Modern Thai Food: Matcha Ice Cream and Orange Granita with Peanut Sesame Crumbles

[SiSePuede419]

Ingredients:

 

Matcha Ice Cream

Green Tea Powder, Coconut Milk, Homemade Yogurt, Salt, Maple Syrup, Sweetened Condensed "Milk" (Nom com wan).

 

Orange Granita

½ Kilo Oranges, Brown Sugar (Naam tan), Salt

 

Preparation:

Matcha Ice Cream

Mix 1.5 Tablespoons Green Tea Powder (Pong Chaa Kieaw, a.k.a "Matcha") in 4 oz hot water, below boiling temperature @ 175F/80C.  Add one ice cube to cool. Throw into blender or food processor with one small box of Coconut Milk (Gratit) and ½ cup yogurt, and a squirt or two of Sweetened Condensed Milk and ¼ cup Maple Syrup and a pinch of salt.  Blend until smooth.

 

It should be slightly sweet, but not too sweet and have a strong green tea taste and almost bitter aftertaste.  

 

Pour into ice cream maker and punch the button.  Put in a container and put in a cold freezer for a few hours to firm up.

 

Alternatively, if you don't have an ice cream maker, you can make this (or any ice cream or sorbet) in your freezer in a metal or glass bowl.  Sir with a fork every 15 minutes until the desired consistency.

 

Orange Granita

Juice one orange, reserve the rind making sure all seeds are removed.  Add orange juice and ½ to ¾ cup brown sugar in pan. Heat until sugar melts.

 

Juice remaining oranges.

 

Throw sugar mixture & orange juice into blender or food processor with a pinch of salt.  Add orange rind. Blend until smooth..  

 

The orange granita should be sweet to counteract the bitter taste of the orange rind and also the Matcha ice cream.

 

Again, pour granita mix into ice cream maker and punch the button.  Put in a container and put in a cold freezer for a few hours to firm up.

 

Serve one scoop of each in humble bowl or fancy Japanese bowl.

 

Topping:

Crush up a bar of peanut brittle and sesame seeds (Tua tad) still in the plastic wrapper with something hard and sprinkle on top with gooseberries and a squirt of sweetened condensed milk and garnish with a leaf of roasted seaweed.

 

Commentary:

Why am I calling this Thai food?  Because Thai people think any ingredient that is grown in Thailand and used in local cooking is "Thai food".

 

The Matcha happens to be from Mae Chan, Chiang Rai.

 

But originally green tea is from China and then Japan. Oranges were originally from China and taken to Valencia, Spain by Portuguese traders. Peanuts are originally from South America.  Maple syrup is from North America. Coconuts are originally from India. Yogurt is originally from Turkey. Dairy Cow milk is originally from Europe.

 

Side Note:

I would love to make this with water buffalo milk instead of coconut milk.  Guessing it has a more "funky" flavor.

 

 

 

[SiSePuede419]

Peanut brittle, maybe 5 or 10B each.