"Kra tiem" is the name in
Thai for fried
garlic, truly one of the
secret ingredients of
Thai food. Fried garlic is an absolutely wonderful spice used in many traditional Thai dishes. It has an intense
flavor and is one of the greatest ways to enjoy garlic flavor in
stir-fry,
Caesar salad, or anywhere else. It is simply chopped garlic, fried in oil in a
wok and stored for use in sauces or as a sort of topping. It is robustly aromatic and has a taste that is like uncooked garlic, but sweeter. Kra tiem goes well with
black pepper, and is also the name of a dish made with fried garlic, pepper,
fish sauce, and other good things all poured over seafood or meat and shredded lettuce.
Kra tiem can be purchased at most
Asian food stores in a small tub, and some
Thai restaurants will give you some if you ask. Most of them make it fresh each day, freshness is a very important factor in the taste of this spice.
Because the
translation is imperfect, sometimes the word used is "ka tiem". Also, some Thai people apparently use the word to mean raw garlic. Enjoy!