A popular tourist activity in Chiang Mai is taking a Thai cooking school. There are many cooking schools in Chiang Mai,in all different sizes and shapes. And for the love of food and cooking, we signed up for a cooking class with Siam Rice Thai Cookery School. I did not really spend so much time deciding on a cooking school, I figured I am sure any of them is a better Thai cook than myself,but I did want a smaller class. Siam Rice has great reviews on Trip Adviser, and the small group size and detailed information on the website are very appealing to me. So, when I e-mailed Nan, the owner and cook, and she replied very nicely, I figured, this is it.
As a part of most cooking classes in Chiang Mai, an introduction to Thai cooking ingredients in the market is included. And Siam Rice cooking school is no exception. We were taken to the Ton Payom Market in the morning, and got to touch, smell and taste various ingredients that go into Thai dishes. I was intrigued by the different kinds of basil in the market;sweet,holy and lemon. The Thai ginger, Galanga,is used in many Thai dishes, from curry pastes to soups, it is larger and lighter in color than regular ginger.And of course the fragnant kaffir lime and its leaves are always great additions. Lemon grass,garlic and turmeric roots are other ingredients that are used in various Thai dishes. It was very interesting to get to tour the market with a native, and see the raw ingredients of dishes we enjoyed eating.
Here are some photos of the market:
Demonstrating Ginger
Turmeric Root
Veggies at the market
Jelly Mushroom
Fried Fish
Pork Skins
Sausage
Dried Fruits
Nuts and Crackers
Brooms
Next, I will write about the delicious dishes we got to learn how to cook.
Comments (10)
Great post! I love visiting markets. Had no idea that tumeric came from a root. Looking forward to your cooking class post. I'm growing Thai Basil in my garden this year and it's getting pretty bushy; I need to figure out some uses for it!
Posted by Annie | June 11, 2009 7:09 AM
Posted on June 11, 2009 07:09
Beautiful pictures, and interesting posts. Thanks Candi!
Posted by Kendall | June 11, 2009 9:26 AM
Posted on June 11, 2009 09:26
I enjoyed the market tour, Candi. I loved the selection of dried fruits. Looking forward to your cooking lesson.
Posted by sheri | June 11, 2009 8:50 PM
Posted on June 11, 2009 20:50
Nice pictures of the market, Candi. It's the first time ever that I see turmeric root.
I'm intrigued by the colorful display of dried fruits. Do you remember what types of fruits were in the bags?
Posted by María I. | June 11, 2009 10:07 PM
Posted on June 11, 2009 22:07
Annie,
I was surprised to see that turmeric came in a root too.
I will try to look at my recipe book and forward some of the recipes using Thai basil to you.
Kendall, thanks for stopping by. Glad you enjoyed it.
Sheri,
The dried fruit selection is so colorful and big,which is not surprising considering the variety of fruits available in Thailand.
Maria,
All the dried fruits had Thai writing on them, so no luck for me to know exactly what everything is. However, Bill did buy few bags,since we can bring fresh fruits back to Hawaii we figured dried fruits will do, and they are delicious.
The three bags of green in the lower right hand corner of the photos are kiwi. I am not sure if next are the oranges or mango. There are also grapes, strawberries, apricots, and litchis.
I am afraid that is all I can remember.
Posted by candi | June 11, 2009 10:23 PM
Posted on June 11, 2009 22:23
Great photos! Looks like you had a fun time. How lucky to be able to go with a guide. This is the first time I have seen a tumeric root also. Some of the dried fruits remind me of what you can find here in a crack seed store.
Posted by girasoli | June 12, 2009 4:28 AM
Posted on June 12, 2009 04:28
Candi, thank you, that would be awesome. I need to take a photo of my Thai basil plant; it's a beautiful plant!
Posted by Annie | June 12, 2009 6:37 AM
Posted on June 12, 2009 06:37
How interesting! I would sign up for this course too if I go to Chiangmai.
Posted by eastcoastlife | June 12, 2009 9:58 PM
Posted on June 12, 2009 21:58
Beautiful market photos! I love markets myself and it must have been awesome to be in one with so many interesting things.
Posted by Chiocciola | June 13, 2009 8:54 AM
Posted on June 13, 2009 08:54
Hi Candi
Turmeric Root photo it's Thai ginsengs กระชาย
A type of ginger it is always added to fish curries and used it a lot in fish dishes and sometimes used as a raw vegetable after peeling.
That we used for make curry paste.
Posted by POT | July 11, 2010 11:30 AM
Posted on July 11, 2010 11:30