Keep on trucking

Two more ticked off our favourite yakitori's impressive list.

Grilled chillis, mild and deliciously smokey.



And beef liver.



As well as these we revisited a host of past favourites as our used stick jar can testify to.



Each visit we chip away a little more of the list, maybe with some dedicated effort we could finish it off this year.

Porky goodness at the end of Soi 11

Staying over the Sukumvit side of town meant a whole new world of discoveries. We found an awesome foot massage place a few soi's over, and conveniently we walked past a charcoal grill full of porky goodness so we always found ourselves stocking up just because .....

The charcoal grill would usually have a few fresh things sizzling away ...



but there was always the tray at the front that was piled with all sorts of pig, you just pick up the sticks you want, place them on the end of the grill to warm them up and you're away.



The chosen sticks would then be packed into a bag with chunks of cabbage, Thai herbs, scud chilli's and slices of fresh ginger.



A perfect walking snack on the way to another wonderful massage ...

Our love for Issan ... food!

We both love Issan food. The herbs, the spice, the chilli ... oh the chilli! Of all the places we've been in Thailand, the Northeasten corner is one we've yet ventured to. We always say we're waiting for enough time, as we're certain we're going to love it and there'll be so much to see. We seem to do a pretty good job of finding Issan food along our travels, like this little gem in Samui.

We found this on our first trip to Samui, a couple of years ago. She moved to Samui and fell in love with the ocean. It works out quite well, as alot of the contractors building here migrate down from Northern Thailand, and all miss their food. She makes traditional Issan food for the locals, and I honestly think we were her first even farang customers those years back.


Our first visit to Issan Food, Lamai

This time the kitchen has swung around and got a bit bigger, still with the charcoal grill out the front. We order some nam on stick, fermented pork sausage. A bowl of fresh herbs and vegetables including Thai basil, cucumber, cabbage and snake beans is placed on the table along with some sticky rice. This is a damn fine nam!



We also get a grilled pork salad, that's tossed with a roasted chilli and lime dressing with some roast rice and corriander leaves.



The cucumber salad is a nice little play on the traditional som dtum style salad. Chilli, peanuts and dried shrimp are pounded in the mortar, lime juice, palm sugar, fish sauce and the cucumber is then added. It's all tossed together and is a refreshing explosion of flavours and textures.



I can never pass up the oppotunity of a soup when we visit Issan Food in Lamai. They always vary, depending on the herbs and vegetables that were at the market today. Today we have a beef & herb soup. Thin slices of beef are simmered with garlic, chilli, apple eggplants, a little cabbage and lots of dill. It's a heady, aromatic soup, with tons of flavour and loads of stuff.



Although we haven't physically made is up to Issan, we do often get the opportunity to be transported there by the food ....


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Thai night carnival, Koh Samui

A roaming dinner is always a good one. Especially when it's at a Thai night carnival. We park the car and walk down the side of the road, the cars and scooters being ushered with military precision around the hoards of people.



The first stop, sweet corn in a cup. The fresh, plump, steamed corn kernels are mixed in a bowl with a touch of salt, sugar, coconut and butter. We take our cup in hand and continue roaming ...



Mmm, meat on a stick. We spot a lady with a pile of sticks and are oh-so-happy to see it's nam, fermented pork and glutionus rice sausage on a stick. She flashes it over the charcoal as she prepares a little bag with whole scud chilli's, chunks of cabbage and sliced ginger. It's nice and smokey, from the charcoal, and has a nice sour tang. Mouthfuls of sausage are alternated with chunks of cabbage, ginger and chilli.



Another meat on stick, chunks of marinated pork, also grilled over charcoal, keeps us going for a few more minutes ...



We spot a guy grilling these very interesting looking flatbreads over open flame charcoal. We grab a bag to take home.



We finish off the walking adventure with some fried chicken legs and a bag of fried chicken skin. Mmm.



If only carnival food was this good, and this cheap, all over the world.

More stick food, Sapporo.

Ten types down sixty five to go. Well sixty two now, stopped by the other day and knocked chicken with leek sauce, tsukone with cheese and potato with butter off the menu of our favourite yakitori place in Sapporo.





The tsukone with cheese was a surprise favourite. Didn't think that the combination would be at all pleasant, but the crisp on the outside chicken mince containing the melty cheese was really good. Maybe we've started going local..........or maybe it's just good.

The quest will go on.

Yakitori Yosaku

I love how in Japan every available space in/on/around a building is used. It could be the smallest alcove only able to fit two seats and some one will have a built a two seat ramen shop or such. In this case the space being used is in the under category. Wedged in under what was formally Pow Pow now Kila is Yakitori Yosaku. A small bar in the front and a few tables in the back, I don't know about the darts board on the wall, they either aren't expecting many people or those that come have very thick skin, literally.





We get some Tako-age to start, a small bowl of crispy fried octopus with a wedge of lemon, it's tasty, the octopus not chewy or over fried.



Being in a place called Yakitori we had to get a few sticks, the pork belly was nice covered with glaze, though it could have done with a bit more grilling to crisp up the outside for my liking.



The chorizo was two mini sausages with little heat but good spicing.



The lamb is the first lamb we have seen on a yakitori menu, it's tasty lightly glazed and sprinkled with toasted sesame seeds.



The chicken skin is the best example of this most glorious stickfood that we've seen to date. The skin has been cooked long enough to crisp it up most of the way through, rendering all the fat out. It's crunchy flavorful goodness.



The final snack for tonight is five types of Japanese mushroom with lemon, soy and butter wrapped in foil and grilled. I'm pretty sure I only counted three types of mushroom but, they tasted good all the same.

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