.png)
INTERVIEW
At the heart of the luxurious 5-star hotel, The Slate, Sous Chef Anongrat Meklai, or Chef Piak, offers Phuket an indulgent dose of intricately crafted Thai cuisine. As the creative mind behind Black Ginger and Moo's Kitchen, Chef Piak's greatness lies in refining simple and traditional Thai dishes into delicious modern Thai gastronomy. Her passion for her culture and 35 years of culinary experience led the restaurant to be certified by Michelin Guide from 2019 to 2022. We chat with Chef Piak on her top 5 simple tips for traditional Thai cooking for those who wish to boost their Thai dishes to the next level.
1) Freshest Ingredients
All Black Ginger dishes begin with the freshest ingredients, especially seafood. When cooking seafood, remember to cook it just right. If you don't, the fish will be dry and tough, or the shrimp and squid will get smaller and stickier.
2) Curries
All curries at Black Ginger are prepared with the best ingredients possible and a genuine appreciation for their guest’s palates – of course, they’re spicy. Still, Chef Piak adds more garlic and black pepper instead of chillis to tone down the heat so diners can enjoy the flavour without suffering.
3) Picking The Right Ingredients
In cooking, each ingredient is unique, and the choice of which to use depends on the type of dish being prepared. For example, a certain kind of fish is excellent for a deep-fried menu but unsuitable for making soup.
4) Jasmine Rice
The rice that accompanies Thai food is just as important to the overall experience as the main dish. At Black Ginger, we serve jasmine rice with three different aromas; Authentic jasmine, jasmine rice cooked with pandan leaf, and jasmine rice cooked with butterfly pea flower. Cooking rice may seem as simple as boiling water, but a poorly cooked batch can ruin the whole experience of dining. All mixtures, both rice and water, have to be measured correctly.
5) Coconut Milk
Fresh coconut milk is used frequently in Thai cuisine, appearing in curry and many soups and we use only fresh coconuts that are freshly squeezed.
---
All imagery is provided by The Slate.
Address: Nai Yang Beach 116 Moo 1, Sakhu, Thalang Phuket 83110, Thailand | Website: theslatephuket.com/dining/black-ginger | Phone: +66 76 327 006 | Email: reservations@theslatephuket.com | Instagram: @blackgingerexperience | Facebook: @BlackGingerExperience