My post yesterday has me thinking all things Thai, including the most important thing – the Thai food and my cherished Thai recipes.

I had read so much about Thailand prior to my trip and one of the things I read most often was Thailand being known as one of the greatest food destinations in the world.  Given this, I knew I had to take full advantage of its culinary offerings and make food an important part of the trip.  I vowed to try as many different foods as possible and booked an authentic cooking class at a popular Thai cooking school to take home some fun, Thai recipes.

My husband and I arrived in Thailand and launched right into tasting our way through Thailand.

Our first full meal was lunch.  We ate at this unique restaurant which happened to be on the grounds of a military base.  Unfortunately I can’t remember the name but the food was fantastic.  We enjoyed this amazing fried fish and traditional Thai seafood soup.

Of course, I had to compliment my meal with some traditional Thai beer.

This beer was so light and refreshing; particularly with the hot, Thai weather.  I have yet to find this beer in the States but if I do, I am so buying it.

We also explored local food markets to get a sense of how the locals shop and eat.  The food markets were so cool and offered a totally different perspective to the trip.  I felt like I saw the real Thailand – not the beaches and attractions – but the real, everyday life.

I wish I could say I was more adventurous and tried some of these Thai delicacies but I chickened out.  I couldn’t do it despite dares from the hubby.

And yes, those are cow tongues (above) and fried bugs (below).

But, the highlight of my food experience in Thailand was when I actually got to attend a professional cooking school and learn how to cook authentic Thai food from local chefs.  I attended the Baipai Thai Cooking School.

I highly recommend Baipai to anyone considering a class with the school. The grounds are lovely, the staff is wonderful and the recipes are fantastic.  It was the first time I ever took a professional cooking course and it was easily a highlight of the trip.

I can’t say enough positive things about Baipai.  I walked away from my experience there glowing – it was so great.

The Baipai Thai Cooking School class walked me (and the rest of my class) through three authentic Thai recipes:  Satay Chicken (Gai Satay), Hot and Sour Prawn Soup (Tom Yam Goong) and Chicken with Cashew Nuts (Gai Pad Med Ma-Muang).  The recipes were relatively easy to grasp and with Baipai’s help, I was a master Thai Chef by the end of the day.

I wish I could share with you all of the recipes I learned while there but they are far too long to include in one post.  For the purposes of today’s post I will share with you Thailand’s most popular dish, and probably one you have never cooked before, Hot and Sour Prawn Soup (Tom Yam Goong).

The recipe listed here is from Baipai.  I will share with you some of my notes which helps to make the recipe a little easier to achieve.