Page 18 - Andy Ricker News Today : Breaking News, Live Updates & Top Stories | Vimarsana

Deeper and deeper into an amazingly complex and widely misunderstood cuisine. and getting his ass chastised by a few aunties as he goes. >> andy: okay. >> anthony: on this trip, andy's working on a new cookbook, investigating the eating and drinking culture of the region. which might be why he thought of me and why we're drinking shine for breakfast. where there's food there's also gonna be booze. and likely a lot of it. oh, that's good. >> andy: this is nam prik ong. you make a chili paste with chilies, garlic, shallot, shrimp paste, and tomatoes, and then you mix it with pork.

>> andy: yes, it also tastes like a -- a dirty sack. >> anthony: when did you come to thailand first? >> andy: i believe it was 1987. and i came as a backpacker. it was all about, you know, smoking dope on the beach, eating mushrooms, chasing girls, and drinking beer. i had a three-month ticket and i ended up staying away for four years. here we go. >> anthony: oh man. so what was the dish? there's a dish in every traveler's life where they just said, "okay, you know, my previous life is not gonna be enough for me anymore, you know?" >> andy: it was a particular mushroom. they make soup out of...

Would say, and less fragrant. >> anthony: the village of mae on, and this place is called him tang. how did you find this place, man? we're in the middle of nowhere. >> andy: it's a very popular place. >> anthony: a restaurant showcasing one of the distinguishing elements of northern thai cuisine -- the heavy use of animal protein. >> andy: you see the local people, they're lining up. here in northern thailand, pig reigns supreme. so most of the stuff we're eating here is made out of pig. >> anthony: okay, so what did you order? >> andy: grilled pig tail. >> anthony: that sounds superb. yep. >...

Whiskey. >> andy: yeah it's a lot of -- that's a lot of uh -- did i -- did i do that right? >> anthony: yeah. >> andy: or have i had too many whiskeys? >> anthony: how did this happen? how did i get here? [ laughter ] coming into focus, the man across the table. he looks familiar. maybe, if i can remember who he is, it'll be a clue as to where i am. >> man: okay. >> anthony: right. andy -- andy ricker.

Nam prik is what the vast majority of thai people who live in america who come to thailand to visit who go back ended up getting busted at the airport for trying to bring in. >> anthony: we get two kinds. nam prik ta dang. >> andy: it's a combination of chilies, garlic, shrimp paste, dried fish. >> anthony: and this -- >> andy: colloquially known as midnight nam prik num. >> anthony: made from roasted green chilies. accompanied by god's preferred delivery system for beer-friendly goodness. >> andy: ooh. >> anthony: yeah. >> andy: yeah. >> anthony: yum on that. a whole bunch of deep fried littl...