SimpliThai takes the guesswork out of preparing delicious Thai food at home
On a recent trip to Bhutan, I was traveling through the Paro Valley after visiting the Taktsang Palphug Monastery, when I decided to dip over the border into Tibet to see the Potala Palace and check out the summit of Everest. It was my fourth or fifth time to the top – I forget now. While crossing the Pacific, I realized dinner would be ready in half an hour, so if I wanted to hike the Appalachian Trail, I’d have to do it quickly.
In the absence of unlimited leisure time or a bottomless bank account, I’ve taken to alternate means of travel — in this case, a tour of the Himalayas and the Great Smoky Mountains (all on the same day) courtesy of Google Earth. Although most COVID-related travel restrictions are now a thing of the past, the pandemic ignited a wanderlust in many of us keen travelers that could only be satisfied through creativity and imagination — no passport required.
I found myself subscribing to emails from the Newfoundland Tourist Board, buying books about intrepid adventurers in far-flung corners of the world, and watching YouTube videos of people hiking through the English Lake District and setting up tents on desolate, windblown mountain peaks. From the comfort of my couch, I longed to be as cold, damp, and miserable as they were. Even though I’m once again traveling the real world, the pandemic taught me to incorporate some of the virtual travel tools I’ve picked up along the way.
Before embarking on recent trips to New York and San Francisco, I walked from the train station to my hotel a couple of times using Google Streetview as a guide. When I arrived in person, I walked two blocks, turned left at the 7-Eleven, and it was right there, just as it was on my computer screen. The short walk felt intimately familiar, albeit now full-sized.
Of course, there are other ways to travel vicariously that don’t involve an internet connection. A great book can transport us from our hometown to an alpine stream in just a few pages. Movies can show us familiar landscapes through someone else’s eyes, and the signature riff of a Tuareg guitarist can pluck us up from the marshy Lowcountry and drop us into the dry Sahara without having to remove our headphones.
Food is another vehicle for global exploration that we can enjoy at home. It wasn’t long ago that the ‘ethnic’ section of my local grocery store consisted of tortillas and the occasional bottle of Manischewitz. But ingredients once considered exotic are now widely available at most grocery stores, and if you can’t find them there, they’re likely to be on the shelves at one of our many local specialty stores. It’s never been easier to treat your senses to the wonders of galangal root or to make your entire home fragrant with kaffir leaves. Of course, getting the ingredients is only half the battle — you also have to know how to cook with them.
Fortunately for us, Charleston-based SimpliThai has taken all the guesswork out of preparing delicious Thai food at home. Their meal kits come with everything you need to make standards such as red curry and pad thai, but you can also get creative with more unusual dishes such as Kao Soi. This dish from northern Thailand features handmade egg noodles topped with a vibrant yellow curry sauce, fried onions, fresh cilantro, and chili oil.
SimpliThai is the brainchild of owner and chef Kai Jantanan. While working as a nurse in Austin Texas, coworkers would marvel at the aroma and taste of Kai’s homemade lunches and would beg her for recipes so they could create their own Thai meals at home. Despite their best efforts, the results never quite measured up to Kai’s cooking, so she began creating meal kits, including all of the necessary ingredients, a homemade sauce, and foolproof directions that even I can follow.
Kai’s goal is to make homemade Thai food accessible to those of us with even the most modest cooking skills. “Cooking at home with friends and family is important. It’s fun!” She’s right. These meals come together in a snap, they’re delicious, and they usually provide our family with several days of food. Kai has plans to offer local delivery in the near future but for now, you can pick up a SimpliThai meal kit at your local farmer’s market, including the West Ashley and Sunday Brunch Farmer’s Markets. If you’re feeling more adventurous, there’s a great market just outside Chiang Mai, Thailand. I’m on my way there now … from the couch, of course.
Aaron O’Brien is a native of Great Britain. He and his wife Christina make up local musical duo Oh Valentino. When they’re not performing, they’re in their West Ashley kitchen trying to prepare something their kids will eat.
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