave their home in Bangkok for a weekend in the exciting city of Lopburi. (snicker, snicker)

Jason & April do not have any areas for cooking in their high rise apartment in downtown Bangkok.  Having felt the stress of a similar situation when first arriving in Thailand (living in a youth hostel for a month and a half), I offered my home and my kitchen up for their culinary pleasure.  April made sugar cookie cut-outs to bring back to her English students, and Jason cooked breakfast for us.  Wonderful!  Oh, but it gets better…

We decided to celebrate a late Thanksgiving/ early Christmas together, and the day that we chose for the feast just so happened to be Thai Father’s Day – thus, the name ThanksFathersMas.

We did our best to re-create a meal from Midwest America, and I think we did a pretty good job!  Turkey, as mentioned in the last post, is hard to find (and when possible, very expensive), so we got an already roasted chicken from the local fresh market to serve as our main dish.  We mashed some potatoes, whipped up some Betty Crocker sweet potatoes, chicken gravy, corn, and can’t forget my mom’s recipe for stuffing (with sage bread cubes sent from mom herself)!  I made some fluffy homemade dinner rolls, and April baked a fabulous apple pie.  Oh, and since our friends come from the Big City, they were actually able to find a few precious items that we are unable to buy here in Lopburi, like cranberry sauce and chocolate chips (not for anything in our meal, rather to be saved for a later time, to be rationed out slooowly)!

After enjoying a (literal) taste of home together, Brook did the dishes and we relaxed until it was time for a Christmas movie.  It really felt like home… despite the 90 degree temps, of course.

I know this whole post may seem rather ordinary to many of you out there, but to us who live 8,000 miles away from home, residing in a culture that is one of the most opposite from that which we are from, this was truly a big event.  I am so thankful that God has placed people in our lives that we can share our joys and frustrations with, who come from the same culture, are going through the very same things, in the very same country, at the very same time.  Funny how He arranges those sort of things, huh?  God has taken care of us, and provided means of encouragement when we most need it.  This weekend was nothing short of wonderful.

As busy as this past week has been, the following weeks will be just the same… leading into a busy next few months.  I would like to invite you to pray with us for some important travel coming up for us. Thank you in advance!

• December 19-26: We will be visiting possible ministry locations in Bangkok for placement after completing language school Spring 2010, as well as assisting in some of their Christmas outreach programs.  Pray for clarity, wisdom, and guidance as we try to figure out the next steps in moving toward a more permanent location for our work here in Thailand.

• January 17-20: Tentative visa run to Penang, Malaysia to pick up Brook’s RA visa, which will enable us to remain in-country 1 year at a time between renewals.  We will also be renewing my O visa (3-month) as I will not ride on the RA visa until Brook’s work permit comes in (hopefully within 3 months from now).

• February 15: We leave for a 1 month term in Singapore at the OMF International Headquarters for organizational instruction and business matters.  When we return to Lopburi in mid-March, we will jump fully back into language study, aiming to finish in June/July.

The meal was set for 1:00 pm.  We arrived early though, so I could prepare my contribution to the meal, as we had about a 1.5 hour bus ride during which holding a hot pot of mashed potatoes would not have been enjoyable!  As soon as we arrived, we were greeted by their shaggy-haired dog named Moe – who later became our foot warmer under the table – and a home that smelled of a roasted bird and sage stuffing.  It may not have looked like home, or had the weather we are used to during the Thanksgiving holiday, but the smells were there!

Since turkey is not easy to find, and when it can be found is rather expensive, our hostess roasted 2 chickens instead.  She also made a sage stuffing that was similar to my mother’s, which again made me feel just a little bit closer to home.  I made a big pot of mashed potatoes to go along with gravy made from the chicken’s drippings.  Someone else brought homemade dinner rolls.  We used black currant jam in place of cranberries (wonderful – you all should try it!), as those are difficult to find here as well.  There was a bowl of broccoli, a pot of roasted snap peas and sliced carrots,  and, of course, a pumpkin pie.  (My dad would have been happy about that part!)

After a short devotional time and prayer, as we began filling our plates with all the goodies before us, each person around the table named 5 things we were thankful for… and it was hard to name only 5.  Despite all of the problems, setbacks, difficulties, goodbyes, and stresses we have had to face in this past whirlwind of a year, we have been incredibly blessed.  Just to name a few…

• We are healthy and able to live each day.
• We have loving families who support us even though their hearts wish for us to be near them at home.
• We have friends and churches who continually encourage us and make us feel loved.
• I have a faithful husband beside me to share in both the joys and trials of each day we go through.
• We are, by the grace of God, debt-free!
• We are living the dream placed in our hearts only a few years ago, pursuing excellence in language studies, and moving forward in the work we have been called to.
• We have received our RA Visa status, and final proceedings to make it official should occur before the year is out.
• We have the friend/mentorship of some solid Christian missionaries to guide us through the beginning steps in building a life in Thailand.

And so much more!

Most of you know already how much I enjoy cooking and baking, pretty much anything having to do with the kitchen and sharing what comes out of it. About a month ago, one of my teachers, Awd asked if she could have the recipe for a soft cookie I’d made and shared at school before – Snickerdoodles.  She then passed the recipe along to a friend of hers, Puk, who was the one that wanted it in the first place.  After her first couple of tries not turning out the way she wanted, as well as not knowing what these particular cookies were supposed to turn out like anyhow, she requested that Awd bring me to help her.  You see, cookie-making is not something every housewife knows how to do, like most in America or other Western cultures.  If you are a baker by trade, you know how to bake; however, cookies and pastries are not an inherent part of Thai food culture, so she needed my help to get started.

In exchange for my help in making the cookies, Awd offered to then teach me how to make whatever Thai dish I would like.  After having been my first teacher upon arrival in Lopburi, and hearing what my favorite foods were, she already knew that I would ask for Phat Priaw Waan – the item I wrote about  in last week’s edition of Tasty Tuesday – and then she added in some Krathiam Prik Thay for Brook.  You can only imagine what fun I had with these ladies, swapping recipes and cooking techniques across languages and cultures!  Granted, after almost 4 hours of communication in nothing but Thai, lots of repetition and explaining of words I didnt understand (of course using other Thai words I already knew!), I was exhausted.  But it was totally worth it.

Okay, so are you ready to learn some Thai cooking?  Let’s go!

1. To make Phat Priaw Waan (Sweet & Sour Thai-style), you must first prepare your fruits & veggies – essentials are tomato, cucumber, onion, green onion, and pineapple.  We added mushrooms to ours, and carrot can be added as well.

2.  Chop up some fresh garlic, and fry it with a bit of oil in a wok or pan until tender.

3.  Add your choice of meat, cut into thin strips or pieces – we used chicken this time.

4.  After meat is thoroughly cooked, add the tougher veggies – onion, cucumber, mushroom – and cook til tender, adding a few more drops of oil if needed.

5.  Add ingredients for the sauce – fish sauce, ketchup, palm sugar, a splish of vinegar (white or rice are fine), a splash of soy sauce, and a dash of a Thai spice blend I don’t know how to write the name of (similar to poultry spice mixes we have back home, where we know what to use them for, but not exactly sure what all is in it!).  Before stirring sauce into the pan, add remaining veggies and fruit – the juice from the pineapple helps round out the sauce.  Taste and adjust flavor of sauce however you like.  Cook until warmed through and tender.

6.  Serve it up with rice and whatever other dishes you like!

Now you know how to make Phat Priaw Waan – Sweet & Sour Thai-style.  I didn’t take pictures of the other dish, Krathiam Prik Thay, because there weren’t really any steps to take shots of!  All you do is choose your meat (chicken, pork, or beef), chop it into thin bite-sized pieces and place it in a bowl.  Crush and chop a handful (yes, I said a handful) of fresh garlic cloves and mix in with raw meat.  Add a few drops of oil and a generous amount of ground black pepper, then allow the bowl to sit for a while as you prepare everything else for your meal – it’s really not an exact science, as you can see.  Once you think the flavors have melded enough to suit your taste, toss the entire mixture into a hot wok or frying pan with a little bit of fish sauce and oil, then cook through.  Serve over rice with fresh cucumbers, and you’ve got a quick and delicious meal!