Thai Chilli Rice with Vietnamese Basil

Thai Chilli Rice with Vietnamese Basil

Thai Chilli Rice with Vietnamese Basil

Basil is a wonderfully fragrant herb which comes in many varieties. Thai basil is a favourite of mine since it is so full of flavour and lifts many a dish. I came across some Vietnamese basil and decided to make use of it in a Thai recipe for chilli rice. This is a quick recipe which makes use of cold rice that you might have left over. 

Vietnamese Basil

Ingredients:

2 tbsp olive oil

1 onion

2 tbsp red thai paste

1 tbsp tamari soy sauce

1 tbsp fish sauce

5 tbsp water

450g cold rice

Vietnamese basil

2 eggs

Thai Red Curry Paste

Heat the oil in a pan. Add some chopped onions and fry over a medium heat for a few minutes. Add the paste and cook for 1 minutes. Add the sauces and water, mixing and cook for a couple of minutes. 

Too steamy!

Add the rice and mix together with the paste for a couple of minutes until the rice is hot. Wash and coarsely cut the basil. Mix in with the rice.

Essential Basil

Push the rice to one side of the pan and add the 2 eggs. Quickly stir the eggs and allow to cook. When the eggs are almost cooked, mix in with the rice. 

Eggs

Enjoy the rice hot or if having later, try to warm it first. 

Quick Rice

So, do you enjoy basil?

101 Thai Kitchen, Hammersmith, London

101 Thai Kitchen

101 Thai Kitchen, Hammersmith, London

101 Thai Kitchen has long established a large following amongst the Thai community and beyond in London and deservedly so. It is not just the consistently good authentic Thai food, but also the good friendly service at good prices. Despite Mrs MNFS’s claim that it was the pink decor which attracted me to the restaurant, but the pleasant encounter we had at a Buddhist festival where the restaurant had a stall serving up some 600 som tums over the weekend! Their enthusiasm and friendliness made it clear that they had an interest for their food.

Pink Galore!

The restaurant is easy to spot on King Street in Hammersmith, being the building resplendent in pink. Not a garish pink, but shades of pink that are not hard on the eye.

Food on the walls!

The decor is welcoming with nice photos of the food on offer displayed on canvas. Not the usual bad photos of unappealing looking plates of food, but vibrant well-taken photos of great looking food that makes you want to try it.

The menu is extensive but is loyal to authentic Thai cuisine and is a real treat for those wanting to experience Thai food. Its authenticity is reflected in the fact that the Thai name is written first (I assume this is the case since my knowledge of Thai cannot even be written on a grain of rice!).

All about 101

The menu reveals the homely feel of the restaurant in the explanation of its philosophy and it is clear that its specialty is the som tum due to the region of Thailand that the people behind 101 Thai Kitchen originate from.

Your choice?

The outbreak of summer that we have enjoyed recently made the smoothies on offer appealing with a range of exotic fruits such as dragon fruit and rambutan. Feeling adventurous and exotic we went for the dragon fruit and rambutan, having never tried these as smoothies before.

Rambutan and Dragon Fruit Smoothies (£2.25)

The Dragon Fruit Smoothie was not too sweet and whilst being an acquired taste, it was pleasant. The Rambutan Smoothie was sweet and naturally very similar to lychee.

So Many Som Tums

We wanted to try the som tum which takes pride of place on the menu with 11 different variations. Being som tum purists we opted for the Som Tum Thai.

Spicy heaven in a bowl

The som tum came with a reassuringly dark and rich sauce and a more than ample amount. This was very good som tum. In a nice traditional touch, it is served with a side plate of fresh vegetables and herbs.

Refreshing mint

The som tum was not as sweet as the one served up at Thai Garden Cafe but it was very yummy, with a nice heat. It was not as nutty but was packed with more papaya. It must be a regional preference but the som tum lacked the carrot found in the Thai Garden Cafe offering.

Thai Som Tum (£6.25)

Illustrating how even the basics can differ from restaurant to restaurant, the sticky rice was somewhat softer than the Thai Garden Cafe’s rice, which improved the dining experience as it was easier to enjoy the som tum.

Sticky rice (£2.50)

We were not too sure what to choose from the seafood selection and sought the advice of the waitresses. Special mention should be made of their level of service. Despite the place being busy to the extent that people were turned away, they were still happy to offer their advice based on what our preferences were. We went with the recommendation of the Fish Salad.

Seafood choices

This was the first time that we had tried this dish and it was a fantastic recommendation. It is unlikely to be a dish that will attract many neutrals, being on paper a cold salad, but this is a wonderful dish packed with flavour. Crispy fried fish mixed with lovely amounts of mint, coriander and chili with a subtle undertone of lemongrass. The dressing is to die for being related to the som tum dressing in many ways. You really do not notice too much that it is a cold salad as it is a warming dish. With the amount of herbs it also has the feel of a mojito, with one getting the sensation of a mouthful of herbs!

Fish Salad (£7.25)

The dessert menu is refreshingly different with Thai desserts not offered by many other places. This is a real bonus for me as it expands knowledge of a cuisine which offers so much simplicity with flavour. Feeling like something warm, we opted for the Baked Taro Custard.

Desserts!

The custard came beautifully presented since it could quite easily look unappealing. The custard was sweet with the contrast provided by the fried shallots which had a mildly sweet onion taste. Many Thai desserts offer this sweet and savoury combination which is not to everyone’s liking but certainly challenges the palate as far as desserts are concerned. I enjoyed it but will hope to try the other desserts soon.

Baked Taro Custard (4.00)

As befitting a family run restaurant, 101 Thai Kitchen has a very nice and friendly atmosphere and service to match.  I would recommend it highly and can see why it is immensely popular amongst Thai people and locals alike. Judging by the queues, I would also suggest booking in advance to avoid disappointment if you want great tasting Thai food.

Service with a smile!

So, would you choose pink to decorate your restaurant?

Busaba Eathai, Shoreditch, London

Busaba Eathai, Shoreditch, London

Busaba Eathai is a very successful chain of trendy Thai restaurants, located around central London with usually queues of people wanting to get in. They recently opened up a new restaurant in the trendy part of Shoreditch on Old Street. They have excited their customers with their modern and interesting approach to Thai food and just about keep their customers engaged with happy service and modern food. Like any successful chain though they do have problems maintaining their quality with some items on their menu but have some standout items such as the pad thai that ensure Mrs NMFS and I will come back.

Stylish

The decor is in keeping with the trendy location in Hoxton, with lighting and clean lines adding to the trendy ambience. We had to queue up for a while in a long line carefully marshalled by a friendly ‘bouncer’. He admired our patience though in also wanting to wait for a booth seat to become available. Much as I recognise the popularity of communal eating arrangements, the large tables with bench seating at Busaba Eathai can be a bit cramped and feel claustrophobic so we generally ask for seating by the window, which offers generally more space and comfort. Londoners can also be a bit too reserved for communal eating to work.

Romantic window seats

Once we finally got the window seats that we wanted, we were happy to be able to sit down and browse through the menu which is full of interesting combinations. The lighting is very good with nice lanterns adding a romantic feel to the place.

Busaba explanation

It was nice to see that the menu explains the philosophy behind the restaurant and this is seen in the quick service and choice of ingredients.

Tea better than the juice

We were intrigued by the juices, wondering whether the combinations would work so I decided to try the jasmine smoothie with passion fruit, banana, orange and yoghurt.

Too many bananas!

I had high expectations with the hope of trying subtle jasmine tones, but unfortunately this drink seriously disappointed since the banana was too overpowering and proved to be the dominating flavour. I could not really taste the jasmine, which for a jasmine smoothie is quite disappointing. Either the recipe is a bad one or someone did not taste it before sending it out

Great ginger tea

Mrs NMFS went for her favourite, ginger and honey tea served with cashew and coconut cookie. This drink is a success and reasonably priced. The cookie, unfortunately we cannot have due to the gluten, but we usually keep it to give to someone else. We get good reports on these cookies though as being light and tasty. Back to the tea, the reason why it works so well is due to its simplicity. It simply comprises of fresh shredded ginger with honey. Where the jasmine smoothie fails, the tea succeeds in relying on the ingredients to offer great flavours. The tea is also less sweet than traditional ginger tea.

Curry galore

For some reason we rarely go for the green or red Thai curries as often they disappoint and fail to deliver the sweet and sour flavours that we associate with Thai food following our love of som tum. Today I decided to go for the stargazer monkfish green curry with pea aubergine and corn as I fancied something hot.

Soup or curry?

The curry came in a large bowl with the fish swimming in the sauce. Some may not appreciate so much sauce and if you were to have it on your own with one serving of rice, it would just not be enough rice. In the end it was bit like a soup but a pleasant one. The curry packed a good amount of heat and whilst the fish could have been given more generously, it was a pleasant curry with the good addition of the pea aubergine and corn elevating the dish above merely a green curry. It is a dish that I would enjoy again.

Star of the show

Great pad thai!

The star of the show is the pad thai and this is what brings us back to Busaba Eathai.

The pad thai is done very well here and we usually go for the sen chan with the added crabmeat and green mango adding more flavour. It is disappointing to see pad thai done badly with sloppy, oily blobs of noodles offered as poor excuses for pad thai. Here you get it as it should be, tasty rice noodles mixed in a nice fresh dressing of soy, lime and fish sauce. The green mango and crabmeat are a combination which works very well. The dish is well presented and reasonably priced in relative terms.

Unmitigated disaster...

Mrs NMFS also wanted something spicy so she also ordered the tom yam talay. It was a big disappointment. The flavour of the pad thai before this was totally lacking. I could only muster two spoonfuls. The spicy sour soup was very bland with a hint of bad taste in the background. This dish did not have any redeeming features to mention.

Buzzing atmosphere

Busaba Eathai offers a good atmosphere with quick and friendly service with some good dishes but also some poor ones. If you want good pad thai with a nice ginger tea I would recommend it but be wary of some of the other items on the menu.

So, do you enjoy communal eating?

Thai Spicy Fish Burger

Fried fish with spicy herbs

Thai Spicy Fish Burger

The great summery weather that we are enjoying in London at the moment calls for strong flavours and quick and easy recipes. One of the hardest things about a free from diet is having to do without favourites. This recipe is a quick gluten free alternative to battered fish which many people enjoy at lunchtime with chips. This is a healthier version packed with flavour as it comes with a Thai inspired spicy herb dressing.

Ingredients:

1 coley fish filet (about 400g)

10g cornflour

40g gluten-free plain flour

Spicy herb dressing:

1 green chilli

1/2 handful basil leaves

1 handful coriander leaves

3 cloves garlic

2 tbsp palm sugar

3 tbsp fish sauce

4.5 tbsp lime juice

Grated lime peel

6 cherry tomatoes

De-skin the filet. Rub with salt and wash thoroughly. Dry the filet and cut into large bite-sized pieces.

Coley

Mix the flours together and season with pepper. Toss the fish pieces into the flour mix to coat. Deep fry for a couple of minutes and leave to cool down on some kitchen paper. 

Fried fish!

Wash the herbs and chilli. Finely chop the chilli and coarsely chop the herbs.

Coriander and Basil

Green chilli

Peel and slice the garlic.

Garlic

Wash the tomatoes, cut in half and add to the herb salad. Combine all the dressing ingredients together in a bowl and leave to stand for 30 minutes.

Spicy herb dressing

Place the fried fish in the gluten free rolls that have been warmed in the oven and pour over some of the dressing. You will have some dressing left over which can be kept and enjoyed later.

The burger

So, what other favourites do you miss?

Rabieng Thai restaurant, Islington, London

Rabieng Thai restaurant, Islington, London

What a surprise to come across the ‘mother’ of our favourite Thai restaurant, the Thai Garden Cafe, right under our noses in Islington. We wanted to have some som tum but was having one of those days where we wanted to go somewhere nearby. Hence we decided to give the Thai place that we had walked past a few times a go, unaware of its connection to our som tum heaven.

Our suspicions were raised when we noticed that the decor and menu were very similar to Thai Garden Cafe.

Our suspicions were confirmed by the very friendly waitresses who informed us that Rabieng was run by the mother of the Thai Garden Cafe’s owner. We were delighted at the prospect of being able to enjoy a similar menu and perhaps another source of great som tum. Surprises are always welcome especially when it comes to food.

The common link with the Thai Garden Cafe is seen in the window display at the front with cute traditional Thai toys.

 

The dining area is nicely arranged with wood flooring and traditional furniture giving a formal yet comfortable feel. The only downside was that it smelt a little bit stuffy and our table was a bit dusty.

We ordered the som tum goong sod (£8.50) and kao neaw (£3.00) with glee and in a break from tradition the pad kee mau with prawns (£7.50) instead of our usual pla salmon ma kham.

The pad kee mau was warming although a little bit oily and lacked a little seasoning. It was spicy which some might not like but we both enjoyed this dish.

The star of the show was the som tum which came in an attractive bowl piled high. Our first taste was perplexing but after we mixed it with the sticky rice, although it was lacking heat, the sauce was very good. By the end we were licking the bowl clean although Mrs NMFS was having to position herself strategically in front of me so that the other diners could not see her enjoying it so much!

On this occasion though, I have to say that mother does not do it better since the food served up at Thai Garden Cafe is better. Rabieng is close though and certainly amongst the best that we have been to in London. The staff have to get a special mention also for being so very friendly.

Rabieng is a good option for those visiting Angel as it offers up good food at reasonable prices. It is located across the road from Ottalenghi but has the advantage of offering hot food! A bit bitchy I know but when you pay so much and queue up for so long the least the food could be is warm (especially given the cold climate here)!

So, have you unexpectedly found a restaurant related to one of your favourites before?