preface for "Swallowed an Elephant"

I never imagined one day, my passion for cooking could be my career, and even further, be published as my first book.  With diligent devotion and endless enthusiasm to Thai cuisine, I dedicated this book to all gourmet lovers:「swallowed an elephant」.

As I recalled, the happiest moment at school was always from sharing dishes with classmates and family members after class. As the chef of a Thai restaurant, I enjoy creating varieties of Thai dishes to serve our customers.  My motivation and progress with cooking are all inspired by their encouragement and satisfaction.

About ten years ago, Southeast Asia cuisine was introduced to Taiwan and created a new trend for restaurant-dining service.  I was fascinated by its pure, spicy/sour flavor, and full of essence of herbs and healthy style, and transformed my curiosity into further exploration till now.  I personally visited southeast countries several times to search for the genuine spirit of Thai cuisine and the background behind it.  There are always wonders and miracles await me along the journey: I may be touched by the peace and happiness of snack stands owners along the Chao Phraya river; also surprised by the simplistic style with delicate working of its dinning wares and discovered the impact of cultural interchange among countries; then I might generate ideas of making a new dish anytime….

For personally savoring the spirit and wonders, I put my steps into the muddy traditional market in Bangkok; investigating its origin of various dishes among southeast countries.  Then I became a student again, this time in the cooking schools of Thailand to upgrade my skill.  All of the exploration leads me to a stronger passion with Thai cuisine.

Years of formal training plus years of practical experience made cooking my personal pleasure of creation.  I can create my dishes based on all natural and abundant ingredients: various seasonings; essence of colorful herbs; un-limited natural supplies: seafood, vegetables, and household livestock.  I firstly draft sketch in my mind; then construct the main characters (seafood, vegetables or pork/chicken) of this creation, coloring them with seasonings plus multi-essence of herbs.  That’s how I make dishes.  I might fail due to uneven color mixing/ingredients and feel depressed; however; stronger will soon arise to make another try just right, or perfect.  That’s how I treat cooking.

All dishes from this book are well balanced and rich both in flavor and color, but also bear my personal stamp.  My dear readers, welcome to my written restaurant and have a glance over the collection of my favorite/specialized dishes.  Enjoy it and have fun!