Much like Day 1, Day 3 started with a market tour. This time it was with Ning. She took us to the stalls that sold some of the ingredients we would later use in class. After our brief visit, we headed to the school and started on our dishes.
Our menu was as follows:
Tom Kha Gai – chicken in coconut milk soup
Raad Nah Muu – fried big noodles with thick sauce and pork
Gaeng Phed Play – red curry with fish
Phad Hed Ruam Khao Pod Om – fried mixed mushrooms with baby corn
Som Tam – papaya salad
Khanom Kluay – steamed banana cake
Ning taught us to taste and either add sugar or soy sauce to moderate the saltiness or heat of each dish. The best technique that I learned from her was to cook the wide flat noodles in a cold wok with the oil and flatten/fry them like a pancake to give them a smoky texture. Though everything was delicious as always, of today’s menu, I give a two thumbs up to the steamed banana cake. Not being much of a desert person, I appreciated that this was not overly sweet and beautifully presented.
After lunch, we walked around the property which I somehow had not yet done in the past few days.
The grounds are quite expansive and we found out from Ning that some of the herbs and fruit we used are grown on-site.
I once again walked away with leftovers and am looking forward to continuing to learn more about the flavor pairings that make Thai cuisine as unique as it is.
Thai Cookery School
4 USDA prime filet mignon
4 tablespoons of organic virgin coconut oil
Organic black pepper
Mediterranean Sea salt
7 cloves of organic garlic, skins removed, chopped in mini food processor
Organic white mushroom, stems removed, hand shredded
Organic baby spinach
1. Take the filet out of the fridge and let rest in room temperature for 30-45 minutes.
2. Set the pan on the stove and heat on high.
3. Add 2 tablespoons of coconut oil to the pan and swirl to completely coat the pan.
4. Season the filet with salt and pepper on all sides and add to sizzling hot pan.
5. Cook all 4 sides, letting each side sear for about 5 minutes.
6. Add shredded mushrooms to the pan.
7. Remove the filet and let them rest of a cutting board.
8. Finish sautéing the mushrooms in the pan.
9. Remove the mushrooms from the pan and place on the cutting board or a plate.
10. Add 2 more tablespoons of coconut oil in the pan.
11. Once melted, add garlic and scrape off the filet drippings from the bottom of the pan, mixing with the garlic.
12. Add the spinach and sauté.
13. Remove spinach from the pan.
14. Slice the filet against the grain on the cutting board. If the meat is too pink, place back in the pan to cook for another minute or two on each side.
15. To serve, add the spinach on the plate first, place the slices of filet and sprinkle the mushrooms around the filet.
Note: For this recipe, I only had 5 mushrooms left and didn’t have time to sauté more spinach but to have even servings to go with the 4 filets, I suggest 15 mushrooms and repeating the stovetop spinach sauté twice more.
Grace Gambin
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