Tamarind Thai has been serving wheat-free dishes since we opened our doors six years ago. In the past few years, the demand from customers with gluten intolerance has risen, [...]]]> I am asked every often if my restaurant is able to prepare dishes for customers who are on special diets, such as gluten-free, wheat-free, low sodium, etc.

Tamarind Thai has been serving wheat-free dishes since we opened our doors six years ago. In the past few years, the demand from customers with gluten intolerance has risen, so I did research into gluten-free products and to my surprise, many dishes currently in our menu are already gluten-free.

Those with special diets should not have to give up the pleasure of eating out with friends and family.

I believe that every customer who walks in our doors deserves the best that we can offer. Just ask and we will do our best to accommodate your dietary restrictions.

And speaking of gluten-free, check out the Chicken Satay and Peanut Sauce recipe.

Satay is a very popular dish in Thailand and can be made with chicken, the most popular, or many other meats. Go ahead and try some variations. The main ingredient, that gives satay its particular taste, is curry powder and turmeric.

4 servings

Satay Ingredients 3 skinless chicken breasts 1 teaspoon coriander seeds 1 [...]]]>

Chicken Satay and Peanut Sauce

Satay is a very popular dish in Thailand and can be made with chicken, the most popular, or many other meats. Go ahead and try some variations. The main ingredient, that gives satay its particular taste, is curry powder and turmeric.

4 servings

Satay Ingredients
3 skinless chicken breasts
1 teaspoon coriander seeds
1 teaspoons cumin seeds
2 tablespoons Thai fish sauce
1 teaspoon sea salt
¼ cup vegetable oil
2 tablespoon curry powder
1 teaspoon ground turmeric
1 cup coconut milk
2 tablespoons sugar

Peanut Sauce Ingredients
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1 teaspoon panaeng curry paste
½ cup coconut milk
½ cup chicken stock or broth
3 tablespoon sugar
½ teaspoon sea salt
1 tablespoon lemon or lime juice
1 cup ground roasted peanut

Preparation
To make satays, toast the coriander and cumin seeds gently in a small skillet without oil for about 5 minutes, stir or shake frequently to make sure they don’t burn. Remove from heat and grind with a mortar and pestle to make fine powder.

Cut chicken breast lengthwise into thin strips about 1 inch wide. Mix all ingredients well, except chicken, in a bowl. Add chicken to the mixture; make sure that the meat is well coated. Cover and refrigerate for at least 3 hours.

To make peanut sauce, heat the oil in a skillet until a light haze appears. Add the chopped garlic and sauté until golden brown. Add the curry paste, mix well and cook for a few seconds. Add the coconut milk, chicken stock, sugar, salt and ground peanut, stir well to blend; turn off the heat and add lemon juice. Cook 2-4 minutes, constantly stirring. Pour the sauce into a bowl.

Traditionally, chicken is threaded onto the skewers for grilling. Eight-inch skewers is a good size. Soak the skewers in cold water for 30 minutes before threading the chicken; it is easier to work with than the dry ones. If you have electric grill, the chicken can be cooked without skewers. If cooking on the outdoor grill, the skewers will make it easy to handle. Cook chicken on both sides, turning to make sure they are cooked through, about 6-8 minutes.

Serve with the peanut sauce. In Thailand, this dish is also served with toast.

It’s summer time, and Asian fresh herbs are making their way back into the markets. Among those are Thai basil, or “Krapow,” and fresh chilies. These herbs are locally grown in the Homestead area.

For those who love [...]]]>

Shrimp with Chili and Basil. Buka Ceramic Ware by Juliana Bukowitz. Photo by Kemuel Valdes.

It’s summer time, and Asian fresh herbs are making their way back into the markets. Among those are Thai basil, or “Krapow,” and fresh chilies. These herbs are locally grown in the Homestead area.

For those who love to cook Thai food, this is the perfect time. The aroma of cooked Thai basil combined with garlic and fresh chilies will make your mouth water. Thai basil by itself imparts a fresh spicy flavor when cooked. If preferred, chilies can be left out for those who favor their dish non-spicy.

“Pad Krapow” is the number two best selling dish at our restaurant (second to Pad Thai, of course). The recipe can be made with your choice of meat or seafood. We hope you enjoy it!

Shrimp with Chili and Basil recipe
(Serves 2)

Ingredients
2 tablespoon vegetable oil
2 cloves garlic
2 small, fresh red and green chilies
½ lb raw shrimp*, remove shell and deveined. Leave tail on
¼ white onion, thinly sliced lengthwise
30 fresh basil leaves
10 slices each of green bell and red bell pepper (thinly sliced lengthwise)

Seasoning ingredients
1 ½ teaspoon Thai fish sauce
1 ½ teaspoon light soy sauce
¾ teaspoon sugar
¼ teaspoon seasoning sauce
½ teaspoon oyster sauce
2 tablespoon chicken broth

Preparation
Chop small chilies and a few pieces of green and red bell peppers together. Chop garlic finely and mix with chilies and bell peppers, set aside. Mix all the seasoning ingredients into a small bowl, set aside. In a pan, heat the oil at high heat, add mix of garlic and chilies and stir until the garlic begins to brown or the strong aroma of chilies is achieved. Mix in the shrimp and seasoning mixture, stir until shrimp is almost cooked through (only a few minutes). Add onion and basil leaves, stir to mix well until everything is thoroughly cooked, shrimp is done when bright pink. Transfer to a dish and serve with rice.

* This recipe is also good with chicken, beef, pork (sliced or chopped), use about ½ to ¾ pounds of meat with this amount of seasoning ingredients. If preparing with jumbo shrimp, grill shrimp until well-done, make sauce separately.

We would like to give special thanks to Juliana Bukowitz for her Buka Ceramic Ware, and Kemuel Valdes of ValdesArtHouse.com for the beautiful photograph.

Tennis Court at Flamingo Park

In March, commissioner Edward L. Tobin sent out a letter to local businesses in the North Beach area asking, “ If we bring a world class tennis tournament to North Beach, could it help stimulate the neighborhood?”

In the past, the city hosted major tennis tournaments at Flamingo Park, until the [...]]]>

Tennis Court at Flamingo Park

In March, commissioner Edward L. Tobin sent out a letter to local businesses in the North Beach area asking, “ If we bring a world class tennis tournament to North Beach, could it help stimulate the neighborhood?”

In the past, the city hosted major tennis tournaments at Flamingo Park, until the deteriorating facility prompted organizers to move the tournaments to Key Biscayne. Now, the United State Tennis Association is looking for a new venue and North Beach is back in their sights.

The city is currently working on a new design for the park’s tennis center to accommodate the demands of our residents, Miami Beach Senior High School tennis team and future tournaments. We foresee that construction of a new facility will be equipped to support world class tournaments and bring along general infrastructure improvements while increasing a demand for future employment.

If you want more information about this project, there are some interesting articles on the Miami Herald (Push on to bring prominent tennis tournament back to Miami Beach and Miami Beach OK’s Flamingo Park courts, delays rental vote) and Sun-Sentinel (Miami Beach pushes to bring back prominent tennis tournament).

Commissioner Tobin is open to opinions and feedback at ed@miamibeachfl.gov or he can be contacted at his office 305.673.7107.

Tamarind Thai Burger: Kick-start the Summer Grilling Season

This recipe has been in my family since I was young. It originally started as beef patties served with rice for dinner, I used to take the leftovers for my school lunch. I made some modifications to the dish, turning the beef into a burger served with [...]]]>

Tamarind Thai Burger: Kick-start the Summer Grilling Season

This recipe has been in my family since I was young. It originally started as beef patties served with rice for dinner, I used to take the leftovers for my school lunch. I made some modifications to the dish, turning the beef into a burger served with lettuce and tomatoes. This became a huge hit at school since burgers were mostly an American dish over 30 years ago. Many of my friends had never tasted a burger and soon they were requesting me to make the dish for them. I’m happy to share this recipe with you and I hope you enjoy it as much as I do.

Ingredients
Makes about 8 burgers

1 ½ lbs ground beef
1 teaspoon sea salt
2 teaspoon light soy sauce
1/3 cup finely chopped cilantro
2 eggs
1 tablespoon corn starch
1 teaspoon freshly ground white pepper or black pepper
7-8 cloves garlic, finely chopped
Canola oil for brushing
8 Burger buns

For serving
Green leaf lettuce or iceberg lettuce
Tomato slices
Your choice of Worcestershire sauce, A1 steak sauce, ketchup or Thai Siracha hot sauce
Butter

Preparation
Mix ground beef, garlic, salt, soy sauce, corn starch and eggs together until well blended. Add chopped cilantro and mix well, next form the mixture into 4-inch patties, about ¾ inch thick. If preparing meat hours in advance, leave the patties in the refrigerator.

Light a grill. Brush the burger sparingly with oil and grill over moderate direct heat, turning a few times until cooked through. At the same time grill the buns until slightly crusty at the edges. Spread butter over the bun, top the burgers with lettuce, tomato slices and your choice of sauce and Voila !!!

Save The Seals!

In mid April, I was approached by a representative of the The Humane Society of the United States (who happens to be my customer) asking me to join hundreds of top chefs in the “Chefs for Seals” campaign. The top chefs combined with over 5,550 restaurants and grocery stores in the U.S. [...]]]>

Save The Seals!

In mid April, I was approached by a representative of the The Humane Society of the United States (who happens to be my customer) asking me to join hundreds of top chefs in the “Chefs for Seals” campaign. The top chefs combined with over 5,550 restaurants and grocery stores in the U.S. are uniting to participate in the “ProtectSeals” campaign. It caught my attention and I was shocked to learn that the inhumane practice of hunting seal pups still exists. Thanks to Nigel Barker, a world-renowned photographer and a judge from America’s Next Top Model, for creating the documentary “A Sealed Fate”, which sheds light on these disturbing hunts. The documentary bears witness to his personal experiences.

I attended the “Chefs for Seals” event hosted by the organization who collaborated with Nigel Barker, the spokesperson for the campaign, on April 22 at the Miami Design District. Please join us in helping to save the baby seals.

For more details about the Miami Chefs for Seals event visit Nigel Barker’s blog or the Humane Society’s website

Little Chefs

Let us show you how to turn your time in the kitchen into your time to unwind.

Tamarind Thai Cooking Classes

Class schedule: June thru October, every third Sunday of the month from 11.00 am [...]]]>

Little Chefs

Let us show you how to turn your time in the kitchen into your time to unwind.

Tamarind Thai Cooking Classes

• $ 25 per person
• Pre paid registration required, first come first served
• Limit 12 persons per session.
• Interactive class, material and ingredients included.

Class schedule: June thru October, every third Sunday of the month from 11.00 am to 12.30 pm

Sunday June 20 Chicken and vegetable on rice/noodle
Sunday July 18 Chicken red curry
Sunday Aug 15 Pineapple fried rice
Sunday Sept 19 Pad Thai
Sunday Oct 17 Shrimp green curry

Special group class available upon request.

Cooking for Kids

This summer introduce your children to a new kind of entertainment. Bring them to our interactive cooking class. It’s fun, and it’s free. They will also get to eat everything they make.

• Children must be between the ages of 5 to 12 years old
• Must be accompanied by an adult.
• Pre-registration required. First come first served.
• Limited to 10 per session to ensure full class participation for all children.

Time: 11.00 am to 12.30 pm.

Sunday, June 6, 2010: Chicken on the skewers and peanut sauce.
Sunday, July 11, 2010:  Thai fresh roll and sweet and sour sauce.

Barbecued Lemongrass Chicken

If you plan to barbecue for your family gathering this Memorial Day weekend and would like to add a Thai touch to your menu, I have a delicious recipe for you. This month’s recipe is one that I make frequently, whether it is a holiday or not, after all Miami has beautiful [...]]]>

Barbecued Lemongrass Chicken

If you plan to barbecue for your family gathering this Memorial Day weekend and would like to add a Thai touch to your menu, I have a delicious recipe for you. This month’s recipe is one that I make frequently, whether it is a holiday or not, after all Miami has beautiful weather all year round which is perfect for outdoor cooking parties.

In Thailand, this dish can be found everywhere. Thai eat this with sticky rice and spicy sauce. Recipes vary from regions. I love this recipe of the central Thailand because of its fresh herbs, aroma and delicately blended yet flavorful taste. It is simple to make and the ingredients can be found locally. Many supermarkets such as Publix or Whole Food carry these products.

It is best when served with salad on the side or white rice. This grilled chicken is also good for sandwiches—simply add lettuce, slice tomato and ketchup.

Ingredients

2 lbs chicken with skin on (either breast, whole, legs or wings—pick your favorite part), I will explain the benefit of the skin under the grilling.

4 large garlic cloves

¼ cup finely chopped fresh cilantro

1 stalk of lemon grass sliced thinly crosswise

½ teaspoon sea salt

1 tablespoon fish sauce (thin soy sauce is a good substitute, but please not Kikoman, it will change the flavor of this Thai dish completely)

1 teaspoon whole white pepper (add a few more for spicy taste bud). This spice is one of the staple ingredients in Thai cooking.

Ingredients for Sauce

¼ cup rice vinegar

¼ cup water

1/3 cup sugar

½ teaspoon sea salt

2 small red fresh chilies, finely chopped

1 large garlic cloves finely chopped

Preparation

Chicken is prepared in advance. 15-20 minutes to finish with two hours marinate time.

In a food processor, blend garlic and lemon grass, aim for a harmonious blend. (I usually use mortar and pestle. It is a bit hard work but it is quite a stress reliever. You may want to try if you happen to have them in the household.) Remove the mixture to a bowl and add the freshly ground white pepper, sea salt, fish sauce and chopped cilantro. Whisk together until all ingredients are well blended. Rub the mixture over chicken, make sure that it is coated well. Put in a bowl, cover and leave in a refrigerator for at least two hours.

Sauce

Put sugar, vinegar and salt in a saucepan and heat, stir until sugar dissolves. Add chilies and garlic and water, stir well and simmer until it becomes thin syrup.

A piece of red bell pepper finely chopped is a good substitute for chilies if prefer. I sometime use a pinch of dried chilies—the type we put in our pizza, when I do not have fresh chilies on hand.

Grilling

Epicurous.com/video provides helpful information for grilling preparation, just click on the “grilling” section under “technique videos”.

Grilling chicken over low, medium or medium-high heat is depended on the cut. The thicker the cut the lower the heat should be. You do not want the meat’s exterior to burn and the interior is not cooked.

When grilling, the chicken skin plays a very important. Fat underneath the skin helps prevent the cooking meat from drying out. Flare-ups will occur as a result of fat dripping onto the coals or gas flame. It is inevitable but it can be managed by moving the meat to the other part of the grill or flip over the meat frequently.

If you are concerned about saturated fat, discard the skin after the chicken is well cooked.