第四站 清邁——泰北菜

最愛重口味

泰北菜的發源城市是清邁，這里是泰國北部的中心城市。泰北地區與老撾及緬甸為鄰，因為曾經被緬甸所統治，這里發展出了與其他地區明顯不同的文化。這種特色不僅在語言、習俗上，也反映在飲食方面。

不像中部居民喜愛香軟米飯，泰北居民喜歡各種糯米飯。傳統上他們會將糯米飯用手揉成小圓形，再佐以各類醬汁烹飪的菜肴，這種以手揉飯的吃法自有一種悠閑，放入你手中揉動的是熱帶庭院柔軟的時光。

此外，泰北菜非常注重香料的使用，南姜、歐芹、金不換、香茅等香草總會出現在各色美食之中。例如一種加有姜、羅望子、姜黃等香料制成的豬肉咖喱（Kaeng Hang Le），一道用雞蛋面及肉，上面加上切碎的青蔥和萊姆片做成的咖喱湯（Khao Soi），這些都是能反映清邁菜特色的濃香美食。

如果是去清邁旅游，最不容錯過的小吃一定是清邁面。這種面條究竟從何時開始存在，現在已經無從考證，不過數百年來它依然成為清邁城市民生活的象征。清邁面是一種咖喱口味的泰式粉面。在泰國各地，清邁人對面條的熱愛首屈一指。面條或細或寬非常隨意，同時香茅、檸檬葉及金不換等香料絕對必不可少。口味清爽不油膩，還夾雜著一點點辛辣，吃起來相當過癮。

Strong Flavor

The birthplace of northern cuisine is Chiang Mai， the central city in Northern Thailand. Bordering Laos and Burma and once ruled by Burman， the north region develops a culture different from that of the other regions， be it language， custom， or food.

Unlike the central residents who love fragrant rice， northern Thai people prefer sticky rice. They would roll the rice into a ball in a relaxed and almost artistic fashion and serve it with various sauces.

Northern Thai cuisine pays much attention to the use of seasoning. Galangal， parsley， basil， and lemon grass are often found in various dishes. Typical Chiang Mai dishes include Kaeng Hang Le， a curry pork spiced with ginger， tamarind， and turmeric， and Khao Soi， a curry soup made of egg noodle， meat， minced leek， and lemon.

If you are to visit Chiang Mai， Chiang Mai noodle is the one thing you should not miss. The origin of the noodle has been lost in time， but for centuries， it has been a symbol of local city life. Chiang Mai noodle is a curry flavored Thai noodle. As the most noodle loving residents in Thailand， locals would order a thin or wide noodle， served with lemon grass and basil. It is refreshing but not oily， with a flavor of chili.

Born and raised in Chiang Mai， Exceutive Chef of Thai Cuisine in Face Restaurant recommends the following local specialties：

Chiang Mai Sausage：Bigger than its Chinese peers， Chiang Mai sausage can be sliced to serve with fish sauce， or with peanut， lemon chunks， lettuce， ginger， and chilli pepper.

Fried Pork Skin：Either in the shape of prawn， which is fat and thick， or in a long stripe， which is dry and thin， fired prok skin is often served with green chili sauce.

Sweet and Sour Rice Noodle： Mixed with minced lemon grass， meat， pepper， scallion， coriander， and fried pork skin， and served with lemon juice， fish sauce， soy sauce， sugar， and a secret sauce， a sweet and sour rice noodle will open your appetite in the summer.

Fried Insects：Crispy and tasty fried silk worm， cicada， and bamboo worm could not be easily found in Thailand except in Chiang Mai.

Fried Boneless Fish：Chefs have to follow a complicated proess to pull out the fish bones and fill in lemon grass， garlic， pepper， coriander and other spices before it is fried.

到清邁旅游一定不要錯過以下食物，這是作為土生土長的清邁人，face餐廳泰餐行政總廚阿奔特別推薦的。

清邁香腸：清邁的辣腸形狀較中國的略大，可切片后蘸魚露吃，也可切片后佐以花生、檸檬粒、生菜、生姜和辣椒子伴食。

炸豬皮：炸豬皮一般有兩種形狀，蝦球狀的炸豬皮比較肥厚，長條狀的炸得比較干。通常配青辣椒醬一起食用。

甜酸米粉：米粉中加入切碎的檸檬草、肉糜、辣椒碎、蔥、香菜、芽菜、少許碎的炸豬皮，再加入檸檬汁、魚露、醬油、糖和神秘醬汁，酸甜的口感特別適合夏天吃。

油炸昆蟲：知了、蠶蛹、竹蟲炸制后香酥可口，不來清邁很難見識這種蟲宴。

無骨炸魚：清邁的無骨炸魚制作工序繁復，廚師得小心翼翼地將魚骨取出，然后將香茅、蒜、胡椒、莞荽根等辛香料填進魚肚，再下油鍋炸。