Eating our way through SE Asia- Food Blog!

Its about darn time for a food post as eating has been one of the greatest pleasures of our travels! I think we would be remiss if we didn't take a moment to tell you about our culinary adventures of the past couple months. When we landed in Bangkok for the first time we were almost drooling with the thought of Pad Thai and really any type of food other than Dahl Bhat (which has left quite an impression on us). Now that we've sampled Thai, Lao, Khmer (Cambodian), Vietnamese and Burmese food, I can say that Thai is our overwhelming favorite. Mostly I think we love it because the Thais are not afraid of their chili and neither are we! Yum!
Things that we've enjoyed throughout Asia include lime soda (discovered in Nepal actually) which is simply soda water with fresh squeezed lime and just might be the most refreshing beverage ever invented. We since plan to bring this favorite home. Another fortuitous find is that, despite the unfortunate consequences of colonization by the French, excellent crusty baguettes can be found from the streets to the bus stations in Laos, Cambodia, and Vietnam.
Starting with Thailand, some of our consistent favorites have been the Pad Thai (duh!) which is different from home in that it doesn't have cilantro and you can usually get them to mix some fresh chilis in as well as the papaya salad which is usually hot enough to knock your socks off. Another wonderfully ubiquitous treat is the fruit lassie, a yogurt shake with ice and fruit, and every kind of fresh tropical fruit imaginable- pineapple, mango, coconut, banana, paypaya...these tasty fruit snacks come in convenient plastic baggies, pre-cut with a toothpick as fork.
Paul's favorite meal, recently consumed at Koh Yao Noi, was grilled white snapper with its head still intact, served with garlic, chili, and veggies. My favorite was our thanksgiving meal at a vegetarian place in Chang Mai. We ate papaya salad that made my nose run, spring rolls with tofu and carrot sauce, Pad thai with bean sprouts and tofu, and Kausoi which was a complex yellow coconut curry with soft and crispy noodles and spice that made my nose run even harder. We finished off the night with a glass of boxed wine and some killer pumpkin pie.
In Laos I think its fair to say that our favorite was the Lap which is called a "salad" but is served with rice. Lap is a savory and sour treat of shredded beef, chicken or pork ( or tofu which wasn't as good) mixed with mint, lime, and secret spices. So good! I also really enjoyed their curries especially over a bowl of long beans, squeaky green eggplant, tomatoes, pumpkin and potatoes. The Lao curry that I sampled was always coconut based and excellent in a straightforward way. Other notable Lao dishes that we sampled were sautéd wild mushroom salad, the Laung Prabang salad with watercress, hard boiled eggs and dijon dressing, and pumpkin soup. We found mexican-quality margaritas at Rosellas Cafe, enjoyed with the chef on the banks of the river in Luang Prabang.
Cambodia- Khmer cuisine wasn't my favorite, they eat tarantulas there! But some notables were the Amok which is basically a coconut curry baked and served in a coconut with veggies and rice. Cambodia is also where I decided to stop eating chicken after a very sad encounter with a half conscious chicken and a butcher block in the market. I haven't eaten any meat since, we'll see how long it lasts when I get in the vacinity of Blakes Lottaburger. The beat thing we ate in Cambodia was crabs on the cost in Kep drenched in curry and famous Kampot pepper. I received eating wounds trying to dig every last morsel out of my crab legs but I was certainty in my element!
Vietnam was tricky for us I had very high food expectations that were bound to be dashed by the reality of tourist food on Phu Quock island. Lucky for us we found the night market and feasted on bowls of vermicelli with mint, basil, bean sprouts, lime and fresh shrimp. Heaven! At long last, the food we had dreamed of! Things improved for us in the food department when we got to Ho Chi Minh City. In HCMC we found the Pho and ate it for every meal one day including a snack. Pho is a big bowl of rice noodles with whatever type of meat (or none) that you desire and its served with the "salad" of basil, bean sprouts, chili and awesome chili sauce. Other Vietname delights were found at a veggie restaurant; mushrooms and tofu sautéd in a claypot, vietnamese pancake filled with yummy veggies and the fresh spring rolls with mint and other herbs. Vietnamese coffee, while renowned and sipped everywhere, is not my favorite. I don't care for the Lao or Thai versions either as condensed milk is just too sickeningly sweet for me. It all comes that way even if you ask for fresh milk.
For me the highlight of Burmese food was the tomato salad with onion, peanuts, sesame seeds and garlic covered with peanut oil. Very tasty. We had four excellent nights of Indian food in Bagan at the Wonderful Tasty restaurant where we could get lentil soup, veggie curry, fresh chipati, rice and sauteed veggies for 5$. A great deal and served by the very sweet toothless owner. I also enjoyed the Shan noodle soup, which is heavy on the sesame seeds, and noodle soup with coconut milk, veggies and an egg on top, as well as the fresh "mountain" rice that we were served on our trek. As far as I could tell mountain rice is akin to brown rice with the skin intact. Unfortunately for me I got a violent case of food poisoning from an unconfirmed source in Kalaw and wasn't able to enjoy the seemingly delectable dishes served by our guide Meme on our trek.
We are on the way to Bangkok at the moment and I've been combing the restaurant reviews to find a suitable place for our last SE Asian meal before we head back to the land of enchiladas, real pizza, burgers and salad, oh yummy greens how I crave you! As much as I'm ready for my favorite American foods and their hygienic preparation, we are making plans to do some serious shopping at the asian food market in Albuquerque before we head north, we already know that we will miss this fantastic food!