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Published on September 16, 2007

Ask a lot of people, and the name tom klong is only going to get you a blank expression," says Thai-cuisine guru Srisamorn Khongphan.

If you don't know this spicy, sour soup either, with its tamarind puree and the distinctive taste of crispy fish, read on. A lot of Thai dishes are in need of a publicity agent.

A tutor on the subject for decades, currently at the Wittayalai Nai Wang Ying - the Royal College for Girls - Srisamorn is on a mission to rescue some terrific food from obscurity.

There are, for starters, more than 80 kinds of yum, a word that refers to any kind of meat and vegetables tossed in a spicy lime sauce, and more than a hundred mieng - the leaf-wrapped herbal snacks.

To remind her countrymen of what's on offer and spread the word among foreigners, Srisamorn has been recruited as a consultant at the Blue Elephant restaurant's cooking school.

The "Back to the Past" menu she's concocted includes nam prik ru pak lam (shrimp paste with grilled king prawns, veggies and flowers served in a bamboo stalk) and sang wa kung pla pla duk fu (crispy minced catfish and prawn salad with lemongrass and ginger). Both dishes originated in King Rama II's time.

Other rare delights on offer: mieng som (morsels of dried shrimp, pomelo, green mango and pickle on betel leaves with a sweet sauce topping); yam kamoy (minced prawns, egg and fresh veggies in lime juice); and ma uan (steamed pork and crab cake served with pineapple).

They're among the appetisers. For the main course: Tom klong pla grob yod ma kam (spicy, sour soup with tamarind leaves, herbs and crispy fish); tom jiew (clear beef soup with sweet potato flavoured with lime juice, chilli and basil); kaeng bum bai kai (a medium-spicy braised chicken curry with cucumber and onion); and pra ram long song (poached chicken or beef and morning glory topped with peanut sauce).

How about finishing all that off with kanom mor kaeng tua tong, traditional Thai custard made of green beans.

Forgotten treasures, yes - I have to admit that I'd never even heard of many of them - but they've been chosen, says Srisamorn, because they're all delicious and the ingredients are easily available.

They can be quite beneficial as well. People with diabetes should eat mieng som, says Srisamorn, who's also had a hand in planning patients' meals at Siriraj Hospital.

Som, meaning "sour", contains mango, pomelo and pickle. Betel leaf (cha plu) is high in calcium and beta-carotene. Pureed tamarind is good for constipation, and ginger-infused water relieves a gassy stomach.

Discovering the origins of some of the names can be a treat.

Yum kamoy really does refer to theft: Most of the ingredients are "stolen" from yum yai, which in turn gets the "big" in its name from the fact that it boasts a huge array of ingredients.

"In the old days when people didn't have enough ingredients to make yum yai they made yum kamoy, which has a sauce made of ground red chillies, coriander root and peppers," says Srisamorn. "It's great for weight-watchers."

Tom jiew was devised by Prachao Baromwongthur Praongchao Yaowapawongsanit, whose grandfather was a doctor to King Rama V. Jiew means "small", and certainly the dish takes "little" preparation. The clear soup is good for colds, and sore throats are soothed by the lime juice and the protein from the beef.

Tom klong pla grob yod ma kam was a favourite of Rama V when he caught a summer cold. "People would always eat seasonal food," Srisamorn explains. "In summer when limes were rare and expensive they used tamarind."

Kaeng bum bai kai was also invented in the palace, an adaptation of India's masaman peanut curry - the bum bai derives from Mumbai, formerly known as Bombay.

Nam prik ru pak lam was first cooked for Rama V as well. Nam prik is the chilli dip. Ru is short for ru rah, meaning "luxury". And pak lam suggests vegetables in a tube of bamboo.

The ingredients are similar to those in the more popular nam prik kapi, but instead of using small dried shrimps there are king prawns, which were harder to find in the old days - and thus more expensive.

"We say ru in a positive, admiring way, while ru rah, although it means the same thing, is used in a negative, 'nagging' sense," says Srisamon.

Cooks used to put vegetables in a segment of bamboo stalk and add some water before grilling. Her modern adaptation is to cut the cylinder vertically in two and use the halves as plates for boiled vegetables.

Srisamorn finishes off the dip's preparation with blazing red chilli.

"With the variety of textures, shapes and colour, especially in the vegetables on the side, Thai food is not only very healthy, it always looks good, even without much decoration."

Nooror Somany-Steppe, a founding partner and director of the Blue Elephant, says the "Back to the Past" menu is available at lunch and dinner right through October, with buffets every Wednesday.

Among the most popular dishes so far, she adds, are the Thai green curry and the larp plaa salmon, in which the fish is tossed in a spicy sauce with roasted ground rice.

The Blue Elephant is open every day. Lunch is from               11.30 to 2.30 and dinner from 6.30 to 10.30. Reservations are recommended - call (02) 673 9353-8.

Aree Chaisatien

The Nation