Plunkett-Hogge - Baan: recipes and stories from my Thai home

Kay Plunkett-Hogges cooking and knowledge of Thai cuisine is next to none. I dream about her food. Thank God shes written this book. Diana Henry

This book makes me hungry. Truly a beautiful, personal, delicious and easy-to-use guide to Thai cuisine full of stories and tips that make the food jump off the page and onto the plate. Ian Kittichai

Wise, witty, and wonderfully written, Baan sits alongside David Thompsons Thai Food and Andy Rickers Pok Pok as one of the great English language works on regional Thai cookery. Tom Parker-Bowles

Kays true home is Thailand. Rarely have I met some with such a love of a country, its people and their food. This book, so aptly named Baan, is the result of her journey through the Kingdom and many kitchens. It is home cooking, the true source of the best of Thai food. Kay recounts the charm, delicious fun and spirit of Thai kitchens in this book. I am captivated. David Thompson

In memory of Mum and Dad who took the leap.

And of Prayoon and Lune, whose indomitable spirits stand beside me at the stove every day.

For Kim, who remembers it all.

And for Fred, who always believed this book would happen.

The word baan means a house or a home. It can also mean a village.

But it goes deeper than that: its a word that stems from the various dialects of the Tai language family. Baan means the hearth, the home, the community, the place where you come from.

It speaks to how we sustain each other.

It speaks to the ties that bind us together.

It speaks to the heart.

Which, to me, is where food comes from.

This is a book about home cooking. It also happens to be about Thai food. For, while I have written before about Spanish food, Italian food and so on, it is Thai food that I cook most often.

I was born and raised in Bangkok. I spoke Thai before I spoke English (which freaked out my Irish grandmother when I was brought to London for the first time aged three). I have spent more than half my life in Thailand, as a child, as a young professional in the film business, and latterly as a food writer and journalist.

And I have been very privileged that my work has allowed me to travel the length and breadth of the country. More so, that the language has opened more doors for me there, both literally and figuratively, than the average white-faced girl has ever had the chance to walk through.

As a result, I have been able to collect recipes from wherever Ive been: from tribal Tai Yai and Akha people in the mountains of the Golden Triangle; from elephant kwans in the forests of Lampang Province; from fishermen in coastal Ranong; from stall holders, chefs, shop keepers, air stewards, taxi drivers, chambermaids, horsemen, hi-so women; from little old ladies in markets; and from people who have kindly called me na farang hua jai Thai the foreign-faced girl with the heart of a Thai.

This book is the result of all those conversations. And its the result of many happy hours spent in the kitchen with Prayoon, our family cook, when I was a chubby, greedy little girl, helping to stoke the charcoal braziers, to pound chillies and garlic, or to chop herbs. That she indulged me, instead of shooing me out the door for being underfoot, has left me with a lasting love of Thai cooking.

Most importantly, every recipe has been tested in my London kitchen on a now 15-year-old four-gas-hob Smeg with its single electric oven (apart from some of the grill recipes, which I cooked on the barbecue). But whatever your kitchen set-up, the single most important piece of advice I could give you is to taste, taste, taste everything and adjust as you like.

Aiming high, I hope it achieves Julia Childs goal for a book, of being for those who love to cook, with recipes that are as detailed as they should be so that the reader knows exactly what is involved and how to go about it.

That Julia knew a thing or two.

More importantly, instead of setting out to simplify Thai cooking, I aim to demystify it a little, providing clear recipes and revealing the short-cuts, kitchen hacks and ingredient substitutions that make it achievable in an ordinary Western kitchen. Some of the recipes will be familiar, some unusual, and some so regional they capture a distinct sliver of Thailand and its unique character. And all of them are well within the capabilities of the competent and curious cook.

Most important of all, I have endeavoured to write a book to be used. My highest hope is for it to sit on your shelf, tattered and stained, with pages dog-eared at the corners and the spine half falling off.

I hope to guide you the cook, the reader deeper into Thai cooking, a world of fragrant curry pastes, fiery soups, and dishes of profound and gracious subtlety, and on to a culinary adventure in the comfort of your very own kitchen.

And, of course, chan wang wa khun cha sanuk kub nung sueh I hope you have fun with it.

I sometimes have a little difficulty with serving suggestions. I mean, how can I possibly know how much you like to eat? When it comes to Thai food, its harder still because context is everything. When cooking for two, for example, I might cook one of the stir-fries and a mug of rice. And perhaps a deep-fried egg each, depending on the dish. For a Sunday curry lunch, Id make one batch of curry and a vegetable dish (and rice), again for two, knowing Ill have curry left over.

As a general rule of thumb, if Im cooking for just the two of us, Ill do two or three things, depending on how greedy were feeling. For four, Ill do three of four dishes; for six, six or seven dishes, and so on but now were getting to the stage when I need Freds help, or Ill never get to sit down and enjoy my friends company. In each case, the rice is an extra and essential thing to do.

Here are some examples, based on how I cook Thai for my family. Bear in mind that theyre just suggestions. Mix and match your menu to suit your tastes and curiosities.

One plate dishes for two:Khao Pad Goong (). Each of these recipes serves two in this context if you want to make them for four, make them in two batches. If you double the ingredients in one wok, it wont work.

Sunday Lunch or dinner for two:Gaeng Pet () and rice.

Lunch or dinner for four:Gaeng Keow Wan () for dessert.

Dinner for six to eight: this is where Id pull out some of the big guns Gaeng Massaman (), and fresh fruit to finish.