EXTRAORDINARY PLACES TO EAT AROUND THE GLOBE
DAMNOEN SADUAK
Experience the colors and flavors of Thailand’s busiest floating market.
Laden with green papaya and orchid garlands, a sampan glides across the water in the early dawn, leaving barely a ripple on the silky waters of the klong (canal). A dog barks, a bird calls, as housewives venture one by one onto the canal-side pontoons to bargain for supplies with the vendor in the boat. Minutes later, a whole flotilla is paddling along the labyrinth of waterways toward the market klong.
Located about 100 kilometers west of Bangkok, Damneon Saduak is the meeting place of locals, visitors in search of tasty food, and countrywomen peddling wares from their orchards and gardens. Exotic fruits abound, and luscious vegetables burst with vitamins. There are pea aubergines and yard-long beans, lotus roots, bamboo shoots, water spinach, giant radish, baby corn, and much more. Soon, floating kitchens fill the air with fragrance and smoke as stir-fries sizzle in the works. Try a takeout meal wrapped in banana leaves, or join the locals feasting on spicy soup and noodles, satay, or rice flavored with fish balls, tofu, or shrimps. Expect tangy accents of lemongrass and coriander, lime, ginger, tamarind, and plenty of coconut milk in whatever you sample
Thai Cucumber Salad
This salad provides a refreshing counterpoint to satay or spicy meat dishes.
Serves 4
1 cup/225 ml vinegar
¼ tsp sea salt
2 tbsp sugar
2 cucumbers
2 shallots, finely chopped
1 red bird chili, seeded and sliced into thin rings
½ red bell pepper, diced 1 tbsp chopped cilantro (fresh coriander)
2 tbsp chopped peanuts
Put vintage, salt, and sugar into a small saucepan. Simmer over medium heat until the sugar and salt dissolve and the sauce thickens slightly. Let cool.
Wash the cucumbers and then cut them into quarters lengthwise. Slice them thinly and place in a serving bowl along with the shallots and peppers.
Just before serving, pour the sauce over the salad and mix. Garnish with chopped cilantro and peanuts.
When to Go: November to March for pleasant temperatures and generally dry winter.
Planning: The market operates daily between 8 and 11 am. For a genuine experience, set off for Damnoen Saduak as early as you can, before the tour groups arrive and souvenir stall hog the limelight. Take the first bus (at 6 am) to Damnoen Saduak from Bangkok southern bus Terminal, a journey of 2.5 hours. On arrival, pick up a sampan or long-tail boat (sit at the back for the best views but expect to get wet). Eat food piping out, peel your own fruit, and go easy on chilies.
Websites www.amazing-thailand.com/FandD.html, www.bangkok.com, www.thailand-huahin.com
STREET CHOICE IN BANGKOK
Wherever you wander in the Thai capital’s streets, tantalizing food aromas hijack you and set your taste buds tingling
A fresh fragrance leads you to a stall selling fruit. Nearby is another stand selling somtom (green papaya salad), or skewered cuttlefish, or ice cream-with toppings that include corn, red beans, and candied pumpkin. A recent survey showed that Bangkok has around 20,000 street vendors selling 213 different kinds of food. It is impossible to recommend any specific stall or cart.
Few of them have menus, at least in English, so you just have to know what you want (and the Thai name for it) or peer at the ingredients to surmise what is on offer. Want curry on rice? Stir-fried meat? Noodles with beef or seafood in gravy (called radna)? Or perhaps something more sophisticated, such as noodles fried with dried shrimps, tofu, bean sprouts, almonds, and herbs (pad Thai)? Shuffle up to the cart of your choice, place an order, and watch the cook bend over the work like the conductor of an orchestra. The ingredients sputter and sizzle in a gossamer of steam, and within minutes you are handed a heaping plate. Pull up a plastic chair and prepare to feast.
You will find stands nearly everywhere in the city, but some of the best selections are in clusters off Silom Road, especially along Soi Convent, and on Samsen Road Soi 2, where the stalls stay open all night. The price for a typical plateful is 20 to 50 baht (50cents to $1.40), and 5 baht (15 cents) gets you an extra piset (helping).
Noodles & More
Noodles are the most common kind of Thai street food, and there are many different kinds to choose from. They include chicken noodles, duck noodles, egg noodles with wanton, and yen ta four (noodles in red soy-bean paste with fish balls, squid, and morning glory)
Made-to-order food stalls whip up whatever you want, such as pad kaprao (stir-fried meat with holy basil leaves), kai jiaow (Thai-style omelet), moo kratium prik Thai (stir-fried meat in garlic and pepper), and moo daeng (red barbecued meat). Rice dishes include kaao laad kaeng (curry on rice) and kaao pad (fried rice).
When to Go: The best time to visit Thailand is November through February, during the dry, cool season, when almost every day is sunny and temperatures 29-350C.
Planning: There are even more stalls and carts out by night than during the day. If you are concerned about sanitary conditions, Thailand’s Department of Health has developed a ten-step code of practice for street vendors, and regular inspections by field officers take place in some areas. In general, frequent stalls where lines are long, because the food is turned over quickly.
Websites: www.tourismthailand.org, www.thaistreetfood.com
