Cool Cool Thai (Old Airport Road)

I’ve had @ccthaifood Garlic Fried Pork with rice before, and while the deep fried pork belly was supremely satisfying, the grease level got out of hand halfway through. I found myself wishing that they put a side of tart mango salad to keep the fatty deep fried pork from being surfeiting, but I didn’t realise that Cool Cool Thai already had the solution on their menu.⠀
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Their Fried Pork Belly Salad does cost a little more at six dollars (and an extra seventy cents for rice), but it resolves all of the grease control problems the rice version has. The same delectable, deep fried pork belly slices are now tossed in a Thai salad mix of raw red onions, shredded carrots, coriander/cilantro (DISGUSTANG), tomatoes and an unholy amount of Thai bird’s eye chilies all bound together by a sweet and mostly sour dressing.⠀
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The incredibly sharp tartness of the dressing subdues the greasy tendencies of the pork belly effortlessly, and the strong sourness of the dressing gives way to the infernal, hellish heat of the chilies. These tiny Thai chilies are no joke, they are shockingly spicy and they WILL give you the sweats. Bracingly sour, slightly sweet and severely spicy? Yep, those are all the hallmarks of good Thai food.⠀
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The pork belly had a charmingly crispy rind and each slice had a titillating thickness to boot. However, you don’t really have time to ponder the merits of the deep fried pork belly before you get slapped around by the stupefying spiciness. As much as this salad hurt me at both ends, I’d still order this again.⠀

Came across this Thai food stall at Old Airport Road Food Centre when I was there recently, and ordered the Thai Basil Pork Rice with Egg to try for dinner! Wasn’t really expecting much as I hadn’t heard of this stall before, but to my pleasant surprise, this was a pretty solid plate! The basil pork was fragrant and moreish with the right amount of spice that left me wanting more! You can also get this in chicken instead of pork too. I’ll definitely return again to try the other items on the menu.