grilled beef e-saan style : suea rong hai

Grilled Beef E-Saan Style : เสือร้องไห้

In 2008, I did read in a magazine (Dichan) about a Thai lady who is now very successful being a famous Thai chef in Paris. Her restaurants are named “Thiou” & “Le Petit Thiou” after her name. Later, she was on a Telly telling her story ; about how she has become a successful chef in Paris. President Nicolas Sarkozy is one of her regular customers and to get a seat there you need to wait for a few months. To cut it short, she mentioned that her signature dish is “Grill Beef Esaan Style - aka “Suea Rong Hai” in Thai : (เสือร้องไห้).

Then, it got me thinking why I never once cook this dish? I mean it has never been in my head before. Its a great dish, very simple & easy dish too cook. Therefore, I started cooking it. The only main key to get a good dish is getting good quality meat. Then what you have to do is to cook it right. (You hardly can go wrong with this dish!)

Find below my very own recipe (Personally, I prefer cooking Beef this way.)

500 G. (½ Kilo) of Beef (Premium/Top Sirloin- “Wagyu” is highly recommended.)
Sea Salt
Freshly Ground Black Pepper
Fresh Organic Herbs & Vegetables for Garnish (Mint, Sweet Basil Leaves, Coriander, Spring Onion, Cucumber, etc.,)

Dipping Sauce น้ำจิ้มแจ่ว

3 Tablespoons of Ground Roasted Rice
2 Tablespoons of Ground Chili
3-5 Tablespoons of Lime Juice
5 Tablespoons of Premium Fish Sauce
½ Cup of Shallots (Thinly Sliced)
¼ Cup of Spring Onion (Chopped)

Preparation

Rub the steak with sea salt and ground black pepper. Set a cash-iron-skillet over medium-high to high-heat. Wait till it is becoming very hot. Then grill your beef to perfection. Taste is individual, I like mine cooked “medium rare”. Remove the steak and keep aside to rest. Prepare the dipping sauce by putting everything in a mixing bowl, stir gently to mix everything well. Test your dipping sauce and add more fish sauce and lime juice if needed. Slice the steak and serve with a cup of warm steamed (I prefer “black”) sticky rice, a cup of dipping sauce one the side and garnish with fresh vegetables. Now, any tigers will be very envious and start to cry!

Note : I know it is not fair not to give out an original recipe. Find below and an original E-saan Style recipe.

500 G. (½ Kilo) of Beef Sirloin
4-5 Tablespoons of Fish Sauce
½ Tablespoon of Palm Sugar
3 Teaspoons of Ground Chili
3 Tablespoons of Ground Roasted Rice 

Preparation

Marinate the steak with fish sauce, palm sugar, ground roasted rice and chili. Keep in the refrigerator for at least 15 minute. Grill the steak with low heat till well cooked. Slice and serve with a cup of dipping sauce and sticky rice.

Serve : 2

thai version of "suki-yaki" : สุกี้แห้งไก่

Thai Version of "Suki-Yaki" (Dried) with Chicken : สุกี้แห้งไก่

Lately, I find myself having lunch at “Foodland” in Sukhumvit Soi 16 very often with my colleagues. They have a small restaurant there called “Took Lae Dee” for working people who come for a quick lunch : something quick, good quality and inexpensive. (80 Bht -150 Bht per dish). Yes, what I usually order for lunch here is very predictable. (Phad Ka-pao Gai Kai Dao ผัดกระเพาไก่ใข่ดาว, Phad See Eiw ผัดซีอิ้ว, Rad Nah ราดหน้า, ect.,)

Last week, I ordered this “Dried Suki-Yaki with Chicken” ; one of the most popular (adopted) single-dishes in Thailand and then I thought – this is easy. I can easily cook it at home and I can cook it even better. I mean the bottled-sauce is tasteless.

I wonder how this “Suki Yaki” is becoming one of our nation popular dishes? Its Chinese by origin (most of the popular suaces are Chinese : Cantonese sauce is very popular here.) but its named Japanese ("Suki Yaki" means Hot Pot) and, somehow, some of us like it dried. Dried Suky Yaki (Dried Hot Pot) sounds very unusual, eh? Anyway, I googled a little and found nothing (Not even in Wiki). One thing I really don't like is that when you want to know/learn about food history in Thailand. You can't seem to find where to start. Very disappointed.

Find below my recipe,

1 Cup of Chicken (Free Range is preferred)
2 Cups of Vermicelli (Glass Noodle)
3 Organic Eggs
1 Organic Medium Chinese Cabbage (Shredded)
2 Cups of Morning Glory (Shredded)
1 Cup of Chinese Celery (Cut)
1 Cup of Spring Onion (Cut)
1 Cup of Eryngii Mushroom (Any hard-white Mushroom will do.)
3 Cloves of Garlic (Finely Chopped)
4 Tablespoons of Suki Yaki Sauce (But a bottled-sauce in Supermarket.)
3 Tablespoons of Oyster Sauce
3 Tablespoons of Soy Sauce
2 Tablespoons of Seasoning Sauce
3 Tablespoons of Olive Oil (Light & Mild)

Preparation

Set a wok over medium-high heat, wait till it becoming hot. Add oil and later garlic, fry till aromatic. Add chicken, stir-fry till cooked through. Then add eggs, wait for a few seconds for the eggs to set a little then add oyster sauce, soy sauce and seasoning sauce, stir-fry to mix everything well. Add vermicelli & then add vegetables. Turn off the heat. Add Suki-Yaki sauce and stir to mix everything well. Transfer into a serving plate. Serve hot with a cup of Suki-Yaki sauce on the side.

Now, Taste is individual – each of us likes the Suki-Yaki sauce differently. (I like it with lots of lime juice but my mate likes it very sweet.) I have an easy solution. We don't need to tolerate a bottled-sauce. All we need is being a little creative.

Find below a quick & easy way of Suki-Yaki Sauce

2 Cups of (bottled) Suki-Yaki Sauce
4-5 Chili (Finely Chopped)
3 Cloves of Garlic (Finely Chopped)
2-3 Tablespoons of Fish Sauce
2-3 Tablespoons of Lime Juice

Preparation

Add everything in a bowl, whisk till mixed well. Voila! (Please, note that each brand comes with different taste – test your sauce first before being too creative!)

Serve : 2