''Thong ek'' ( th, ทองเอก, ), also known as "Wheat Flour Dumplings with Egg Yolks", is one of the
nine auspicious traditional Thai desserts. It is a golden sweet carved as various types of flowers decorated with a piece of gold leaf on top, popularly served in very significant occasions such as career advancement ceremonies.
Etymology
In Thai, the word Thong means "gold" and the word Ek means "prime". It is believed that when Thong Ek is used in auspicious rituals or as a gift to seniors, it will bring wealth and to superiority in work; to be number one in their field of work.
History
''Thong ek'' is in the same category as other egg-based sweets (i.e. ''
thong yip
Thong yip ( th, ทองหยิบ, ), also known as "pinched gold egg yolks" in English, is one of the nine auspicious traditional Thai desserts. It is usually made for important occasions and ceremonies such as weddings, ordinations, and hou ...
'', ''
thong yot
Thong yot ( th, ทองหยอด, ), also known as "gold egg-yolks drops", is an ancient Thai dessert and one of the nine auspicious traditional Thai desserts. Thong Yot originated in Aveiro District, Portugal. Thong Yot was adapted from o ...
'', ''
foi thong'',
''sangkhaya'' and
''mo kaeng''). It was introduced by Japanese-Portuguese chef
Maria Guyomar de Pinha
Maria Guyomar de Pina ( th, มารีอา กียูมาร์ ดึ ปีญา; 1664 – 1728) (also known as ''Maria Guiomar de Pina'', ''Dona Maria del Pifia'' or as ''Marie Guimar'' and ''Madame Constance'' in French), Thao Thong Ki ...
in the reign of
Narai
King Narai the Great ( th, สมเด็จพระนารายณ์มหาราช, , ) or Ramathibodi III ( th, รามาธิบดีที่ ๓ ) was the 27th monarch of Ayutthaya Kingdom, the 4th and last monarch of the Pr ...
during the
Ayutthaya Kingdom
The Ayutthaya Kingdom (; th, อยุธยา, , IAST: or , ) was a Siamese kingdom that existed in Southeast Asia from 1351 to 1767, centered around the city of Ayutthaya, in Siam, or present-day Thailand. The Ayutthaya Kingdom is conside ...
. Its origin is a Portuguese sweet which has yolk and sugar as main ingredients. Maria Guyomar de Pinha had combined the
Portuguese
Portuguese may refer to:
* anything of, from, or related to the country and nation of Portugal
** Portuguese cuisine, traditional foods
** Portuguese language, a Romance language
*** Portuguese dialects, variants of the Portuguese language
** Portu ...
and Thai methods of preparing sweets, demonstrating the delicate process of cooking, starting from raw materials to the meticulous taste, color, smell, appearance and beautiful decoration, which varies according to the dessert itself.
Ingredients
The dessert is made from the mixture of sugar, coconut milk and egg yolk which is pressed into wooden molds. The cooking process will not be finished until a little gold foil is decorated on the top of the sweet.
See also
*
List of Thai desserts
This is a list of Thai khanom, comprising snacks and desserts that are a part of Thai cuisine. Some of these dishes are also a part of other cuisines. The word "khanom" ( th, ขนม), refers to snack or dessert, presumably being a compound bet ...
References
{{Thai cuisine
Thai desserts and snacks
Egg dishes