Can your family handle the heat or do you mild it down for them? My sister's partner loves it super spicy, so I bring back my neighbor's home made curry paste every year. but everyone else needs it milder, my dad somewhat and my sister really mild. But, if you make it too mild then is it really Thai food?

How to make non farangicized Thai food for the family and not blow their taste buds off?

My immediate family can handle the "heat", We were raised on Szechuan and Mexican food. When I reached my later teens, I started cooking Thai food. Only ingredient I can't readily obtain is kafir lime leaves. I have to drive about 50 miles for them, so I often do without.

Needless to say, my in-laws can't handle the spice at all. I usually ;prepare a mild dish so they have something to eat.

I tend to Thailandize all my European dishes with chilli.

Massaman curry is my favourite "mild" dish.

How about fish or prawns in Tamarind sauce.

Chicken Satays for the BBQ.

Have you tried to do some dishes with coconut milk.

The last thing in the world I want to see when I go back to USA for 3 weeks or so is Thai food -- Steak, Mexican, Pastrami, etc. is all I want to eat.

... there is practically no small town anymore without one or more Thai restaurants ... they can go anytime. I did bring for one foodie couple a sticky rice cooking set and 2 kilos directly from Isaan... however they could have bought the same on the internet.

When I brought my fiancee (now wife) out in January, she started me off with one chili in the dish...now she' s up to three. Bad thing though is that when I go out for Thai food, I need some prik nam pla. But I really appreciate Thai food. I breakout in a sweat, but my mouth isn't on fire.

We tend to serve everything Thai style but keep some of the stinkier dishes just for our selves. I've always had a high tolerance for chilli as, to a lesser extent, have my family.

Like PoorSucker, I tend tend to Thailandise what "farang" food I do eat (Poached egg on toast - Don't forget the homemade Nam Prik Pow ).

I do have some extended family who can't stand spicy food - Even food that I wouldn't even register as being mildly spicy tends to be over the top for them.

amazed that you can get that curry paste through customs SBK. What did you do, slip the golden retriever a biscuit?

Never had a food sniffing dog stop me. Nor a drug sniffing dog for that matter

We always take lost of pastes and things through customs without a problem - and Australia is pretty strict.

I always declare everything and have never had anything taken (apart from a piece of Gai Yang I had forgotten to eat on the at the height of the bird flu saga . From memory last time we came back to Australia we had 2kg dried shrimp (just in a plastic bag) and various chilli pastes and curry pastes that family had given us. Customs just had a look, asked a few questions and sent us on our merry way