Thai food
In order to make authentic-tasting Thai food it is important to use the right ingredients. Thai cooks try to strike the balance between sweet, sour, hot, bitter and salty. The distinctive taste comes from a handful of ingredients that are available in most supermarkets—get the lowdown with Woman and home magazine's Thai food guide.
Essential ingredients
Curry paste: There are many good ready-made curry pastes available. You may need to experiment to find one that has your preferred degree of heat.
Jasmine or Thai rice: Widely available, wash in several changes of cold water and do not stir the rice during cooking otherwise it will become a gluey mass.
Fish sauce (nam pla): This pungent sauce adds the salty element to Thai food. Some brands are saltier than others.
Coconut milk: There is also a lighter version containing less fat, or there’s coconut cream – a condensed form of coconut to which water is added.
Shrimp paste (gapi): Made from salted, fermented and dried shrimps. It will keep indefinitely in the fridge.
Kaffir dried leaves: Dried leaves are widely available; rehydrate in warm water.
Lemongrass: Used to add a fragrant citrus taste to Thai food. Remove the outer leaves and woody top before using.
Coriander: The Thais use the whole plant so look for ones that still have their root.
Chillies: Bird’s-eye chillies are probably the most used in Thai cooking. They are very hot, so be cautious. As a rule of thumb, the smaller the chilli, the bigger the kick!
What to drink with Thai food
White wines are best with Thai food but you need to look for aromatic grape varieties such as Gewürztraminer and Riesling. Capel Vale Riesling 2002 from Western Australia and Cono Sur Visión Riesling 2002 from Chile (both from Sainsbury’s) are zingy and fresh; Villa Maria Private Bin Riesling 2004 (widely available) from New Zealand is really quite stunning and look out for other Aussie Rieslings from the Clare Valley and the Barossa. Otherwise, really cold Tiger beer is a good choice.
