Raising a family in Thailand // Documenting Issan food, culture, music, and people
I’m going to declare this the automatic winner for 2013, even though it’s only January. I found it for sale in the canned goods isle of our new Tesco Lotus megastore.
This is a can of vegetarian fried rice that I assume was supposed to be, “I Like Veggies.” It isn’t “I Like Veggies,” however, it’s “I LIKE VAGGIE.” That’s rude, crude, and totally the best product name of 2013.
A couple months back, we visited a small restaurant in neighboring Kosum Phisai, on one of the two main routes to Khon Kaen from Maha Sarakham. This place advertises along the highway as serving spaghetti and pork steak, the local iterations of which are invariably disappointing… but I bever order that crap anyway, so it didn’t really bother me. What did bother me was what I found on the bathroom wall:
Nam reported that the same could be found in the women’s restroom as well (the man’s and women’s were separated by a wall, so it was probably connected through cracks or something.
This was one of the more disturbing sights at a restaurant last year, somebody caring for the termite nests.
These will mostly, if not all, be consumed over the New Years break. Thank you, Dai!
I hereby deem this the Ultimate Japanese New Years Variety Pack! From top left, clockwise: oshiruko (sweet red bean soup), shoga-yu (hot ginger drink), amazake (sweet sake w/curds), matsutake soup packets (awesome with instant noodles), and Aquarius drink powder (for the following day’s hangover). Thanks, Taro!
I am looking into getting my hands on equipment to pound our own mochi with from next year.
Patongko, foie gras, and French-pressed Thai Arabica.
This big guy was attracted to the lights we leave on at night in our pavilion. I found him in a weakened state under our Japanese-style table in the morning. This is an extremely important food source in many Asian countries because of its strong odor, which it uses to attract mates and is used as a potent flavoring in various dipping sauces. This insect is also eaten whole in Thailand, usually deep fried and then stripped of legs and carapace.
Because of the perceived sexual behavior of this bug (just sitting around attracting females with its scent), the term maeng da has been adapted in Thai slang to mean something like a pimp or useless man who mooches off of women.
No, I did not eat it.
I had these photos up on Facebook, but wanted them here as well.
This looks awesome, and it reminds me of the blogroll on my old site. I called it “C. Buddha’s Flaming Fist of Tuna Roll.”
Link: www.monsterroll.com
Merely tasty; not delicious. @ The Pullman Hotel bakery in Khon Kaen
