Thai Street Food

I remember the very first time I got a taste of Thai food; my instant reaction, “holy #@$! that’s HOT!!” It’s a lot to take on when you are seven years old but as you mature so does your palette, and what was once your idea of a fireball is now a complex symphony of flavors! Don’t get me wrong, not all Thai food is hot, in fact only certain dishes traditionally are, but there is just something about awakening those endorphins and letting loose on a level 5 Panang curry.
Sadly so far in my travels I have not made it across the Pacific Ocean to Thailand, though it is on my agenda. I joke most of the time, saying the only thing stopping me is the fear of being impaled to death by a falling durian, but really the only thing holding me back is time. One beautiful thing I love about going around the States is that you can find little sub cultures for just about anyone… except the Inuits, I just can’t find any Inuits. Thai neighborhoods exist in Houston and I frequent them often, especially to the Asian markets to get the real deal food. Yeah you can go find a Thai place in any suburban shopping center that will be “okay” but if you want to enjoy the food as well as the experience, you have to go to the source. I know when I’m in the right place when I am one of maybe 10 white people in the entire megaplex.

I like to focus in this blog about how street food can bring so much joy to someone and help eaters understand the culture by submersing themselves into the experience. Sit down restaurants are my passion and I by no mean will ever stop working in professional kitchens but there is something to being on the move, interacting with people and creating memories. This industry is intangible and what better way to take something home from it than a truly remarkable experience! Whether it stopping for a drink made out of Chrysanthemum or choosing between which fantastic looking Satay you are going to be feasting on like a Thai corndog, you are taking those new things and creating a memory. In a Thai street market, you can find 28, yes that’s right, 28 different kinds of bananas! If I weren’t afraid of a Potassium overdose I would try them all in one sitting!


Even past the simple dishes, these Thai markets offer Pad Thai (stir fried egg noodles with eggs, fish sauce, and tamarind plus whatever protein you care) and Hoi Tod (Fried Mussels with sprouts) in a flash right before your eyes. The masterful cook balancing a two pronged approach toward making the Pad Thai, one hand with a label the other a spatula, whizzing across the cast iron kettle top making the food “exist”. 50 seconds and you are in heaven! And the Hoi Tod, oh the Hoi Tod! Mussels dredged in garlic, spring onion, tapioca flour and parsley quick fried like the Pad Thai on a kettle top, hands never stopping the constant tossing of the mussels unless to add more oil or the sprouts. The crisp, flavorful morsels of mollusks cannot be beaten by anything in a restaurant!


My personal favorite Thai street food has to be the curry. Simple and easy, powerful and majestic, it can be taken on the go or enjoyed sat on a bench while people watching. It is now decided that the red Thai curry is going to be my next adventure on my path to street food enlightenment! Continue to follow me on Twitter @ChefGrantKeaton and on Facebook, and stay tuned for more blogs. Until then readers, FOLLOW THE FLAVOR!