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Silver Travel Cook Club

April 2025 – Pok Pok: Food and Stories from the Streets, Homes, and Roadside Restaurants of Thailand

This month, the Silver Travel Cook Club takes you on a journey through the bustling streets of Thailand with Pok Pok: Food and Stories from the Streets, Homes, and Roadside Restaurants of Thailand by Andy Ricker.

Whether you’re a seasoned lover of Thai food or eager to explore its bold, aromatic flavours, this book dives into the heart of Thailand’s vibrant culinary culture. From sizzling street food stalls in Bangkok to home-cooked meals in Chiang Mai, it’s packed with authentic recipes, cooking techniques, and travel stories that bring Thailand’s food scene to life.

Fancy Trying Something Different?

How about an authentic Pad Krapow Gai (Thai Basil Chicken) – a classic Thai street food dish that’s quick to make and full of bold flavours? This recipe, much like the ones found in Pok Pok, captures the essence of Thai cuisine with its fragrant mix of garlic, chili, and holy basil.

Serve it over jasmine rice with a crispy fried egg on top for the perfect taste of Thailand at home!

Recipe: Pad Krapow Gai (Thai Basil Chicken)

A beloved street food dish in Thailand, Pad Krapow Gai is a spicy, aromatic stir-fry made with minced chicken, Thai basil, chilies, and a savory-sweet sauce. It’s typically served with jasmine rice and a fried egg on top.

Ingredients:

  • 300g minced chicken (or pork)
  • 2 cloves garlic, minced
  • 1 red chili (or more for heat), finely chopped
  • 1 tbsp oyster sauce
  • 1 tbsp fish sauce
  • 1 tsp dark soy sauce
  • 1 tsp sugar
  • 1 handful Thai basil leaves
  • 1 tbsp vegetable oil
  • Cooked jasmine rice, to serve
  • 1 fried egg (optional but recommended!)

Method:

  1. Heat oil in a pan or wok over medium-high heat.
  2. Add garlic and chili, stir-frying for a few seconds until fragrant.
  3. Add minced chicken and stir-fry until cooked through.
  4. Stir in oyster sauce, fish sauce, soy sauce, and sugar. Mix well.
  5. Add Thai basil leaves, stir briefly until wilted, then remove from heat.
  6. Serve over jasmine rice with a crispy fried egg on top.

How to win a copy of Gourmet Trails of Europe

Thailand is famous for its bold flavours and unique street food. What’s the most unusual dish you’ve tried (or would dare to try) on your travels? Let us know by commenting below for a chance to win a copy of this inspiring cookbook!

Please note: this prize draw is now closed.

A winner will be chosen at random in early May 2025.
The competition closes on 30 April 2025.

  1. The Cook Club is open to residents of the UK, aged 18 years or over, except employees of Silver Travel Advisor and their close relatives, partners or friends and anyone otherwise connected with the organisation of the prize draw.
  2. There is no entry fee and no purchase necessary to enter.
  3. By entering, an entrant is indicating his/her/their agreement to be bound by these terms and conditions.
  4. This competition is not in any affiliation with any other company.
  5. The prize is as stated, and no cash or other alternatives will be offered. The prize is non-transferable and is subject to availability.
  6. If a winner does not claim their prize within one week, the prize will be forfeited, and another winner will be selected.
  7. By entering each entrant accepts that the winner’s name and city of residence may be used for promotional purposes by Silver Travel Advisor.
  8. No responsibility is accepted for entries, notices, acceptances, tickets, goods or other documentation lost or delayed in the post.
  9. Winners will be solely responsible for any tax liability incurred as a result of this offer. The organisers’ decision is final, and no correspondence will be entered.
  10. Entries will be accepted until the closing date as stated.

See all of our Silver Travel Cook Club recipes.

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42 Responses

  2. Have travelled all over but only in Wales did we eat an insect based menu! Sadly not very flavoursome and the legs got stuck in my teeth!

  4. I once tried durian, the ‘king of fruits’. It’s like a sweet, creamy pudding… if the pudding was trapped in a gym sock. Still, I live to tell the tale, and I’d totally do it again! But maybe with a clothespin on my nose next time! 😅 #AdventuresInFood

  14. In a workers’ lunch hall in Iceland, every meal comes with a fried egg on to,p including a full sunday lunch on top of the gravy.

  15. Wood pigeon cooked on a spit in Luxor Egypt. Weird experience but unbelievable taste.

  16. Zebra steak in Zimbabwe – I almost convinced a fellow traveller that you could still see the stripes in the meat

  19. Thailand is also a place for street vendor insects on sticks which I have zero interest in trying!

  22. (have tried very few but) would love to try some more fish dishes from different parts of the world

  23. I am not very into eating anything I am not sure of but I did eat a fish in Thailand which was looking at me on the plate.

  26. My first experience of dim sum was in Hong Kong and being adventurous & a lover of chicken I’m happy to try most things, however, broiled chicken feet didn’t appeal at all!

  29. In Fuerteventura, some years ago, I was invited to try barbeque snails by a Chinese resturaunt owner. I quite liked them!

  31. Balut in the Philippines its a fertilized duck egg with a partially developed embryo inside, eaten straight from the shell. Thats was the most crazy thing i tried ever!

  32. I had a clear very tasty broth once in Austria with some starge textured meatballs floating in it. After eating I discovered it was sheeps brains. Actually tasted really good, but I may have had second thoughts if I had known beforehand

  33. not at all adventurous, don’t like squidgy texture, but do like spicy stuff

  36. Whilst weekending in the Amazon Forest, we only ate what the guides caught for us – including various fish and howling monkey.

  37. Rotten shark meat in Iceland. I had to try it, after all the locals were eating it. Not sure how!

  38. Preserved shark. Served with great fanfare, in Iceland.
    I should have known better…. there was a spittoon by the table…..

  39. Many years ago I had a ‘rustic stew’ in Portugal which contained parts of an animal I had never seen on a plate before – I gave up half way through!

  40. Went to a fish restaurant on Penang Island where no English spoken.You chose your fish from a vast selection of fish & shellfish in tanks some of which were very unappealing.They then seemed to be asking how we would like it cooked.We left it to them due to the language barrier.Not sure what we were going to get but whatever it was it was beautifully cooked & spiced much to our relief.

  41. Garlic Soup at La Man ha, surprising because there was a fried egg hiding away at the bottom of the bowl,! Very delicious.

  42. In the Taiwanese town of Jintong, I tried what is widely known as ‘stinky tofu’ served in a bowl with soy sauce and picked sliced cabbage and carrot. The name says it all.

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