Food from Piet, who doesn't want that?
At the beginning of December 2016, the editors again published an article of mine from a few years ago about eating stew in Pattaya. If you haven't read that article yet, here's the link: www.thailandblog.nl/eten-drinken/stamppot-in-pattaya
I wrote in it that the stew in Thailand does not taste the same as we are used to in the Netherlands, but that several restaurants do their best to still serve a tasty meal.
Again many reactions, one of which stood out for me, namely from a certain Piet, who thought that the stew in Pattaya can taste just as good, if not better than “at mother's house”. Well, I thought, that's someone who dares to say something! He “challenged me” to come and eat his stew at his house and then pass judgment on “its” quality. I gladly accepted that challenge.
Piet from Friesland
Due to the holidays it took a while before we could make a good appointment, but in mid-January I went to visit him here in Pattaya. That Piet from Friesland is Piet Veenstra, a right-minded Frisian from Grouw. Coincidentally I know that place, because I worked there for a number of years in the early eighties for the largest employer at the time in Grouw. It is also the period in which I made my first trip to Thailand, but that is another story.
Introduction
At the gate I already met his guard dog and I was happy that Piet showed himself immediately, the beautiful dog (I don't know what brand) doesn't like strangers. Piet told me that cooking is his hobby that he does every day. “Eating out” does not or hardly occur in his family with Thai wife Phai and children. With his experience from the hotel industry and as a diet chef, he can make everything himself. That is not exactly limited to the stews, but I came for that.
Kale with sausage
Piet hadn't said too much. While we mainly talked about his cooking, his wife put the finishing touches to the kale and sausage stew. Piet occasionally took a pulse and after about ten minutes the kale with sausage was served to me. What else can I say, it was delicious, because it was an (almost) perfect stew. Homemade mashed potatoes (not mashed) with crunchy kale so it wasn't "baby food" but had a firm bite to it. The stew was also exemplary seasoned, so there was no need for salt, pepper or anything else. Piet said that the sausage, made by a colleague and smoked by him, had almost the Hema quality, but I disagreed with him. The Hema smoked sausage cannot compete with Piet's sausage.
Variation
Of course you can't eat kale with sausage every day, so other Dutch dishes are also prepared in Huize Veenstra. In addition to the kale, endive and sauerkraut stews, nasi, bami, hachee with red cabbage are also regularly on the menu. Piet has his own smoker, in which not only sausage, but also bacon, casselerrib, chicken, mackerel and other fish are smoked. I also got a sample of that. Meatballs, croquettes, bitterballen? Piet does not turn his hand around for it!
Pete's assistant
He is fully assisted in Piet's cooking hobby by his dear wife Phai. She does a lot of preparation of washing, peeling, cutting and she is also the boss of "the dish kitchen". The food is not only made for personal use, but the hobby has now expanded, so that it almost looks like work. The food is usually prepared in somewhat larger portions, so that friends and acquaintances can also enjoy it. I told Piet that he should advertise it more, but he didn't want to think about that thought (yet).
Order
Piet actually had a price list of all regular dishes, which are formally supplied by his Thai wife to a limited "clientele". A while ago I placed a considerable order for stews, hachee, pea soup, minced meat bells and smoked sausages. When I received the order I immediately ate hachee. That day Piet posted a photo on Facebook of his daughter Mira, who was feasting on sauerkraut stew and I wrote the following reaction:
“Placed an order with Piet for the first time and picked it up this morning. Of course I immediately tried it, no, it was not a chateau briand, not a T-bone steak and not a Gordon Bleu either, but a delicious hash with red cabbage. Immediately ate a hefty meatball with it. When I say meatball, I also mean a meatball and not some spongy ball with a lot of fat. It's been a long time since I've had such a good meal, honestly! Thanks Pete!"
Piet is quite active on Facebook and usually shows with photos what special dishes he has made. Recently I saw pictures of a bami dish, herring/beet salad, fried rice with sate, chocolate balls, babi pangang, stewed pears, Thai/Frisian sugar bread and “Beppe's sugar balls”.
Finally
I can wholeheartedly recommend the kitchen of Piet and Phia and if this story has aroused your interest, please contact Piet Veenstra. He can be reached through his Facebook page. Ask for the price list or make any special wishes known to him.
Enjoy!
I would like to know where Piet gets his kale from. We dried it in the Netherlands and then took it with us.
Does Piet not have an email address? I don't want a face book. let me know: [email protected]
Hi Pete, I would also like your email address. Thanks in advance. Ton
would also like the e-mail address of Piet Veenstra. Don't have facebook either.
My email address is : [email protected]
[email protected] remembered I thought 🙂
We do make our own stew. I know in South Africa we used to have to make Brocoli stew, there was no kale here either, only kale was used as an ornamental plant in a park in Durban, but we didn't have the guts to take this with us. Making sauerkraut yourself is difficult, you can get the coal but no buttermilk.
Hi Bob,
You can buy buttermilk in Thailand. The English name is Buttermilk. This is available at 7-11.
Good luck making your sauerkraut.
Buttermilk not really necessary, you can also use vinegar or wine vinegar, possibly drain some yoghurt in a cloth and use the drained liquid
There are at least 4 Dutch people in the Jomtien/Pattaya area, who know how to prepare excellent Dutch food. But also oliebollen, currant breads, banquet bars with real food, etc.
The participants of the NVTPattaya rally ride were offered fresh Dutch meat sauce along the way, which was very much appreciated given the reactions.
Nowhere in my story does it say that Piet Veenstra is the only person in Pattaya who can make an excellent Dutch dish.
No doubt there are more, but Piet was the only one who made a nice response to my story of stews and so I thought it appropriate to pay attention to his cooking.
Dear Gringo,
That's not how I meant it.
More appreciation for all those people who still appreciate the Dutch pot and know how to prepare it tasty, often with tips.
Thank you for your story!
Banquet bars and raisin bread with spice I also make myself. You can buy the ingredients here everywhere. That's not that hard
Yes, fortunately there are still enough home cooks and certainly DB has delicious raisin bread etc….
Joma Soi 13 Ban Amphur Tel.
Every Friday from 11.00:16 am to XNUMX:XNUMX pm you can walk in to inspect everything.
I see no reason why people in Thailand should not be able to cook as well as in the Netherlands/Belgium. Good cooking depends on only a few factors:
the person preparing the food
the ingredients you use
Eating in a restaurant (farang) is never the same as what you prepare yourself at home. Is it a real farang cook or is it Thai which it was taught left or right?
I cook here myself 5 days a week. Every day of the week there is something different on the menu, both in terms of vegetables and meat. I can almost always find the necessary ingredients. I send specific spice mixes from Belgium by post. If there is something that I can't find here at all, I will always find an alternative for the missing one. In the beginning it is a search for certain ingredients, but with some patience and trying out certain things you will get there. Of course you can't look at the price either. It would be much cheaper for me to eat out every day, but I am a Belgian and a Belgian is naturally a foodie.
Many Farang have already sat at the table here, the day before yesterday, we were 11 people: two Dutch, 3 Belgians and the others were Thai or already “verbelgiste” Thai….
They got like:
apero: cocktail of homemade passion fruit juice with a good shot of Hong Thong in it
starter: tiger scampi ( wild caught ) and fishcakes
real homemade tomato soup with meatballs
main dish: ragout (or you can call it goulash) of wild pig ( muu paa ) with baked potatoes ... of course with a few carafes of wine.
I spent all day in my kitchen the day before, but I enjoyed the fact that my guests feasted and that gives satisfaction to the person who prepared the food.
Gringo,
if you ever want to eat "real" Flemish Carbonades, prepared in brown beer, or marinated leg of lamb .... then do the transfer from Pattaya to Chumphon …. I'll make sure you don't eat my plates.
Hello Gringo,
I regularly see Piet and Phai's cooking skills on Facebook and that looks mouth watering. Got roulades from Piet and Phai in December, for several people and they all said, perfect and what was also so great, vacuum packed. I made thin slices of 1 roulade on the cutting machine and used it for sandwich fillings, you can't get better fillings.
But back to your story, the dog is not a brand but a kind of a certain breed or cross. A sweet dog, by the way, once you're inside and Piet is there.
Think Piet is getting too busy now and can forget about his sea fish.
Nice piece of Gringo and luckily Phai is doing the cooking now, I can taste it, after all, working is not allowed, something I have no problem with.
The Thais are also increasingly appreciating farang food, although it does bring pompui 😉
Sauerkraut is quite easy to make. White cabbage cut into fine strips. Add salt, knead a bit so that the cabbage loses its moisture. Cabbage with moisture in an earthenware pot. Let it stand outside the refrigerator for about 10/14 days (but air it every day because of the fermentation). Then in the refrigerator. Make sure that there is always a layer of water (with salt) on the sauerkraut.
HEMA smoked sausage. I understand that there are not very many of the lden on Fcebook, but take a look at this.
https://web.facebook.com/search/top/?q=hema%20rookworst%20for%20myanmar
Has been around for a few years, but not so successful, not yet seen smoked sausage towards Myanmar.