The Kanom Krok pan

So, after spending the evening with Pimpa the other night, I felt convinced that I needed to try kanom krok.  The first step was to obtain a kanom krok pan.  I got on the Internet and did a search for kanom krok pans and found one for $17 plus $5 shipping and handling.  They also had lime paste (an ingredient in kanom krok), so I ordered a small container of that for $2 as well.  Three short days later, my kanom krok pan arrived!

I was so excited!  I tore open the box and pulled out my pan, lid, and lime paste. 

The day was Saturday and I knew Pimpa would be working at Mahnin's, so I grabbed up the pan and headed down to the restaurant to share my excitement.  When I arrived, the restaurant was empty, except for Mahnin, Pimpa, and the cook.  I showed Pimpa my amazing treasure and there was a brief exchange of excited Thai as they admired my kanom krok pan.  I sat and smiled, thinking they were expressing awe and amazement at my cleverness and resourcefulness in obtaining this authentic cooking vessel.

Pimpa turned to me and asked, "How much you buy this pan?" 

"Seventeen dollars," I told her.

At this, there were shocked gasps all around.  Well, of course there would be!  I had accomplished an amazing thing!  But the gasps were immediately followed by giggles and laughter.

"She sell for $11 next door,"  Pimpa told me, pointing at the Asian market across the street.  "And how much you buy this lime paste?"

"Two dollars,"  I said, almost under my breath....

"She sell next door for seventy-nine cents!"

More giggles and laughter.  How was I supposed to know this? A farang in my own country!! Thank goodness I hadn't told them about the $5 shipping and handling fee. I'd look like a total sucker.

O.K. well... the important thing is, we  now have a kanom krok pan.  What are we going to do with it?  The ladies grabbed up my pan and headed off to the kitchen.  Since there were no customers in the restaurant, they were able to whip up a batch of kanom krok in no time. 

The first batch was made with basically nothing more than rice flour and coconut milk and turned out gummy and tasteless.  It went in the trash.  The next batch turned out a bit better, but there was quite a lot of arguing about whether or not to put sugar in the batter.  The Burmese cook did not want sugar as they are made without sugar in Burma, but Pimpa wanted sugar as they are made with sugar in Thailand.  I left them to argue it out and went to sit down at a table and wait.

Pimpa came out a few minutes later and said, "Oh!  I so mad I just want scratch her face up!!"  It was my turn to chuckle!  I guess they can be quite serious about their food.  (true confession number one.... so can I!)

As we sat around tasting the second batch, it occurred to someone that perhaps the market across the street carried not only the pans, but the treat itself as well.  Pimpa called over and sure enough, the owner told her a local Thai lady made them up in her kitchen and that they were available out of her refrigerator case.  $3 for a plate of 8 or so.  Less than 5 minutes later, we were all sitting around eating authentic kanom krok made by a real Thai cook.

I didn't let that deter me from coming home and trying the pan out myself.  The recipe in my Thai Street Food cookbook looked good, but there were some problems with it; it called for 2 T of salt in the batter and I thought that was WAY too much, it also didn't tell when to add several of the ingredients.  So, I got on the Internet again and did a search for recipes.

After reading six or seven different recipes, I came up with my own combination and gave it a try.  But before I could make my kanom krok, I had to season my new pan.  This took several hours as I had to heat it up, oil it, cool it down, repeat several times.  But my efforts paid off as my kanom krok did not stick to the pan and released beautifully!

Now, I don't like to sound arrogant, but I think I have every reason to be proud of my kanom krok! They turned out BETTER than any of the ones I tasted at Mahnin's. (True confession number 2 - since I've never been to Thailand, I have no idea what they are supposed to taste like. But I believe I nailed it!)

Today, I plan to make up another batch and take them down to the restaurant.  If they want to make fun of me for paying too much for a kanom krok pan, let them have their fun.  But the last laugh will be mine when they taste what I'm able to do with that pan!