Day 232 - Burnin' Down the House...

...Or Cz goes to cooking school.

Chiang Mai is known for its excellent Thai cuisine. As such, almost everyone who visits here takes at least one day worth of cooking classes. Even Cz was not immune.

We began the day with a market tour. Our guide (and cooking teacher for the day) could be a stand-up comedian. I recognised most of the veggies and herbs that he pointed out, but he amused us by making jokes about the 'Thai' names for things, and by calling some of the well-known veggies by their Dutch names, to the surprise of the Dutch in the group, and the amusement of the English-speakers.

Best of all, we learned how to not only make Phad Thai, but to do it with impressive displays of flame-throwing. Not exactly home-kitchen friendly, but loads of fun.

So without further ado....

Some recipes.

Tom Yam Soup

Ingredients: (2 small servings)
1 cup water or stock (veg, chicken, or seafood)
3 thin slices ginger, peeled
3 1" pieces lemongrass
1 shallot roughly crushed (smash it with the side of a knife) and cut into 3 pieces
1-5 small green chilies roughly crushed (smash with the side of a knife)
1-2 Kaffir lime leaf vein removed torn into pieces (1/2 tsp lime zest would work fine)
2-4 mushrooms cut into chunks (we used straw mushrooms, any other kind is fine too)
1/4 tomato, sliced
Protein - can be prawns, tofu, fish, thinly sliced chicken, pork, beef...about 1/4 cup whatever you like
1Tbs fish sauce (soy sauce will do)
Cilantro (coriander leaves) to taste
1Tbs lime juice (fresh squeezed is best)
1 tsp sweet chili paste (optional)
1 clove garlic, skin removed, smahed and cut in half

Bring water or stock to a boil on high heat

Add all ingredients except cilantro and lime juice

Cook until everything is cooked through (1-2 minutes)

Remove from heat

Add cilantro and lime juice

Serve with rice, yoghurt, or beer (all of these things cut the heat)


Phad Thai (The Thai dish that almost all Westerners like)

Ingredients (for one serving)
1c fresh rice noodles (or soaked and drained dried rice noodles)
1 clove garlic smashed, skin on (smash with the flat side of a knife. The pan will be very hot, and the skin will keep the garlic from burning)
1/4c firm tofu, chopped (chicken, prawns, or pork are also fine)
1-2Tbs oil (any kind EXCEPT olive or sesame)
1/3c Bean sprouts
1 egg, beaten
1/4 cup water (optional ONLY if you want flames)
2 chives cut into 1" pieces

Sauce:
1tsp fish sauce (soy sauce is fine)
1Tbs white sugar, palm sugar, or maple syrup
1 Tbs tamirind juice (you make by adding boiling water to tamarind paste or powder - fresh lemon juice is an OK substitute)
1Tbs soy sauce

Condiments:
Crushed chilies
Crushed unsalted peanuts
Lime wedge


Place oil in wok and heat over medium until smoking

Add protein (tofu or meat) and garlic

Stir until tofu is brown or meat is nearly cooked

Add noodles and water (water is optional the water is what makes the flames)

Keep stirring one minute

Turn heat to low

Add sauce ingredients

Return heat to medium, and cook for 1 more minute

Push noodles to side of wok

Add sprouts and chives and put noodles on top (the noodles will keep the steam in on the veg, the veg will keep your noodles from burning)

Push veg and noodles to side of wok

Add a bit of oil on the other side

Turn heat up to high and pour in egg to make a thin omelet

When egg is nearly cooked, spoon noodle and veg mix on top and turn off the heat

Fold egg around noodles and veg

OR

After adding a bit of oil to other side of wok, just scramble the egg on that side

Once the egg is cooked, toss together with noodles and veg

This method actually tastes better, it's just not as pretty

Note: Phad Thai, as with most Thai dishes, is best cooked in batches of 1-2 servings, as the key to the flavour is to cook everything very fast at high heat.

Day 226 - Cooking School

Today was far more satisfying. We handed out oranges with the lovely old lady from next door. Armed with our plate of fruit, it was easy to send the hawkers away, and the monks seemed pleased with the tiny sweet oranges.

We returned to our guesthouse for a blissfully hot shower. Some thumping noises from the Wat across the alley drew our attention, and we managed to spot a young novice perched precariously on some shed roofs trying to swat down green coconuts with a long bamboo pole. The roof was far from solid, and the coconuts stubborn - we held our breath until he succeeded in knocking down three plump nuts.

By 10AM, I was at the front door of the three elephants cooking school eagerly awaiting the lessons that would unlock the secrets to Laos cooking. Luckily, only one other student had signed up for class today. The two of us teamed up with the two teachers for a six hour intensive. Our day started with trip to the market where all kinds of forest fruits and vegetables, wild mushrooms, tobacco, and the carcases of anything that swims, crawls, or flies could be bought. Our teachers patiently explained how to choose everything we would need for the class (they had actually pre-purchased for us earlier on in the day), and we returned to the cooking school. Back at the school, the other student and I had tea while the teachers set up the 'classroom'. for he rest of the day, the teachers would prepare a dish and explain it, then the other student and I would take our cookbooks and try to repeat what the teacher had done. We were remarkably successful, producing a perfectly edible lunch and dinner. By the time the class ended, we had made 5 dishes ourselves, and learned how to make 3 more by watching the teacher.

Most of the dishes are quite easy. Here's one for you to try.

Luang Prabang Salad.
This salad is particular to this city. Laos watercress is milder than western watercress, so you may want to substitute baby spinach for half the watercress amount

Ingredients
Two handfuls salad leaves (lettuce, spinach, or a salad mix - we used green leaf lettuce)
One big handful watercress (See note above)
1 medium tomato, sliced
1 medium cucumber, sliced
cilantro for garnish
1Tbs crushed peanuts
1Tbs Minced pork cooked and drained (optional)
1hard boiled egg, sliced
2hard boiled egg yolks
2 Tbs oil (any veg oil will do)
2Tbs white vinegar
1Tbs sugar
.5tsp. white pepper (black is OK)
.25tsp salt

Prepare the sauce
Put 2 egg yolks, oil, vinegar, salt, sugar, and pepper in a blender or food processor
Blend until smooth


Make the salad
Coarsely chop the watercress and greens
Add dressing to taste and mix
Place the salad in a bowl or plate in a mound
Place the cucumber around the base
Layer the tomato above it on the sides of the mound
Follow with the eggs
Put a tuft of cilantro in the open space at the top
Drizzle with a little more dressing
Sprinkle with the peanuts, pork, and cilantro

We ended the day with an evening walk down the oh-so-European main street. Well except for the palm tree silouetted in the setting sun.

Day 200 - New Years Eve

We spent much of the morning lolling about the hostel reading books and newspapers and drinking coffee. That's the danger of a very nice hostel - sometimes it's virtually impossible to peel oneself off the roof deck and actually do anything. Fortunately, one of the blessings of long travel is that it is not necessary to do absolutely everything everyday. In regular life, no one is on-the-go all day every day. If we were, we would be frazzled messes. When one is travelling for several months, it becomes less like 'traveling' as we generally think of it, and more like 'living abroad in lots of places'. Travel becomes 'regular life', and downtime days are just as necessary as they are at home.

That said, we did spend a few hours out and about this afternoon. We started our day with a late breakfast/early lunch at a little restaurant serving fried fish and soup. They might have offered other things as well, but those were the ones on display which we could point to and order with hand gestures. The fish were just in a large bowl. Not wanting to appear too greedy (and not realizing just how good they were) I reached for a medium-sized specimen. The motherly lady working at the counter shook her head no,no, no, and tsking-tsking me, my picked out the plumpest, nicest one and plonked on my plate with a big grin. Both ladies were tickled with Cz eating vast mounds of rice from the serve-yourself rice cooker (most SE Asians we have met seem to think Westerners don't really eat rice, and then find it highly amusing when we do), and at my eating all, even the head, of the fish.

After lunch, we decided to ride the river taxi to Chinatown with two Americans. As usual, the river was quite busy with all manner of boats whizzing and chugging up and down. Longtail boats like this one remind me of mayflies the way they zip around the surface with their motor-on-a-pole trailing out behind. Most exciting were the many fireworks barges being set up for New Year's displays. All the swank hotels along the waterfront were scheduled to have New Year's galas, and each one seemed to have its own floating fireworks stage.

Since the other Americans had not yet visited Wat Pho (the big, reclining Buddha wat), and because that one is our favourite, we stopped there first. After the requisite oohhing and ahhhing at the big gold Buddha, and giving the great gong a few good hits to ring in the New Year, we spent the rest of our time wandering around the outer courtyard taking irreverent photos. We saw Thai families doing the same, so we figured it couldn't be too sacrilegious. I think this pony might be a bit too small for me. We were a little surprised at first when we heard one of the stone statues say "Pssst. Pull My finger!" , but being fart jokes being universal humour (even among the sacred inanimate) Cz obliged.

We walked from Wat Pho into Chinatown. It is one of the largest Chinese centers (maybe the largest) outside of China. We only skirted the edge, maybe the middle is more intense, and maybe we just built it up in our minds, but it seemed tame compared to Canal Street. We did however have a sampling of some seriously tasty street snacks. Here's one of the simpler ones.

Ingredients:
quail eggs
wonton wrappers
Optional ingredients (not in the one we ate, but I think it would be good)
scallion
parsley or cilantro
salt
chilli, pepper, or paprika

Hard boil and peel quail eggs
fold up in wanton wrappers
deep fry

It's that simple.
If you want to get fancy, you could season the eggs with salt, herbs, and spices, and tie up the wonton top with a scallion. Still pretty simple, and your momma would be so impressed.

Around 6PM we started gearing up for New Year's. First we stopped by our local food stalls for a 'fancy' New Year's Eve dinner of soup, fried rice, and coconut smoothies. Then we hopped on the sky train and hurled ourselves (or shoved ourselves to be more accurate) into the scrum of Central Square. I was surprised at how few foreigners were present. The crowd was mostly a sea of Thai families cheerfully jostling for position in the crowded square. It was crowded, but relaxed and happy, with none of the fierce competition for 'prime real estate' that happens every Dec 31 in NYC. Everywhere bright lights cheered 'Happy New Year' and 'God Bless the King'. The Ganesh statue on one side of the square was wreathed in swirls of incense and buried under mounds of jasmine, tuber roses, and marigolds left by Thais hopeful for a prosperous new year.

Fueled by two parts excitement and one part beer, we laughed and mugged for one another's cameras in anticipation of the big event. 2007 is coming to a pretty spectacular close. We are in short sleeves and sandals waiting to ring in the new year half a world away (and twelve-fifteen hours ahead) of everyone we know, yet we are still surrounded by friends and laughter. The Central Square celebration has been advertised as "Hands Together 2008" in the hopes that everyone will join hands at midnight in a gesture of peace and goodwill. So hand-to-hand we count down the last few minutes of a most eventful year. 10, 9, 8, 7, 6...

Day 191 - Cooking and shopping

Strangely, some of the things I have missed most on this trip are the ordinary, day-to-day activities like grocery shopping, cooking, and going to the laundromat. Today I did two out of three. I got permission from Auntie T to use her kitchen, and Cz's mom took me to the market. I spent the bulk of the morning happily puttering around mixing marinades and figuring out how to reproduce the fried eggplant from yesterday's food stall. It turns out to be surprisingly simple.

Ingredients:

Chinese Eggplant
Eggs (enough to coat the eggplant)
Flour (enough to dredge the eggplant)
Oil
Salt to taste

Grill or broil the eggplant whole, stem and all, until the skin is slightly charred and the flesh is tender but not mushy.

Set aside to cool

Lightly beat the eggs in a bowl

Mix a nice amount of salt with the flour in a wide, shallow dish. A pie plate or casserole dish would work well

Peel the eggplant - the skin should pull off easily with your fingers. Leave the stems on.

Flatten the eggplant. I used the side of a wide knife.

Dip in Egg

Dredge both sides in flour

Fry in very hot oil until brown and crispy. It is essential that the oil be quite hot (nearly smoking) as otherwise the eggplants will absorb it an become greasy. They don't need to cook very long - the eggplants are already done, the frying is just to put a nice crust on them.

The weird, red lumps just down from the watermelon are meatloaf. I put some sausages in them for flavour. Turns out the sausages were mostly food colouring, resulting in decidedly lurid meatloaf. Didn't seem to slow anyone down in eating it though. The whitish lumps are fish marinated in a ginger/garlic/soy sauce mixture, then baked. It's really simple, and works with any flavourful fish (ie. bluefish, salmon, mackerel).

After lunch, I blogged for a while, then it was off to the shopping center to get Christmas presents for everybody, and to pick up Cz's barong and glasses. Remember how Cz claims to hate shopping? This trip to the shopping centers - totally his idea. First stop, the barong tailors, where the barong fit perfectly and looked very nice. Next stop, the chaos of last-minute Christmas shoppers to buy 24 picture frames at the discount mall near the barong tailor. Stop 3, the more posh mall to collect Cz's glasses and to develop pictures to go in said frames. Everyone on our list, naughty or nice, is getting a picture of us and a picture of somewhere we've been. If you read this blog before you get yours, just act surprised when you unwrap it.

While waiting for the pictures to print, we had halo-halo...again. The stuff is seriously addictive. Well, Auntie R had halo-halo. The rest of us had variations on the theme of bubble tea.

Home again, we set to work labeling, framing, and wrapping gifts. Auntie R was a big help, and we were done by 11. After we finished wrapping, we went downstairs for a midnight snack, and found Auntie T still awake. The business is so crazy before Christmas that she has no time for a break during the day, and is busy until late at night. She was still up when we went to bed at midnight, and planned to be awake at 4:00 for tomorrow's Misa de Gallo. I don't know how she manages to stay awake, let alone function and stay cheerful.

Several of the family own their own businesses, and all of them work incredibly hard. It is interesting to see how owning a business makes what would be a a 40 hour a week job at someone else's workplace into a 24 hour occupation. It is a little like freelancing I suppose, in that we are consumed at all hours by what we do, but at least we have the freedom to choose our jobs, or say, to leave the country for eight months.

Day 110 - Cooking With Lolita

I heard through the backpacker grapevine that it was possible to take a one-day cooking course and learn how to do the basics of most Indian dishes. The course took place in the private home of Lolita, a plump, charming Indian lady. It was loads of fun, but rather than try to give a blow-by-blow account, here is something of far more worth. A recipe!

Bhaigan Bharta

Small-Medium Eggplant
6-ish cloves garlic, slivered
2-ish cloves, minced
Small Chunk Ginger, peeled and slivered
1 Medium tomato
Small Onion, chopped
Olive Oil
Lemon
Salt
Pepper

Stab the eggplant all over with a big knife
Stuff the slits with the garlic and ginger
Coat the eggplant with oil (vegetable or olive)
Roast the eggplant and the tomato whole over a hot grill, open flame, or broiler until the skin is charred and the flesh is very tender
Pick off the charred skin from the tomato and eggplant
Mash together with the onion, minced garlic, salt and pepper
Add a drizzle of mustard or olive oil and a nice squeeze of fresh lemon juice


Cz did not feel the lure of cooking class, and instead opted to spend the day in Haridwar with the British and American Haridwar is one of the holiest sites on the Ganges (After Varanassi) He snapped this picture at one of the Ghats (a public bathing area) by the river. People come from all over India to wash themselves (and sometimes their cows) at this sacred site.

Day 82 - Unlisted Holiday

Last night we debated wheter or not to go to bed at all. Reason: Today we had to be up at three in order catch the shuttle to airport for our 7:45 flight to Vienna. We have learned to pack our water filters where they are accessible. Apparently they look like very suspicious large batteries in the x-ray machine. Thank goodness we kept the all instructions and original pamphlets with them, as even visual inspection by the officials and our explanations are often not enough. At nearly every security checkpoint they are taken out and examined, and the accompanying papers read from cover to cover.

All went smoothly until we were on the plane. Whereupon we sat in the plane, at the gate for almost 45 minutes. Then we rolled a little way onto the tarmac. And waited some more. A kid a few rows up from us cried so hysterically that he made himself vomit. This was not an auspicious beginning. It was urgent that we arrive in Vienna on time because the Indian Embassy only take visa applications from 9:30-11:30 AM. We were scheduled to arrive there at 8:55. Allowing an hour for customs and travel from the airport, we had planned to be at the emabassy by 9:55.

At 8:45 I looked at my watch and told Cz that if we left this instant we might still have a chance. Five minutes later we were airborne. The flight was uneventful, and we arrived in Vienna at 9:55. There was a man checking passports as we deplaned. Anyone with a red passport (Turkish) had it opened and checked. We ony had to flash our blue passport to be waved through to the terminal. Unfair I know, but under the circumstances I was grateful. We breezed through the real passport control desks and customs without a hitch. At the terminal entrance, someone was handing out city maps. There were huge, well-marked signs for the express train to the city center. We ran to the train, hopped on, and found the address of the Indian Embassy. We were there with 15 minutes to spare!

It was CLOSED.

For a holiday. For a holiday that the man I had asked on the phone if it would be open didn't know about. We made it with much rushing and with time to spare and it was closed. After the requisite snarling, we headed off to find our hostel.

After a little searching, which happened to take us past St Stephens Dom, we found our way home. It was a very cute place in a converted apartment, convienient to everything. We spent the rest of the afternoon catching up on the blog, contacting friends around the city, and mailing a gift and postcards back to the states. By the time that ws finished, we stopped at the grocery and picked up some groceries.

Little did we know the kitchen only had a microwave. We persevered, and managed to produce a perfectly repectable dinner of pasta and salad. Just in case you were wondering. Here is how to cook spagetti in a microwave.

With the Microwave on high
1. Bring the desired amount of water to a boil.
2. Add the pasta
3. Cook. It will take a total of about 15 minutes after you add the pasta. Stir every 5 minutes or so for even cooking and to prevent baking your pasta to the sides of said bowl.
4. Drain. Add sauce as desired.

We are masters of improvisation here. Tomorrow we have another go at the embassy. Wish us luck!

Day 41 - 31.7 Kilometres

Molinaseca to Villafranca Del Bierzo

I am running on gauze and willpower. The blisters refuse to die. However, I am now confident, after having lanced, threaded, and been seriously tempted to break out the syringes and inject my blisters with iodine, that I could, in a pinch, give either of us stitches. Not that I hope it will happen, but if we do gash ourselves badly enough to need to be sewn back together again, I could totally do it.

The road itself is very pretty, mostly on gravel track and country roads through rolling farmland. This part of Spain is known for its produce, especially fruit and wine grapes. The air is heady with the scent of fruit, and at at least one fuente, there were trays of huge, sweet figs left out for the pilgrims.

The vinyards roll right up to the edge of the path, and much to Cz´s chagrin, I began collecting large, tender grapeleaves, with the intent of stuffing them for dinner. As we walked, the smell of herbs mixed in with the smell of fruit, and by the end of the day, by following my nose, I had pockets full of grape leaves, rosemary, fennel, and thyme.

Villafranca gets its name because it is one of (many) old French outposts in Spain. In honour of this fact, I decided to cook up a fancy-schmancy meal. Of course, featuring road herbs and grape leaves. (recipe to follow at the bottom of the post) I have become quite the scavenger on this trip!

The Irish Boys got a late start, and rolled into town at around 5, just as we were heading out to the grocery. Still in the mood for a big cookfest, we offered to prepare dinner for them. Really, I had ulterior motives, as one of them makes the most amazing pasta sauce with lentils, and I knew that if I cooked for them tonight, it would up my chances of lentil pasta in the next village. That and we like their company...

Because it is one of the last towns before heading back into the big mountains, Villafranca has the Gate of Forgiveness. Built in the Middle Ages for pilgrims to weak to continue on to Santiago, The Gate of Forgiveness pardons the sins of anyone who passes through it. But, blisters notwithstanding, we are young and tough, and tomorrow will head up, up into the hills.

Stuffed Grape Leaves a la Camino

Ingredients
Grape leaves
White Beans from a can
Onion
Herbs (rosemary, thyme, fennel, garlic, parsley)
Salt
Pepper
Olive oil

Steam grape leaves until tender (you can do this while the other stuff cooks)
set aside

Sautee the onions and garlic in olive oil
Mash in the beans and herbs except the parsley
Add salt and pepper to taste
Remove from heat and add chopped parsley to taste

Brush a little olive oil in the middle of a grape leaf
Add a dollop of bean mush
Put a tiny well in the bean mush and add a tiny bit of olive oil and more chopped parsley
Fold the grape leaf around it like a tortilla

Eat alone of floating in a bowl of gazpacho

Day 40 - 26.5 Kilometres

Rabanal to Molinaseca

Today started very well with a climb up one of the prettiest mountains we have crossed so far. It was a cloudy dawn, and the sunrise was bouncing a strange mauve light across the clouds and faces of the surrounding hills. The hills near us were thick with purple flowers - heather, wild iris, foxglove, and a low-growing one that looked like lavender cotton candy - and dun grasses, all set agains black cedars, made darker by the wetness in the air.

At the top of the mountain was the Iron Cross. It is a very small cross on a very tall pole stuck in a pile of rock at the summit. Tradition dictates that pilgrims leave a rock from some where else (either home or found on the Camino) or that they leave a personal item. The base of the cross is a totem to all the pilgrims who have passed through before us. There were love notes, photos of children, candles, charms, pictures of saints, pieces of clothing, cigarettes - you name it, it was probably at the Iron Cross.

One of theings I love best about Spain is its people. As we walked through one sleepy village we noticed a huge cherry tree loaded with fruit. Near the tree was a fence with several plastic bags wrapped around one of the posts. As the cherries were very high up, a few brave souls climbed the tree, while I swatted at the branches (not the ones they were on) with Cz´s walking stick. It was like a giant cherry piñata.

Then, around the corner, appears an old man walking on two canes. He starts talking to us very fast in Spanish, and we have no idea what he is trying to tell us, and fear we might be in trouble. (The group were Cz and me, a German, a Brazilian, and the Irish Boys - not one Spanish speaker in the lot!) Eventually we figure out that he is cheering us on, calling out "More, More. Fill your bags. Take them all!" He then passes us his cane to us to send up to the Brazilian and German girl in the tree so they can hook branches closer and swat more fruit down to the Irish and Americans. All told we came away with 1-3 kilo of cherries each.

We spend the rest of the day plotting our cherry fest.

We have cherry mashed potatoes, red wine cherry compote, and fresh cherries with yoghurt.

Only time for one recipe.

Cherry Compote with red wine. I don´t actually know what a compote is, but I imagine it goes something like this...

ingredients
Lots of pitted sweet cherries
red wine
sugar
flour or tapioca or cornstarch (the directions are for flour)

directions
Put the cherries in a pot big enough to hold them with room to stir
Add wine so in comes half as high in the pot as the cherries (ie half pot cherries = quarter pot wine)
Add sugar to taste (these cherries were very sweet so we only added a few tablespoons)
Heat over medium until boiling gently
Sift in about a quarter cup of flour, stirring constantly
Cook until thickened, stirring occasionally

Serve with tasty things.

We made trifle with cookies, yoghurt, fresh cherries and the compote.
I imagine you could do a cherry sundae, cherry short cake, or cherries with rice pudding or...the variations are endless.