same_same_but_different

I Do Love Both - Epilog for this season
My cooking life has been very mixed since I live in Germany. I tried many ingredients from other cultures and found fun substitutes for baking Asian dishes.
All of these experiences inspired all “Same Same but Different” stories.
The German foods, surprised me the most are “Maultaschen” and “Marzipan fruit”
Even though I love Thai food, sometimes I can’t choose between Thai or German cuisine.
I can also imagine that I will miss German bread a lot, if I ever leave Germany for a long time. 🥨🥨🥨🥨🥨🥨🥨🥨
read comic on OUSA.collective*

*Same Same but Different is published since 2020

A German Drink
I can't easily find most German drinks in Thailand nor in Asia. For example Thailand has a yoghurt drink but it’s almost impossible to find the “unsweetened” version like Ayran.
Some drinks have a “less-sugar” version but they are sweet like a “avarage-sweet” in Germany. Thailand has a hot climate almost the whole year (Bangkok has Winter season about a week in a year. Yes, it’s about a week and the temperature is about 25 Degrees). That’s the reason why people prefer to drink something, which is super cold and so sweet.

I’m a fan of German drinks, however I’m not a fan of German sweets .
Only “Franzbrötchen” is exceptional.
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But which Paulaner?
In Germany it’s a common thing that people know types of beer, because it’s the way they order them. Which I can understand, because Germany has many beer brands and some brands aren't available everywhere. For example I couldn’t easily find “Astra” in Munich, nor “Paulaner” in Hamburg.

In Thailand we don’t have so many types of beer like in Germany (I only talk about the big brewing industry). So people remember the taste of beer and order them by brands, a local brand as well as an imported one.
So what is your favourite beer?
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Eine Halbe
“Eine Halbe” “Ein halbes Bier” “Ein kleines Bier”...
To order beer in Germany I mostly have questions “How is it called?” and
“How can I order like Germans (and get what I really want to drink)?”

“halb”, “Halbe'' and “Hälfte” also means “half” in German but to use each word depends on context and also to order beer. Sometimes that’s very tricky to me.

Ok let’s get to the point. “Eine Halbe” doesn’t mean “a half of a normal glass-size” like
“ein halbes Bier” and “ein kleines Bier” but it means half a Litre “eine halbe (Liter)”.
Sounds very confusing, isn’t it?
But the easy thing is, we call beer in German “Bier” and Thai “เบียร์” the same!
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A Straw
Straw?
Because of the weather in Thailand I can count how many times I drink something “hot''
in a year. Sound’s weird right, but it’s real.
As a teenager in Thailand, I remember that we had a campaign to drink with a straw because of hygiene. From restaurants to street stands, glasses always come with a straw. But I think it's more than “a hygienic issue”.
The Straw became popular because people can drink while walking, driving , waiting for a bus or even while chatting with someone else. It just works!

My Beer 101 experience:
To drink beer with ice cubes - It’s fine.
To drink a not cold beer - It’s OKAY.
To drink a frost beer - It’s not bad but a bit hard.
To drink beer with a straw - Yuck!!!!!!!!
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Dipping Sauce
Food stand sellers in Thailand make the dipping sauce themselves, with chili, garlic, salt, lime and sugar (some add-on chopped coriander). A good dipping sauce smells super fresh, juicy and garlicky!
Sometimes when I know a seller who has a delicious dipping sauce recipe, I ask for the dipping sauce to be seperated, and use it to make spicy salad after that.
A delicious Lifehack, that doesn't really work in Germany.
Text edited by: OUSA.collective

Marzipan Fruits vs Look-Choop
In Germany I could only find a frozen version on
Asian-supermarkets. One time I almost bought a pack but when I saw the price I couldn’t believe a frozen attempt to copy this marvel could be so much more expensive than the original. I immediately thought to myself “I will wait for the next time when I fly back to Thailand.”
Text edited by: OUSA.collective

A Glass of Water
when I visit a German friend’s home they often ask me if I want something to drink, and they are often surprised by my answer. "Just a glass of water please." They will ask me why, and I never know what to answer. I mean, why not?
While in Thailand when I ask my friend if they have coffee or tea they will quickly tell me that if I wanted some I should have bought it and brought it.
I smile and think to myself, why not?
In this situation, diversity definitely matters. Or does it? Let me know in the comments which scenario do you prefer, or if you have another to add!
Text edited by: OUSA.collective

Wasabi
I haven't found any Wasabi root here yet... But met a substitute! If you want the real Wasabi though, you have to grow it by yourself. In case you try it, let me know how it is going!
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Various
This time with some kitchen essentials that look so similar you may have never noticed the difference. Swipe to make sure your kitchen is holy and sin free.
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Radler is Radler
and Beer is Beer - Only Grain, Hops, Yeast and water
Germany is the queendom of Beer, so I learned a lot about it when I moved here. For example, what is REAL BEER, and how it apparently doesn’t include Radler.
That makes sense, but I can’t stop loving my lemonade beer.
Also did you know that here in Germany some people drink only beer for breakfast? That’s a tradition my stomach couldn’t integrate

Anyway I miss having these misunderstandings in person..
Text edited by: OUSA.collective

These are some of the first food anecdotes I encountered! Let me know in the comments if you've been through this yourself. Text edited by: OUSA.collective