My last morning of cooking school was bittersweet. It was my last full day in Chiang Mai and I had just gotten used to the routine. I felt like I was finally feeling enmeshed in the local life and its rhythms. I was looking forward to heading to the market and getting my daily sai oua from the petite Thai lady and possibly getting a bag of the coconut custard treats I had for the first time yesterday so my husband could also sample them. Alas, we were only at market for a pickup. I considered jumping out and heading to the vendors but I didn’t want to disrupt the flow. Luckily, Pon knew I would miss my daily routine and brought back a bag of sai oua for me to eat on the ride to the school.
When we arrived, our first task was to carve some vegetables.
Then we proceeded with the day’s menu:
Tom Jued – Clear soup with minced pork
Paw Pla Tord – Spring rolls
Gai Hor Bai Toey – Chicken in pandamus leaves
Gaeng Phed Ped Young – Red curry with roast duck
Gai Phad King – Chicken with ginger
Khao Neow Mamuang – Mango with sticky rice
My companions for my last day of class hailed from Paris, my favorite city. Throughout the day, we chatted about various subjects but at no point until the end of class when we were heading back did we actually exchange names. It’s interesting how much we collaborated, helped each other and exchanged information without needing to know specifics. We just had a friendly trusting symbiosis despite hailing from different parts of the world. I had studied French and they had studied English. Before parting ways, we exchanged contact information as my husband and I are planning on heading to Paris next summer and we wanted to get together during our time in town.
Cooking school was an amazing experience for me. I can’t cook everything I learned but I will definitely incorporate some of the techniques and will be recreating some of my favorite recipes when I get back.
I have zero hesitation recommending this particular cooking school but equally important, I thoroughly enjoyed spending time and getting to know each of my classmates and meeting people from all walks of life, from different parts of the U.S. and the world. What we all had in common is that we were looking to take ourselves out of our comfort zone and expand our horizons despite the challenges. Thank you to my classmates and to Ning but mostly to Pon who watched over my every move and with his special sense of humor and subtle sarcasm, helped me find my way.
Thai Cookery School
I had 3 other cooking schoolmates with me on the 4th day so we started our day at the market. After the introduction to some of the herbs and ingredients our class was going to be using, we ventured off in different directions.
I had tried the sai ua the day prior but I had a hankering for it again today. I first learned about it on Mark Wiens’ episode in Chiang Mai and how relatives in Bangkok considered it rude and disrespectful not to return with the sausage as a gift from the visit up north. Sai ua has a bit of hit with a subtle lemongrass aftertaste. If I lived in Chiang Mai, it would definitely be a daily breakfast treat with eggs and rice.
Another treat caught my eye on this visit to the market. My curiosity was piqued by several YouTube episodes in Chiang Mai. There’s a dessert that has a coconut custardy base with either green onion, cheese or pumpkin. I tried the first and latter at the market, courtesy of our instructor Pon who is friends with the owner of the stand.
He also had us sample what I will call a coconut burrito which was basically a gooey pancake exterior with coconut inside.
After our market visit, we were whisked off to the school where we prepared the following:
Phad Siewe – Fried Big Noodles with Sweet Soy Sauce
Hope Neung Plaa – Steamed Fish in Banana Leaves
Gaeng Gari Gai – Yellow Curry with Chicken
Gai Phad Med Mamuang – Chicken with Cashew Nuts
Plan Goong – Spicy Prawn Salad North Eastern Style
Kluay Buad Chee – Bananas in Coconut Milk
Pon gave the class a few pointers. To loosen up the thick noodles, pour a few tablespoons of oyster sauce with the noodles and manually separate them. With the oil in the wok cooking at high heat, there are only certain types of oils which should be used for Thai cooking. Vegetable, sunflower and peanut oil would suffice.
Also, because of the hot oil, unlike in Italian or even in Chinese cooking where the garlic is the first ingredient in the pan, the meat, be it pork, chicken, beef, shrimp or fish is first dropped into the wok and the garlic placed in shortly thereafter to prevent the burning of the garlic.
I can’t believe that tomorrow will be my last day but this week has definitely been enlightening and enriching. Looking forward to a strong finish!!
Thai Cookery School
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
Day 2 brought an unexpected surprise when I arrived at the school.
I was the only student for the entire day which was a complete departure from my first day where there were 30 Australian tweens and teens in addition to our adult group of 6.
Since I was working one-on-one with Pon, I had the benefit of getting personal feedback on my culinary technique and flavoring and texture of each dish.
Our first course of the day was the Panaeng Muu which was red curry with pork.
It included the use of a mortal and pestle to pound down the spices and peppers into a puréed paste before adding the red curry and pork into the wok.
Next on the list was the Plaa Nin Laad Prik Bai Horapa or fried whole fish with chili and basil. The scariest part of this course wasn’t the whole raw fish sitting in the bowl. It was frying the whole thing in a wok full of oil.
Pon taught me to put salt at the bottom of the cooking oil in the wok rather than adding salt to the fish before frying it.
There we’re minimal ingredients to add to the top of the dish giving it just a bit more flavor.
The third course was the Gaeng Hanglay Gai or Chiang Mai chicken with curry. This was by far my favorite dish because the smell and flavor was reminiscent of chicken tikka masala and Thai curry combined.
He taught me the secret technique of placing the seasoned chicken in a cold wok pan and stirring around in the oil for a few minutes coating all sides before turning on the heat in order to prevent the oil from rising to the top and the dish becoming overly greasy.
For the fourth dish, Prad Prio Wan Phak aka sweet and sour stir fry vegetables, I got additional practice on my chopping and cutting skills and was taught how to make heart shaped carrots. Pon explained that the fruits and vegetables had to be cooked last in order for them to remain crisp.
The fifth dish, Yam Wun Sen or spicy glass noodle salad, hardly took any time at all to make. The noodles cook literally in 5 seconds and what takes the most time is cooking up the pork and cutting up the accoutrements.
The dessert dish was the easiest to prepare provided the rice has been previously cooked. The Khao Neow Dam Piak was a black sticky rice pudding which had 3 ingredients and was unbelievably simple and delicious.
We sped through the 6 courses, with me sitting down and finishing my plate of the panaeng curry with pork served with steamed rice. With the rest of the dishes, I had one or two sample bites and just powered through, saving all of the food for my to-go. No need to go out for dinner tonight as essentially Pon and I had prepared a meal for 3 people so I was quite beside myself at this fortuitous chain of events.
What I learned during the first two days is that cooking Thai food doesn’t have to be complicated or a lengthy ordeal. Some of my favorite dishes were so incredibly easy and quick to make.
Tomorrow will sadly not be a private but I’m looking forward to practicing and learning more culinary techniques and shortcuts that I can incorporate in my day-to-day cooking back home. Ready for Day 3!
Thai Cookery School
A week ago to the day was the first time we realized that Ayara Thai had reopened at its original location. Our only prior experience with the restaurant was at its pop-up which was located on the opposite side of the parking lot, on the east side of Sepulveda.
Looking for a nice but casual dinner out at the end of a very long workweek, I happily made our reservation for 7:30 p.m. We arrived on time but the restaurant does not have an on-staff host/hostess so after 9 minutes of waiting, I grabbed ahold of a waiter who immediately seated us window side at a four top.
Once our waitress had made contact with us and we ordered our food and drinks, everything came out quickly and seamlessly. First out was the chicken pad see ew which had a mild subtle soy flavor encompassing its al dente flat rice noodles. Then came the dungeness crab fried rice which had the opposite texture. It was light and fluffy but savory.
Then came the seasonal spinach and asparagus dish, the spicy basil with ground chicken and fried egg wok entree and the chicken tom kha coconut soup. Of the latter offerings, the vegetable dish was the weakest and didn’t really hold its own compared to the heat of the chicken basil dish and the slightly sour, savory complex flavoring of the tom kha soup which was probably the winner of the dinner entrees. Tied in second place were the rice, noodles and ground chicken. However, the icing on the cake or on the sticky rice was the very thick, very coconuty sauce drenched on the dessert dish sitting alongside fresh slices of mangoes. That was truly magical and should definitely be enjoyed over and over.
Ayara Thai is that sweet neighborhood gem that only those in the know are aware of and hope remains a secret. Although at first glance, it seems like a small restaurant, it actually 3 separate sections so it can accommodate many more who want to enjoy its many delicious complex offerings. We will be back for sure!
Ayara Thai
6245 W. 87th Place
Los Angeles, CA 90044
Grace Gambin
You must be logged in to post a comment.