Thai Cooking School - 01/02/15

We signed up for cooking classes at the Silom Thai Cooking School - what a great day!

A staff member of the school had emailed me directions for how to find the school, so we hopped on the Sky Train to the Chong Nonsi station.  After getting off of the train, we followed the very clear and concise directions and arrived at the pre-arranged meeting spot along with several other students.  There were a total of 10 people in our group.  A staffer performed roll call and told us to follow her and off we went.  We were each given a wicker basket and a bottle of water.

First stop was the market where we learned about the ingredients we would be using and filled up our baskets.  These peppers are on fire hot!

When we were done at the market, our group piled into cabs and we were delivered to the school.

We were instructed to remove our shoes and wash our hands.

Class picture.

Thai cooking focuses on the harmony and balance of four flavors - spicy, sour, salty and sweet.  The food consists of the these components; protein, vegetables, key ingredients (these add flavor, but are not eaten), seasoning and appearance.  More ingredients to learn about:

Our teacher, Chef Aey - she was wonderful and kept things lively with her running commentary and humor:

Hard at work.

 We were well rewarded for our efforts starting with Tom Yum Goong (Hot and Sour Prawn Soup):

Laab Gai (Northern Chicken Salad).  Usually served cold or at room temperature and eaten as an appetizer or starter:

Thailand's national dish, Pad Thai (Fried Noodles Thai Style):

Making green curry pastes starts with chopping peppers:

The peppers and herbs used for seasoning the curry were pulverized with a mortar and pestle:

The curry paste is an important ingredient in Kang Khiao Wan Gai (Green Chicken Curry):

We finished our fabulous meal with a dessert of Khao Neaw Ma Muang (Mango with Sticky Rice) which was delish!

It was kind of sad when the class ended.  In the brief time we were together we developed a camaraderie with our class mates and we realized there was so much more to learn.  Luckily, we were given cookbooks to take with us so that we can make Thai food when we are back home.  It won't be quite the same because some of the ingredients aren't readily available in the United States but we will give it our best.

Thank you for everything, Chef Aey!