Easy-peasy Thai-style mushroom salad (“yum”)

According to my mummy (who, by the way, is Thai), the key to making the perfect “yum” (the classic Thai salad) is in the way you balance its three basic flavours: sour, salty and sweet.

Mushrooms are not the most common base ingredient for “yum”, but we have an excess of them in our fridge as my dad randomly bought a load the other day (apparently intending to cook them himself which would have been something to see as I have never seen him cook!) A typical “yum” often consists of Thai vermicelli noodles and minced meat – usually chicken or pork. However, the seasoning ingredients – almost always the most important component in Thai cooking – remain the same.

Sugar is nearly always one of these key seasoning ingredients in Thai food. I know – this can seem rather strange for someone who was brought up on  Western cooking styles. If you’re not a fan of sugar in savoury food – or are being super-duper healthy – it is possible to omit it from dish. Although this might mean the “yum” is losing one of its basic flavours – and therefore some of its authenticity – I think it actually tastes pretty good, if a little different.

So how did I get on making my version of the traditional Thai salad seasoning? Well, as you can probably tell from the recipe…I kept it very simple. (This is Recipe #1 after all and so I am still definitely a cooking-noob). And it was a success! It goes nicely as can an accompaniment to other dishes (we had it with red curry) or as a light meal in its own right.

PS – The mushroom – wiping tip is my mum’s. Apparently the mushrooms get too wet if you soak them. (I know, I thought it sounded a bit weird too!)

Happy munching! xx

Serves 3-4

Ingredients

500g mushrooms

2 cloves garlic

1 coriander root

Handful chopped celery (optional)

Fresh chillies (the quantity depends on how spicy you would like it – use 1-2 if you prefer it less hot or 3-4 if you’re going for a more authentic Thai taste)

1 chopped spring onion

1 tablespoon coriander (or less if you’re not a big coriander fan)

Fish sauce (nahm-pla), to taste

Lemon juice, to taste

Sugar, to taste

Method

Wipe the mushrooms with wet tissue paper (no need to soak them). Chop them in half and steam them for up to 5 minutes.

Crush the garlic, coriander roots, fresh chillies and celery (if using) with a mortar and pestle.  Flavour with fish sauce, lemon juice and sugar, tasting as you go along.

When the mushrooms are ready, put them in a bowl with the chopped spring onion and coriander and add in the crushed garlic-chilli-coriander root mixture. Keep tasting and add more sugar/lemon juice/fish sauce as you see fit.

Post # 1: Cooking? Piece of cake…

Hello world!

Like most other food bloggers, I love food. All sorts of food, but mainly fresh, colourful, leafy, juicy food. (Fruit and veg and the like). Oh, and chocolate. Like most other food bloggers, I’ve created this writing space to share my love for food. Like many other food bloggers, I spend my spare time browsing blogs, skimming recipes, reading the remarks and learning the passions of other internet addicts. But in one perhaps rather important way I am not like most other food bloggers. In fact, I’m hiding a deep, dark, soul-destroying secret that, once shared, may very well result in you clicking off my page before you can think “crab beet” (apparently an alternative term for Swiss chard for those of you who don’t pathetically spend your afternoons browsing the history of leafy superfoods). My secret is….I can’t really cook. At least not very well. I do know a little bit about food (I think I can tell my gorgonzola from my roquefort) but I am in the fresh stages of learning the technicalities of  jointing and butterflying; tempering and blind-baking; filleting and de-bearding (yes, that really is a term for preparing mussels!). But I’m determined to improve! And so I invite you on my journey where I start with easy-peasy lemon-squeezy (perhaps literally) snacks, and gradually move (I hope) onto the more majestic morsels of the culinary world.

Bonne santé mes amis!

xx

Image: Wikimedia Commons