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Shopping, shopping, shopping to turn up an ex-pat kitchen


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We had an American friend and his Thai wife over for supper tonight. He is a mid-western guy, so I made mid-western comfort food (Meatloaf and Mashed Potatoes).

Here are the recipes.

https://www.cookingchanneltv.com/recipes/alton-brown/meatloaf-reloaded-5513657

https://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/alton-brown/creamy-mashed-potatoes-recipe-1956220

Everything turned out very well and I was complemented by all. The GF also made Krapow Kung, in case the Thai ladies did not care for the Farang food.

Pic of the meatloaf.

19017657_HomeMeatLoaf-A.thumb.jpg.98c7f74fa8d34c946476e3ef465c5f7d.jpg

Pic of the Krapow Kung.

1545924691_HomeMeatLoaf-KraPow.thumb.jpg.dc11872345cfb0567b929a79c2bb2d3d.jpg

Edited by ChiFlyer
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On 10/09/2020 at 17:11, expatdude said:

......

On another front, I have good news for you. I've found some good Italian sausage (I believe) at a reasonable price, plus much, much more.

There has been a ravioli factory in Pattaya forever putting out a good product, but they didn't have a retail outlet until just now. You can get great frozen raviolis, fresh pastas, Italian cheeses and salamis and other cured meats, canned goods from Italy, on and on, AND they make their own Italian sausage at 330 a kilo, very fair price in my opinion. It's only available frozen and they have 3 types. It's a must visit in my opinion.

It's on Sukhumvit between Makro and Lotus, closer to Lotus. Just before it there's a Harry's bakery where I picked up a loaf of sourdough to eat my salami with--they sliced the salami for me (Milano 670? baht a kilo) very thinly and on the sourdough it was heaven, no mayo nothing else needed. 200 gram min on sliced meats. They have a facebook page and website but it's quite confusing.

I've been using this guy for many years, but the retail shop is so much better. I used to have to get 2kg of frozen ravioli at a time--keeps good in the freezer but still.

https://www.facebook.com/Tom-Lasanya-Co-Ltd-Fresh-egg-Pasta-in-Thailand-313109145388487

I was in the area today so I stopped in at Tom Lasanya. I picked up a kilo of frozen Sausage Tuscana. I plan to give these a try on Sunday. A kilo is the smallest package that they have and it includes 10 large sausages. This is more than I want to defrost for one meal and some leftovers. I will cut up the still frozen package and repackage 6 of them in saran wrap and then aluminum foil. Should keep well enough for 90 days. Get the air out

I will likely stop in at Harry's Bakery as I need to go to Makro anyway on Saturday and get some appropriate rolls for the sausages. I like them that way with some sweet roasted red peppers. I buy the jarred peppers as they taste great and are much less trouble than roasting your own.

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Oops, I forgot to tell you. I got some of the sausages and did as you said, portioned and froze them and ate a couple. I got the fat ones that have a bit of garlic in them according to the lady.

I was quite disappointed. They were totally bland and even worse they lacked salt. The good news is they were juicy enough. I will try putting some in a pasta sauce to hopefully make up for the blandness. I apologize profusely for not posting about this before.
 

My favorite things there so far are the sliced deli meats and the ravioli. Mortadella for 400 and change per kilo is a real deal, and Milano salami for 670? is also as good as you'll find in Pattaya. They slice them paper thin for me, great for sandwiches and just snacking. Ravioli is a great quick meal if you make some nice sauce and freeze it, they cook in 4 minutes. I just had some of their spinach and ricotta ravioli--very nice indeed.

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On 23/09/2020 at 06:45, expatdude said:

Oops, I forgot to tell you. I got some of the sausages and did as you said, portioned and froze them and ate a couple. I got the fat ones that have a bit of garlic in them according to the lady.

 I apologize profusely for not posting about this before.
 

No apologies are necessary. I appreciate the warning. I am going to cook up some of them on Sunday and it is good to know about the potential disappointments, so that I can try and compensate.

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One of my pool time chat friends who has been living here for 15 years or so recommended an Italian Deli here in Jomtien. It is on Jomtien Second Road near soi 5. I have not checked it out myself, but will get over there soon and report back.

It is called Stile Italiano.

https://www.officinadelprosciutto.com/#home

 

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On 20/09/2020 at 23:43, ChiFlyer said:

looks close, but like frantick said I would have to taste it.

Seems like you will have to have us over for breakfast in order to prove the point.  :)

I went over to Villa Market today with the intent of buying a bottle of the crushed red pepper flakes that I had earlier posted about. I had trouble finding them, but eventually did. There is not a lot of shelf space dedicated to them, but like I said they are near the end of the spice aisle. I will add that they are currently in one of the lower racks.

Here is a pic.

IMG_2890.thumb.jpg.5f70791d1e2724eae0be040b45ec634e.jpg

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I made a Paella tonight. I will say up front that if anyone is a true paella aficionado, you will be appalled by my bastardized version. In defense of my easy (been promoted from bastardized already) version, the only real drawback is one does not get the socarrat which is the crusty crispy bottom in a true paella. My version IMO is very tasty and quite doable in a Pattaya expat kitchen, if you have an oven.

Here is the recipe.

https://www.thedailymeal.com/recipes/oven-paella-chicken-shrimp-and-chorizo-recipe

There are a fair number of ingredients that may be a little harder to find in the Pattaya area for this recipe.

I bought the Chorizo at Villa Market. It was ok, but the search continues for a good chorizo. I am spoiled when it comes to chorizo, as the grocery store back in the states carried a true Spanish one.

I bought the saffron off of Lazada. Yes, it is expensive but saffron provides an incredible flavor. If one is going to go through the effort of this recipe, spend a few extra baht on the saffron. You will be glad you did. Do not forget to bloom it, or you will lose most of the taste that you paid for.

I did not see the black mussels in my usual shopping haunts that I was familiar with back in the states. I noticed some frozen hard shell clams in the Italian place on Sukhumvit near Tesco Lotus that we recently talked about. I went with those and they were ok. Next time I will probably look for the green NZ mussels and use those. I think I have seen those in Makro.

Villa Market carries the short grain Arborio Rice.

The GF and her sister really liked the paella. The sister even asked for a take home package. The GF kept picking through the pot to find the chorizo.

A few pics.

I served the entire pot at the table.

IMG_2891.thumb.jpg.810abd863dbaad31191b4023f2f5c7f2.jpg

Here is a plated view. Where did all the chorizo go? :)

IMG_2893.thumb.jpg.824640e43aa2d13c0e4473211b7bc972.jpg

 

Edited by ChiFlyer
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Ah Paella, a brave dish to make here in Thailand. This is a relatively cheap dish to make in Spain, where good chorizo, wine and saffron are cheap, along with good seafood.

I have had a decent Paella in that Spanish place on Darkside, with that crispy burnt rice on the bottom.

I note it is on menu today at Patrick's Sunday Mediterranean  buffet, tempting.

I sometimes buy chorizo slices in Siamsbury on Darkside, 40B a pack, great for Pizza and mix with boiled potatoes. 

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On 23/09/2020 at 06:45, expatdude said:

Oops, I forgot to tell you. I got some of the sausages and did as you said, portioned and froze them and ate a couple. I got the fat ones that have a bit of garlic in them according to the lady.

I was quite disappointed. They were totally bland and even worse they lacked salt. The good news is they were juicy enough. I will try putting some in a pasta sauce to hopefully make up for the blandness.

.......

I agree with your assessment. The sausages are bland. Based upon your warning, I had helpers at the ready to add some flavor. I made simple sausage sandwiches. I topped the sausages with some freshly grated Pecorino Romano, some crushed red pepper flakes, and some bottled roasted red peppers.

The end result was ok, but I also was disappointed. I did sample he sausage without the add-ons and it is indeed quite bland. They definitely left out the fennel and some other things as well.

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21 hours ago, jimboh said:

....

I sometimes buy chorizo slices in Siamsbury on Darkside, 40B a pack, great for Pizza and mix with boiled potatoes. 

You are the second person this week to recommend Siambury to me. The other guy (food pool chat person) recommended it for their Andouille.

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1 hour ago, ChiFlyer said:

You are the second person this week to recommend Siambury to me. The other guy (food pool chat person) recommended it for their Andouille.

Great selection of cheeses as well.

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image.png

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I went over to Villa Market today with the intent of buying a bottle of the crushed red pepper flakes that I had earlier posted about. I had trouble finding them, but eventually did. There is not a lot of shelf space dedicated to them, but like I said they are near the end of the spice aisle. I will add that they are currently in one of the lower racks.
Here is a pic.
http://forum.pattaya-addicts.com/uploads/monthly_2020_09/IMG_2890.thumb.jpg.5f70791d1e2724eae0be040b45ec634e.jpg
Picked up the chili flakes at Villa yesterday. Haven't tried em yet cuz I'm dieting, but they look legit.


Sent from my vivo 1920 using Tapatalk

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On 26/09/2020 at 02:32, ChiFlyer said:

One of my pool time chat friends who has been living here for 15 years or so recommended an Italian Deli here in Jomtien. It is on Jomtien Second Road near soi 5. I have not checked it out myself, but will get over there soon and report back.

It is called Stile Italiano.

https://www.officinadelprosciutto.com/#home

 

I was over at Immigration this Morning, so I stopped to take a look. They are only open form Noon to 5 PM. More later.

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On 17/09/2020 at 00:01, ChiFlyer said:

I came across this place (desertcart) while cruising the net looking for possibilities for Mexican Peppers.

https://thailand.desertcart.com/

.....

My order from desesrtcart arrived in 10 days and the items were as stated. Again, make no mistake, this is an expensive route to go. However, if one has an itch for some US items that are impossible to find in Thailand, they can get it done.

With regard to the expense, they are probably no worse that buying from Amazon, paying international shipping, and import fees. Their prices compare reasonably well with my method of sending to my US forwarding address and the reliability and speed of their delivery is much better. I suspect this is because they are Thai owned.

So far, I have ordered the following impossible to find in Thailand items:

  • Mexican Dry Peppers
  • Chipotle peppers in Ancho Sauce
  • American Chilli Powder
  • Sun Chips (ok I am a fool for Sun Chips)

 

Edited by ChiFlyer
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8 hours ago, ChiFlyer said:

My order from desesrtcart arrived in 10 days and the items were as stated. Again, make no mistake, this is an expensive route to go. However, if one has an itch for some US items that are impossible to find in Thailand, they can get it done.

With regard to the expense, they are probably no worse that buying from Amazon, paying international shipping, and import fees. Their prices compare reasonably well with my method of sending to my US forwarding address and the reliability and speed of their delivery is much better. I suspect this is because they are Thai owned.

So far, I have ordered the following impossible to find in Thailand items:

  • Mexican Dry Peppers
  • Chipotle peppers in Ancho Sauce
  • American Chilli Powder
  • Sun Chips (ok I am a fool for Sun Chips)

 

Thanks for that website. Unfortunately I am hesitant to spend $16 on a bottle of Heinz 57 Steak Sauce. :-(

But good to know there's a way!

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Time for the weekend cooking report. We have a couple of bday parties to go to this weekend, so the cooking is being done a few days early.

I made one of my US favorites -> Morrocan Chicken with Couscous.

https://www.marthastewart.com/282065/moroccan-spiced-chicken

I really enjoy the taste of this Martha Stewart dish. And hey she is cool now hanging with Snoop Dog. I do a different couscous recipe than she suggests. That recipe is detailed in the 40 Cloves Chicken post.

The GF only gave me a level 2 rating on this one, but I thought it deserved a level 1. Probably the cumin thing again. Some pics.

Out of the oven

IMG_2903.thumb.jpg.b6fe405a7610b00894c887774fb2ab08.jpg

Ready to Serve 1

IMG_2904.thumb.jpg.66e0305039bc37e78443204d743466c0.jpg

Ready to Serve 2

IMG_2905.thumb.jpg.6637dc4a79bebd67bc39a99009eb1136.jpg

Plated

IMG_2908.thumb.jpg.82b51e1cd22ce03590ba406e9d5c717f.jpg

 

 

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Finished off the weekend cooking with an Alton Brown recipe for Braised Ribs in the oven. This is another long time favorite that I made in the US.

https://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/alton-brown/who-loves-ya-baby-back-recipe-1937448

I served the ribs with some frozen waffle fries from Alexia in the air fryer. Things turned out pretty well, but I had some challenges. The recipe is intended for the leaner Baby Back Ribs that I preferred back in the US. I never see these here in the Pattaya area, as Spare Ribs are usually sold. Bought the ribs at Villa Market and they were almost out of the Spare Ribs, so I had to buy some of the smaller "baby spare ribs" as well. 

The ribs, especially the baby spare ribs, are fattier than what I am used to back in the US. I had to spend some time cutting out the excessive fat on the back of the smaller ones. I will buy ribs at Makro next time as they will have plenty of the larger Spare Ribs.

The GF and her sister both liked the ribs.

I had to substitute a little on the rub ingredients, as I had neither American Chili Powder or Jalapeno Seasoning (I have never seen the later anywhere, including the US). I substituted a home made Cajun seasoning mix called Bayou Blast for the Chili Powder and upped the Cayenne Pepper a little to make up for the Jalapeno Seasoning. The rub worked very well

A few pics:

The Meal

30997223_Home-BraisedRibsA.thumb.jpg.dd2046a5c8985f2ce1103b4e95aeacc8.jpg

Close up of the larger Spare Ribs

1316843280_Home-BraisedRibsB.thumb.jpg.46a981562c966ff516514917e1e270f0.jpg

Plated

1507193847_Home-BraisedRibsC.thumb.jpg.f9049fe1c4b16cddcb3241a154742f07.jpg

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11 minutes ago, ChiFlyer said:

The Meal

 

Close up of the larger Spare Ribs

 

Plated

 

Would have loved to dig into that meal. Thx for sharing CFly and keep posting

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On 25/09/2020 at 20:43, ChiFlyer said:

I went over to Villa Market today with the intent of buying a bottle of the crushed red pepper flakes that I had earlier posted about. I had trouble finding them, but eventually did. There is not a lot of shelf space dedicated to them, but like I said they are near the end of the spice aisle. I will add that they are currently in one of the lower racks.

Here is a pic.

IMG_2890.thumb.jpg.5f70791d1e2724eae0be040b45ec634e.jpg

Not a criticism, as I love your food pics. Surely there are thai chillies available at a fraction of VM price?

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I don’t understand. Is there a big difference between Thai crushed red chili flakes and the ones from USA? I don’t taste a difference.

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18 minutes ago, Cheetos said:

I don’t understand. Is there a big difference between Thai crushed red chili flakes and the ones from USA? I don’t taste a difference.

The Thai ones being crushed are more concentrated than the American flakes version, when using the same measurment. When using them in cooking one has to adjust the amount downward to use the Thai crushed ones. Not the biggest deal in the world, but with regard to cooking I am more confident with the the flakes version. I feel that I have better control of the amount and distribution with the flakes.

This is similar to the difference between using iodized table salt and using coarse Kosher or Sea Salt. The larger granules in Kosher Salt means that you need a slightly larger measurement. Most pro cook recipes are speaking to using coarse salt. I always go that route. My preference is Kosher. Also coarse salt sticks better to fried items and should be applied as soon as the item is removed from the oil and is still hot. 

I would agree that the overall taste of the two types of red pepper seasonings is quite similar, but many Americans like to use the flakes version as a condiment topping for things, particularly pizza and in my case scrambled eggs. The powdered version is much more difficult to use in that manner. IMO 

Edited by ChiFlyer
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42 minutes ago, sl4ppy said:

Not a criticism, as I love your food pics. Surely there are thai chillies available at a fraction of VM price?

You are absolutely correct about that, but VM is the only place that I have found that carries the flakes version. As I said in my response to Cheetos, I have a strong preference for the flakes version and even at VM it is not that expensive of an item. I do not use a lot of this seasoning, so it is probably an every 6 months purchase. I am paying a little more, but I am getting what I want.

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Anyone seen Tahini paste in Pattaya?

And a bit of a longshot but also looking for Ras El Hanout, a North African spice, great for making meatballs. 

Edited by jimboh
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On 08/10/2020 at 10:20, jimboh said:

Anyone seen Tahini paste in Pattaya?

And a bit of a longshot but also looking for Ras El Hanout, a North African spice, great for making meatballs. 

I am pretty sure, but not certain, that I have seen Tahini paste at Villa Market. If you can wait, I will be there next Thursday and can get back to you.

With regard to Ras el Hanout, I did a Google search and I have all the ingredients on hand to make it myself.

https://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/ras-el-hanout-101070

This is very similar to the spice mix that I make for the "Morocan Chicken" recipe that I posted about a coupe of weeks back. I do like Moroccan food.

Edited by ChiFlyer
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The weekend cooking report will be a day late this week. I am sure that everyone is disappointed. :)

I had to get over to the dentist today. Nothing serious, but it was time to get over there. I did run some errands prior to the dentist appointment. One of which was a first stop at Siamburi over on the Dark Side. Interesting place.

For anyone who has not been before, you may want to delay your maiden voyage by a few weeks. The current construction phase on the approaching street is a bit of a pain. Then again TiT. :) Drive a little slower is the message.

I perused the various frozen item bins and picked up packages of Spicy-Sweet Italian Sausage and Mexican Chorizo. More later on those. I also picked up a fresh package of Andouille Sausage. I warmed up (microwave for 90 seconds) 2 of those for supper. They were pretty decent.

I did not see the variety of cheeses that I had heard about, but I have never been a good listener or observer. They have big blocks of mozzarella, but not much else. Probably, I was not looking in the right places. I did pick up a small block of Mild English Cheddar from the fresh cabinet. I plan on making Philly Cheese Steaks next weekend and I think that a mild cheddar would be a good substitute for the White American that I will likely not be able to find.

If anyone sees Fontina (an Italian Cheese) anywhere, I am all ears. It is a Goat Cheese that is excellent for melting and it can really compliment a Chicken Parm dish.

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