food

Heritage at Pattaya Floating Market (2)

October 22, 2012RongHua ChingLife, Travelattraction, cultural, discovering Asia, floating market, food, heritage, Pattaya, products, shows, sightseeing, tourist, traditional

The existence of floating markets in the old days throughout Thailand life was centred on the river, canals and people lived at the banks, so merchants with their products in small boats came floating to their customers. The whole idea of recreating this floating market is an initiative to bring the four areas of Thailand together, displaying their traditional culture and produce. The heritage buildings are built as a representation according to the various styles of homes in the North, East, South and West of Thailand.Entrance is free, you can just wander around the shops and eat. That is actually the best part, sampling food items without too much travelling and if that makes you tired you can take a relaxing foot- or Thai body massage or just sit at the many benches to relax.

Entrance is free, you can just wander around the shops and eat. That is actually the best part, sampling food items without too much travelling and if that makes you tired you can take a relaxing foot- or Thai body massage or just sit at the many benches to relax.

While visiting bus loads of tourists were being dropped straight from Bangkok or coming from Pattaya centre, the whole park is largely setup functioning as an escape from the congested cities. We were better off than the tourist group excursions their visit was timed, with intervals regular announcements filled the air calling the visitors to rush back into the bus for the next attraction.

We spontaneously decided to extend our visit, enjoyed a fantastic lunch and due to the rain we willingly seated ourselves in the reclining chairs for a foot-massage closing our eyes comfortably swaying slightly due to the waves of the lake and boats.

Actually, I would dare to say that it’s much more fun to visit the Floating Market at South Pattaya than the Damneun Saduak in Bangkok, which receives much criticism these days due to the dilapidated state it is in now. Which is why the tourist buses are heading this way to get a glimpse of Thailand heritage.

Click on the official Thai webpage Pattaya floating market for information. Open daily from 10 a.m. and 11 p.m.

Floating Market new attraction south of Pattay (1)

October 21, 2012RongHua ChingLife, Travelattraction, cultural, floating market, food, heritage, Pattaya, products, shows, sightseeing, tourist, traditional

Most probably you have heard of Pattaya being mentioned as a night-life City, well that was true in the past. If you are willing to pass the label there’s more to discover, in fact, there are actually sightseeing places and activities absolutely worth the visit which will capture and hold your attention. In an earlier post about Dongtan and Nongmaii Beach Pattaya, I had made reference to Pattaya’s administration working hard on a better image and it’s best to promote the City as a family destination.

One of the projects we basically have watched being built from a distance, an artificial lake just south of Pattaya on Sukhumvit Road. This has now become one of the largest attraction is known as Pattaya Floating Market. Since its opening, two years earlier we actually entered the premises for the first time bringing guests along. According to our local friends the buildings have weathered down due to monsoons, humidity and being fully operational it has acquired now an even more authentic look. As for our company as first timers, they liked the introduction very much as genuine with traditional and cultural shows, products, boats and all other shops with wares and fares on display for sale.

For a glimpse, just click on the images for a larger view and if it draws your attention to read and see more click on the link “Heritage at Pattaya Floating Market“.

: Floating Market Pattaya

Thai Noodle soup, Guay Tiew Gai

September 25, 2012RongHua ChingFood, Travelcomfort food, cuisine, favourite, food, fresh, hawker stalls, herbs, local food, noodle shops, rice-sticks, soups, Thai, thailand, thin-flat rice noodles

Welcoming friends into our home and sharing their first Thai entertaining dinner. They heard many stories about Thailand, which stirred their curiosity for exploration. Between drinks and meals, we shared a lot about Thailand`s culture, food, sights, and places. It didn’t take long for our friends to decide and book airtickets for their very first trip to southeast-Asia. Together, we travelled from the south to the north of Thailand. Sightseeing and sampling a wide range of Thai flavours and local culture.

Hawker stalls

Our friends agreed that even the best pictures, writings, or talks will never be as good as firsthand experience. Curious and excited, they have taken a leap by joining us. Off the beaten track, we enjoy strolling along hawker stalls and trying our favourite food snacks. With a ★Big Smile★: Sit with Thais, do as Thais, and eat as Thais do.

First food trail dish: a popular hawker stall selling Thai Noodle Soup, ‘Guay Tiew Gai’. A simple, soul-satisfying comfort food dish. This is a big bowl with flat-rice stick noodles in chicken broth with fragrant fresh herbs. This stall in Pattaya has all the fresh herbs and vegetables presented as a buffet on the table. Next are traditional seasoning’s of fresh chillies in vinegar, sugar, fish sauce, and dried chilli flakes. You can choose and add the accompaniments, mixing and matching them to your own liking.

Food stall dishes

Second, I just stumbled upon Mark Wiens 100 Thai Dishes to Eat in Bangkok: The Ultimate Eating Guide . Featuring beautiful food images and dish names in Thai script. With the danger of phonetic translations being incorrect, this post is a great help. Going through his list made me very happy to see listings of my favourite dishes too. Just reading brings back many fond memories of places and eateries. Vist Bangkok and do use his post as a reference. Give him a thumbs up!

The heart of all soups is the broth

Third, the heart of all soups is the broth, or stock. I often make a big pot of chicken or beef broth with the Instant Pot cooker. This broth is true golden liquid; pour it directly into glass canning pots. For canning, transfer the filled pots into a 23-quart Presto high pressure canner. After the pressure time you have your own batch of healthy broth without the need of a freezer. It is ideal and easy to pull the canned broth out of my pantry.

Tips preparing noodle soup broth

Final, tips for making your own home broth for a Thai-style version use a base for noodle soups (without salt). Add seasonings into the broth:

2 tbs soy sauce, 1tbs fish sauce and 1/2 tps sugar or to your taste.

Next, cook the rice noodles, sprout beans and shred chickenmeat. Fry garlic crispy and save the fragrant oil to pour on top as a finish. The secret to make it authentic is adding finely diced dried radish. This specific ingredient goes by many names; Mandarin Luo bo gao, Cantonese Choi poh, Hokkien Chye poh. This brings umami with a crunch, it is salty, sour with a little sweetness. For greens next to sprout beans add some stalks of chopped Morning glory (water spinach), chili, and sliced green onion.

Served at the table you always will find extra condiments container. Just as shown in the image all nicely displayed. Use more herbs like cilantro, basil and squeeze of lemon. Enjoy!