Sydney Thai favourite Spice I Am welcomes us for a home-style feast, made for sharing.
Spice I Am chef Sujet Saenkham knows a thing or two about home-style Thai cooking: he’s built an institution out of it, and has sure had plenty of practice. In a small village south-west of Bangkok, way before he’d even dreamed of owning five restaurants in Sydney, Saenkham developed his understanding of flavour, balance and – you guessed it – spice, preparing meals for his rice-farming family.
“I’m the oldest, so I learned from my mother how to look after everyone,” he says. “Now I pass what she taught me on to my family, my staff and our guests at the restaurant.”
For this month’s reader dinner, Saenkham presents his favourite dishes from his new cookbook, Spice I Am. They span central and north-eastern Thailand, as well as southern-style family recipes learned in Phuket.
For GT readers, Saenkham will kick things off with country-style fishcakes followed by minced pork with rice noodles in broth, then a ginger, roasted coconut, crushed cashew nut and pork-floss salad.
Part of the fun of Thai food is sharing it – and both the slow-cooked beef curry and signature wok-tossed pork belly call for exactly that. A finale of steamed coconut rice pudding makes the perfect complement to the tang and spice of this Fine Dining Lovers event.
Join us for dinner at 7pm on Monday 18 May at Spice I Am, 296/300 Victoria St, Darlinghurst, NSW. The cost of $120 per person includes wines by the glass, S.Pellegrino and Aqua Panna waters, and a $10 donation to the Ovarian Cancer Research Foundation. To book, call (02) 9332 2445. For more on the OCRF, call 1300 OVARIAN or visit ocrf.com.au.
Spice I Am menu
Siam Passion cocktail
Alto mixed olives
Thai fishcake with holy basil
Miniature vegetarian curry puff
Singha beer
Phuket-style fish curry in banana leaf
Minced pork and rice noodle broth with steamed pork roll
2013 Pacha Mama Riesling, Victoria
- Salad of pork floss, ginger, coconut, cashew nuts and Chinese broccoli
2013 Nigl Grüner Veltliner, Krems
- Fried king prawn with tamarind sauce
2013 Te Kairanga Runholder Pinot Noir, Martinborough
Phuket-style curry of cod, Thai black mushroom and betel leaf
Slow-cooked beef green curry with eggplant
2012 Domaine Pichot Vouvray, Loire Valley
- Stir-fried pork belly with chilli jam
2012 Solar Viejo Tempranillo, Rioja
- Steamed rice pudding
SPONSORED BY FINE DINING LOVERS
