Today’s meal was actually a personal favorite of mine.

As starters? Deep-fried “Son-in-law” Eggs (Thai), drizzled with coriander leaves and tamarind sauce.

For the main course, Chicken Tom Yum Soup (Thai), with a side of steamed jasmine rice and Stir fried Kailan Vegetables.

The tart and sweet/tangy tamarind sauce, blending with the fresh taste of coriander as you bite through the crunchy shell of “Son-in-law” eggs is the perfect way to start a meal. Without fail, it gets peoples’ tastebuds excited, getting them prepared for the sensory onslaught that is a good Tom Yum soup. The stir fried Kailan vegetables eaten with fresh steamed Jasmine rice are a nice occasional subtle retreat from the richness of the soup flavors. Also very good for you. 🙂

Tom Yum soup is actually a fairly simple recipe to prepare, and there are a very large number of variations on the recipe (in Thailand the dish differs depending on what part of the country you are in – for example in the South it features seafood and seafood stocks much more often than not), however among the many ingredients in the soup, there are three which I consider to be essential for that Tom Yum taste.

The lack of these ingredients makes the difference between a tom yum that tastes authentic, or one that just tastes like an imitation / made from a packet. The three ingredients I refer to are Kaffir Lime Leaves, Galangal Root, and Lemongrass Root. Even a Tom Yum missing a single one of these ingredients is just not the same.

Son-in-law eggs derived their name from an urban myth in Thailand. The original dish calls for the use of quails eggs, which are notably smaller than chicken eggs. The story goes, in Thailand if a mother-in-law believes her son-in-law to be up to no good or mistreating her daughter, she serves him these eggs as a warning (think about the size of quails eggs, and compare that to certain parts of the male anatomy). Regardless, the dish has become a classic, particularly loved by students as a great breakfast food to dry up a hangover. I personally think they make a perfect starter to Thai or many Asian meals.

Just about every Asian restaurant serves some kind of variation on the theme of stir fried green vegetables, usually using one or more of the following ingredients : garlic, oyster sauce, soy sauce, black bean sauce, fish sauce. My variation on the dish uses all of those ingredients, plus some Shaoxing Wine for added flavor.

As the nature of my task cooking for the family is to prepare multiple dishes, some of the ingredients I list in my recipes are meant to cover more than one dish – where possible I will make this known, but wherever possible I will try to “separate” the recipes so that they can be prepared one by one rather than simultaneously as I do.

So. Firstly, “Son-in-law” Eggs!

—- Ingredients : Chicken eggs – these will be cut in half, so enough to feed as many people as you need. 4 eggs will make 8 pieces, 8 will make 16 etc., For this meal, I only needed 4 eggs (8 pieces), as only 3 people were eating tonight. Coriander leaves – about 2 heaped tablespoons, or to taste, chopped coarsely. For the Sauce Tamarind Paste, 1 Tablespoon Fish Sauce, 1 Tablespoon Sugar, 2 Tablespoons Soy Sauce, 1 Tablespoon Water, 2 Tablespoons —- Method : It doesn’t get any simpler than this, folks. *NOTE* – It’s best if you make the sauce first and set it aside in a covered bowl. The eggs should be served almost immediately after they’re done so that the crunchy shells don’t get soggy. Hard-Boil the eggs. When they are done, take the pot into the sink and run the cold water tap into it for a while till the eggs cool a bit. Peel the eggs carefully one by one by hand, then place each peeled egg on kitchen paper. Gently pat them dry with kitchen paper. If you have a deep fryer, start it up, setting the temperature to medium heat. If not, simply take a non-stick frypan and half-fill it with cooking oil (use only oils suitable for deep frying). Heat up the oil for about 5 minutes. When the oil is ready, place the eggs carefully into the oil. If you’re using a deep fryer, leave them there until a golden-brown shell has formed around them. If you’re using a pan, use a slotted spoon or other utensil to occasionally turn the eggs around, ensuring an even fry. When a golden-brown shell has formed around the eggs, remove them with the slotted spoon. Place eggs on kitchen paper to drain oil. Once you’ve dried the excess oil off, place the eggs on a chopping board, and one by one, cut them in half – slicing from top to bottom, rather than around the “belly” of the egg. You may find this step is easier with a bread knife / serrated knife, as the shell can be quite thick. Be very gentle, and careful not to rip the egg up – you want a nice clean cut. Arrange the eggs, shell side down, around a plate. Coarsely chop the coriander leaves, and sprinkle them over the eggs and the plate. Drizzle a few teaspoons of the sauce over each egg half, dress the plate with the rest of the sauce. If desired, you can reserve any left over sauce and serve it in a side bowl with the eggs – when done right it’s VERY popular! 🙂 For the sauce : Take the Tamarind paste, soy sauce, sugar, and water, and mix them together. Using a small pot or frypan, mix the ingredients up over high heat. Eventually, the mix will begin to bubble vigorously. Let this go on for a while, stirring it up frequently with a spoon. The bubbling action will caramelize the sugars. Eventually you will begin to see the sauce thicken a little bit – it will have a shiny / glisteny look to it. This means it’s ready. Feel free to add extra water and base ingredients if you require more sauce, however, be aware of the flavor. The sauce should taste a little bit sour (but not bitter), a little bit sweet (but not like a dessert), and a little bit tart and salty (but not enough to make you wince). It’s a -very- subtle mix of flavours. Some people prefer it sweeter/sourer, but it’s best if you balance the flavors roughly evenly.

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Chicken Tom Yum Soup Ingredients 8 Cloves of Garlic, finely chopped/minced. 2 – 5 Red/Green chillis, to taste. NB : if you are not too keen on chilli, you can either omit this step (not recommended), or just remove the seeds from the chillis. Removing seeds removes a lot of the potency of chillis. Traditionally this dish is served very hot, though. 1/2 Cup Fish Sauce 2 Lemongrass root stalks, Split down the center with a sharp knife. 1 large piece (or 3 small pieces) Dried galangal root. Alternately, one medium sized piece of fresh Galangal cut from root. Large = 1 inch, small = 1/2 inch. 3 – 5 Fresh Kaffir lime leaves. Alternately, 5 to 7 dried Kaffir lime leaves. If possible, use fresh. 2 Spring Onions, minced. 10 – 20 Cherry tomatoes, halved (Optional. This is a regional variation which I prefer. It gives the soup a distinct tang of tomato, which is sweeter). 3 – 4 Tablespoons of fresh Coriander leaves, coarsley chopped Juice from 2 Fresh limes (Lemon is a suitable substitute but keep extra on hand in case) 2 Tablespoons “Nam Prik Pow” or Chilli Paste in Soybean Oil. I used Pantainorasingh Brand (Pictured – Click thumbnail to enlarge). 100 gms / 1+1/2 ‘handfuls’ of small field / button mushrooms. Sliced in half, then chopped in quarter slices. 5 Pints / 2.3L of fresh water (this serves 4 – 6) 250 – 300 gms Chicken thigh fillet pieces, fat trimmed. *NOTE* Westerners often prefer Chicken Breast meat to thigh meat, which is preferred by Asians for its stronger flavor and fat content. If you prefer to substitute breast meat, you are welcome to, but be aware the stock will not have as strong a chicken taste. Chop the chicken (breast or thigh) into small 1/2 inch bite sized pieces. Method : Put the 5 Pints of water into a large pot over the stove, turn heat up to high. Put the chopped chicken in the water. When the water begins to boil, and the chicken begins to cook (you will see a layer of frothy white chicken fat forming on the top of the water), add the Fish sauce, garlic, kaffir lime leaves, lemongrass, spring onions, galangal, chopped chilli and stir. After a few minutes you will begin to smell the garlic and fish sauce, as well as the lemongrass quite strongly. Add the 2 tablespoons of Chilli paste in soybean oil, and stir it through the soup well. Add the lime juice. Add the halved tomatoes, if you are using them. Quite simply, from this point forward, you let the soup boil, check on it every five minutes or so and give it a stir. Also, give it a taste. As the herbs and roots boil, the flavor will gradually get stronger over time. Don’t allow the soup to reduce too much – if you are at risk of boiling all the liquid off, add little bits more water where necessary – but be careful, you don’t want to dilute it too much. The taste of the soup should be spicy (chilli), sour (lime juice, kaffir lime leaves, lemongrass), strong (garlic,chicken base), with a hint of savoury saltiness (fish sauce). The truth is at this point you can add any of these ingredients to taste. If you like a very sour Tom Yum, add more lime juice. If you like a particularly strong tasting Tom Yum, add more fish sauce (be careful! Too much will make it unbearably salty). At this point I add the halved tomatoes, which gives another, sweeter dimension to the soup. In the south of Thailand other ingredients that might be added towards the latter stages include prawns, fish or squid (though they are usually added at the VERY end – they cook quickly and then the soup is served). Don’t be afraid to experiment, look around for recipes of regional variations on this all time favorite dish. FINALLY – when you are ready to serve the soup, turn the heat off, and add the chopped mushrooms. Let the soup sit for around 3 – 5 minutes, which will gently cook the mushrooms. Alternatively, if you like your mushrooms to be slightly “al dente”, which I do – serve up the soup first, THEN add the mushrooms just before serving it on the table. Meanwhile – here are some images documenting the progression of my soup.

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Stir Fried Kailan Veges Ingredients : 1 Bunch “Kai Lan”/Chinese Broccoli Chinese Vegetables Remove flowerets, chop into thirds (some people prefer smaller pieces, so this is up to you), and thoroughly rinse veges under a running tap / in a full sink, removing all traces of dirt or sand. Drain, and set aside. 4 Cloves Garlic, minced/finely chopped 1 Spring Onion root, minced/finely chopped 3 Tablespoons Sesame Oil 2 Tablespoons Oyster Sauce 1 Tablespoon Soy Sauce (Preferrably Light Soy Sauce) 1 Teaspoon Black bean sauce (do NOT overdo this sauce, EVER – it will literally ruin a dish) 2 Teaspoons White Sugar 2 Tablespoons (or to taste) Fish Sauce. 2 Tablespoons Shaoxing Wine (Optional) Method : Take a wok over high heat, pour in sesame oil. Just -before- the oil begins to smoke a little, throw in the minced garlic and spring onions. When they have turned a golden colour after about a minute, throw in the chopped vegetables (make sure NO water is left). The Vegetables will take up a LOT of space in the wok – don’t worry, by the time you’re done their volume will have gone down by more than half. Add the oyster sauce, fish sauce, soy sauce, sugar (you can mix these beforehand if it’s easier) over the vegetables. Using a spatula, keep turning the vegetables over, from bottom to top, mixing up the oil, garlic, and sauces. When the sauces have been distributed fairly evenly through the vegetables, their volume should have at least halved. You can use the spatula to keep tossing the vegetables in the sauce mix, ensuring it cooks evenly. At this point, you can add a few tablespoons of Shaoxing Wine if you desire. If you do add the wine, immediately afterwards, SHAKE the pan over high heat, some of the vapor will catch fire over the pan. At this point, if you desire a dish with more “sauce”, you can add more fluid, but be sure to add extra of the sauces as required to keep the taste the same or similar. If you wish the sauce to be thicker, take some cornflour and dilute it with water in a separate bowl. Slowly add the mix into your sauce, stirring well with the spatula. Your sauce will get thicker the more cornflour mix you add. Be careful not to add too fast as it will “clump”. Plate the dish up, and serve as is!

All of this is served with piping hot, fresh, steamed Jasmine rice. I am NOT going to teach you how to cook rice.

If in doubt, buy a rice cooker, and follow the instructions.

🙂

Enjoy!