Take a pass on the raw fish
May 6, 2012 | 6:45 pm
#1
Original Poster
Join Date: Oct 2002
Location: LAS
Programs: PA FT, TW Gold, NW/CO PE, VK Eagleflyer
Posts: 7,173
Take a pass on the raw fish
May 6, 2012 | 8:39 pm
#2
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Mar 2008
Location: body: A stone's throw from SFO, mind: SE Asia
Programs: Some of this 'n some of that
Posts: 17,265
Meh. For most of us we don't eat enough of the stuff to accumulate dangerous levels. The article clearly delved into those eating pla ra for decades. I'll continue to eat it because it's an integral part of many dishes and the frequency with which I eat it doesn't concern me.
Several other things:
1) Since when is pla som molded into egg shapes? I've always had it as a small fermented fish (whole) served with shallots and dried chillies*. Absolutely delicious. But what they describe sounds more like naem.
2) Your text ปลาดิบ is pla dip, not pla ra: ปลาร้า.
*There could be sub-regional varieties of preparation that I'm not familiar with.
Several other things:
1) Since when is pla som molded into egg shapes? I've always had it as a small fermented fish (whole) served with shallots and dried chillies*. Absolutely delicious. But what they describe sounds more like naem.
2) Your text ปลาดิบ is pla dip, not pla ra: ปลาร้า.
*There could be sub-regional varieties of preparation that I'm not familiar with.
May 7, 2012 | 3:59 am
#3
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Mar 2005
Location: WLG/BKK
Programs: NZ Koru Plat, TG*G, QF G, Accor Plat
Posts: 12,866
LOL, Mrs TK and the kids loooove it! But maybe not after reading the article!
There are a couple of varieties - pla ra pla chawn, and pla ra pla gradee, Mrs TK boosted my elementary reading skills back in 1988 when I had cause to visit Sydney from NZ, and had a shopping trip.....all became complicated when I found pla ra pla daek - but pla daek appears to be an Isaan dialect variation meaning the same as pla ra -
Shopkeeper was impressed, but the NZ agriculture team at the airport on return required quite some convincing it was 'OK' to import into NZ....
pla som is indeed like a fishy naam - in terms of the 'fermentation' at least; heck we even have some made by a friend from NZ herrings, parasite free as well! See: http://thaifoodandtravel.com/blog/the-best-sour-fish/
Cheers, TK
There are a couple of varieties - pla ra pla chawn, and pla ra pla gradee, Mrs TK boosted my elementary reading skills back in 1988 when I had cause to visit Sydney from NZ, and had a shopping trip.....all became complicated when I found pla ra pla daek - but pla daek appears to be an Isaan dialect variation meaning the same as pla ra -
Shopkeeper was impressed, but the NZ agriculture team at the airport on return required quite some convincing it was 'OK' to import into NZ....
pla som is indeed like a fishy naam - in terms of the 'fermentation' at least; heck we even have some made by a friend from NZ herrings, parasite free as well! See: http://thaifoodandtravel.com/blog/the-best-sour-fish/
Cheers, TK
Last edited by Thai-Kiwi; May 7, 2012 at 4:05 am
May 7, 2012 | 11:07 pm
#4
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Sep 1999
Posts: 12,375
Thanks for the heads up, it is probably advantageous to be aware of the risks so one can make the trade-offs between health and taste.
I often discourage visitors from sampling the insect trolley, as the insecticide, pesticide and carcinogen levels have been reported to be quite high owing to the "farming techniques" used. But maybe just a few won't cause any huge problems?
I always remember this botulism outbreak back in 2006 so avoid the locally tinned bamboo shoots.
Thai botulism outbreak sickened 163
Apr 18, 2006 (CIDRAP News) The recent outbreak of botulism poisoning traced to bamboo shoots served at a religious festival in Thailand sickened 163 people, according to a report by the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
Of that number, 141 patients had to be hospitalized, and 10 more were treated as outpatients. A majority experienced abdominal pain, dry mouth, and/or nausea. Forty-two of the hospitalized patients needed mechanical ventilation, the CDC said in the Apr 14 issue of Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report.
Thai health officials quickly traced the outbreak to a Mar 14 religious rite in Nawaimai Village, Pakaluang subdistrict, Baan Luang district of Nan Province, the report said. Investigators interviewed 145 of the 200 people who had attended the festival about their food intake. The only food in common was home-canned bamboo shoots, which are often eaten with chili and shrimp paste.
The bamboo shoots had been produced locally by a women's group, the CDC wrote. They were processed in large containers that held roughly 26 pounds each. Most of the 53 cans made in September 2005 were sold locally. No other outbreaks have been recorded since those cans were produced.
Antitoxin was not available in Thailand, so Thai officials sought help from several international partners. The United Kingdom (with support form the World Health Organization) sent 20 vials of heptavalent antitoxin; CDC sent 50 vials of bivalent antitoxin; and the National Institute of Infectious Diseases in Japan sent 23 vials of trivalent antitoxin. A Canadian company sold Thailand an additional 10 vials of bivalent antitoxin.
By Apr 10, only 25 patients still remained in the hospital, 9 of them on respirators, the CDC noted. None of the 163 patients died. A study assessing the outcomes of some of the cases is ongoing, the agency noted.
The report said the outbreak occurred 8 years after a smaller botulism outbreak that also was associated with home-canned bamboo shoots. Following that episode, information on safe canning was disseminated throughout the country.
"This recurrence 8 years later indicates the importance of long-term follow up and continuous inspection and assurance of the quality of food canning," the CDC said.
I often discourage visitors from sampling the insect trolley, as the insecticide, pesticide and carcinogen levels have been reported to be quite high owing to the "farming techniques" used. But maybe just a few won't cause any huge problems?
I always remember this botulism outbreak back in 2006 so avoid the locally tinned bamboo shoots.
Thai botulism outbreak sickened 163
Apr 18, 2006 (CIDRAP News) The recent outbreak of botulism poisoning traced to bamboo shoots served at a religious festival in Thailand sickened 163 people, according to a report by the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
Of that number, 141 patients had to be hospitalized, and 10 more were treated as outpatients. A majority experienced abdominal pain, dry mouth, and/or nausea. Forty-two of the hospitalized patients needed mechanical ventilation, the CDC said in the Apr 14 issue of Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report.
Thai health officials quickly traced the outbreak to a Mar 14 religious rite in Nawaimai Village, Pakaluang subdistrict, Baan Luang district of Nan Province, the report said. Investigators interviewed 145 of the 200 people who had attended the festival about their food intake. The only food in common was home-canned bamboo shoots, which are often eaten with chili and shrimp paste.
The bamboo shoots had been produced locally by a women's group, the CDC wrote. They were processed in large containers that held roughly 26 pounds each. Most of the 53 cans made in September 2005 were sold locally. No other outbreaks have been recorded since those cans were produced.
Antitoxin was not available in Thailand, so Thai officials sought help from several international partners. The United Kingdom (with support form the World Health Organization) sent 20 vials of heptavalent antitoxin; CDC sent 50 vials of bivalent antitoxin; and the National Institute of Infectious Diseases in Japan sent 23 vials of trivalent antitoxin. A Canadian company sold Thailand an additional 10 vials of bivalent antitoxin.
By Apr 10, only 25 patients still remained in the hospital, 9 of them on respirators, the CDC noted. None of the 163 patients died. A study assessing the outcomes of some of the cases is ongoing, the agency noted.
The report said the outbreak occurred 8 years after a smaller botulism outbreak that also was associated with home-canned bamboo shoots. Following that episode, information on safe canning was disseminated throughout the country.
"This recurrence 8 years later indicates the importance of long-term follow up and continuous inspection and assurance of the quality of food canning," the CDC said.