Street Eats ‘n Treats in Thailand ©
Grasshoppers, crickets, assorted insects – down the hatch! Although it’s easy to dismiss Patong, as a tourist haven, you just can’t dismiss the exceptional street food in Thailand. To eat or not eat: that is the question.
Grilled crabs are snapped up quickly at the Patong night market of Phuket, Thailand.
It is a tribute to the resourceful Thai people, or perhaps the greed of developers, that the busy collection of restaurants, shops, markets, and malls, makes it difficult to imagine this destination was destroyed and thousands of lives lost during the powerful tsunami ten years ago.
Street food in Patong, Phuket, Thailand, is delicious and varied. The vendors are happy when they sell
So here we are at Malin Plaza, one of many street night markets on the island of Phuket, searching for our dinner in the area that suffered so much loss. The Thai folks we met are resourceful and hard working. Could I, a soft and spoiled foreigner, toil long backbreaking hours in insufferable heat for low to modest returns like those who work this market each day?
Nothing hits the spot like a crunchy fried insect from one of the most popular stalls of the night market in Phuket, Thailand.
Each morning at 11 a.m. the hawkers begin their daily stall set up. This is easily the hottest part of the day (35 plus degrees C ) when tourists are wilting, hiding from the brutal noon sun. Not these hardy entrepreneurs who toil until almost midnight. Electric cables, portable tables, protective canvas flys, woks, blenders, kitchen paraphernalia, small stoves, burners, pots of hot bubbling recycled fat, pre-cut and neatly stacked veggies, all are part of the regular ritual. Fresh whole fish, crabs, lobster, shrimp, lying in straight lines on quickly melting ice, are grilled and then carefully laid out alongside skewers of chicken, pork, beef, and crocodile….and those divine fried insects.
With the enjoyment of exotic culinary delights, however, comes environmental responsibility. When West meets East, when travellers from developed countries meet street hawkers from developing countries, there is a clash of cultures.
As consumers in Canada, we do not purchase shrimp from Thailand. Yet, here we are, looking over the local street stalls at the amazing array of skewered shrimp on display. We haven’t yet considered tempting seafood like shark, octopus, crabs, or oysters.
As consumers in Canada, we do not purchase shrimp from Thailand. Yet, here we are, looking over the local street stalls at the amazing array of skewered shrimp on display. We haven’t yet considered tempting seafood like shark, octopus, crabs, or oysters.
Shrimp, lobster, shark and more are among the seafood offerings in Patong’s night market of Phuket, Thailand. There is concern these favourites are not sustainably harvested.
This vast array of seafood gives rise to sustainable and environmental questions.
Take shrimp for instance. Initially what we mistook for shrimp were, in fact, faux shrimp, pre-formed pieces of white-fleshed fish, coloured pink-orange and shaped in a shrimp mould. No telltale black intestinal cord. No shell. No heads. Although cheaper to buy than its real counterpart, most street market customers thought these fakes were the real critter until the first bite. Considering the state of the shrimp industry in Thailand, perhaps it’s just as well.
Reports in December 2013 claim the shrimp industry in Thailand (and Mexico) has been suffering from Early Mortality Syndrome (EMS) disease, a bacterial infection that shuts down the crustacean’s digestive system. In Thailand, about 40 percent of the industry’s annual yield is expected to be affected. http://thediplomat.com/2013/12/diseased-shrimp-thailand-could-lose-1-5-billion-in-exports/
Shrimp is succulent, sweet, tasty, healthy, and popular. So demand for these delicious little creatures is high. Raising them in large quantities in a sustainably responsible manner means a sizeable investment and commitment. http://www.huffingtonpost.com/Menuism/choosing-sustainable-shri_b_4262068.html
Take shrimp for instance. Initially what we mistook for shrimp were, in fact, faux shrimp, pre-formed pieces of white-fleshed fish, coloured pink-orange and shaped in a shrimp mould. No telltale black intestinal cord. No shell. No heads. Although cheaper to buy than its real counterpart, most street market customers thought these fakes were the real critter until the first bite. Considering the state of the shrimp industry in Thailand, perhaps it’s just as well.
Reports in December 2013 claim the shrimp industry in Thailand (and Mexico) has been suffering from Early Mortality Syndrome (EMS) disease, a bacterial infection that shuts down the crustacean’s digestive system. In Thailand, about 40 percent of the industry’s annual yield is expected to be affected. http://thediplomat.com/2013/12/diseased-shrimp-thailand-could-lose-1-5-billion-in-exports/
Shrimp is succulent, sweet, tasty, healthy, and popular. So demand for these delicious little creatures is high. Raising them in large quantities in a sustainably responsible manner means a sizeable investment and commitment. http://www.huffingtonpost.com/Menuism/choosing-sustainable-shri_b_4262068.html
So if I care about seafood sustainability, I must ignore those skewers of real grilled shrimp just waiting to be devoured. It makes no difference to the hawker; he just wants to make a sale and feed his family. The Russian tourist beside me is buying 3 to 4 skewers of those genuine shrimp; the Thai chef is happy.
Each evening this hollowed-out Volkswagen camper opens its top and converts to a popular bar serving exotic cocktails at one of the many night markets in Phuket, Thailand.
After considering the pros and cons of eating real shrimp---and resisting the urge---we are thirsty. So we wander over to the bar.
Experienced ‘free pour’ bartenders concoct strong cocktails (about US$3) and serve beer (about US$2) on the perimeter of the market at cheap prices They perform their mixing skills within Volkswagon campers cleverly converted to on-site bars. “No drink. No eat” read the tee-shirts on the young bar girls discouraging food only customers. If you carry food from the hawkers and are willing to buy an accompanying drink then you are welcomed with the familiar Thai greeting sawadee ka/krab, hand palms pressed together in prayer-like fashion and a slight bow. If not a paying customer, you are politely invited to leave.
Experienced ‘free pour’ bartenders concoct strong cocktails (about US$3) and serve beer (about US$2) on the perimeter of the market at cheap prices They perform their mixing skills within Volkswagon campers cleverly converted to on-site bars. “No drink. No eat” read the tee-shirts on the young bar girls discouraging food only customers. If you carry food from the hawkers and are willing to buy an accompanying drink then you are welcomed with the familiar Thai greeting sawadee ka/krab, hand palms pressed together in prayer-like fashion and a slight bow. If not a paying customer, you are politely invited to leave.
At the night market of Phuket, Thailand, a gourmet selection of fried insects awaits: crickets, grasshoppers, silkworms, beetles and other unidentifiable varmints, waiting to be crunched.
The largest crowds gather around the fried insect stall. So popular is this stand there is a sign in English stating photos can only be taken if you purchase the crunchy little morsels. Crickets are caught in the wild while grasshoppers and silkworms are raised on insect farms in northeast Thailand.
However, even when eating fried insects, we face the question of sustainability. With insects, the outlook is more positive than seafood. Poor families in northern Thailand can raise them, or catch them in the wild, as a means of earning a livelihood. It is mostly folks in the European and western world who shudder at the thought of devouring a bug. But experts declare this is the food of the future. Insects are nutritious, some more than others, and contain high fat, protein, vitamins, fibre and minerals. And they are sustainable! http://www.nature.com/scitable/blog/labcoat-life/why_should_we_eat_insects
However, even when eating fried insects, we face the question of sustainability. With insects, the outlook is more positive than seafood. Poor families in northern Thailand can raise them, or catch them in the wild, as a means of earning a livelihood. It is mostly folks in the European and western world who shudder at the thought of devouring a bug. But experts declare this is the food of the future. Insects are nutritious, some more than others, and contain high fat, protein, vitamins, fibre and minerals. And they are sustainable! http://www.nature.com/scitable/blog/labcoat-life/why_should_we_eat_insects
Readily available in Patong’s night markets of Phuket, Thailand, is white crocodile meat, touted to be low in fat and cholesterol, but high in protein.
The last exotic beast to taste test is the crocodile. We do not. We do not hear happy stories about the various croc farms in Thailand and have no desire to visit one. Croc white meat is supposedly tasty and higher in protein than chicken or pork. It is regularly available at the night market.
During our three month stay, we found the Thai people highly sustainable. But can we eat there? Despite our moral dilemmas, we found enough street food to be sustainably filling and responsibly delicious.
During our three month stay, we found the Thai people highly sustainable. But can we eat there? Despite our moral dilemmas, we found enough street food to be sustainably filling and responsibly delicious.
Published: The Travel Word May 12, 2014