In yesterday’s post about eating seafood, I mentioned that after eating we went for a stroll through the adjacent market.  Nongmon Market is in Chonburi province, a coastal province southeast of Bangkok.  Like all markets, there is a lot to see, plenty of pictures to take, and not a few things to try eating … if you are brave enough!

A view down one section of the market, which stretches over several blocks.  It is a busy place and if you aren’t careful you could easily get run down by a motorbike.

It is all about the fresh seafood.  Here are some very large prawns, ready to be grilled.

There are many kinds of fish available.  I watched for a minute as this skilled fishmonger quickly cut the tails and fins off the fish, moving as rapidly as a machine.

There were bushels full of hoy dong – marinated/pickled clams that are a popular dish.

Lots of vendors sell hor mok – a fish mousse steamed in a banana leaf or mussel shell.  Tawn made this for me using salmon shortly after he moved to San Francisco in late 2000.  It was tasty, but I have to say that he struggled to find a banana leaf to use.

Visiting the market is fun for the entire family – especially when you can get four members of the family squeezed onto a motorbike.  See the second child in there?

A sweet treat called khanom jaak – The leaf is”bai jak”, a type of palm frond.  A mixture of shredded coconut, palm sugar, and coconut milk is folded inside the leaf then it is grilled until it becomes a sticky, toffee-like mass.  Tasty stuff.  Watch out for the staples.

Dried shrimp – Thais use these in dishes like nam prik (chili dipping sauce) and som tam (green papaya salad) to add a salty and fishy flavor.

A fruit vendor slicing up fruit to go.  The orange fruit above the pineapple is called gratawn – a summer fruit with a bitter, tangy exterior layer of flesh.  Closer to the seed it is very sweet with a cottony flesh.  The bananas in the lower right are known as gluay nam waa, which has a sticky flesh similar to a plantain.  There are many different varieties of banana here.

Finally a dessert called khanom chan – “layer dessert” – a jello-like dessert, very auspicious for promotions and other things where you go up a level.  The green flavor is pandan leaf and blue flavor is an-chan, a type of flower also known as clitoria ternatea.

I hope you enjoyed the stroll through the market.  Tomorrow, a retro 60s meal back in Bangkok.