“Jungle curry comes from the forest areas of Chiang Mai in northern Thailand. It is one of the few curries made without coconut milk. This is because it is made only of produce collected or hunted in the jungle, and coconut trees do not grow in this region of Thailand. The traditional game is replaced here by chicken.”
RECIPE NOTE: “In Thailand, if a man mistreats his wife, his mother-in-law fries him two eggs served in a tamarind sauce, which is, of course, nice and spicy!”
My mother was born and raised in Yaowarat, in Bangkok’s Chinatown. My grandfather was a Chinese accountant who left behind his wife and six children after he died from tuberculosis. Having no income, my grandmother would cook small dishes and Chinese snacks that my mother and her sisters would sell after school, outside the cinemas.
My mother later met my father, who was from an upper-class Chinese family that had been living in Bangkok for several generations. My paternal great-grandfather had married a Thai woman who worked in the kitchens of the royal palace in Bangkok. She was the one who prepared family meals, and it was alongside her that my mother learnt to cook Thai food.
I grew up in a family where people didn’t talk about their feelings, and children weren’t a part of adult discussions. The only times we could connect and have a proper conversation were when talking about menus for family meals. It was, and still is, our main topic of discussion.
I have long since realised that love in our family is expressed through the dishes we cook. In this book, I am sharing with you all the love I have ever received in my life.
