The Real Life Cooking Strategy Guide Blog: Thailand; Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Breakfast
Iced Green Tea
Khao Tom (Thai Rice Soup with Pork, Chicken, or Shrimp)
Preparation time: 15 – 45 minutes
Needs no marinating
Khao Tom is like Congee or Jook, but its boiled with broth instead of water.

Ingredients and Shopping List
3 cups of Vegetable or Chicken Broth for Microwaveable Rice
or 3 cups of Broth and 1 1/2 cups of Water for Regular Rice
1 cup of Microwaveable Rice or 1/2 cup of Regular Rice
2 tablespoons of Cooked Pork, Chicken or Shrimp
1 tablespoon of Shiitake Mushroom Tops (not the stems; Not available at Wal-mart)
1 teaspoon of Powdered or Fresh Ginger
1 teaspoon of Finely Chopped Onions
2 teaspoons of Soy Sauce, Tamari Sauce, or Fish Sauce (Nam Pla fish sauce aka Thai fish sauce, probably not at Wal-mart)
1 bag of Green Tea, caffeinated or decaffeinated

Equipment:
microwave for pre-cooked microwave rice
microwavable bowl
or sauce pan and stove top for regular dried rice
1 Coffee Cup and 1 glass for the iced tea

Instructions:
Don't completely follow instructions on the package. We are going to cook the rice with too much broth so that it is swimming in its own starchy sauce.

For microwavable rice:
microwave rice according to instructions.

Remove cooked rice from package and put into a microwavable bowl. Add broth.
Cover with paper towel or wax paper.

Microwave again for about 10 minutes, until rice is mushy and there is just a little starchy sauce covering the rice. If all the water cooks out, you cooked it for too long.

Add the rest of the ingredients

For regular rice:
Place water and rice in a two quart sauce pan.
Cook until all the liquid is down to the top of the level of the rice, and the rice is super mushy. If all the liquid is gone you cooked for too long.

Place rice and starchy sauce into a bowl
Add the rest of the ingredients.

Prepare hot tea in a coffee cup. Fill a glass with ice. Pour the tea over the ice in the glass. Add water until its filled to the top.

Eat.

Note: The brain food in this meal are shiitake mushrooms, green tea, onions, and lean meats, if they are low-fat enough.

Note: For a less traditional, but brain healthier recipe use brown rice.

Lunch
Iced Green Tea
Tom Yam (Thai Hot and Sour Soup)
Preparation Time: 10 minutes.
No marinating needed.
You can buy this soup in a can already made by a company called Thai Kitchen, if not at Wal-mart, at Amazon.com in 12 can packages.

Ingredients and Shopping List:
1/2 cup of Cooked Chicken in a can
1 can of Chicken Broth
1 raw egg
Hot Sauce or Tabasco Sauce to taste
1 teaspoon of Truvia or Stevia
1 tablespoon of Lime Juice for a lime, or from one of those little green lime-shaped bottles with yellow cap.
2 teaspoons of Soy Sauce, Tamari Sauce, or Fish Sauce (Nam Pla fish sauce aka Thai fish sauce, probably not at Wal-mart)
2 tablespoons of Shiitake Mushrooms caps only (not available at Wal-mart)
1 tablespoon of Spinach, Green peppers, or Cabbage
1 tablespoon of Garlic Powder or Fresh Garlic Cloves crushed
1 teaspoon of Powdered or Fresh Ginger or Chopped Coriander Root
1 bag of Green Tea

Equipment:
microwave
paper towel or wax paper to cover microwaving food
microwavable bowl
1 Coffee Cup and 1 glass for the iced tea

Crack raw egg, and put it in the microwavable bowl. Mix everything together. Cover with paper towel or wax paper. Microwave.

Prepare hot tea in a coffee cup. Fill a glass with ice. Pour the tea over the ice in the glass. Add water until its filled to the top.

Eat.

Note: The brain foods in this meal are shiitake mushrooms, green tea, coconut milk, garlic, spinach, and lean meats.

Note: You can use coconut milk instead of a raw egg if you like coconut milk is available at Wal-mart in a can, in the Asian food section.

Dinner
Iced Green Tea
Pad Thai (Most Exported Thai Noodle Dish)
Pineapple, Mangoes, and Papayas
Preparation Time: 20 minutes.
No marinating needed.
Pad Thai is a national dish of Thailand, and has been used during various times to revive their economy. In the 1930's and 1940's their prime minster convinced everyone to eat rice noodles and Pad Thai instead of rice, so that they could save more extra rice to sell to other countries; thereby creating jobs and reducing unemployment. Eventually, Pad Thai was also exported to create jobs and reduce unemployment.

Picture of Shrimp Pad Thai in Bangkok courtesy of Terence Ong

Ingredients and Shopping List:
1 tablespoon of canola oil or sesame oil
¼ cup of Mung Bean Sprouts
¼ cup of Shredded Cabbage
¼ of Cooked Chicken in a can
1 tablespoon of Garlic Powder or Fresh Garlic Cloves crushed
1 teaspoon of Powdered or Fresh Chopped Ginger or Chopped Coriander Root
1 cup of Rice Noodles soaked in water until soft
1 teaspoon of Peanut Butter
1 teaspoon of Ketchup
Hot Sauce or Tabasco Sauce to taste
2 teaspoons of Soy Sauce, Tamari Sauce, or Fish Sauce (Nam Pla fish sauce aka Thai fish sauce, probably not at Wal-mart)
¼ cup of pineapples
¼ cup of mangoes
¼ of papayas
1 bag of Green Tea

Equipment:
Large microwave-safe bowl
Microwave
Paper towels or wax paper for covering microwaving food
1 Coffee cup and 1 glass for the iced tea

Instructions:
Put bean sprouts and cabbage into the microwavable bowl. Pour on canola oil. Stir until oil coats sprouts and cabbage.
Cover with paper towel or wax paper.
Microwave for about 2 minutes.
Mix together peanut butter, ketchup, hot sauce or Tabasco sauce, and soy sauce (or fish sauce) until mixed well.
Add soft rice noodles into microwavable bowl.
Pour on peanut butter mixture
Cover with paper towel or wax paper.
Microwave again for about 3 minutes.
Mix fruit together.

Pull plate out of microwave. Add fruit mixture to plate.

Prepare hot tea in a coffee cup. Fill a glass with ice. Pour the tea over the ice in the glass. Add water until its filled to the top.

Eat.

Note: The brain food in this meal are green tea, garlic, and lean meat.

Note: For a brain healthier recipe; peanuts, tomato sauce, and Truvia or stevia can be used instead of peanut butter and ketchup.

Note: If you know how to boil noodles you can use the healthier Pad Thai noodles called Pasta Joy Brown Rice Pasta, Fettuccine Style, sold at Wal-mart in the pasta section.