false 154051 3 "Thai cooking is a paradox," writes Australian restaurateur David Thompson in his comprehensive and thus aptly named <I>Thai Food</I>. "It uses robustly flavored ingredients--garlic, shrimp paste, chilies, lemongrass--and yet when they are melded during cooking they arrive at a sophisticated and often subtle elegance." Pursuing this transformation in depth, his book presents hundreds of recipes that celebrate the Thai meal while exploring its historical and cultural context. Readers will delight in the wide selection of authentic dishes like Duck and Spring Onion Soup, Grilled Beef Salad, and Green Chicken Curry with Baby Corn, and relish Thompson's vast appreciation of his subject. Though the recipes are straightforward and workable once ingredients are assembled and techniques understood, those new to Thai cooking may want a less rigorous introduction to the subject. However, anyone with an appetite to explore it on Thompson's terms will benefit immensely.<p> Beginning with an exploration of Thailand's history and culture, the book then presents an extended section on rice, the centerpiece of the Thai meal. The "cookbook" follows, with a systematic introduction to the Thai kitchen, ingredients, and equipment. The chapter "Food Outside the Meal" is devoted to Thai snacks and vendor food, such as Stir-Fried Crisp Fish with Holy Basil. Noodle dishes include an exemplary pad thai, and sweet dishes like Grilled Bananas with Coconut Cream and Turmeric are also offered. <p> Readers should know that the recipes, published primarily for an Australian audience, give ingredients in a mix of metric and American measurements and/or with nonmetric equivalents, and that nomenclature is also sometimes foreign ("minced" for "ground" meat, for example). With photos throughout, the book sets a standard for Thai cookbooks to come while helping many cooks achieve the true, richly exotic cuisine. <I>--Arthur Boehm</I> 148679 18 10 2002 Thai Food total:18|5:5|4:9|3:3|2:1| 18 72 36 8 4 0 false false Fri Jun 05 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Fri Jun 05 09:05:37 -0700 2009 Fri Jun 05 09:18:45 -0700 2009 more...]]> 5 0 false false Sun May 03 07:08:27 -0700 2009 Sun May 03 07:18:01 -0700 2009
I've seen a few comments about not being able to find th...more...]]> 4 0 false false Sun Jan 01 00:00:00 -0800 2006 Sun Jul 29 08:09:30 -0700 2007 Sun Jul 29 08:37:05 -0700 2007
It is indeed a beautiful book. The hardcover is sheathed in deep pink fabric with a simple sash made from photograph of rice and simple writing of th...more...]]> 4 0 false false Thu Jan 01 00:00:00 -0800 2004 Tue Feb 24 06:51:59 -0800 2009 Tue Feb 24 06:59:48 -0800 2009 more...]]> 5 1 false false Fri Jan 18 05:01:47 -0800 2008 Fri Jan 18 05:01:47 -0800 2008 more...]]> 3 0 false false Tue Nov 11 08:33:09 -0800 2008 Tue Nov 11 08:39:36 -0800 2008 more...]]> 5 0 false false Fri Feb 23 10:15:25 -0800 2007 Fri Feb 23 10:32:31 -0800 2007 The purpose of this book was to record the history and practice of traditional thai cooking before it is eroded and modernized. The author moved to Thailand and researched for 14 years, reading old cookbooks, cooking with grandmothers and old palace cooks, speaking to farmers, and working in ...more...]]> 4 0 false false Sat Jan 01 00:00:00 -0800 2005 Thu Aug 02 15:40:04 -0700 2007 Thu Aug 02 15:41:39 -0700 2007 more...]]> 0 0 false false Tue Nov 03 11:50:15 -0800 2009 Tue Nov 03 12:04:12 -0800 2009 5 0 false false Sat Sep 26 07:18:30 -0700 2009 Sat Sep 26 07:18:30 -0700 2009 0 0 false false Sun Sep 13 22:38:31 -0700 2009 Sun Sep 13 22:38:31 -0700 2009 0 0 false false Mon Aug 24 13:13:10 -0700 2009 Mon Aug 24 13:22:27 -0700 2009 0 0 false false Mon Jul 27 21:42:16 -0700 2009 Tue Jul 28 21:18:00 -0700 2009 4 0 false false Wed Jul 15 13:36:25 -0700 2009 Wed Jul 15 13:36:25 -0700 2009 4 0 false false Tue Jun 02 10:23:04 -0700 2009 Tue Jun 02 10:23:04 -0700 2009 0 0 false false Sun May 24 15:14:34 -0700 2009 Sun May 24 15:14:34 -0700 2009 0 0 false false Tue Mar 31 00:37:58 -0700 2009 Tue Mar 31 00:37:58 -0700 2009 0 0 false false Thu Mar 12 17:15:07 -0700 2009 Thu Mar 12 17:15:12 -0700 2009 2 0 false false Thu Mar 12 02:42:39 -0700 2009 Thu Mar 12 02:42:39 -0700 2009 3 0 false false Sun Jan 11 00:00:00 -0800 2009 Sun Jan 11 15:12:43 -0800 2009 Sun Jan 11 15:12:43 -0800 2009