Photo Essay: TV Host Eden Grinshpan Took Your Dream Trip To Thailand
Eden Grinshpan made sure to visit the Ko Samui night market on her second trip to Thailand.[/caption]
Eden Grinshpan is the host of the popular Cooking Channel show Eden Eats. A recent Forbes 30 Under 30 award recipient, she studied at Le Cordon Bleu in London and also stars on Log On & Eat with Eden, a weekly travel program in which she connects with food bloggers, YouTubers and tweeters around the globe. Fresh off her second trip to Thailand with her husband, the television host wrote in to Food Republic to discuss her favorite stops and eats along the way.
This was my second time in Thailand, but my first time on the islands. The first time I came to the country, I flew into Bangkok and traveled up to Chiang Mai in the North. This trip was a last-minute vacation that I booked with my husband, who had never traveled to Asia. I have spent a lot of time there and was dying to take him on a new adventure, knowing that he was going to love it! I absolutely love introducing people to new foods and experiences — it is a total high for me.
Thailand has such a beautiful culture, climate and delicious food. The street food all over Thailand is dynamite! Where to begin? The herbs, spices, seafood, BBQ, different interpretations of the dishes (which vary from region to region), discovery of new foods, use of kaffir lime leaves, chilies, Thai basil, coconut, fish sauce, lemongrass. Wow. Then there's the people watching and friend-making. There really is nothing that is not fun or exciting about traveling in Thailand.
Bangkok
Ko Samui
Ko Tao
Ko Phan Ngan
Ko Phan Gan is where the full moon party happens, so you can only imagine how packed the island gets! Luckily for us we went after, so the island seemed pretty calm. There was a line of food stands near where the boat dropped us off, so naturally I had to grab something before our drive to our hotel. I went to the busiest food stand and pointed at what looked delicious to me, which turned out to be the hottest food I have had in Thailand yet: Thai red pork curry served on rice noodles. The woman who sold me the dish kept asking me if I was sure I wanted it, and after eating it I knew why she had asked! The hotel we stayed at had a small town nearby with the cutest little local restaurants. We ate fried soft shell crabs with fresh pepper and garlic, ground chicken laarb, even more Massaman curry, deep-fried green banana with a fresh coconut batter, bananas stewed in hot coconut milk and khao tom goong — Thai breakfast rice soup with shrimp, fresh ginger, fish sauce, fried garlic and scallions.
I have to say that Bangkok still stands out as my favorite food spot in Thailand. The islands have their own street food and local spots, but the street food in Bangkok is so diverse that almost every stand is different from the next. You can't be intimidated by any of the food stands, especially if it is a busy one! You can see how clean they are, how fresh the produce is and if it's busy, the cooks is always buying new ingredients. I can't really pick a favorite dish, since they were all incredible, but some standouts have to be the green curry with rice noodles in Ko Samui, the mango sticky rice (everywhere and anywhere in Thailand), the BBQ chicken skewers and pork sausage in Ko Tao and the fried whole snapper with tamarind, garlic and chili in Bangkok. I absolutely love the way Thai cuisine uses fish sauce. I know it can be a little intimidating to most, but once you get over the smell and start incorporating it into your dishes, you will realize the depth and umami richness it brings to your food. I also have a thing for Thai basil, tamarind sauce and kaffir lime leaf, so I am sure I will use much more of that in my cooking. I am always inspired by my travels and I definitely will be creating more Thai-inspired dishes at home.
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