What's on the table, Mable? Thursday Jan 9th?

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Thanks Dawg! Actually I think I'll incorporate the pic into my website. It's a very simple dish, easy to cook, and the fried egg is surprising but not required. I had never seen that in a Thai restaurant but my online research indicated it was not uncommon in Thailand, so I tried it and it tasted really complimentary to me.

In my gastronomic research on this recipe I have discovered that you want a really hot pan and oil before tossing your egg in, to get a very crispy border. Ideally you would brown the top under a broiler, but some of my cookware I'm doubtful are broiler safe. I usually flip and smash and serve the egg before the yolk has solidified. Even better would be to just have heated the top enough to coagulate the white and leave the yolk liquid. The contrast between the crispy edges and liquid yolk is what makes the egg so good.

There is one absolutely essential part of this recipe: Thai basil, AKA holy basil (see my website for a write-up). Our generic basil is something like this but ours is only a poor substitute. Holy basil has reddish stems and reddish veins in the leaves, and has a taste that is a cross between our common basil and a kind of licorice taste. The taste of fresh Thai (holy) basil is so distinctive that common basil is an alternative only for those who cannot get the real stuff. It's worth planting in your garden and I plan to plant some later this year.

I also have an anemic Thai chili growing in a pot on my patio, and I'm considering ordering a Kaffir lime tree/bush too, to have the leaves you need to make your own Thai curry pastes.
 

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