Chiang Mai Street Food - Part II

Some of the street food in Chiang Mai can be found not on the streets but in the markets. Many of the markets here have large cooked food sections - kind of like the food halls in a modern supermarket, except that here the offerings are decidedly local. I can imagine putting together a family dinner with some freshly bought ingredients, some grilled meats, and some nice chili dips - an easy and convenient way to a great meal.


These looked like little crab shells filled to the brim with yellowish roe. I normally can't resist crab roe, but these were raw and I was weary of getting a "Chiang Mai belly".


Nice selection of cooked dishes to take home. The one right in front is a pork gelatin which is one of my dad's favourites. It is made by boiling a pork leg and chilling the broth to form the gelatin, kind of like a terrine.


Nice looking Teo Chiew braised ducks and other stewed meats.


Colourful sweet cakes and snacks.


At the night bazaars too there are always lots of food stalls, and most of what they sell are different from the day time stalls - more light snacks and sweets compared to the more substantial fare in day time stalls.


I don't know what these are. They look like sweet glutinous rice desserts. Not really my cup of tea.


This young girl is selling a soup with pork rind and pig's blood. It is like a Chinese hot and sour soup. Very delicious.


Very colourful Thai desserts. They look really pretty, but I am a little bit worried about the amount of food colouring used in them.


This noodle salad is really nice. Made with vermicelli with sliced fresh vegetables and a sweet and spicy chili dressing. One of the best street foods I had in Chiang Mai. This stall is at the Saturday Night Bazaar.


Sampling the street food in Chiang Mai is quite an adventure. The variety is endless, and some are really delicious. Don't miss the sausages and the spicy noodle salad.

Chiang Mai Street Food - Part I

Like other Asian cities, street food is very much a part of the culture in Chiang Mai. Road side stalls are everywhere, and you wonder whether people actually bother to cook at home. Its so convenient just to grab something on the way home, but the health effect of a daily diet on street food is another matter.



From what I can see, the most popular street food here is the sausage. Its no wonder, as they are delicious, cheap and easy to eat while you are out and about. There are also many types to choose from - spicy sausages, big fat sausages called "Moo Yor", small baby sausages filled with pork and sticky rice, etc. They are all very good and you shouldn't miss these when in Chiang Mai.





Another very popular item - meat balls which come in different colours and sizes. They are usually deepfried. Quite tasty and very crunchy. You can't really tell what they are made of - I suspect a mixture of fish meat, pork, chicken and whatever they can get their hands on.





Something very familiar to anyone who has been to Thailand - Som Tam. Here you can have the green papaya version, or the green mango version which I had. It was salty, sweet, and spicy - just the way it should be. Crushed peanuts were added to give it an extra crunchy texture, and for a deluxe version you can order one topped with crunchy pork rinds.





There is quite a large Chinese population in Chiang Mai, and it is not unusual to find Chinese food served on the streets - like these steamed meat buns and siew mai.





In Chiang Mai they take their grilling seriously and even the road side stalls have "proper" grilling contraptions. The meats are usually grilled to perfection and very tasty. Another not-to-miss item here.





A busy street food cluster at Suthep Road opposite the Maharaj Nakorn Hospital ( part of the University Medical Complex).





Mr. Willeam - a colourful personality selling instant gourmet coffee. The coffee's not bad.





Another very popular item in Chiang Mai - the banana pancake. It is like the Malaysian Roti Chanai with banana. Here the sweetness is taken up a few notches with sweetened condensed milk.



There are quite a lot of stalls selling cooked food meant more for take home. I tried the deep fried pork - very good. The fish was a bit dry. The spicy sausages were very good.





Street food is a big part of the Chiang Mai experience, and with so much variety its not possible to try it all. I have some more coming up in my next post.

Chinese New Year Cookbook Giveaway !

Chinese New Year is coming soon, and I'm in a generous mood. I have 2 copies of a unique book on Sarawakian Food to give away. The book is bilingual - in Chinese and English. It is a Chinese centric production, so the English translation is not always up to scratch. But I think it is the only book to feature food and recipes from some of the oldest and most established restaurants and hawker stalls in Sarawak. It is quite amazing that the author Vincs Huang - a popular local celebrity and foodie, managed to get access to some of the oldest and most secretive kitchens in Sarawak, and even to convince them to part with some of their recipes.

To join simply send an email to borneoboy1@gmail.com with the title "Entry for CW's Food & Travel Cookbook Giveaway", include a short writeup on your most interesting food experience. Pictures welcomed. The contest will be open until 28th February 2010, and I will notify the winners after that. Please don't forget to give me your postal address so I can send the books by snail mail. The winners' writeups will be featured in my Blog.

Oo... Ha ! Favourites of Sarawak !

The cover of the book. Those at the back are not included in this contest !


Inside is in full colour with lots of great photos and interesting content.


Do send in your entries. You may send in as many as you like, with different writeups. The more the merrier.

Note: Open to Malaysian and also overseas participants.

Eating in Kuching - Noodles and Pork Offal Soup at Bishop's Gate

From appearances alone, you probably won't give this place a second look. Some people may even be put off by the basic and somewhat tatty ambiance. However in this case I would have to advise you to not judge the book by the cover. For this place is to me the best noodle shop in Kuching - Kuching's own Noodle Heaven.

Kuching people have been making their Noodle Pilgrimage to the place since as far as I can remember. It is notorious for it's rude service and long waits. You have to wait for your turn to order, and then wait again for the noodles to arrive. Trying to rush the order would only result in a scolding and a grumpy face. The wait can be as long as an hour on a busy day - minimum wait is half an hour. In a stuffy and tatty coffee shop this is not always a pleasant experience - so be warned. When the noodles and soup arrive though, all the wait is worth it.

You may ask what is so special about the noodles here. Noodles are really very simple things, and the secret is in the execution. Here the noodles are cooked just right - retaining the crucial "al dente" texture which the Chinese call "Q". The right amount of seasoning, the right amount of oil and pork lard, and a dash of vinegar, and topped with some deep fried shallots - and you have a perfect bowl of noodles.

Its not just the noodles here of course. There's also the essential pork offal soup everyone orders to accompany the noodles. The soup has a clear broth which retains all the sweetness of pork without the gaminess of offals. All the ingredients have been expertly prepared and cooked to the right texture. Together with some salted vegetables and dried seaweed buried under the other ingredients, the layering of tastes as you slowly work through the soup is incredibly satisfying.

The all-important ingredients - egg noodles, plenty of oil and pork lard, and a well-seasoned soup base.

This lady has been making the noodles for probably over 20 years. The brother-in-law helps to put in the ingredients and the finishing touch.


The delicious noodles and pork offal soup.

The coffee shop is located at the corner of Carpenter Street and Bishop's Gate Street. Just ask any one for "Bishop's Gate Noodle Place" and they will be able to point you to the right place.

Phuket - Street Food

Phuket street food is not as varied as in Bangkok. I only came across some road side stalls near Ranong Road. Unlike in Bangkok where grilling seems to be the preferred method of preparation, here in Phuket they prefer deep frying. Almost everything is deep fried and covered in a thick batter. Under the hot sun, it was a bit too much for me to try them out.

I did try some of these grilled bananas slathered in a thick caramel sauce. Very sweet and quite delicious, though sinfully full of calories.

I also couldn't resist trying these sausages. As this was a Muslim stall, the sausage was made of beef. It had a nice smoky taste, but a bit too salty. It would have been better grilled rather then deep fried.

A typical coffee shop. Not unlike those in Kuching. This one sells noodles with seafood. There is a large Chinese Hokkien population in Phuket, so Hokkien noodle is common here.

This shop sells conveniently packed lunch take outs. They all look quite delicious.

Just like in other parts of Thailand, food is plentiful in Phuket. If you have a few bucks in your pocket, you wouldn't starve here.