In times past, Phetchaburi, or Mueang Phet, was an important port in the Gulf of Siam. The ancient town served as the gateway to other important towns such as the ancient capital of Sukhothai in the North, Ayutthaya and Suphan Buri in the central region, and Nakhon Si Thammarat in the south.

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As early as the 9th and 10th centuries, Phetchaburi province played a vital role in the economic, political and social history of Siam. Many traces of its ancient past can still be found in this culturally rich and varied province, but one of the strongest impressions it imparts to visitors is the special character of its delectable cuisine. Restaurants, shops and roadside stalls offer such a vast and interesting variety of food that every trip to Phetchaburi is guaranteed to produce a few discoveries.

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Often described as the Thai province with the largest number of sugar palms per plot, Phetchaburi is the country’s leading palm sugar producer. As a result, Thais associate Mueang Phet with sweetness. However, in addition to its sugar palm groves, salt pans are also very much a part of the scenery.

Each of Thailand’s four regions has a culinary style that is distinct. A traveller exploring the fare served in the north, northeast (Isan), south or central regions will discover many differences.

The cluster of provinces that make up the central region — Bangkok, Ayutthaya, Ang Thong, Singh Buri, Chainat, Suphan Buri, Uthai Thani, Samut Prakan, Samut Songkhram and Phetchaburi — all share the same basic cooking techniques in ingredients, with a single exception. Phetchaburi is different in having a unique culinary style that sets it apart.

Several factors work in harmony to provide the province’s cooks with a vast variety of fresh ingredients. The great variety of edible indigenous plants are harvested in the actual countryside or from plantations, orchards and herb gardens. Nearby is Prachuap Khiri Khan, a province noted for its abundant fragrant coconuts and pineapples, and long beaches that are home to numerous fishing communities. The province’s cooks have a huge variety of ingredients to work with, and produce an array of singular dishes.

	Image © TAT Kaeng som — a hot-sour-sweet, soup-like dish One of the classic dishes of the Central Region, kaeng som is made by pounding dried chillies together with shallots, garlic and fermented shrimp paste. The paste is then boiled in water, seasoned with sour tamarind juice, palm sugar and fish salt until an ideal balance of sourness, sweetness and saltiness is achieved. The meat and vegetable ingredients are then added. One of Phetchaburi’s signature versions of kaeng som is made with a sea crab called puu maa and the tender shoots of an indigenous herb called chakhram that thrives in the saline soil near the sea. Another local version is made with a shellfish called hoy siab and young tamarind shoots.
	Image © TAT Kaeng phet — a chilli-hot curry Kaeng phet is a central region speciality. Dried chillies, galangal, lemon grass, the zest of kaffir lime, shallots, garlic and fermented shrimp paste are pounded together. When these ingredients have been pounded to a fine consistency, the paste is fried in coconut cream until the fresh ingredients release their fragrance. Then meat, usually beef, pork, or chicken, is added and the curry is seasoned with palm sugar and fish sauce. Finally kaffir lime leaves, small eggplants, sliced chillies, and Thai basil are added and the standard, central region kaeng phet is ready to serve. Another possibility is kaeng phet pet yaang, a relatively mild curry dish prepared with grilled duck and pineapple, sour little tomatoes, and sometimes ma-uek, a sort of eggplant. But once again, Phetchaburi has its own take on the dish. The curry paste is similar to those prepared in other central provinces, but seafood replaces the usual meats. Variations feature alternative ingredients such as mussels with hearts of coconut palm, or crab meat with pumpkin squash.
	Image © TAT Kaeng khua Kaeng khua is another variation of the spicy curry, kaeng phet. Once again preparation begins with frying the pounded mixture of ingredients in coconut cream, but this time there is also a sour component, in addition to the saltiness and sweetness of other kinds of kaeng phet. The sour tang comes from one of two sources — the addition of sour tamarind juice or a fruit or vegetable with a sour taste. Sour tamarind juice is used to make a curry that includes a morning glory-like vine called phak boong and a fresh-water fish. Kaeng khua made this way is a standard central Thai dish. The second way to add sourness to the dish is by using vegetable ingredients that are sour in themselves. When the preference is for sour fruit or vegetable, cooks prepare a kaeng khua of pork belly meat and two acidic fruits — the smooth, light-green taling pling and the fuzzy ma-uek, an eggplant relative. In Phetchaburi, kaeng khua is also made with ingredients from the sea. There are recipes for variations prepared with pineapple and horseshoe crab eggs, or the grilled wings of rays that are indigenous to the local waters.
	Images © TAT Phat phet — a stir-fried dry curry Central region phat phet dishes are stir-fries flavoured with seasonings that include chillies and aromatic herbs. In Phetchaburi, there are special types made from small clams called hoy lai, fried with pineapple; cockles fried with fresh chillies; and another shellfish, hoy siap, cooked with fresh chillies, kaffir lime leaves, and a fragrant rhizome called krachai.
	Image © TAT Haw mok Spicy, custard-like haw mok is made by blending aromatic herbs and spices with finely-ground fish meat and coconut milk. Seasonings are added to give the dish a salty, slightly sweet flavour. The thick, creamy mix is then spooned into banana leaf cups or banana-leaf wraps lined with Thai basil leaves and steamed. The uniqueness of the Phetchaburi version lies in the type of fish used — a sea fish called plaa insee replaces the snakehead fish used in nearby provinces. In the Mueang Phet version of the dish, the difference is just the use of a salt-water fish in place of a fresh-water species. But it follows the general tendency of Phetchaburi cooks to use seafood in place of other kinds of meat when preparing traditional central region recipes.
	Image © TAT Kaeng hua taan One dish that is peculiar to Phetchaburi is kaeng hua taan, which is made from the unripe sugar palm fruit. When this ripens, a thin shell develops that envelops the sweet, translucent, kernel. When the fruit is still immature, however, the shell is soft but crunchy, rather like tender coconut. It is this part of the sugar palm fruit that is made into a curry with a paste of seasonings, coconut cream, and grilled fish. Unlike the other curries mentioned earlier, the curry paste is not fried in the coconut cream. The taste balances sweetness and saltiness to delicious effect. Kaeng hua taan is made only in Phetchaburi, because the sugar palm fruits are so plentiful.
	Khao chae One of the kingdom’s more unusual and elegant dishes, khao chae consists of a bowl of white rice served in chilled, jasmine-scented water served together with an array of side dishes. There are three basic variations of the dish — the royal, or ‘palace’, version that is a hot weather specialty; the version prepared by the Mon people and eaten only in April during the Songkran Festival; and finally, there is the Phetchaburi version, which is available all year round. It is sold on almost any street-corner in Phetchaburi town, and is eaten as a popular daytime snack. The side dishes served with Phetchaburi-style khao chae are somewhat different than those that accompany other versions. They include a sweet fried fish, luuk kapi (small balls flavoured with fermented shrimp paste), and hua chai po — a Chinese-style sun-dried preserved turnip, fried in a sweet sauce. The sweet fish condiment is made by taking the fish meat — a local type of ray is often used — and boiling it until it is extremely tender. It is then pounded to a fine consistency and fried with palm sugar and salt. The luuk kapi are made by frying finely-grated coconut with pounded peanuts, krachai (an aromatic rhizome), shallots, garlic, shrimp, salt, fermented shrimp paste and palm sugar until the liquid has almost completely evaporated. The small, pellet-sized balls that form are then dipped in egg and fried. The preserved turnip is shredded and fried with palm sugar and salt. The rice is steamed until the grains are soft and fluffy. The cooked rice is carefully spooned into water that has been scented with freshly-picked fragrant jasmine. The dish is then ready to be served with the three side dishes.

Besides its unique curries, khao chae, and sweets, Phetchaburi also boasts a variety of chomphoo — glass or ‘jungle’ apple — that is in a class of its own among the many varieties grown in Thailand. Locals believe that it is the quality of the soil and the proximity of the Phetchaburi River that are responsible for the fine quality of the fruit. The trees that bear this fruit flower between October and December. Glass apples are ready to harvest in February and March. While the fruit are still small, orchard keepers wrap the most perfect ones in paper and discard the others. When they are ripe, they are sweet and crispy. Although more expensive than other varieties, they are well worth the difference.

Tourists and Thai-based foodies wishing to sample Phetchaburi’s local cuisine can explore a whole range at Khao Yoy. Stop along the left lane of the road leading from Bangkok into Phetchaburi. There are also a couple of large restaurants just beyond the Phetchaburi provincial centre/town. Each has its own loyal clientele. Indeed, customers who have become regulars at one will rarely visit another. All are set up the same way. Thirty or so dishes are displayed in pots and pans set inside a glass case. Customers decide which ones they want and place an order. The food is quickly brought to the table. Prices are invitingly low.

On the trip back to Bangkok, shops lining the left-hand side of the road sell some thirty types of Phetchaburi sweets — perfect gifts for family and friends.

Story by Suthon Sukphisit

SWEET PHETCHABURI
A Guide to the Timeless Traditional Thai Desserts
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