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- Phuket Magazine Vol. 13.1
Where Dreams Come True
For some people, Phuket is the ideal spot for their dream house and the
interior of that house is where the dream comes true
Art on the Eighth Latitude
For others, Phuket works its magic, inspiring artists to create.
King’s Cup Review - A Great Regatta
Though breezes were lighter than perfect, the fifteenth regatta proved that
the show goes on in any conditions.
Investing in Phuket: A Rock Foundation or Castles in the Sand?
Phuket is not only beautiful but it’s also a safe haven in these
Ice Cream: Thai Style
Ever have ice cream on a hot dog bun? Try it — you might like
it, as well as other ice cream novelties as only the Thais can create them.
Soft Lighting, Softer Music and Spicy Thai Cuisine
A Lazy Lunch at Rydges Beach Resort
Expat Diary: Jai Yen. Jai Yen Yen
By Michael Moore
Perhaps it's because Thailand was
never colonized, but there's no denying that much of the Kingdom's charm
comes from the fact that it marches to its own drummer. The food, for
example, is a fascinating jumble of adaptation, ingenuity, and creativity
that invariably ends up being uniquely Thai. Ice cream, or i-tim as it is
known throughout the country, is an intriguing case in point.
Food historians seem to agree that frozen desserts first appeared in China.
There is evidence that primitive forms of ice cream were being eaten in
frigid areas of China as far back as 2000 BC. Flavoured water ices, a less
complicated product, were regular fare in areas with ice when Marco Polo,
Italy's famous wanderer, arrived on the scene. He was so impressed with what
he saw that he took recipes back to Europe. A short time later no royal
banquet was complete without a sorbet to clean the palate between courses.
The Europeans started eating ice cream, as we now know it, when the
technology for making ice was developed. It became the rage with French
royalty after a clever chef figured out how to make it. Not to be outdone by
the French, other royal houses started consuming it in large quantities.
Initially the cost and problems of making ice made it a dish reserved for
those with blue blood. But as ice became cheaper, ice cream's popularity
spread to the masses. By the time Europeans started colonizing North
America, it was being eaten by everyone and it quickly became popular in the
British colonies, where it was consumed in prodigious quantities. Today ice
cream is so ubiquitous in North America that many erroneously believe it was
invented there.
The Thai experience with eating frozen desserts is remarkably similar. They
were first eaten by royalty who learned about them from their European
counterparts. Later, when it became possible to make ice cheaply, the taste
for frozen treats trickled down to the common people. At this point, the
imagination of the Thais took over, and the products that emerged employed
ingredients that were locally popular and easily available.
The first step was to make flavoured frozen ices. This was accomplished in
several ways and some of them are still followed today. The i-tim laht that
are sold by mobile vendors and in Thailand's traditional markets provide a
fascinating glimpse into the past. These ice lollies are made in an
extraordinary contraption fabricated from stainless steel. Tubes slide into
a rack that is fitted into a large container that is filled with ice and
salt. The rack is shaken back and forth to promote freezing. When the ice is
almost frozen, a bamboo stick is inserted so that tube of frozen ice can be
enjoyed without the consumer ending up with sticky hands.
However, as everyone who has eaten ice cream knows, flavoured ices are a far
cry from the scrumptiously rich and creamy taste of ice cream. The Thais,
who didn't have a lot of dairy products, reached the same conclusion.
Lacking cows and the cream they produce, they turned to the coconut for the
liquid necessary for making "ice cream". The taste and texture of im kati
sohtslightly different, but the cream obtained by squeezing coconut
flesh that has soaked in water possesses the fat necessary to make a dessert
similar to the ice cream made from dairy products.
Thailand's frozen ices and coconut ice cream owe their flavours to dessert
ingredients virtually unheard of among Westerners. Millet, corn, basil
seeds, red beans, black beans boiled with syrup, and laht chong, a bright
green noodle flavoured and coloured with pandanus leaves, are some of the
favourites. Just try finding these flavours and toppings at your local
Baskin-Robbins.
Even now, with dairy products readily available in Thailand, the ice cream
made by vendors and hawkers is often made solely from coconut cream or from
a combination of dairy and coconut creams.
The enduring Thai fondness for ice cream made from coconuts probably isn't
merely a question of taste preference. The Thais, like most people in the
Asia, have difficulties digesting lactose, the sugar that occurs naturally
in milk. Since lactose doesn't occur in coconut milk, large quantities of
coconut-based ice cream can be consumed without the irritating side effects
produced by dairy ice cream.
Traditional Thai ice cream is available in a variety of places. Vendors on
bicycles and motorbikes with boxes attached containing ice and coconut ice
cream cruise the streets and laneways of Thailand's cities and towns. They
are always followed, as with ice-cream vendors throughout the world, by a
gaggle of children who have pestered their parents for a little money to buy
some of the rich, cold sweetness.
Although the plastic and stainless-steel emporiums operated by Swensens and
Baskin-Robbins have made an assault on Thailand, it's still possible to find
ice-cream parlours specializing in coconut milk ice cream. If you see one -
or a vendor trundling down the street - take the opportunity to try what's
on offer. In addition to a pleasant taste treat, the experience will provide
you with an inexpensive and fascinating trip into Thailand's past.
One of the most unique things about Thai ice cream is the way it's served.
Cups and cones are popular, but most Thais prefer their ice cream dished up
in a hot-dog bun! The bun is opened and filled with small scoops of one or
more varieties of ice cream. A topping or two - often surprising in nature
to Westerners - is poured on top and the ice cream and bun are then eaten
like a hot-dog. The result is always delicious, unusual and uniquely Thai.
Traditional Recipe For Coconut Ice Cream
1 cup sugar
1/2 cup water
3 1/2 cups thick coconut milk
In a saucepan, heat the water and melt the sugar till you have a thick
syrup, taking care not to scorch the sugar. It should be thick enough to
coat a spoon or paddle.
Remove from the heat and, when the syrup has cooled to the point where it's
warm, add the thick coconut milk.
Put the mixture in the container of an ice-cream maker and follow the
manufacturer's directions. If desired, shredded coconut or a chopped fruit
of your choice can be added.
Remove the ice cream from its container and serve.