Everything in this cookbook looks yummy, I have tried a few of the dishes and was very pleased. The recipes are easy to follow and the pictures of them look so delicious! ( )

Like many people that I know, I've always enjoyed Thai food. I grew up partly in New England and partly in Southeast Asia and Thai food has never seemed exotic to me. It has just the right mix of spice and freshness and something new.

I'm always looking for good Thai recipes and was excited at the chance to review Simple Thai Food. The author grew up in Bangkok but had developed her cooking skills while living in the US, trying to replicate her mother's recipes. As such, the book is geared towards those of us who are learning about Thai food and have to hunt for the right ingredients in American stores and Asian stores in the US. There is a helpful section that describes the basic ingredients and sauces used in Thai cooking and a quick description of the Thai approach to eating (called "Noshes and Nibbles") which is heavy on snacking.

Due to an unfortunate accident while I was trying to bake our Easter ham, my oven is out of commission. I'm limited to trying to replicate the dishes on my stovetop. I'm trying to lose weight so I didn't attempt to make the particularly fattening and delicious items - I'm thinking of the "Gold Purses" recipe of scallions, mushrooms, ground chicken, water chestnuts, sweet chile, sugar, special sauces, all fried in a wonton wrapper. Instead, the Kung Chae Nam Pla (Fish Sauce-Marinated Fresh Shrimp with Spicy Lime Dressing) sounds like a tasty, healthy meal. Similarly, the Grilled Steaks with Roasted Tomato Dipping Sauce (Crying Tiger) also looks like something that will go over well with both dieters and foodies.

The salad recipes are particularly good. Leela gives us an introduction to the best tools (hand grater or mandoline) for shredding the green papaya and green mango and the basic ingredients for the proper yam dressing (lime, salted fish sauce, and some palm sugar) and her own approach to testing and tasting the salad and dressing. Very straightforward and sensible, Leela makes preparing a Thai salad a little less intimidating.

I'm preparing the Kai Phat Khing (Chicken Ginger Stir Fry), which is one of my takeout staples. The recipe is straightforward and the ingredients easy to find. The dish was a hit in my home!

ISBN 9781607745235 $ 24.99
Ten Speed Press, May 13, 2014.
Review copy courtesy of the Publisher and NetGalley. ( )