During a recent trip to Banyan Tree Bintan, Chef Porntip Eumanan from Banyan Tree Bangkok was around to give a cooking class (400K IDR, S$38), which included lunch. It means that you eat what you cook.

Chef Porntip Eumanan showing her Thai Beef Salad

But don’t worry, Chef Porntip was around to taste the food so your food won’t taste bad. In fact, it is the best green curry I have had in my life, not because I cooked it. LOL.

The secret ingredient is really the crispy fish bits–like grains of sand–added to the green curry. It gives that umami crunchiness. But I couldn’t find the crispy bits in the ingredient list that Chef Porntip gave. I guess she wants to keep it a secret. (If you know what this magic ingredient is, please leave a comment.)

Another reason why the food is so delicious is because you get to adjust it to your taste. Don’t like parsley? Don’t add it. Like more mint? Add more.

On the difficulty level of the class: it’s super simple. If you have never cooked before in your life, you can still do it.

The hardest things about cooking is the preparation and the washing up. Since this was settled for us, it was a breeze.

Much of the hands-on parts involved merely mixing ingredients or watching the pot boil. But it has turned out to be a very fun and memorable experience.

My friend said, “The cooking class has given me much confidence that I can cook well in the future.”

I rolled my eyes. “It’s just mixing and boiling! You’re just a gloried stirrer; and they have machines for that now. Chef Porntip already did all the portioning and tasting for us to make sure it tastes good.”

That said, the hardest thing for these recipes is getting access to the ingredients.

NUE YANG NAM TOK (THAI BEEF SALAD RECIPE) 

Ingredients (serves 1-2)

Beef tenderloin (150g)
Sweet basil (10g)
Mint leaves (10g)
Spring onion (10g)
Parsley larb (5g)
Parsley (10g)
Shallot (10g)
Roasted rice powder (1 tsp)
Chilli powder (5g)
Lime juice (30ml)
White cabbage (20g)
Small cucumber (shredded)

Ingredients for Thai Beef Salad

Method

Chef Porntip grilling beef

1. Grill beef to your preferred doneness. Medium-rare is best if your beef is of a good quality.

Chef Porntip grilled the beef. All we did was toss in the salad ingredients.

2. Mix all ingredients together. Done!

GAENG KIEW WAN GAI (THAI GREEN CURRY CHICKEN RECIPE) 

Ingredients (serves 1-2)

Thai green eggplant (about 3-4 pieces)
Pea eggplant (1/8 cup)
Chicken breast (180g)
Vegetable oil (1 tsp)
Coconut milk (250g)
Chicken stock (1/2 cup)
Kaffir leaves
Red chilli (10g)
Kaffir lime zest
Palm sugar (1 tbsp)
Sweet basil (1/2 cup)
Sugar (2 tsp)
Fish sauce (3 to 6 tbsp, taste as you cook)
Green curry paste (1/2 cup)
Salt and pepper to taste

Ingredients (clockwise): kaffir (for zest), chilli and kaffir leaves for garnish; Thai eggplant; palm sugar; sugar; vegetable oil; fish sauce; pea eggplant; green curry paste

Method 

1. Heat vegetable oil in a pot over medium heat. Add curry paste and keep stirring until you smell an aroma. Then add kaffir leaves. Cook for another minute.

2. Add coconut milk, chicken stock, sugar, palm sugar, and fish sauce. Bring to boil.

3. Upon boiling, add eggplant, chicken, kaffir lime leaves, chilli. Cook for about 4 minutes on high to medium-high heat. Then add basil leaves, reserving some for garnish. Cook until chicken is cooked and eggplant is not hard.

You may be interested in…
–Recipe: Fuss-Free Tandoori Masala Chicken So Good You Can Sell at Restaurants
–Recipe: Black Pepper Tofu Adapted From Yotam Ottolenghi
–Recipe: Buttermilk Fried Chicken Recipe Adapted From 3 Michelin-Starred Chef Thomas Keller
–Recipe: The Gordon Ramsay’s Chicken Fricassee

Written by Dr. A. Nathanael Ho.