I die for Thai
San Diego created a monster.
I had my first Thai experience, and since then have been dreaming of wrapping everything in rice paper and dipping it in peanut sauce. So when I was trying to figure out dinner last night –we usually go out, or get takeout on Saturdays- I said:
“Doyouwantpizzafordinner or… would you like some Thai food?”
“Thai sounds great!”
YES.
After doing a little Google review scouting, we decided to get some takeout from Thai China Siam. Crab wontons and red curry chicken for him, green curry vegetables, fresh rolls with peanut sauce for me:
The verdict?
Everything I had been wanting.
My green curry was actually spicy (and I love how the rice soaks up the sauce!), and the fresh rolls were crunchy, fresh, and filled with cilantro and basil. I keep thinking about venturing into making some Thai food at home, but I think I need to have the authentic stuff a few more times to research the flavors first 😉
With full bellies, we blasted some Trans-Siberian station on Pandora, and busted out the rest of the Christmas decor and ornaments for the tree.
Two years ago, we bubble-wrapped every single one, because we didn’t know where or when we’d see our ornaments again. Opening them made me feel very thankful, because I could remember how freaked out I felt when we were wrapping them up. We could be opening our ornaments in Korea right now, or anywhere really, and the fact that we’re here in Tucson makes me heart so happy.
My mom and nana came over to hang out with us while we decorated the tree
and the best part of the night was sitting on the couch with my nana, watching my mom and the Pilot get the holly garland on the second story ledge.
I laughed so hard, I had tears rolling down my face.
I had to give up the one I was wearing as a feather boa, and we definitely need a taller ladder… but they made it work.
The finished tree:
+ our favorite ornaments
It was very good to see them again.
This morning, we’re off to Sunday brunch with the fam, and then visiting Vies!
Hope you have a beautiful and relaxing day <3
xoxo
Gina
Something to talk about: What’s your favorite type of ethnic cuisine to make at home? For me, it’s Mexican, which is kind of a cheat since I grew up with it. Do you have any good Thai recipes or resources?
Something to do: A workout quickie:
Try the Turkey Treadmill Workout or the Black Friday Frenzy Circuit… or, if you have extra time, combine the two!
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Oh, how I love the thai food. I don’t have a recipe for this (unfortunately) but you must try the pineapple chicken (red) curry with bell peppers and bamboo shoots the next time you do thai take out. Every thai restaurant has it on the menu. It sounds random but I swear you will never go back. So glad you discovered Thai. It’s my favorite too.
Oh Gina, Curry is Soooo easy. You just cook your veggies + meat – and then you put in some curry paste, coconut milk, a little sugar and some fish sauce (adds the salty). It’s one of the easiest dinners to make! I love red curry with fresh pineapple and chicken + veggies!! 🙂 I have an easy recipe on my blog, just search curry!
Love your decorations!! 🙂
The food looks so yummy and your tree is gorgeous. Love the dancer and airplane ornaments – too cute!
I totally laughed out loud at the broom and the rake. Way to improvise!!! 🙂
Oh man, I worked at a gourmet Thai Food Restaurant in college for 4 years. I highly recommend that if the Thai place you go to has an eggplant dish, that you try it. Eggplant + Thai seasonings = amazing.
What a beautiful tree! I’m spending the morning with my family before I head back to my apartment. We made waffles are I’m going to help them decorate their tree too.
Your Christmas decorations look so beautiful!
Thai food is amazing, I totally agree. I know to make homemade coconut curry veggies, they sell green curry paste in the grocery store in a little bottle. Just add a tablespoon or so to some coconut milk, add frozen (or fresh!) veggies and add cilantro at the end. So delicious! I used to make this all the time last year. I haven’t made any type of spring roll, but I’d assume they’d be easy to make!
Look in Whole foods. They have a bunch of simmer sauces in jars that are a great starting point. Love green curry. You can also find the paste by itself and mix it with coconut milk. I love it with the frozen ceviche mix you can find in most grocery stores (but yeah –cooked).
This post made me so happy – especially picturing how uncertain things were when you were packing up those ornaments last time. Isn’t it wonderful how life just has a way of working out? Your home is so full of gratitude and laughter, and your daughter will certainly inherit that grateful heart.
You totally JUST inspired me to get our christmas tree out. I usually don’t set it up – but I’m gonna do so today!!
Your house looks great! I loved the picutres of your Mom and the Pilot putting out the garland! Too funny!
You are gonna have a baby under that tree…… 😉
You should try making some! Spring rolls are super easy. Cilantro or basil. Matchstick carrots. Cucumbers sliced the long way. Little shrimpies. Then u just take a rice wrapper and get it totally wet in a bowl of water. Put it on a large plate and press it all over to make sure it’s totally wet. Then put your fav ingredients and roll! It’s okay if they look more like lopsided burritos. Peanut sauce varies but I use on hoisin and sriracha. Don’t remember the amts. try it! You’ll like it.
That was peanut butter and hoisin and sriracha. Auto correct. 🙂
🙂 Your house is so lovely!
Love Thai food! The curries are so creamy and I love the coconut flavor that they have. Also peanut anything is my favorite, which makes Thai restaurants led the top of my list 🙂
Our favorite is Indian or Mediterranean (which is always falafel, and a Greek salad, which we have almost every night anyway), but we sometimes just cook up some veggies, throw a few spices and coconut milk over them, and call them a Thai meal 🙂 Works for us!
Hi My Girl! Nana and I had such a wonderful time with you and Hijo last nite! Nana was saying how much fun it was to be celebrating all of the times we prayed for…even though we were not wearing our depends!!! The Christmas decorating company that Hijo and I want to start may have to wait until we get a few more rakes & brooms, but most importantly a holly sling shot! I love you! Thanks for the beautiful night! Madre
Love making Indian food at home!
In case you need to try some more Thai before making it at home, I also hear that Char’s Thai is an hidden treasure of goodness.
Thai food is sooo.good. I haven’t had it in forever, though! Lately I’ve been cooking Chinese food at home (or at least trying to). That stuff is addicting.
Thai food is my absolute favorite cuisine, and I’ve been trying to learn how to make it at home. Recently, I attempted Praram (tofu and vegetables with peanut sauce). It was pretty delish! Here’s the link to my blog post if you want to give it a try! http://alimental.net/?p=1987
Thai curry is super easy… I go to the local Asian mart and buy curry paste; I think it’s available in some regular grocery stores too. My favorite is panang. The base of the sauce is coconut milk (from Trader Joe’s!), curry paste and then I just add whatever vegetables and chicken (or make it vegetarian). Making spring rolls with rice paper is also super easy. I use either rice noodles or lots of leafy greens as the main filling and then my usual ingredients are fresh cilantro, roasted sweet potato & squash pieces cut in very small cubes and peanuts. The fun part about making the spring rolls is trying different ingredients.
Gina your house is beautiful and the holiday decorations look wonderful. So glad you found your ornaments and decorations and can make your house a home this year with them 🙂
Yum to the Thai food. I love that your first Thai food experience was here in San Diego!
I love our local Thai restaurant! I get the drunken noodle with tofu and it is spicy and sweet, and oh so delicious! Y’all’s tree looks amazing! Happy Holidays!
You have to try Pad Thai. Best Thai dish ever!!! 🙂
omg i looove all the decorations, looks so christmasy!! i need to decorate here soon.
i love mexican food, i’d rather have someone else make it for me though! haha but i enjoy making it at home as well
I live for Mexican food! I even ate Mexican food in Germany this summer bc I was jonesing for it. It was…different.*
You have such a lovely home, Gina! The garland photo pics are pretty awesome…as is the finished product 😉 We put up our tree this last weekend as well, complete with new ornaments for Lulu and Pippa that let us create an impression of their paw prints! Have you seen those? I think you should get one for Bella 🙂
no i haven’t! do you have a link?? what a cute idea 🙂
Here’s the link, but I got it for $9.99 at Bed, Bath, & Beyond!
http://www.amazon.com/Pear-Head-50001-Ornament/dp/B000CQ1CF4
awesome- thank you!
That Thai food looks SOOO good! Mmmmm!!! So fresh too!! I want some Rice Paper and Peanut Dipping sauce RIGHT NOW! Your tree is gorgeous! Loving the pilot and Gina ornaments! (:
I LOVE thai! There is a restaurant up the street from my house that make thai street food…very Anthony Bourdain No Reservations style. They make a dish called Kra Pao chicken that is amazing…if you’re just getting into thai you definitely should try it! I keep meaning to make a healthified version because it is just so good!
Thai food and Indian food are my absolute favorite ethnic foods. If I want something creamy and bread-y, I pick Indian. If I want peanut sauce and curry, I pick Thai! I could honestly eat those foods every day.
Your tree looks gorgeous!
My husband and I LOVE Thai too! I finally figured out how to make it and its really so simple. Go to the dinner section under my recipes tab on my blog and you’ll see a recipe for both red and green curry. So good and so easy!
Man, it must be tough doing all that Thai food research… peanut sauce is SUPER easy to make! So are the rice paper spring rolls. Your house looks awesome! I love the inventiveness of broom use with the decorating, very nice. So glad you are home safe with family with your ornaments and not half way around the world! Live can be so blessed some times. <3
Everything looks so beautiful! And I’m so excited that you’re going to visit Viesa!!! Please post pics! I miss that gorgeous face of hers 🙂
i have a pic to post tonight 🙂 we were so happy to see her beautiful face
Mine’s Italian, which is also a cheat since i grew up w that! But still yummy nonetheless.. I did have a friend teach me to make Thai food once before (like spring rolls and pad thai), but I’m still nervous to try it on my own!
Your house is gorgeous, btw! 🙂
thank you, friend!
🙂
You should definitely check out Char Thai, on 5th near Rosemont. They have amazing curries (my favorite is the Panang vegetable), and the weirdest, most hilarious decor ever. It used to be a Mexican restaurant, so they have a huge desert mural on one of the walls, and when it changed to a Thai place they added a huge temple, among other things. And the tables all havr pictures under the glass tops with different themes, ie Marilyn Monroe. So bizarre, and in my opinion the best Thai in Tucson.
thank you so much for the tip- we’ll go there next time!
I LOVE Thai food! I am a huge fan of most ethnic cuisines, so I’m always happy in that department. Your house looks lovely!
Did you find an ornament that represents the baby?
not yet- i’ve been on the lookout!
Awww the decorations look great!!
So glad you have been introduced to the amazingness that is Thai food! Your tree and ornaments look gorgeous! I’m so happy you’re decorating in Arizona and not South Korea!
I love Thai too! I’ve never had Thai food from a restaurant though because of all the peanuts and nuts they use. 🙁 But I love making my own curries!
I had rice paper rolls Friday night with shrimp, herbs & rice noodles inside with the bestttt peanut dipping sauce – those things are addictive!! I definitely love making Mexican food, by far my favorite cuisine to make in my own home, I’m in love with using different dried chilis in sauces. I even received my very own tortilla press a couple years ago bc I just couldn’t get enough haha!
Aww yay! It seems like Christmas in your home for the first time makes you really feel like you’re home 🙂
I love Thai food – Thai and Indian are my favourites to make at home!
Thai curry is SO stinkin’ easy as others have said! Veggies, paste, coconut milk, lime juice, sugar and fish sauce. Done! 😀 My FAVOURITE thing to put in Curry is shrimp, and by FAR the best – pumpkin/squash. It’s SO creamy with the curry and you will die for it. Trust me!
I did an American take on the Spring roll once and did cashew cheese with matchstick carrots and Granny Smith Apples and Napa cabbage for my daughter’s lunch box. All her friends were jealous. There are countless variations on these- saw a recipe with mango inside once…
Thai is easy to make – they use fish sauce in a lot of things but it is just a salty element so nama shoyu works too.
Karen
I love your Christmassy house, so sparkly!
I really enjoy Moroccan flavours – cumin, ginger, cinnamon, usually with dried apricots or prunes to sweeten it up and some herb, like thyme. This combination works for vege or non-vege meals, but requires a bit of a process to get it right, involving butter and step-by-step cooking :D. Makes the house smell divine too.
I think Mexican is my favorite too… A good Italian meal is always enjoyable but we cook a bunch of Italian inspired dishes at home too 😛
Come to Thailand! Can’t get any more authentic than that. I drown in a sea of beautiful curry over here 🙂
Your home looks gorgeous and I love the tree. I wont be decorating my tree until December 11th because I’m on vacation, but i am looking forward to it.