Pok Pok Som takes Thai spin on spruces

Chef Andy Ricker

The delicate balance of sweet and sour is as synonymous with Asian cuisine as the stir fry, and a technique all but mastered by ever cook on the continent. The rest of the world doesn’t exactly have the skill down pat, save for a few brilliant outliers like James Beard Winner Chef Andy Ricker.

Ricker became the undisputed champion of Thai cuisine stateside, including the celebrated Pok Pok, whose New York branch took home a Michelin Star in 2015. And while the original Pok Pok in Portland opened a little more than a decade ago, a stroll in a South East Asian Supermarket inspired Ricker to develop a line of drinking vinegars, called Pok Pok Som. Ricker took some time from running his Thai food and beverage empire to talk about his drinking vinegars and the future of the Pok Pok Som Brand.

What inspired you to come up with a line of drinking vinegars?

It was around ’05, 04 and I was doing a lot of shopping in south east Asian supermarkets for the opening of Pok Pok. And I saw all these products on the shelves called “health vinegars” and “drinking vinegars.” I was curious, so I bought a few bottles, took them home and after trying a few bottles found out they were really delicious.

I thought they would be a perfect accompaniment to the kind of food I was making, so I put them on the menu when we opened the full restaurant. At that point, they were offered as an alternative, non alcoholic beverage. We started working them into cocktails as well.

Nine sweet and sour flavors strong.

Pok Pok Som is 9 flavors strong. Was the initial product line difficult to develop? Were some flavors trickier than others?

We were at it for over eight of nine years and over time we’ve had various successes and failures. Now we’re pretty good at producing flavors because we understand how it all works. We’ve gotten better at balancing pH and flavor so we get great results almost every time.

Initially, we tried to make vinegar from scratch. And that was pretty hit or miss. So say we made a pineapple vinegar. It would be fantastic one time and the next time it would be all wrong. We’re macerating fruit and vinegars, cooking it up with sugar and making it concentrated. What we’re making now, essentially are shrubs.

Are there any plans to expand the line?

We’ve expanded to the carbonated drink market. We have four flavors of carbonated beverages in a 12 oz. bottle at places like Whole Foods, and we’re gradually getting more distribution along the west coast and all across the country.

We’re constantly working on different flavors, we’re currently thinking of replacing one of our SKUs and moving to a strawberry because we have so many great strawberries here in Oregon. We’re going through different trials, trying out “strawberry black pepper,” “strawberry balsamic,” and “strawberry pepper balsamic.” We also work with other companies and establishments to make custom flavors. We’re working with House Spirits on a bunch of different flavors for them to play with.

What are some of the most inventive ways people are using Pok Pok Som?

We have a great combination of sweet, tart and flavor in one thing so they’re really versatile for cocktails. Chris Cosentino is using out Chinese Celery as a finishing vinegar over at Cocksomb. It’s used as an ingredient in a milkshake at Salt and Straw Ice Cream. It’s a pretty versatile product, and I’m trying to push the idea of using it as a culinary ingredient.

Other than tasting great, does it have any secondary benefits?

I think there’s a health element to it. We don’t really push that much, but it’s been used as a health tonic for a very long time. For digestion, for weight loss. But at the end of the day we’re just trying to make a delicious beverage.

Jaime Carrillo

Jaime Carrillo dreams of pizza the way Jiro dreams of sushi. Despite his pretensions about food, his pantry stocked with home made jams and pickles and mad scientist ingredients like xantham gum, he’s not above a weekly dose of drive-thru chili dogs. He’s always thinking of different kinds of food to sous vide, or trying his hands at home charcuterie. Also, he’s very excitable and quick to anger when it comes to food and foodie culture.

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