« Who Needs Plastic Bags? | Main | Kao Soi Lao »

2010.03.30

Comments

J2Kfm

Wait, so do you chew on those dried chillies as well?! Closest I can think of is the Thai's version of fried curry leaves, cashews and anchovies combination.

Albert

this looks pretty awesome. but before I get a chance to try this, my favorite beer snack is pig ears.

Sputnik

Beer Lao is one of the best in SEA I think!

Shiew Yuin

Is mung bean vermicelli difficult to come by in KL?! Think we usually just get ours from the market :)

Robyn

J2Kfm -- chew on the dried chilies? If you like. And I do. :-) There's a link to the a recipe for the cashew/peanut - lime leaf - chili mix.

Albert - Right, pig ears go well with booze. How do you like them -- deep-fried?

Sputnik - that's what they say. I'm not a huge beer fan but for my money Vietnam's La Rue is even better. Rather hard to find though.

Judy

Are these typical to Laos only? I've never come across such a snack before. Let alone a snack of any kind, to be honest, but then again I'm guzzling 10 dong beers in Vietnam by the roadside. I wonder what kind of mushrooms these are

Danielle

I would really like to make this. I would also like to know what kind of mushrooms are used in this, please?

OysterCulture

This has my name all over it, sounds amazing!

jodi

wow, that was an great picture. I kept looking at it, thinking--are they talking about "this"? It makes me want to try some. :)

sunfug

Really enjoyed these posts. The beer nibbles look terrific - is that one of the metal bowls you're talking about Robyn? On my visit to lovely Laos, a decade ago, I was struck by how idiosyncratic the food was (i.e. dependent on local herbs and ingredients I'd never encountered in SEA before). It was an adventure in eating every day. In Luang Prabang did you come across a dish of little river shrimp deep fried with garlic and a mystery herb? Delicious! Also, I agree with Sputnik that Beer Lao is an under-rated brew, really clean and tasty. It is a measure of the famed Lao hospitality that when we turned up at the Beer Lao brewery, misinformed and expecting a tour (non-existent 10 years ago but maybe they do them now) the staff sat us down in their executive meeting room and plied us with beer and snacks while explaining our mistake and giving us a short history of the brewery!

Robyn

Judy - we haven't seen them elsewhere in SE Asia and we've gotten around a bit.

Danielle - I'm not sure but I believe they are what Thai call 'het lom' -- which is a medium to dark brown floppy mushroom that's shaped a bit like an oyster mushroom (but larger). The mushrooms are dried before frying -- but not dried so much that they are stiff.

sunfug - yes, that is one of the metal bowls. It's hard to see from the photo but on the outside it's sort of 'faceted' like a jewel. We were also looking for the very plain, thin metal bowls often used as dippers in bathrooms (!) and found some on our last day.
Yes, Lao food is very herb and green veggie-focused and Luang Prabang and around northern flavors are prized. Didn't come across the river shrimp but they sound delish! Thanks for your comment.

The comments to this entry are closed.

Istanbulandbeyond_Cover_Final
Look Inside and Pre-Order! Also available at Barnes&Noble and Indiebound.

Categories

Saveur.bfba.200