A good friend from the Chowhound community always organizes such amazing lunches, and he is great finding a “a hole in the wall†type of places, this time we went to Golden Bankgkok, a Thai restaurant that most of the group have tried already, except for me and one Canadian Chowhounder that joined us today.

The way the meal started made sense, with the softest and sweetest flavors, getting us to sour & bitter lands to end our meal with hot, pungent spicy craziness.

We started with this khao piak sen (chicken soup with homemade noodles), everyone liked it and to be honest it was good to start, the starchy soup opens your appetite, not salty, a touch of sweetness and bitterness thanks to the crispy garlic.

khao piak sen

Now this dish rice paste wrap was so simple yet so filling, wrapping in romaine lettuce pieces of Thai eggplant, ginger, peanuts, tomatoes, this sweet & savory rice paste and sliced lemongrass. It was just combination of aromatics and flavors still you feel light after having so much going on your palate.

rice paste wrap

I was very excited when I saw this dish on the menu Orm Lam (eggplant curry stew with beef) and yes the beef was tender and had a great texture, but the flavour was too mild, perhaps Iâ€m comparing it to the Vietnamese Goat Curry Stew I had a couple of weeks ago at Eden Center, but this dish didnâ€t deliver much flavors but for a non spicy Thai food person, this is a safe dish.

Orm Lam

The Banana Flower Salad, had tons of citrus touches with cilantro, it was very balanced, I wouldnâ€t order a whole bowl for myself, but it is great for sharing if ordering as a side dish. As you can see on the picture everything is mostly shredded so I didnâ€t get to make a distinction between the banana flower and the other elements on this dish.

Banana Flower Salad

Nam Khao (rice ball salad with pork), out of this world, personally this dish didnâ€t impress me on paper or when I saw it, then I had crunchiness of the fried rice (just as a good Panamanian Concolon!) then lime touches, cilantro, sweetness of the pork, it was heaven in my mouth and I could have had more and more of this dish, it is a must!

Nam Khao

Soup nor mai (bamboo shoot salad) I donâ€t even know if how to mention this, I feel terrible because my experience at this restaurant was really positive, this dish wonâ€t bring me down, and it wasnâ€t a matter of they missing something or poor execution, this dish was just Iâ€ll put it this way, I thought this salad was made of Durian, and I have never had Durian in my life, except for the candy my sister brought me from Nepal. this was serious, kind of smelly, I just tasted with the tip of my tongue and put a napkin and didnâ€t eat… some others at the table, as Chowhound warriors ate a spoonful and said it was ok but they couldnâ€t have a bowl or would order again.

The texture of the Koi Pa (shredded fish salad) threw me a little off at first, but its flavors were amazing, I am a huge fan of ceviche but I have to admit that the flavors on this salad were beyond the ones of a ceviche, it has so much going on without overwhelming the dish. there is galangal, lemongrass, touch of palm sugar that gave such complexity to the Koi Pa I just canâ€t wait to try it again.

Koi Pa

The Poon Pa (pounded fish) was just ok a little of the usual citrus flavors, lime & cilantro and the fish, nothing fantastic I can pass the next time.

Poon Pa

It was a revelation to try the Ping Ling (grilled tongue), you see my mother has cooked tongue so many times and even myself I have prepared it on dinners because of itâ€s demand by guests.  But I have never, ever even crave beef tongue, and yet I can still remember how I forgot to ask what dish it was while I was trying this Ping Ling I asked afterwards mentioned how soft and tender and tasty it was and someone “Itâ€s tongue Helena” and thatâ€s when I had this revelation, I had a slice of it without the sauce, and then with it. The bitter sauce I can live without tasting it for the rest of my life, the second sauce was amazing I even dipped my sticky rice in it, it was delicious, sweet, sour, citrus, pure tasty. Right now while typing this I want tongue and I want lots of it!

Som Pa (fermented fish) reminded me of a piece of beef jerky but with more texture and less chewy, it was another dish that at first sight I wouldnâ€t think it would tasty, but then this restaurant proved me wrong again with its fermented flavor and acidity it was another refreshing dish I would love many people to try.

Som Pa

Grilled Chicken the “Ping Kai” was served with a papaya salad which was really different and really HOT in compare to the ones I have tried before, it was not my favorite but I canâ€t say much because itâ€s heat was more that I could take, this dish was also served with a sauce that everyone called the soup because by itself with just some rice it was amazing.  Going back to the chicken itâ€s the closest I have tasted to my favorite kind of chicken the Jamaican Jerk Chicken, so yes it was as good as it sounds and as good as it looks.

Ping Kai

The last dishes Sai Oua (Lao sausage) it was nothing amazing for me itâ€s difficult to describe a dish that is safe and tastes just OK after having some disappointments and also so many great dishes at the same time. Forgettable is the word that comes to mind.

Sai Ou

At the end the kitchen sent a closing dish, it was a super ultra HOT past, I am not sure up to this moment what it was but it stayed in my mouth for a good few minutes, i tasted some sweet and salty but then the heat hit me like a bomb and I am very happy this was at the end of my meal because I wouldn’t have been able to taste anything after this dish.

A couple of ladies and I ordered white and dark Thai beers, I am not a huge beer fan but with this cold weather and so much spicy going on I would rather a glass of dark beer or I would suggest for non-beer fans, young coconut drink!

Rest of the pictures on my Facebook Page! CLICK

The next time I’ll make sure to check out their desserts!

¡a comer!

Últimamente ha sido más difícil cocinar en casa desde que inicié mi trabajo nuevo.  No me quejo porque gracias a esta situación he podido probar diferentes restaurantes, sobretodo los que hacen entrega a domicilio u ofrecen el servicio de preparar para llevar y esta vez el camión de “Rebel Heroes” me salvaron el almuerzo.

Prometo compartir alguna fotografía del camión la próxima vez, pero ayer mi Chico estaba trabajando cerca así que me trajo a casa estos emparedados, fue gracias a Twitter cuando vi que el camión estaba en Courthouse fue ¡Bingo! ya sé lo que quiero de almuerzo, emparedados vietnamitas.

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Lately it has been very difficult to cook at home since I started my new job.  I am not complaining because thanks to this situation I have been able to try many places that offer carry outs, this time my Lunch was saved by the Rebel Heroes ladies!

I promise I will take a picture of the truck the next time, but yesterda the Boy was working nearby so he brought it home after I read on Twitter that the Rebel Heroes were going to be on Courthouse so I told him to get some sandwiches for lunch.

#6 Righteous Pork “The Rebel”

#5 Pressed Cubano “The Old Guard”

En gerenal $5.50 es muy barato por un emparedado decente, y comprendo que algunos se queden con otros lados como Subway por el tamaño y porque trae más vegetales, pero este “Bánh mì” resuelve y muchísimo.  Nosotros probamos el #5 (Pressed Cubano y el #6 (Righteous Pork) (pressed supongo es como estilo panini, aunque no fue así, tendré que averiguar).

Tienen buen tamaño y aún de haberlos comido 10 minutos luego de haberse preparado estaban calientitos, y el pan soporta perfectamente los jugos de la carne.  El mío fue el #6 y tenía jalapeños eso le dio un toque al emparedado, me gustó la mayonesa compuesta que pusieron, solo que hubiese querido más vegetales.  El Cubano estuvo bueno, pero no fue mi favorito, pienso que le hizo falta un poco de sabor en comparación ah #6.

Sí, compraría allí nuevamente, la próxima vez quiero probar el “Tofú Libre” y les contaré qué tal me fue.

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Overall $5.50  is very cheap for a decent sandwich, I understand Subway lovers they get a footlong, etc more veggies, but this sandwich (if you ask for it to be Cuban Pressed) get’s the job done.  We had the #5 (Pressed Cubano) and #6 (Righteous Roast Pork) (pressed).

They have a nice size, 10 minutes later when the Boy brought them home they were still warm and the bread just holds all the juicyness and meats perfectly.  Mine (#6) had jalapeños in it a nice kick it added to the sandwich, I like the mixed mayo it had and I wish it had more vegetables.  The Cubano was good but not my favorite I thought it was missing flavour in compare with the R. Pork.

Yes I would buy again, the next time I will try the Tofu Libre and will let you know how it was!

Menu here

Twitter here

“Like them” on Facebook here (I would rather Become a Fan, but now I guess “we like” =)

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¡a comer!

Yes I was baking the Mamallena in pijamas! hihihi

Talking to dear Steve and Penelope about having a potluck I always mentioned how I would love them to have a taste of Panamanian cuisine whenever it was possible, and since there is no restaurant in DC area that serves Panamanian cuisine I decided to take responsibility for spreading the love!

Having lunch at Cafe Assorti with them Penelope suggested me cooking for them with their help instead of having a Potluck, at first I thought yay it would be fun, then I thought what if they don’t like it?  Then I realized many of Panamanian dishes are very similar to Caribbean (Puerto Rico & Cuba), Ropa Vieja, Arroz con Pollo, etc.  So they wanted the not so common Panamanian dishes such as:

Appetizers

Hojaldres (fried bread)

Patacones rellenos con queso (double fried green plantains stuffed with cheese)

Empanadas de Maiz con Tuna (corn empanadas stuffed with tuna)

Entrees

Chorizo Guisado (sauteed chorizo in tomato sauce)

Yuca al Mojo (cassava w/ lime juice, olive oil, garlic, butter & cilantro)

Lengua Guisada en Vino (cows tongue in wine sauce)

Ensalada Rusa o de Fiesta (russian potato salad, or party salad)

Sopa de Pata de Vaca (ox feet soup)

Arroz con Guandú y Coco (rice with coconut & green pigeon peas)

Saus (pickled pigs trotters)

Desserts

Mamallena con Helado de vainilla (raisin bread pudding with vanilla ice cream)

Kekis (ginger-unrefined sugar cane-molasses-coconut soft cookies)

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So as you can see there is no sancocho, or tres leches, or sopa borracha, or rabito de puerco or camarones al ajillo, from all the options I gave them this is what they pick and boy did I get great feedback.

On the negative side I learned a lot trying to make the corn empanadas, it was a difficult task because in Panama we use fresh cooked corn and then grind it, but Steve and I drove all the way to Landover to buy fresh Corn Masa just to find out they grind it uncooked, but it wasn’t all bad since that day we had the best chicken I’ve had in DC area so far, Jerk Chicken from a Jamaican joint, it made my day!

After the failure with the Fresh Masa which fried tasted like Frito Lays, I decided to use Masa Harina, at the same time my mom made some tests from Panama to check on this and she said it was perfect, but she used a different corn flour.  My masa harina did not work well, and so when I travel back to Panama this is something I have to learn more about, CORN!

I will share some thoughts and pictures and apologize for not having pictures of the dinner itself but just the process, it was a crazy weekend, started at the restaurant, started selling bread and this dinner, you can imagine.

Now let’s check it out!

Preparing Coconut for Rice and Kekis

This is the unfamous Beef Tongue

So its right tender make sure you boil it for 45mins- 1 hour with salt and water, a soft boil & clean properly.

Sautee your veggies and then add the Tongue

Once you add the Tongue sautee for few minutes and then tomato paste, sautee add water and wine and make sure you scrape  the bottom of the pot with your spoon to obtain those caramelization flavours to your sauce!

This is the final result, this dish I made a day ahead and simmered a little more before serving with a side of Patacones, yuca and Russian Potato Salad.

Chorizo Guisado was pretty simple, buy good chorizo, chop some vegetables, throw in oven 35 minutes at 375F then just toss in a pot with tomato sauce, sugar, water and chicken stock =)

Toast the coconut for the Kekis and grate ginger

Say hi to my daughter, Lady Mixer – For this Keki I worked a recipe by the Chef Melissa (Cooking Diva) and did some variations to it, I will share my recipe also!

And this is the delish delish Keki just as they sell it on the streets of Panama, a touch fluffier and more flavourful!

Brine chicken overnight, then marinate few hours with garlic, herbs & oil, pat dry and bake with some chicken fat until cook (i used dark meat for this).  Save the liquid and combine with chicken stock for cooking beets and shredded chicken for Potato Salad (delish flavours at the end!, promise will share recipe soon!).

Sao or Saus (Pickled Pig’s Trotters), for those interested on this I will share the recipe so you can give it a try, 50% love it, 25% didn’t care for it, 25% disliked it, so it’s a matter of taste, me I love it!

And my Empanada disaster, this is how I will end this post because yes it was a disaster, yes they took too much of my time, but also yes it is a new challenge i have yet to face again and again and again once I arrive in Panama! I must add they had good flavour though!

¡a comer!

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