POK POK The Drinking Food of Thailand

I spent part of the weekend with one of my good friends from med school! It’s been ages since we last hung out so there was a lot of catching up to do. Since it also happened to be his birthday, we went out to a semi-fancy schmancy restaurant near where he lived for a feast and then Netflix-binged on his couch.

I promise we didn’t go out like this. But is this onesie not amazing? (He couldn’t find the one he had with a cape, but this will do!)

If you guys happen to remember Lord Snow, the chinchilla I was babysitting some time ago, he’s still as cute and fluffy as ever! <3

None of this is very related to my book review aside from the fact that I do like to tease said friend about his liver function sometimes on account of his alcohol consumption, which loosely transitions over to this cookbook I discovered on the drinking food of Thailand!

POK POK The Drinking Food of Thailand: A Cookbook

Genre: Food/Cooking
Pages: 266

Although I don’t drink, I do sometimes appear at bars with friends and partake in delicious noms while they partake in happy hour. POK POK The Drinking Food of Thailand is sectioned off into the following chapters:

• Khang Waang (Snacks)
• Tom (Soup)
• Naam Phrik (Chile Dips)
• Khawng Thawt (Fried Foods)
• Khawng Yaang (Grilled Foods)
• Yam (Salads)
• Khawng Phat (Stir-Fries)
• Khawng Kin Rawp Deuk/Khawng Kin Chao (Late-Night + Morning Food)
• Sundry Items

Unfortunately, there is a pretty substantial amount (~50%) of recipes in here that I can’t try out due to my food restrictions, but this isn’t the book’s fault. Just be aware that you’ll have to make some modifications if you can’t eat pork or seafood other than fish!

Each recipe contains a short intro, the ingredient list, instructions, serving size, and a note regarding any special information or ingredients/tools you’ll need to make these recipes. The instructions in this book are in a more in a paragraph/story-type format, so it may be different from what you’re used to in a usual cookbook.

POK POK The Drinking Food of Thailand is definitely informative, and the background information was an interesting read–I haven’t been to Thailand in over a decade and would love to go back to explore again sometime!

There’s a discussion at the end on some of the ingredients that are often used (a number of which would be harder to find if you don’t live near a specialty store–although I suppose Amazon is always an option[?]).

I love Thai food, and this book is very well-organized, with lots of different unique recipes that I’ve never had or heard of before. If you’re more of the adventurous type and/or serious about your Thai food, POK POK The Drinking Food of Thailand would be a great book to check out.

However, if you can’t eat pork/seafood other than fish, aren’t thattt adventurous with food, are looking for more of the classic recipes (e.g. curries, pad thai, mango with sticky rice) or can’t get your hands on very many of the more uncommon ingredients (e.g. pickled Gouramy fish, sawtooth herb, to name a couple), I think Ricker’s earlier book (Pok Pok: Food and Stories from the Streets, Home, and Roadside Restaurants of Thailand) would probably be a better bet!

• If you drink alcohol, are there any foods that you always crave when you’re drinking?
• Have you ever had Thai food? What’s your favorite dish?