Two preparations that serve as the universal garnish and flavour-enhancer of the Thai kitchen — golden, crisp slices of garlic (kratiem jiaw) and rings of shallot (hom jiaw), fried until gold and stored for use as a garnish over soups, rice, noodles, salads, and curries. They provide crunch, aromatic depth, and a deep savouriness (from the Maillard products of the fried allium) wherever they are scattered. A well-stocked Thai kitchen always has a container of each.
**Kratiem jiaw (fried garlic):** - Garlic: sliced thin — 1.5mm maximum. Uniform thickness is essential; uneven slices produce an uneven fry (thin slices burn while thick remain pale). - Oil: neutral, generous — the garlic should swim rather than crowd. - Temperature: 150–160°C. Lower than standard frying — garlic burns very rapidly at higher temperatures. - Frying: add to cold or slightly warm oil, then gradually bring to temperature. This technique (starting in cold oil) allows the garlic to dehydrate and colour slowly — producing a more even, deeper gold. Adding sliced garlic to already-hot oil: rapid colour on the outside with the inside remaining raw. - Colour at removal: pale gold — it will continue to colour from residual heat to deep gold on the draining paper. **Hom jiaw (fried shallots):** - Shallots: sliced in 2mm rings. - Same cold-oil start technique. - These take longer than garlic (5–7 minutes vs 3 minutes for garlic at the same temperature) — the higher water content takes longer to dehydrate. Decisive moment: Removing both preparations slightly before they appear done — both continue to colour significantly from the residual heat of the oil coating them after removal. A fried garlic that looks perfectly pale gold on removal becomes deep gold-brown on the paper. A fried garlic that looks correct on removal is likely to be over-browned by the time it is cool.
David Thompson, *Thai Food* (2002); *Thai Street Food* (2010)