Traditionally this dish was only served to the royal family. Over the years it made its way into menus for formal events such as weddings and new years. There is really nothing special about the ingredients, what make this dish standout from the rest is the food arrangement to creation an image of the mystical phoenix.

For the Phoenix Rolls (Main Part of the Dish):
-1lb shrimp
-4 cloves garlic
-3 tbs fish sauce
-1 tbs tapioca starch
-1/2 tsp pepper
-pinch of salt and sugar
-2 green onions
-3 eggs
-1/2 tsp oil

What to Do:
Pell and clean shrimp. Put everything except the eggs in a food processor and process into a smooth paste. Beat the eggs with the oil. Using a non-stick pan add a few tablespoons (amount depends on size of your pan) of egg mixture, tilt and swirl the pan to create a thin sheet (like making crepes). Cook the eggs completely, remove and repeat the process until all of the eggs are used up. Divide the shrimp paste to equal the number of egg wrappers created. Spread on portion of the shrimp paste onto on of the egg wrappers. Roll as you would a Swiss roll and steam the phoenix rolls for about 15 mins or until done.

For the Phoenix (Garnish):
-1 tomato or apple
-daikon radish, and carrots
-1 tbs vinegar
-3 tbs water
-1 tsp sugar
-1 Thai chili
-2 toothpicks
-creativity ;)

What to Do:
Cut carrots and daikon into thin long strips, mix with sugar, vinegar and water (can add food coloring too). Marinate until the veggies are wilted, then drain and squeeze out excess juices. To create the phoenix, cut the tomato in half then slice into the tomato at an angle, evenly at both sides so the cuts meet at the center and create V shaped layers that stack on top of each other. Lightly push the layers back a little to create the body. Cut a slice off of the other tomato half remove the seeds, this will be the bird’s neck/head. Make a small slice on one of the ends and bend the tomato flesh slightly to create a beak. Using tooth pick ends, pin on eyes (carrots) and a chili on top to give the head some “character”. Pin the “neck” into the center of the body. Cut the remaining tomato into 2 slices, these slices will be the wings of the phoenix, carve whatever designs in them as you please. Arrange the wings to the left and right of the neck to create a bird.

Cut the phoenix rolls diagonally into thin slices. Arrange the slices behind the bird to make its tail. Arrange the daikon and carrot slices marinated earlier in vinegar around the tail and body of the bird to represent the phoenix’s elegant feathers.