Thai Lao Seafood Salad

The Thai Lao Seafood Salad dish is commonly known as 'Yum Talay'. When making this dish, do not overcook the seafood which will result to a chewy and rubbery texture. The best way to learn how to make the Thai Lao Seafood Salad is to watch the video at the website listed below.

Recipe for the Thai / Lao Seafood Salad:

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1 cup fresh or frozen squid or cuttlefish

Thai Lao Seafood Salad

1 cup fresh or frozen shrimp

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1 cup fresh or frozen mussels

¼ cup chopped sweet red peppers

¼ cup chopped green onions

¼ cup chopped cilantro

¼ cup chopped mint

1 chopped chili

3 tablespoons fish sauce

3 tablespoons freshly squeezed lime

If using frozen seafood, thaw them overnight in the refrigerator. Then rinse in cold water and drain several times to remove any residue. If using fresh seafood, also rinse them in cold water and drain to remove any residue. Bring water to boil in a large pot. Submerge squid or cuttlefish into the boiling water for up to one minute. Submerge shrimp for up to two minutes and mussels for up to three minutes. Drain the cooked seafood and combine them into a large mixing bowl. Allow seafood to cool to room temperature. Add the remaining ingredients into the seafood salad mixing bowl and mix thoroughly. Garnish with mint before serving.

Thai Lao Seafood Salad

Manivan Larprom, a Thai / Lao girl, teaches you how to cook Thai / Lao food with her home made videos at http://www.thai-laos-food.blogspot.com

Tiger Muay Thai Camp Review (Phuket, Thailand)

This is a review for Tiger Muay Thai & MMA in Phuket, Thailand. I turned up and originally planned and paid to stay here for 1 week... 1 week turned into 2 weeks. Then I came back for a month.

Pricing
The cost for training is about average for a Farang training in Thailand, and is as follows:

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• Half day 300B
• Full day 500B
• Week 2500B
• Month 9000B
• 3 Months 24000B

Tiger Muay Thai Camp Review (Phuket, Thailand)

A strong recommendation I will make, is that if you are coming here on a budget and/or have not done much intense training before, then only pay a week or so in advance. Time and time again people pay up for 3 months in advance, then only train a few times a week. Pay a week in advance and then see how much you think you will train before shelling out loads of cash in advance.

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Payment is accepted via cash or credit card (Visa & MasterCard).

Accommodation

Rooms vary from 2,500B (small room with fan) to 20,000B+ (room with air con and all modern facilities and a swimming pool)/month. I was paying 12,000B for a very nice double room with cable TV, Wi-Fi, hot electric shower etc. at a place just down the road called 'The Nature House'.

My advice for accommodation is to only pre pay a few days or a week to start with. As you may find something much cheaper or if you already have a cheap room you may not like it and wish to upgrade.

A good (but not exhaustive) accommodation list is available on the TMT website.

Food

Eating in the local area can be anything from 40B a meal to 350B+ depending on where and what you eat. The cheaper meals tend to be Thai food (generally consisting of rice or noodles dishes), western food is much more expensive. A restaurant called Mama's is one of the cheapest around here and has a solid reputation. They also have cheap rooms available (9,000B/month).

Whatever you do, DON'T pay in advance for the food plan at the gym. It is overpriced and many people end up missing meals. There are plenty of other places to eat, variety is more fun than eating at the same place every day.

Training

As well as Muay Thai, the gym offers classes in MMA (mostly no gi jiu jitsu and sparring), Western Boxing, Krabi Krabong, Yoga and Circuit training.

In all honesty, the Muay Thai classes are overcrowded, and you will unlikely be recognised and given individual attention unless you stay a long period of time, or pay extra for private sessions. But you can still get a good work out.

The western boxing classes are good, with two world champions and a stadium champion instructing. But can still get very busy.

The MMA classes I have mixed feelings towards. The mornings are just no gi jiu jitsu (which is taught to a fairly decent level by Ray Elbe) and the afternoons are fairly intense sparring. And they do have a nice cage to train in. However no wrestling is taught.

If you want to do MMA here then my advice is to get the best of it by training the morning no gi BJJ class and then do the Muay Thai or Western Boxing class in the afternoons.
The gym also hosts seminars often (most of which are free) with visiting fighters. Whilst I was there Royce Gracie, Alberto Crane and Roger Huerta gave seminars!

Facilities

Tiger Muay Thai has some of the best facilities in all of Thailand. At the time of writing they have 6 rings, a MMA cage, a weights room (with enough benches, racks, machines and weights to get a really good workout), another weights area with lots of kettlebells and several spinning bikes, and many heavy bags. They are also having a large extension built.

Location

Phuket is a very large tourist destination. However, Tiger Muay Thai is located in the subdistrict of Chalong, which is cut off from most of the distractions this brings (beaches, bars, nightlife etc), but these are easily accessible by taxi or if you rent a scooter for 3-4,000B per month.

I'd recommend a scooter if you are staying for any period of time (just be careful, there are some 10,000 accidents a year in Phuket alone involving bikes).

With the freedom of a bike you can access the food and clothing markets, Central Festival shopping centre (including cinema), Beaches, Bars & Clubs, the local Zoo, the aquariam, Elephant trekking, Snake shows etc!

Equipment Shop

The price of most things in this shop are jacked up. Shop around unless there is something really specific you want here.

Personal Comments

Your time at Tiger Muay Thai will be what you make it. It can be a serious training camp or you can come here with the best of intentions yet get caught up in boozing most nights and spending your days on the beaches... or you can do a bit of both.

This place is aimed more towards the casual trainer on holiday with plenty of cash to spare, so unless you are quite tight fisted you can easily spend a lot of money.

I made lots of friends and enjoyed myself and what all the different classes had to offer, but after a time I grew tired of the overcrowded and commercial side to the gym and decided to switch over to Dragon Muay Thai just down the road...

Tiger Muay Thai Camp Review (Phuket, Thailand)

Check out my blog for more reviews: MMA & Muay Thai blog.

Thai Crispy-Fried Noodles Recipe

Preparation time: 30 minutes
Total cooking time: 20 minutes
Serves: 4

Ingredients for Thai crispy - fried noodles recipe:

Thai Food

100 g (3 1/2 oz.) rice vermicelli
2 cups (500ml/16 fl oz.) oil, for frying
100 g (3 1/2 oz.) deep-fried tofu puffs, cut into strips
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
5cm (2 inch) piece fresh ginger, grated
150 g (5 oz.) pork mince
100 g (3 1/2 oz.) raw prawn meat, finely chopped
1 tablespoon white vinegar
2 tablespoons fish sauce
2 tablespoons soft brown sugar
2 tablespoons chili sauce
1teaspoon chopped red chillies
2 small knobs pickled garlic, chopped
1/4 bunch fresh garlic chives, chopped
1 cup (30 g/1 oz.) coriander leaves

Thai Crispy-Fried Noodles Recipe

Directions for Thai crispy - fried noodles recipe:

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1. Place the vermicelli in a bowl of hot water for 1 minute; drain and allow to dry for 20 minutes. Heat the oil in a wok, add the tofu in two batches and cook for 1 minute or until golden and crisp. Remove from the wok and leave to drain.

2. Add the completely dry vermicelli to the oil in several batches, cooking for 10 seconds or until puffed and crisp. Remove immediately to prevent the vermicelli absorbing too much oil. Drain on paper towels and cool.

3. Drain all but 1 tablespoon of the oil from the wok. Reheat the wok over high heat and add the garlic, ginger, mince and prawn meat. Stir-fry for
2 minutes or until golden brown. Add the vinegar, fish sauce, brown sugar, chili sauce and chillies and stir until the mixture comes to the boil.

4. Just before serving, add the noodles and tofu to the wok and toss thoroughly. Quickly toss through the pickled garlic, the coriander and the chives and serve immediately.

Nutritional Value for Thai crispy - fried noodles recipe:

Protein 8.5 g;
Fat 13 g;
Carbohydrate 17 g;
Dietary Fibre 2.5 g;
Cholesterol 37mg;
Energy 900kj (230cal)

Thai Crispy-Fried Noodles Recipe

Shirley M. Duran is a mother of two and a cooking enthusiast and at her website you can find recipes like the rotisserie chicken recipe and others similar as well. For more informations you can visit: http://rotisseriechickenrecipe.info/

Copyright © Shirley M. Duran, All Rights Reserved. If you are interested in using this article make all the urls (links) active. Thank you!

Soul Food Recipes - Rebirth of Soul Food Recipes, What's Behind It?

Soul food recipes making a strong comeback? Yes, and not only with African Americans but also with Whites, Latino and other races discovering the deep south inspired menus.

The recipes handed down from slavery, and one of the true American creations continues to make a roaring come back in popularity. "It stays with you longer than most foods," commented a diner at a popular restaurant.

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"If you eat a lunch of fried chicken, macaroni and cheese, black-eyed peas, candied yams, you're full. Top that same meal off with peach cobbler for dessert, you're still full at dinner", chimed in another diner.

Soul Food Recipes - Rebirth of Soul Food Recipes, What's Behind It?

What has slowly brought back the popularity of this southern inspired fare? The updated cooking and preparation techniques. Long favored for it's taste, but criticized for its health hazards, soul food cooking has taken on a healthier change. The change it's going through continues to attract a larger crowd than before.

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Gone are the lard, fatback and animal fat of the past in cooking and preparing soul dishes. Now cooks use peanut, olive oil and other healthier oils. Deep fat frying replaced with pan frying, steaming and baking. Salt replaced by natural herbs and spices. This all adds up to healthier recipe and menu choices.

For people watching their weight, this change continues to have a positive affect. They have more menu choices now than ever. They can enjoy some of their favorite southern dishes without cheating their diet goals with the new healthier menus.

The biggest concerns for adopting the healthy soul food change by leaving out the traditional high fat cooking ingredients? Was the taste left out also? But with natural herb seasoning such as garlic powder, tyme, basil, onion power, and other natural seasonings, the taste remains. The growing popularity of this southern cuisine proves the healthier changes have succeeded.

Because of the health based changes, soul food restaurants report an increase in business as healthier cooking improves. People, especially African Americans continue to have large amount of heart issues, high blood pressure and diabetes and obesity. That's why more attention to the diet.

This is not your grandmothers soul food cooking. It's much leaner, less oily and with less or even no salt. As the health concerns of people continue to grow, the health ingredients of recipes will grow as well.

Healthier menus will not only be a marketing slogan, but will reflect in the recipe ingredients, preparation and cooking techniques used. The cookbooks that will sell in the future will include healthy alternatives that don't compromise taste and satisfaction.

The next frontier to conquer? Desserts, such as peach cobbler, sweet potato pie, sock-it-to me cake, 7-up cake, banana pudding and other favorites. The push is on to find ways to make them healthier too. Health conscious bakers will overcome this challenge like many soul food cooks have, but it will take time, determination and commitment.

Soul Food Recipes - Rebirth of Soul Food Recipes, What's Behind It?

Roy Primm has written dozens of articles and soul food recipes online. For more food for the soul cooking tips, recipes and thousands of Brand Name Coupons go to Free Soul Food Recipes

Biodegradable Food Packaging

Environment is an important area of concern for every person, community and organization today. Every industry, every occasion, every celebration and every venture today has to essentially address the environmental issues that fall in its purview and scope of operation. Organizations, government and big brands are even going a step forward with this, by making every possible to move towards maintaining a neat and livable environment for the generations to come. Going green and efforts towards maintaining and preserving the flora and fauna of the earth are an indispensable part of every corporate social responsibility initiative.

Biodegradable Food Packaging

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Food packaging is a huge industry today. Efforts on part of the industry to go green are sure to bring about positive changes. Biodegradable food packaging is a new trend that has found popularity among the consumers as well. There are lighter, easy to dispose off and cheap option as compared to the regular packaging options for food.

Biodegradable Food Packaging

• Biodegradable Food Packaging Trays

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Biodegradable food packaging trays are mostly being used for packing fresh vegetables and fruits. These biodegradable trays have really boosted the sale of special fruits and vegetables because of the visual appeal and the small packs, which make some expensive fruits and vegetables affordable. Such packaging also keeps food products fresh and clean.

• Biodegradable Food Containers

Biodegradable food containers are used primarily for packing food and transporting it. Containers are used mainly for delivery purposes and food storing purposes. Also for packaging dairy products and other canned food, biodegradable containers have proved to be a successful replacement.

Paper Bags & Pouches

Biodegradable paper bags are used mainly for carrying food. Some of the popular brands in the food industry have shifted to paper bags for example Mac Donald's.

Important biodegradable packaging options for food and beverages include all of the ones listed above- biodegradable containers, trays and paper bags and pouches - and more. All of these packaging utilities are used for packing different kinds of food products. Nylon films, OPP films and metallized films are some of major packaging films used as packaging materials.

Biodegradable Food Packaging

Know more about packaging film products, materials and solutions at Packaging Films, a B2B portal dealing in films, rolls, laminates and complete list of film packaging materials and products.

Authentic Thai Chicken Stir Fry

Want to cook Thai stir fry just like the restaurant? Surprise your family and friends with this authentic Thai recipe.

The key of having that authentic Thai stir fry taste lies in the coconut milk, every other ingredient has to maintain the same ratio with how much coconut milk you put in.

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Basic ingredients:

• 1 quart water
• 3/4 cup coconut milk
• 2 cups uncooked jasmine rice
• 1 1/2 cups chopped fresh basil leaves
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 2 tablespoons fresh ginger root, minced
• 3 tablespoons soy sauce
• 3 tablespoons rice wine vinegar
• 3/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes
• 1 1/2 tablespoons fish sauce
• 1 medium onion, sliced
• 5 green onions, chopped
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 3 shiitake mushrooms, sliced
• 2 pounds skinless, boneless chicken breast halves, cut into 1/2 inch strips

Ingredients adjustment (base on personal taste):
Spicy - Add more red pepper flakes and chile oil.
Blend - Less vinegar and more mushrooms.

Authentic Thai Chicken Stir Fry

Directions:
1. Boil rice and water in a pot.
2. Cover pot, reduce heat to low for 20 minutes.
3. Mix the following in a bowl:

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- coconut milk
- soy sauce
- rice wine vinegar
- fish sauce
- red pepper flakes.

4. Heat oil with skillet over medium-high heat.
5. Stir in ginger, onion and garlic.
6. Cook until lightly browned.
7. Add chicken strips, cook for 3 minutes (or until browned).
8. Stir in the sauce from the bowl.
9. Cooking until sauce is reduced to 1/3.
10. Mix in green onions, basil and mushrooms.
11. Cook until everything is heated through.
12. Serve over the cooked rice.

Authentic Thai Chicken Stir Fry

Alice Anderson is a mother of 2 lovely boys, she loves cooking and spending a lot of time in the kitchen trying new taste and sharing recipes with others, recently she is interested in Cooking Crab Legs [http://www.cookingcrablegs.org/] and Bose Home Theater [http://www.bosehometheater.org/].

Why I Don't Date Thailand Bar Girls

Thailand is a magical place, the beaches, warm climate, unique culture, great food and beautiful women. It's easy to see how a visitor in Thailand may think that he has found paradise at last. Every years, thousands and thousands of Western men return home from a holiday in Thailand wanting to return as fast as possible. Many times, the reason for this is a woman, and more often than not it's a bar girl who has put a spell on him. Sometimes, everything works out and the couple live happily ever after, but in other instances, cultural differences and mistaken expectations lead to nasty breakups. Over the years, I've seen many Thai-Farang relationships. Those that lasted were generally not those who began in a bar.

There's nothing wrong with meeting your Thai sweetheart in a bar, I mean, that happens all the time back home, but I think there are good reasons to be vary before entering into a serious relationship with a 'bar girl'.

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I am not one of those people who think that Thai women working in a bar are necessarily 'bad' or only out for money, far from it actually, but I do think that their lifestyle may present some problems in the long run.

Why I Don't Date Thailand Bar Girls

Picture this: A young, attractive girl from the countryside goes to work in a bar. She's never been out of the village before, let alone met any foreigners. Her daily life probably consisted of working in a rice paddy or falling asleep at some menial and boring job. Then she comes to Bangkok or Pattaya, with her head full of dreams and hopes. What she finds is a place where the neon lights are bright, every day is a party, drinking, sleeping until noon and then starting over.

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For a young inexperienced girl anywhere, that kind of lifestyle has to be exciting. So, you see, when she meets you in a bar, is she really looking to settle down with a guy who is often significantly older than her?

Even if she is, is she ready to leave the easy work and big money behind and start working in a 9-5 job again? Leave her new friends and be the perfect stay at home wife? Most likely not.

The bar scene attracts a certain type on both sides of the equation. If you're looking for a nice Thai woman to settle down with and eventually marry, then I recommend looking elsewhere.

Take a walk down any street in Thailand; do you notice at least one girl sending you a shy look, maybe a smile? Maybe you don't, cause we as Westerners are not in tune with the subtle signals Thai women send to men they are interested in. Don't expect a 'good' Thai girl to make the first step.

Why I Don't Date Thailand Bar Girls

That's why I generally tell my friend to meet Thai women online first.

You'd be amazed how many Thai women are interested in meeting you. And it's definitely not only bar girls. Most of the time, the women you meet online are smart, educated women who want the freedom and stability a foreign man can provide. Believe it or not, Westerners still have a good reputation in Thailand.

So, go for it, sign up for a dating site and see what happens! You really have nothing to lose!