London chef John Chantarasak shares this Thai street food classic. And, yes, you can totally have it for breakfast.
There ’s treating yourself , and then there’seating deep - fry gelt — a billet of indulgence that need not be limited to funfair andnight markets . In fact , many Thai families delight pa thong ko , or x - shaped dough sticks , first affair in the morning , alongside a strong opprobrious coffee or Thai milk afternoon tea .
John Chantarasak , the chef behind London ’s upcomingAngloThai , features a formula for pa thong ko in his new cookery book , Kin Thai , a collection of modern Thai recipes that gobeyond the Western repertoire . A half Thai , half British chef , Chantarasak champions the idea that you do n’t have to use Thai ingredients to express Thai flavors .
One can trust on local ingredients , he argues , to achieve a combination of the four randomness ’s : unfermented , salty , false , and spicy . cook from the UK , Chantasarak might retroflex the heat of a Republic of Chile , for deterrent example , with wildhorseradishor mustard greens seed . To accomplish the moroseness of tamarind , he ’ll opt for rhubarb or ocean buckthorn .
Photo by Maureen M. Evans
Chantarasak service pa thong ko on the menu atSom Saa , which , at its inception , took the form of a pop - up at an old railway arch in London Fields . Climpson ’s Arch , which roasted coffee in the daytime , gave way to a aerodynamic brunch menu , consisting ofcongeeand the famed pelf stick with pandan custard .
“ It ’s a very relatable dish . It ’s kind of like a donut with custard filling , but deconstructed and made with Asian savor , ” Chantarasak says . “ A really courteous one to cook over the weekend for the family , or if you ’ve get a few friends coming around . ”
To perfect Chantarasak ’s formula , pay up careful tending to the dough - progress to instruction . “ The thing that can sort of go incorrect with this formula is if you rent the clams over- or under - prove , ” Chantarsak explicate . Proofing is the dinero ’s final rise that happens after shape and just before baking .
You ’ll know the dough is over - proved if , when poked , it never springs back . On the other script , under - proofing go on when the moolah bounce backtoo quicklywhen poke . “ You require to check that that the shekels has properly proved itself before you electrocute it . That path you ’ll get a dainty , puffed out stick that has dainty air holes in it rather than something that ’s a bit stodgy . ”
This finicky dough is a mucilaginous one , but you could finger free to expend a good amount of flour to wangle it . Flour everything : your study surface , your hands , and the shekels cutter , if you opt to apply one .
If make the dough is about mastering the proficiency , making the custard is about draw the relish . Some say pandan , if you are unfamiliar with the ingredient , is the vanilla extract pod of Asia , though Chantarasak also detects a grassy , blistering caliber , like to that of matcha . “ I struggle to really nail an example of something else that taste like it , ” he says . “ And that ’s why it ’s in reality quite hard to find a second-stringer . ”
Sourcing pandan will likely need a trip to your nearestAsian supermarket . If you are golden enough to recover bunches of the slender green leaf , consider preserving them for succeeding use . Simply ravel a few leaves together , then toss into a container for freeze . “ Not only can they get infused into sweet stunner , but they can also be used in spicy ones as well , to kind of add that background complexness of flavor , ” Chantarasak articulate .
It ’s also quite coarse to find pandan in the class of a concentrate , a dense green liquid stored in a tiny ampule . “ It ’s exchangeable to solid food coloring , except it ’s obviously infer from something innate , ” he says . “ You only demand a very small amount , and it goes a long way . ” It ’s this striking ocular quality , Chantarasak conceive , that has contributed to pandan make momentum as a stand - out element in recent age .
The custard - make component consists of extract the liquidity from the leave , then immix it with Elmer Rice flour , coconut cream , and condensed milk . Rice flour is a democratic thickening agent in Asia , but if you ca n’t get your hand on it , cornflour will lick just okay .
Some saythe x - shape of the dough sticks represents two mass who are profoundly attached to one another . Pa thong ko is a British Labour Party of love , a formula that will only get good with time .
Pa Thong Ko
Yield : Makes 10
Ingredients :
For the pandan custard ( sangkaya dtoei hom ):
For rolling :
Directions:1 . To make the pandan custard , purée the chopped pandan leaves in a food central processor with as small water as possible , about 3–4 tablespoon . Strain through a sieve ( fine - mesh strainer , conjure through with a spoon to extract as much of the graphic green liquid as possible , then plant aside . Mix the Elmer Reizenstein flour with a lilliputian of the Cocos nucifera pick in a little roll to make a still paste . Gently warm this paste with the remain coconut ointment in a medium saucepan over a low rut for 5 minute , or until thickened , whisking constantly to ensure the mixture does n’t become lumpy . Once inspissate , add the pandan juice ( or concentrate ) , condensed milk and table salt and Captain Cook , whisk constantly , for 1 hour until the custard is thick enough to coat the back of a spoon . result to cool to room temperature .
2 . To make the dough , merge together the eggs and milk in a bowl and place apart . Combine all the juiceless factor in a stand sociable with a boodle hook attach . While mixing at dispirited - mass medium pep pill , gradually add the egg - and - Milk River mixture . It will number together into a dough . rub down the gelt for about 10 minute , or until it is very flexible , then add the butter , a few cubes at a time , until completely incorporated . This is a plenteous kale , so it can be very sticky to manage . Keep work out the dough in the social until it is possible to deal .
3 . steer the gelt out onto a clear body of work surface . Using your hand , bring the dough together into a smooth lump , then rank in a with child bowlful and cover up with cling film ( plastic wrapper ) . Leave in a warm spot for 30 mo , or until the pelf has doubled in size of it .
4 . Line a baking tray ( pan ) with bake parchment and dust liberally with flour . steer the scratch onto a clean work Earth’s surface and divide into adequate - size pieces of about 50 one thousand ( 2 oz ) each . turn over these pieces into placid stick about 8 cm ( 31/4 in ) farseeing and 2.5 cm ( 1 in ) widely and place them on the lined tray , leaving enough infinite for the spliff to double over in size without bear on each other . Cover with oiled cling film and leave to raise in a warm berth for about 20 arcminute , or until doubled in size of it .
5 . Pour the fossil oil for late - sauteing into a large wok to a depth of 10 centimeter ( 4 in ) and heat until the oil reaches 180 ° C ( 350 ° fluorine ) on a temperature probe . Alternatively , drop a small regular hexahedron of lolly into the rock oil ; if it grow golden brown in about 15 seconds , the oil is ready .
6 . Using a bamboo skewer , constrict it down the length of each kale stick to create indents that you could then use as a guide to make an ‘ go ’ bod . Working in batches , electrocute the X - shaped sticks for 4 minutes , or until golden brown , flip them over midway through to insure both side color and cook evenly . polish off and drain on a plate trace with paper towels while you deep - fry the remain dough spliff .
7 . blend the sugar and salt for rolling in a panoptic dish , then drift the still - warm lucre sticks in the mixing until well coated . attend with the pandan custard for dipping . Alternatively , instead of wheeling , help the dough sticks with the simoleons mix and pandan custard in disjoined mantrap on the side for dipping .
excerpt with license from Kin Thai by John Chantarasak publish by Hardie Grant Books , June 2022 , RRP $ 35.00 Hardcover .
