Meang Khum (Welcome Snack)

Thai cuisine is known for being spicy. Balance, detail and variety are important to Thai cooking. Thai food is known for it’s balance of the five fundamental taste senses in each dish or the overall meal: hot (spicy), sour, sweet, salty, and (optional) bitter.

Asia Scenic Thai Cooking Chiang Mai proudly presents the welcome snack or Meang Kum. Traditionally, we usually use it for welcoming the guest. And we try to embody all 5 flavors at same time in Meang Kum.

Ingredients
Betel leaf, tip of chili, sliced lime with the skin, sliced shallot, sliced ginger, roasted peanut, roasted coconut and the syrup.

How to make the syrup.
Palm sugar, salt, sliced shallot, sliced ginger and water –  Mix the ingredient well and simmer in low heat until it sticky.

How to eat ; Fold the betel leaf as a cup. Put all the ingredients in the betel leaf cup. Top with the sweet syrup. Eat the whole betel leaf cup in one bite, chew it slowly. You will touch all flavors at one time.