Food for thought: The Inquiring Chef

Inquiring Chef Pad /ew See

The inquiring Chef makes Pad Ew See (drunken noodles)

I questioned if Andy Ricker’s instruction to toast rice for 45 minutes to manke rice powder might be excessive, and took to the internet. There I found The Inquiring Chef’s recipe which required only 10 minutes and, best of all, showed me what the rice should look like when toasted, when ground with a mortar and pestle, and when ground with a spice grinder. Food nerd heaven!

Rice Powder

Toasted rice powder from the Inquiring Chef

Blogger Jess Smith is a photographer and food stylist, so it’s not surprising her photos are beautiful. But they’re also really helpful, as in the example of the rice powder recipe above. She thinks about what the reader will want to know as they execute the recipe, vs mindless food porn. (Don’t need another tight-focus shot of egg yolks in a bowl, thank you.) Unfortunately the site is chock full of ads which get in the way of viewing, so be patient.

The Smith family lived in Thailand for two years, which is why there are a number of Thai recipes and the adaptations for the western kitchen are well thought through. This laab-gai dish is next on my list to try and it’s loaded with cooking tips and illustrative photography which show why this blog is an excellent resource. We haven’t yet explored their non-Thai recipes and travel articles, so there’s a lot to discover here. Check out The Inquiring Chef.

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1 Response to Food for thought: The Inquiring Chef

  1. llcwine says:

    Wow….these last three posts all have me drooling….such good looking dishes and can almost taste them just from the pictures!

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