Yer know what it’s like, getting that craving for a certain western food, Well I got it today….

I just had to have a battered burger.

Well, I’m in the middle of building a wall round my house (sorry our lasses house),

But up here in Mahasarakham it’s been raining heavily for 2 days, more or less, so to

stop being bored, I hit the kitchen.

In the N/E UK I could just go down to the local fish n chip shop and buy beef burger chips and peas…

but here, no way José, So, the only way to get it, is to make my own.

I happened to have some pork mince left in the freezer so, here you go.

Defrosted the mince, and our lass made a seasoning in the mortar, consisting of,

A slack handful chopped coriander stem, and root.

2 to 3 garlic cloves

Dash of salt

Dash of msg

Dash of Maggie sauce

Zapp, zapp, zapp, nua, nua, nua.

I also finely chopped a small onion.

All this was mixed by hand into the mince.

I then separated the mince into four.

I placed each quarter onto some cling film and halved that again, and flattened it out

to a burger shape

Now then, I had a mad idea about putting some cheese in the middle, so I used some

ok..ish vintage cheese from Big C and some mild cheddar cheese from Makro (big block).

I then put the other bit of mince on the top, sealed the edges down and flattened it a bit more…..

I made sure at this stage that the burger was not to thick, so it would cook in the middle without

overcooking the batter. I reckon about 1/2 inch to ¾ inch.

I then put them in the freezer to harden up so they would not fall apart when battered.

After all this I was feeling peckish, so, I had a beautiful almond flavour scone, that I made yesterday,

and a cup of coffee. (boy I miss my fags, 4 years now but I still crave for them some times)….

fags = cigarettes, not fags like…well you know. 555

Anyway, After 2 to 3 hours in the freezer, (the burgers not me), I made the batter.

A few table spoons of plain flour (all Purpose flour to our USA brethren)

A table spoon of corn flour

A teaspoon of baking power

A ½ teaspoon of bi carbonate of soda (Baking soda)

A dash of Vinegar (Sarsons) (I’ve used rice vinegar in the past)

Ice Cold water

Whisked it all up to make a batter (about thickish cream consistency) and put in the fridge for ½ an hour

If you DON’T have baking powder or bi carb you can use Cold Soda Water, and of course leave out the Iced Water.

So, dip the frozen burger into the batter and coat the batter all over the burger and place into the hot oil.

Just a safety note here:- DO NOT HAVE YOUR OIL PAN MORE THAN 2/3rds FULL OF OIL, AND DO NOT PUT

WET PRODUCTS INTO HOT OIL.

Believe me I have seen many many times the destruction a chip pan fire can do.

Anyway back to the burger, once the batter has formed a hard coating, turn down the heat and cook slowly for about

15 mins turning occasionally. When cooked place into a low heat oven to keep warm whilst doing the chips.

I find potatoes here in Thailand are not so good, but for chips I find that chipping the potato and then boiling them for 10 mins,

and then straining them to make sure there is no wet on them before cooking in oil, gets better results.

I also find that Big C potatoes are great for chips, But Makro potatoes are better for boiled or mash…this is just my personal opinion.

Well that’s it…my day in the life in the kitchen, and, people I can tell you the end result was just delicious.

PS….if you can here screaming, it’s just my arteries. 555

PPS…the mushy peas are from a recipe by sirgordon post No 2 in the following thread…I added just a few drops of

green colouring to make them look better.

http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/369495-peas/

Aroy Aroy Aroy.

Have a Nice Day.

i missed a few of pics out of my post, so here they are,

constructing the burger.

Have a Nice Day.

Wow, this sounds delicious OP.

Now a proposal..........Mahasarakham is about 70kms from where I live.

Please, name your price and a date for me to come there and have your tasty beefburgers.

I will provide the beers and also help you with your garden wall.

Is it a deal?

Please note, I eat a lot.

Looks delicious! You can accomplish a lot here when you put your mind to it!

Nice walk through. I've never tried cheese stuffed battered burgers but I'll have a go after seeing this. As I don't like pork I'll be making mine with beef.

I don't live in a throbbing metropolis with ample supplies of western food or ingredients so I ended up buying an oven for pizzas, making my own flour tortillas and making a Philadelphia type cheese. I'm sure Thai people that live abroad also miss some of their favourite foods and have to go that extra mile to make something they miss.

A couple of months ago I was getting sick of drinking the same beers so I bought up all the cheap apples in Tesco and made a batch of cider. Not that good but it was my first attempt since living in Thailand.

right on and more power to the OP...this article bein' in the manner and taste of the westerner who don't let isolation or scarcity of ingredients get him down when it comes to fixin' his favorite eats...nice photos too...

now...I suppose someone high falutin Bangkok/Pattaya/Chiang Mai type will get onto the 'thaivisa brigades' thread with 'the self sufficient, self righteous rural falang brigade'...

And I thought it was only the Scots that battered and deep fried everything.

Like it firefox . . . but it's a good spam fritter i often crave most though. (and 99% of the Thai's i've cooked 'em for, love 'em too!)

Please share the recipe for the almond scones.

I feel a snack attack coming on.

Thanks for all the comments lads and yes its amazing what you have to do out here in the sticks to satisfy them

‘got to have it moments’

I do a lot of home preparations of food…soft cheese (SIL has a dairy farm so milk comes 10 mins after leaving the cow)….Bacon…use recipes from billd766 posts, very nice too, and my Danish friend across the way has just built

a smoker, so, had some smoked bacon last week (very nice).

Baking. Pies, cakes, etc…Pickling, Beetroot mango chutney and cucumber. And of course home made Bread.

The biggest problem is finding ingredients and sometimes have to substitute things, but all in all they usually turn out OK.

Bill the scones are dead easy, I use the basic recipe from a 1920’s Bero book (Thirteenth edition) I downloaded a

while ago. (But with a few changes)

8 oz (225 g) Self Raising flour…I use plain (all purpose) and add 2 and a ½ teaspoons of baking powder.

Pinch of salt

2 oz (50 g) margarine. (I use the Yacht brand baking butter cream stuff from Big C or Makro, the soft stuff

for about 70/80 baht.)

25 g of Sugar (after doing experiments I find that 75 g of sugar works better)

1 egg beaten and add enough milk to make up to 150ml.

Mix the flour, baking powder and sugar in a bowl and then add the margarine and rub in with your fingers

until it resembles bread crumbs. Now add the egg/milk mixture but save a little to brush the top of the scones

I now add an essence, just about 1 teaspoon or a little less, I use Almond, Orange, Rum, Lemon, Strawberry,

what ever takes my fancy on the day, and I some times shove a few raisins in if I have some, (good with the rum).

Mix it together with a knife; you will now have a fairly wettish mixture,

Lightly flour your work surface and pour the mixture out on to it.

Now then, flatten it out to about 1 and a ½ to 2 inches thick and use a round pastry cutter (3 inch), to cut the

shapes out, I usually get about 5 scones out of this mixture.

Don’t make the mistake I made and flattened them out to much because they will be hard to cut in half when cooked.

Brush the tops with the left over egg/milk mix.

Place on a lightly greased baking tray and bake for about 10 to 12 mins at 180 c (fan oven)

Cool on a wire tray. Then enjoy.

I also some times LEAVE OUT THE SUGAR and mix into the mixture some grated cheese and a little grated onion.

If I could find it I would put in a half teaspoon of mustard powder (wasabi is to strong and the mustard seeds ground, are too weak)

I compensate with a spoonful of already mixed Coleman’s mustard. Cook the same way but put a little grated cheese on the top of each scone before cooking.

Here endeth the lesson.

Have a Nice Day.

Edited September 28, 201411 yr by firefox999uk

Recipe for a mock chop anyone?

Thanks for all the comments lads and yes its amazing what you have to do out here in the sticks to satisfy them

‘got to have it moments’

I do a lot of home preparations of food…soft cheese (SIL has a dairy farm so milk comes 10 mins after leaving the cow)….Bacon…use recipes from billd766 posts, very nice too, and my Danish friend across the way has just built

a smoker, so, had some smoked bacon last week (very nice).

Baking. Pies, cakes, etc…Pickling, Beetroot mango chutney and cucumber. And of course home made Bread.

The biggest problem is finding ingredients and sometimes have to substitute things, but all in all they usually turn out OK.

Bill the scones are dead easy, I use the basic recipe from a 1920’s Bero book (Thirteenth edition) I downloaded a

while ago. (But with a few changes)

8 oz (225 g) Self Raising flour…I use plain (all purpose) and add 2 and a ½ teaspoons of baking powder.

Pinch of salt

2 oz (50 g) margarine. (I use the Yacht brand baking butter cream stuff from Big C or Makro, the soft stuff

for about 70/80 baht.)

25 g of Sugar (after doing experiments I find that 75 g of sugar works better)

1 egg beaten and add enough milk to make up to 150ml.

Mix the flour, baking powder and sugar in a bowl and then add the margarine and rub in with your fingers

until it resembles bread crumbs. Now add the egg/milk mixture but save a little to brush the top of the scones

I now add an essence, just about 1 teaspoon or a little less, I use Almond, Orange, Rum, Lemon, Strawberry,

what ever takes my fancy on the day, and I some times shove a few raisins in if I have some, (good with the rum).

Mix it together with a knife; you will now have a fairly wettish mixture,

Lightly flour your work surface and pour the mixture out on to it.

Now then, flatten it out to about 1 and a ½ to 2 inches thick and use a round pastry cutter (3 inch), to cut the

shapes out, I usually get about 5 scones out of this mixture.

Don’t make the mistake I made and flattened them out to much because they will be hard to cut in half when cooked.

Brush the tops with the left over egg/milk mix.

Place on a lightly greased baking tray and bake for about 10 to 12 mins at 180 c (fan oven)

Cool on a wire tray. Then enjoy.

I also some times LEAVE OUT THE SUGAR and mix into the mixture some grated cheese and a little grated onion.

If I could find it I would put in a half teaspoon of mustard powder (wasabi is to strong and the mustard seeds ground, are too weak)

I compensate with a spoonful of already mixed Coleman’s mustard. Cook the same way but put a little grated cheese on the top of each scone before cooking.

Here endeth the lesson.

Have a Nice Day.

I don't know where you live but you can get mustard powder in Villa, Foodland and shops like that. I usually top up once every 6 months or year depending on when I get to BKK.

This one is 454g and 257 baht at Villa.

Recipe for a mock chop anyone?

Smokie...what is a mock chop?

Bill....I live in Mahasarakham and non to be found up here, I may be going down to Pattaya,

to see an old friend, whilst he is on holiday, so will have to look there for it.

Interestesting that McGarretts stuff is available round here, but no mustard.

so its a case of 'make do and mend' for a while.

Cheers.

Have a Nice Day.

Recipe for a mock chop anyone?

Smokie...what is a mock chop?

Bill....I live in Mahasarakham and non to be found up here, I may be going down to Pattaya,

to see an old friend, whilst he is on holiday, so will have to look there for it.

Interestesting that McGarretts stuff is available round here, but no mustard.

so its a case of 'make do and mend' for a while.

Cheers.

Have a Nice Day.

I used to stay at the Nature View hotel on Soi bua khao which was OK, clean, tidy, less than 1,000 baht per night.

Straight opposite is soi 15 with a 7/11 on the corner. If you go straight down soi 15 the is a small plaza at the end opening onto 2nd road with McDonalds and a fair size Villa. AFAIR at the far end of Soi Bua Khao, turn right up towards BigC there used to be a Foodland but I haven't been there in about 18 months. Your mate may know where it is and if not the guys on the Pattaya forum will know.

I usually stock up on my spice list when I visit shops like that.

Spices stock list 01 July 2014.xls

I forgot to add the Google map for Villa.

Cheers for the info Bill.....i know where things are in Pattaya as i lived there for 2 years,but,

at that time didnt have cooking facilities.

By the way, i'm really impressed with the spread sheet..well done.

Have a Nice Day.

Cheers for the info Bill.....i know where things are in Pattaya as i lived there for 2 years,but,

at that time didnt have cooking facilities.

By the way, i'm really impressed with the spread sheet..well done.

Have a Nice Day.

I used to work out of BKK for 5 years in the 1990s but I rarely went there unless I had a job that way.

I used to work for Motorola building the DTAC network and my patch was from Pak Chong north of Saraburi to Nong Khai including Nong Bua lamphu, Chum Pae and Chaiyaphum plus everything east of the route 2 to the Laos/Cambodian border. A great job, car, driver, good hotels on road expenses except food and bar bills and leaving the BKK office after lunch on Monday and not going back until the next Monday morning.

One day we tried to order a pizza from Sukhumvit for delivery but they refused just because we were in Amnat Charoen.

The gravy train was in full steam. All this and full per diem too until the 1997 Tom Yam Kung financial crash.

It was great while it lasted.

I did the spreadsheet simply because it was easier than relying on my memory.

great stuff, but i must add that for about 3 years now, for anything battered, weve always used chang beer and tempura flour, it comes out light and crispy, burghers,sauages,meat balls, fish, potato slices, banana fritters, perfect!!! try it, you wont regret it..

Lickey....Yes very nice, ive tried all them, but i still go back to me mams recipe.

its stood the test of time.

Good on the Chang beer..its what i normally drink.

Have a Nice Day.

Edited October 5, 201411 yr by firefox999uk