Bamboozled in Phuket

Why do people take a vacation? It’s a getaway; it’s a break from the routine and above all just to have a lot of fun.

Contrary to the above, vacations nowadays come with a lot of excess baggage such as laptops, electronics, cell phones, yes, even work! I recollect a small incident which happened in the holiday I took before I set off for South East Asia. A beautiful, well equipped, state of the art hotel offered me a laptop with free wi-fi, docking points near my bed for charging respective electronics including my cell phone and to top it all Playstation, X-box and an unlimited DVD and Game library. While my kids (If I had any i.e.) would have gone ballistic, I sheepishly stowed them away in one of their humongous cupboards and wandered off to the beach to spend the much needed solitary time amongst sun, sand and surf.

What has the world come to; do hotels really need to pile you with all this excess baggage? Just shows what people expect when going on vacation, shudder to think in a few years time what would be the scene?

The best part about vacationing on the cruise was low network or no network while you were on board, bang in the middle of the sea. They do have internet on board but it’s at one little corner of the ship and in a way a blessing to have no wi-fi. We were inundated with loads of activities on board (of course, other than eating) like golfing, a fully equipped gymnasium, a jogging path which worked its way around the ship, shows in the night and the day could be spent exploring on shore excursions or you could stay on board and keep yourself occupied with all the amenities provided by the cruise.

Our second shore excursion was in Phuket. Once again we decided to be on our own in Phuket. The ship docks right at the pier and getting a taxi with a little bit of haggling is quite a breeze. We had our destination chalked out – a scenic, slightly touristy beach area called Patong Beach. It is a famous spot for all vacationers visiting Phuket and quite a packed buzzing place. The taxi ride took about forty five minutes from the pier to Patong.

Patong beach was the perfect choice. We had the small town of Phuket with its malls, shopping areas, beach shacks, massage parlors lining one side of the road and the other side, surf and sand. A local vendor offered us four beach chairs park ourselves in and he was like our personal man-friday. He set up umbrellas just right for shading and a little sun, we placed orders for beer which he gladly jotted and brought us cold ones complete with beer holders so as not to warm them up, other vendors selling fresh fruits such as pomellos and durians sauntered by offering freshly cut orbs of heaven. Sarongs, Aloe Gel applicators, sea food snacks, all assortments of vendors kept us busy while we soaked in the sun and breeze.

Exploring Phuket town was an event by itself, we stuffed ourselves with local food at a fine restaurant which served authentic Thai food, from curries to pineapple rice to fried ice-creams. Cocktails were relatively cheap and there was buy any cocktail for 100 baht offer which was a steal as we drunk ourselves silly. Took an hour long pampering Thai massage at a local parlor, giggling Thai girls who were much more exuberant than we could ever be, a spot of shopping and looking out for fun bargains we skipped ourselves through the day like lightning. A swim in the sea is a must do followed by a couple of water sports which are available in abundance, from thrilling water skiing and para-sailing to calming water scooter rides. Phuket, especially Patong never ceases to surprise.

Evening, Phuket comes alive, we sauntered by the open market areas where fresh Pandan & Anise paste filled crepes were prepared fresh, Sushi stalls selling each piece for 8 baht was a steal, local goodies such as hot buttered corn on cob and fried seafood had innumerable stalls. It was all finger food to the core and things which could be picked up and eaten while you walked your way to the next stall. We finished it off with some Ancient Thai Coffee which the vendor merrily jerked and frothed the fragrant liquid which was a connoisseur’s delight.

The number of bars which come alive on the streets leading to the beach is a crazy sight. Phuket is one party destination and I feel a day is not enough to make your way around and take in the experience. We did not have time to stop by one of the fun, blaring music open bars which beckoned us seductively with cocktail signs and flashing neon lights; each one a differently themed. Before long we were back on board and tucking in ourselves to a quite dinner and a sense of satisfaction, reminiscing about the day gone by.

Finger foods and on the go meals was the call of the day. Phuket has an amazing array of foods to tantalize your taste-buds and can ensure you never go hungry. Dim sums are the perfect holiday food to eat in any Asian area especially since the dish is associated with a relaxed and informal atmosphere. Dim sums can be had either savory or sweet, the tiny dough pockets can be filled with a variety of fillings ranging from chicken to fish to vegetarian. I leave you with a variety of dim sum recipes which shall enthrall you to try them out in the comfort of your kitchens.

Bamboo Box Steamed Dim sums

Ingredients

• 24 ready wanton wrappers (you can find them in the frozen section of your supermarket)

Spicy Chicken Filling

• 1 cup shredded chicken
• 2 stalks spring onions (finely chopped)
• 1 tsp Minced garlic
• 1 tsp Five Spice Powder
• 1 tsp green chillies (finely chopped)
• Salt & White Pepper Powder to taste

Ginger-Soy Prawn Filling

• 1 cup Prawns (minced)
• 1 tsp Ginger Juice
• 1 tsp Chopped Ginger
• 1 tablsp Soy Sauce (Dark)
• 1 tsp Red Chillies (finely chopped)
• 1 small capsicum – finely chopped
• ½ tsp powdered sugar
• Salt & black pepper to taste

Mixed Vegetable Filling

• 1 cup mixed vegetables such as Peas, Diced Carrots, Cabbage (shreds) and Bell Peppers
• ½ cup diced mushrooms
• 1 tsp Garlic Powder
• 1 tsp Garlic chopped fine
• 1 tsp Celery
• 1 tablsp Oyster Sauce (vegetarian)
• 1 tablsp Red Chili sauce
• 1 tsp Vinegar
• Salt to taste

Other Apparatus

• Bamboo Dim Sum Steamer Box
• Flat Brush

For the fillings proceed as follows:

Chicken:

Mix all the ingredients, except the chicken and green onions in a small bowl. Marinade the chicken for half hour and flash fry in a little sesame oil, top with green onions and mix well. Keep aside.

Prawns:

Heat a little oil in a pan, add the chopped ginger and chillies, heat till fragrant and add the sauces and ginger juice, once about to boil, add the prawns and give it a good mix while seasoning the dish. Once dried out a bit (do not overcook as prawns cook fast), remove from fire and keep aside.

Vegetable:

Steam the vegetables slightly (not the mushrooms). Heat oil in a pan and add garlic, mix till lightly browned. Add the mushrooms and cook on high heat for a minute. Add all the sauces and vinegar with salt to taste and top with the steamed vegetables. Mix well and remove from heat ensuring the mushrooms do not wilt or start releasing water. This process should not take more than five minutes cooking time.

To proceed with Dim Sums:

Cut the wonton wrappers in two and a half inch squares, lightly dust with plain flour and keep aside.

Spoon your favorite fillings one at a time on each wrapper, about a tablespoon each (you can make 8 varieties of each filling), spoon the filling in the middle, brush all edges with a little water and gather the edges with your deft hands. Bunch up the wrapper like a small (bag) potli and seal well by pressing it tightly.

You can make different looking Dim Sums by either bunching up like a bag, or you can even fold it with the filling inside, by folding in half and scrimping the edges like a puff pastry ridged edge (ghoogras) and the simplest of all by taking two opposite ends and bringing them in the centre and again taking two other opposite ends and bringing them up in the centre thereby creating a pointed sort of balloon or samosa. Ensure the filling is snug inside the dough pockets.

Proceed by placing each dumpling in the bamboo basket which has been laid with foil or parchment paper. Steam the dumplings in the box itself for about fifteen minutes. Ensure they are well covered. Remove lid and serve hot with chili or sweet garlic sauce.

This being one of our last shore excursions, especially Thailand, it felt quite saddening to leave such a beautiful place, leaving us quite bamboozled with how much a single place could give us such an overwhelming sense of a holiday.

Our next stop is back to Malaysia, Penang where we you can ready up a little more about the many local delicacies and fancy adventures we experienced

My Photographer for the day – Niharika Tandon made the best use of the camera while I sauntered taking in the sights and sounds of Phuket and made her click most of the pictures (I mean how can a person swim, eat, shop when he is wielding a camera), she sportingly agreed to go wild with it for my sake.

The main dish photograph: ‘Steamed Dim Sum’s’ is courtesy of the Courtyard Marriott in Mumbai who serve up fantastic South East Asian Fare. Chef Praiwan, the in-house Thai Chef from Thailand was kind enough to prepare the same for me especially for the camera. The Courtyard Marriott is one place which you can also visit in Mumbai for authentic South East Asian Cuisine.