Prime Time
Talk about your crabby cooks. This week, the world’s crabbiest may be Samak Sundaravej, Thailand’s freshly ousted prime minister.
The reason he got booted is not what you’d expect. The usual suspects in a political upheaval (protestors) have indeed been very active of late; thousands occupied Samak’s compound, demanding his resignation. But that’s not why he got thrown out.
It seems that Samak hosted a cooking show before he became prime minister. (I know, odd career path.) Apparently, he was unable to resist returning to the show as a paid guest host on several occasions during his run as prime guy, even though slumming in the commercial world is against the constitutional rules for political big shots. That’s why they nailed him.
What would drive a guy to give up all that power just to cook publicly? I get irritated just cooking privately in a home where my ouster is unlikely. (They can’t throw me out or they’d be chef-less.)
But as I learn more, I’ve come to think that the p.m. is a kindred spirit; his TV show is called “Tasting and Grumbling.” This thrills me; it sounds like a reality show about my life. They could just come over and perch a camera in my kitchen, right up atop the fridge, come back once a week and collect their episode.
I never cook Thai food because A) there are a lot of great takeout Thai restaurants in Los Angeles, and B) my picky family won’ eat it. But I was curious to know what recipes Samak gave up his career for, so I did a little research. My favorite by far is his recipe for…are you sitting down? “Pigs Legs in Coca-cola.”
I know, tough to believe, but I will provide you with the recipe in my next post.
Tags: prime minister, Samak Sundarajev, Thailand
September 20th, 2008 at 10:02 am
Hey Jessica
Try the basil chicken fried rice on this webstie. I bet your family will like Thai food then
http://www.thaifoodtonight.com
It’s got about 30 recipes each one with a cooking video to go along.
September 21st, 2008 at 10:17 pm
Okay, thanks for that website, I will try…my family is the ultimate challenge!
September 30th, 2008 at 6:47 pm
Before you bust a brain cell imagining the “horrors†of Pig’s Foot Coca Cola, let me just state PUBLICLY: perhaps my “signature dish†is Coca Cola Short Ribs. Trust me, they are one of the most delicious homecooked one pot dishes you will ever enjoy. As for the cooking show/PM career line—all I can say is I went from being called “The Velvet Hammer†as President of the Parent Association of my children’s preschool to “Home Cook Maniac Extraordinaire†almost overnight. What do you say to that?
September 30th, 2008 at 9:47 pm
I say right on, sister, and gimme that recipe for Coca-cola Ribs!!
October 1st, 2008 at 2:24 pm
I just love your recipes. I especially love Thai food.I have a place to buy Thai food near where I live. However, Thai restaurants are hard to find.Keep[ up the great recipes
October 3rd, 2008 at 7:09 pm
Hi Jessica!
Years ago I read a wonderful coming of age book about a teenager who moved from the South (as in American, not Southern California) to New Mexico. He (the teenager coming of age) mentioned a southern recipe for glazed ham which used coke as the glaze. I was horrified, but I bet it was good. Although I lived in the South for 13 years, and I married a Southerner, I never tasted coke glazed ham, but Southern cuisine is in general fabulous and someday I will have to try it! I just had to mention that coke and pig have been combined before!
P.S. I also hope to try the heritage tomato spaghetti sauce – it sounded delicious!