Recuperating on the eighth floor of the Chiang Rai Regional Hospital, the rescued junior Wild Boars football team are being well-cared for by the provincial administration.
Now that they have been taken off intravenous feeding, the 12 boys and their coach have resumed a regular diet. Food for the boys is being sourced from the most popular restaurants in town. And, restaurants are falling over themselves to cater to coach Ekaphol ‘Ek’ Chantawong and his boys.
Most of northern Thailand speaks Lanna, a regional language with its own script. The rounded script is distinctively different from the comparatively elongated Thai script. The cuisine also differs from that of central and southern Thailand.
The popular Ma Long Der restaurant in Chiang Rai has secured the honour of preparing food for the Wild Boars this Saturday. Ma Long Der serves the regional cuisine, which includes pork sausages, local speciality sauces and a selection of raw leaves. Other specialities include blue rice, which is sticky white rice cooked with butterfly pea flowers, and the famous sticky black rice of Thailand. The cuisine in Chiang Rai is influenced by Myanmar and Laos, because of the province's proximity to the Golden Triangle.
Saturday's dinner for the Wild Boars is being cooked by Rattnasuda aka Nana, chef and owner of Ma Long Der. Nana was also cooking at the cave's mouth, when the rescue operation was on.
For the boys, Nana is sending a Ma Long Der speciality called Kai Kau Longder. This dish is almost like an egg roll and has a filling of chicken eggs, pork mince, cured pork sausages, sweet basil and spices encased in flaky pastry. It is served with a side of greens and special tomato sauce.
"One serving is four rolls. I intend to send 20 servings or more," Nana said. "The boys must be hungry and I don't want them left wanting for more." At the restaurant, one serving is priced at THB 129 (around Rs 260).
Tawee Pong Inwongsakul, who goes by the name James, said he supplies organic vegetables and greens to the restaurant. "One of the things that makes this restaurant popular is the organic ingredients that they source from local farms," James said.
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"For example, the pork sausage is locally cured. The rest of Thailand, too, buys it from this area, just as we buy seafood from the south," James added.
Meanwhile, on Saturday, the royal kitchen at the cave mouth will shut down. The Thai king had sent palace staff to cook for the divers, the army and volunteers.
Nana signs off with an interesting statement: "Ma Long Der means 'Please come and try'. I am happy that coach Ek and the boys will get to try my cooking."