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Glossary
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Thai
Fruits
Salak
(Ra-kam)
Salak
have reddish brown skin covered with thorns. You have to be
careful when peeling them. The fruit inside is brown, generally
with three segments attached tightly together. It is quite
sour, though sometimes slightly sweet. You can eat them in
syrup and crushed ice, but make sure you take out the seed
first. Flesh and juice of salak help to clear your throat.
Santol
(Ga-ton)
Santol,
or ‘Ga Ton’ has a round, flat shape with yellow or beige skin.
Inside, the cream color flesh covers white and fluffy seeds.
They normally come in three distinctive tastes: sour and rubbery,
sweet and sour and completely sweet.
There
are two varieties of Ga-ton in Thailand. The first are Gaton
Ban, or local santols, which are small and flat and sweet.
Sometimes they have a hint of sour. Gaton Hor, or sweet santols,
are larger and sweeter. They’re popularly eaten fresh with
salt mixed with chili powder. Before eating, they’re normally
cracked on the floor to improve the taste. Some eat peeled
pieces of santols with syrup and ice. They can also be kept
longer by preserving them in saltwater.
Sapodilla
(La-mud)
In
Thailand, La-mud are available from October to December. They
have Kiwi fruit size and colour, but their skin is smooth
and their shape is a little more slender. La-mud have a very
passionate sweet taste. When buying, choose long, slender
ones, with light brown, tight skin. The meat should be aromatic,
soft, and reddish brown in colour. They have black slippery
seeds so be careful when giving them to children. They are
normally eaten when fully ripe, since if they are eaten unripe,
they will have a very rubbery, unpleasant taste. Once cleaned,
the skin may also be eaten, but they are better when peeled.
Star
fruit (Ma-fueng)
Star
fruits are long with a cross-section like a six-pointed star.
Unripe ones are clear green while ripe ones are yellow. The
taste varies a lot. Some are quite sour, some are sour and
sweet, and some are completely sweet.
Thais
like to eat them a little under-ripe when they are crisp and
slightly sour. Dipping them in powdered chili and salt makes
them taste much juicier. Overripe ones don’t taste as good.
Star fruits can be preserved either dried or pickled. The
season runs from October to December.
Apart
from its beautiful shape, star fruit also has medicinal qualities
such as curing gallstone or acting as a diuretic. Some believe
they can cure hangovers.
Water
Chestnut (Haew)
You
can see water chestnuts in some main course recipes, but normally
they are known as dessert. To eat them, simply boil the chestnuts
and peel off the black skin that will bring you to the transparent,
yellow meat. Their crispy flesh tastes rich and creamy. Unlike
Thai melons that are eaten with coconut milk, water chestnuts
are better in syrup. Sometimes it is hard to find water chestnuts
in fresh markets. The ones in a can from the stores can be
used as a substitute in any recipe.
Watermelon
(Tang Mo)
Although
watermelons are technically considered vegetable, they are
eaten more as fruits. The two types found in Thailand are
Sugarbaby which has a dark green skin, and the Charlton Grey
which is light green with round dots. The flesh inside can
be red or yellow. Both taste almost the same but the yellow
ones are more expensive. They are available nearly all year
round. The dried pips make a popular snack as well. Watermelons
are extra juicy and ideal for making sweet fruit juice to
quench your thirst or to cure fevers.
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