This weekend I had the pleasure of teaching Thai cuisine, which turned out absolutely brilliantly!
I realised however how “stuck in our ways” we become. We are such creatures of habit, afraid to venture out of our little safe haven. We explored the different flavours, herbs, spices – oh boy did we explore the chillies lol! It was fun to see and to show others how simple other cuisines actually are – once you try them. In 3 hours we managed to do four different dishes, plate them and enjoy our handy work, not to shabby if you ask me.
I hope you enjoy these recipes as much as we did, and remember, cooking is not the same as baking, if you don’t want exact quantities of chillies or onions *you get the hint*, simply cut it down 
*you have to eat it after all!*
Chicken Fried Rice
Ingredients
- 2 tbsp vegetable oil, for frying
- 2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
- 2 bird’s eye chilies, finely chopped
- 100g chicken, finely chopped or minced
- 1 tbsp fish sauce, such as Blue Dragon
- ¼ tsp granulated sugar
- 1 tbsp light soy sauce, such as Blue Dragon
- 20 leaves Thai basil,
- 225g cooked rice
- 1 small onion, finely sliced
- ½ red or yellow pepper, cut into thin slices
Method
1. In a wok or frying pan, heat the oil until hot. Add the garlic and fry until golden brown. Stir in the chilies and chicken. Add the fish sauce, sugar and light soy sauce and stir fry over a high heat until the chicken is cooked through.
2. Toss in the basil leaves if using, followed by the cooked rice and mix gently together. Add the onion and sweet pepper and stir quickly to mix. Cook until the rice has heated through, then turn on to a serving dish.
Pad Thai
Ingredients
- 2 tbsp vegetable oil
- 5 medium raw black tiger prawns
- 30 g cooked shrimps
- 1 egg
- 165g dried rice noodles, soaked in warm water for 1 hour then drained
- 1 1/2 tbsp fish sauce
- 2 tbsp rice vinegar, or Mirin
- 1/2 tbsp pickled turnips, rushed
- 1/2 tbsp salted peanuts, crushed
- 80g bean sprouts
- 15g chives, chopped
- 15g carrots, shredded
- 1 1/2 tbsp sugar
To garnish:
- sprigs coriander
- wedge of limes
Method
1. Heat a wok over a high heat. Add in the vegetable oil and heat through.
2. Add in the tiger prawns and stir-fry for 2-3 minutes.
3. Add in the shrimps and egg. Stir-fry for 2 minutes until the egg is cooked.
4. Add in the rice noodles, fish sauce and vinegar and stir-fry, making sure the ingredients in the wok are well-mixed.
5. Add in the pickled turnip, salted peanuts, bean sprouts, chives, carrots and stir-fry until the bean sprouts and carrot are just tender, around 2-3 minutes.
6. Sprinkle over the sugar and stir-fry for 1 minute.
7. Serve at once, garnished with the coriander leaves and lime wedge.
Prawn & Grapefruit Salad inspired from Blue Dragon
Ingredients
- 400g prawns, vein removed
- 2 large grapefruit, or 1 large pomelo, peeled and segmented, (see Cook’s tip)
- 1 small red onion, thinly sliced
- 1-2 small ripe avocado, chopped into medium sized chunks
- 2 tbsp lime juice
- 2 tbsp fish sauce, such as Blue Dragon
- 1 red chili, seeds removed and finely chopped
- pinch brown sugar, to taste
- 1 tbsp coriander leaves
Method
1. Add the prawns to a large ban of salted boiling water and cook for about 3-5 minutes until pink and cooked through.
2. Place the grapefruit segments, onion and avocado in a serving dish. Arrange the prawns on top and drizzle with the fish sauce. Toss to mix well.
3. Sprinkle with coriander leaves and serve immediately.
Thai Green Curry
Ingredients
- 450g chicken, cooked
- 600ml coconut milk, you will need to buy two tins
For the green curry paste
- 8 green chilies, whole
- 1 stalk lemongrass, 1 lemon grass stalk, sliced thinly and soaked for 30 minutes in 2 tablespoons lime juice
- 1 tsp kaffir lime peel, pared and thinly shredded
- 7 pieces galangal, Thai ginger
- 1 tsp coriander stalks, chopped
- 0.5 tsp cumin, roasted, ground
- 0.5 tsp coriander seeds, roasted, ground
- 3 cloves garlic
- 5 Thai shallots, peeled, or normal shallots in not available
- 1 tsp shrimp paste
For the finished sauce
- 4 tsp fish sauce
- 1 tsp palm sugar
- 3 tsp fresh green peppercorns
- 7 thai lime leaves
- 0.5 red chilies, de-seeded and cut into hair-like shreds
- 25 g Thai basil
Method
The curry paste can be made well ahead of time and there’s absolutely no work involved if you have a food processor or a liquidiser because all you do is simply pop all the curry paste ingredients in and whiz it to a paste (stopping once or twice to push the mixture back down from the sides on to the blades). In Thailand, of course, all these would be pounded by hand with a pestle and mortar, but food processors do cut out all the hard work.
What you need to end up with is a coarse paste but don’t worry if it doesn’t look very green – that’s because I have cut the chili content; in Thailand they use about 35! If you want yours to be green, then this is the answer! Your next task is to prepare all the rest of the ingredients.
To make the curry, first place the tins of coconut milk on a work surface, upside down. Then open them and inside you will see the whole thing has separated into thick cream and thin watery milk.
Divide these by pouring the milk into one bowl and the cream into another. Next place a wok, without any oil in it, over a very high heat and then as soon as it becomes really hot, add three-quarters of the coconut cream.
What you do now is literally fry it, stirring all the time so it doesn’t catch. What will happen is it will start to separate, the oil will begin to seep out and it will reduce. Ignore the curdled look – this is normal. You may also like to note that when the cream begins to separate you can actually hear it give off a crackling noise.
Next add the curry paste and three-quarters of the coconut milk, which should be added a little at a time, keeping the heat high and letting it reduce down slightly. Stay with it and keep stirring to prevent it sticking.
Then add the Thai fish sauce and palm sugar – stir these in and then add the chicken pieces and the peppercorns. Stir again and simmer everything for about 4-5 minutes until the chicken is heated through. Then just before serving, place the lime leaves one on top of the other, roll them up tightly and slice them into very fine shreds. Then add them along with the red chili and torn basil leaves. Serve with Thai fragrant rice.
Spicy Pork Balls wrapped in Lettuce Leaves with Thai Herbs
Ingredients
- 400 g minced pork
- 2 chilies, preferably Thai scuds, finely sliced
- 1/2stalk lemongrass
- small bunch coriander, with roots, chopped
- good pinch black pepper
- handful mint, chopped
- handful Thai basil, chopped
- 2 tbsp chili sauce
- 2 tbsp fish sauce
- groundnut oil, for frying
- 6 iceberg lettuce, to serve
Method
1. Crush the herbs and spices in a pestle and mortar or a blender. Mix well with the mince.
2. Shape the mince into small bands (wet your hands so the mixture doesn’t stick).
3. Heat the oil in a frying pan over medium heat and fry the balls all over, until cooked inside. Drain on kitchen towel.
4. Combine the chili and fish sauces in a bowl.
5. Wrap the pork balls in the lettuce leaves and drizzle with the chili sauce.
Beef Satay with Peanut Sauce
Ingredients
For the beef satay
- 2-3 tbsp vegetable oil
- 1 red chili, deseeded and finely chopped
- 1 clove garlic, finely crushed with a pinch of sea salt
- 400-450g beef fillet, trimmed of fat and sinew
- 1 handful mixed herbs or small salad leaves, to serve
For the peanut sauce
- 2 tbsp vegetable oil
- 2 large shallots, finely diced
- 3 cloves garlic, crushed
- 2cm piece ginger, finely grated
- 1 red chili, deseeded and finely chopped
- 1½ tbsp light soy sauce
- 250ml coconut milk
- 1 tbsp caster sugar
- 100g crunchy peanut butter
Method
For the beef satay: mix the vegetable oil, chili and garlic together in a small bowl and season with salt and freshly ground black pepper. Brush this mixture all over the beef fillet.
2. Cover the beef fillet with cling film and marinate in the fridge for at least 2 hours, or overnight. Remove the beef from the fridge 15 minutes before you’re ready to cook it.
3. For the peanut sauce: heat the vegetable oil in a small saucepan over a medium heat. Add the shallots and fry gently, without colouring, for 4-5 minutes until they start to soften, then stir in the garlic, ginger and chili and cook for another 2-3 minutes.
4. Pour in the soy sauce and simmer for 2-3 minutes, or until almost all the liquid has reduced, then pour in the coconut milk and sugar, stirring until the sugar has dissolved.
5. Increase the heat to high and bring to the boil, then immediately remove the pan from the heat and stir in the peanut butter. Stir until the peanut butter is thoroughly incorporated into the sauce, adding a splash of boiling water if you prefer a slightly thinner sauce.
5. To cook the beef, heat a griddle pan over a high heat until smoking. Unwrap the beef and add to the pan. Cook for 2 minutes on each side for medium-rare, ensuring the surface of the beef is browned all over.
6. Remove the pan from the heat and leave the beef to rest for 5 minutes. Transfer the meat to a chopping board and carve into 2-3cm thick strips then thread each strip onto a short wooden skewer.
7. Brush a little of the peanut sauce over the beef skewers and divide the remaining peanut sauce between individual dipping bowls.
8. To serve, divide the beef satay skewers between warm serving plates and scatter over the mixed herbs. Serve the bowls of peanut sauce alongside for dipping.
Thai Beef Salad
Ingredients
- 2 tbsp oil, for frying
- 2 cloves garlic, chopped
- 2 Thai bird’s eye chilies, seeds removed, finely sliced
- 200g lean minced beef
- 1 red onion, roughly sliced
- 2 tbsp fish sauce, such as Blue Dragon
- 2 tbsp light soy sauce, such as Blue Dragon
- 1 tsp sugar
- 20 leaves Thai basil, (optional)
- mixed leaves
- handful chopped peanuts, to garnish
Method
1. In a wok or frying pan, heat the oil and fry the garlic and chilies, stirring well, until the garlic begins to brown.
2. Add the minced beef and stir fry over a high heat, breaking apart the meat and mixing in the garlic and chili.
3. Add the remaining ingredients to the pan and continue to stir fry until the beef is cooked through. Arrange over the plated lettuce leaves and garnish with chopped peanuts.
Tom Kha Gai (Thai coconut soup)
Ingredients
- 400ml coconut milk
- 400ml chicken stock
- 3 small shallots, finely sliced
- 3 sticks lemongrass, brown ends trimmed
- 5 coriander roots, (see Cook’s note)
- 4 cm galangal, peeled and sliced (see Cook’s note)
- 7-8 Thai bird’s eye chilies
- 4-5 fresh thai lime leaves, (see Cook’s note)
- 1 tbsp palm sugar, (see Cook’s note) or soft light brown sugar
- 1 skinless chicken breast, cut into 1cm-thick slices
- 100g chanterelle mushrooms, or other wild or button mushrooms
- 5 baby sweetcorn
- 1-2 tsp fish sauce, or to taste
- 1 lime, juice only, or to taste
- small handful coriander leaves
Method
1. Pour the coconut milk and chicken stock into a saucepan, place over a medium-high heat and bring to a simmer.
2. Tip the shallots, lemongrass, coriander roots, galangal and chilies into a pestle and mortar and bash a few times to bruise the ingredients. Add these to the pan, along with the lime leaves, and bring back to a simmer.
3. Stir in half the palm sugar and taste. Continue adding the rest of the palm sugar until the soup tastes slightly sweet.
4. Tip in the chicken, chanterelles and corn and simmer for 5 minutes or until the chicken is opaque and cooked through.
5. Add some of the fish sauce and lime juice and taste again. Add more palm sugar, fish sauce and lime juice until you have an even balance of sweet, salty and sour.
6. Ladle the soup into warm serving bowls and scatter over the fresh coriander leaves.
Thai Prawn Curry
Ingredients
- 1 tsp olive oil
- 1 clove garlic, finely chopped
- 5 shallots, finely chopped
- 2 tbsp Thai green curry paste
- 3 tbsp fish stock
- 400ml can coconut milk
- 20 raw tiger prawns, peeled (heads left on) and deveined
- 2 tbsp chopped coriander
- coconut rice, to serve
Method
1. Heat the olive oil in a pan over a medium heat and fry the garlic and shallots for 2 minutes.
2. Stir in the Thai green curry paste and cook for a further 2 minutes, stirring continuously.
3. Add the fish stock and simmer for 15 minutes over a medium heat. Stir in the coconut milk and simmer for a further 15 minutes.
4. Add the prawns and cook for 10 minutes, until the prawns have turned pink.
5. Stir in the chopped coriander and serve with coconut rice.
Thai Chicken Burgers with Mango Salsa
Ingredients
- 450g minced chicken
- 3 carrots, grated
- 4 spring onions, chopped
- 1.5 tbsp Thai green curry paste
- 1 small egg
- 1 tbsp groundnut oil, for frying
For the salsa
- 1 large mango, peeled and diced
- 1 orange pepper, very finely diced
- 1/2 bunch spring onion, finely sliced
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 1 orange, zest and juice
- 1 lime, juice
- 2 tbsp chopped coriander
- sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
To serve
- 4 ciabatta rolls
- salad leaves, ideally rocket
- mango chutney
Method
1. To make the burgers, mix the chicken, carrot, spring onions and Thai green paste together in a large bowl. Add the egg and stir well to combine.
2. Divide the chicken mixture into 4 and shape into burgers. Chill in the refrigerator for at least 20 minutes.
3. In the meantime, make the salsa. Simply combine all the salsa ingredients and leave on one side to allow the flavours to develop.
4. When you are ready to cook the burgers, heat the oil in a large non-stick frying pan and fry the burgers for about 5-6 minutes on each side, until cooked through. Serve in ciabatta rolls with crisp salad leaves and a dollop of mango chutney.
Thai Crab Risotto
Ingredients
- 30g butter
- 2 clove garlic, finely chopped
- 2 shallots, finely chopped
- 275g arborio risotto rice
- 100ml white wine
- 2 green chilies, finely chopped
- 1.5 tbsp Thai green curry paste, (or to taste)
- 1 stick lemongrass, crushed
- 2 thai lime leaves
- 300ml chicken stock, hot
- 300ml fish stock, hot
- 2 tbsp mascarpone
- 15 g flat leaf parsley, and coriander mixed
- 450g white crab meat, and dark crab meat, fresh
- 100g parmesan, grated
- 50ml double cream
- 1 limes, juice only
- 1 pinch black pepper
Method
1. Melt the butter in a deep frying pan and add the garlic and shallots. Fry for one minute.
2. Add the rice and then the wine.
3. Stir in the chopped green chilies, curry paste, crushed lemon grass and lime leaves.
4. Mix together the hot chicken stock and fish stock. Add a ladle full of the stock to the rice and stir until the rice has absorbed all the liquid. Continue adding the stock, a ladle full at a time until all the stock has been absorbed. This should take about 13 to 15 minutes.
5. Once the rice is cooked remove the lemon grass, add the mascarpone and the chopped herbs.
6. Add the crabmeat and Parmesan.
7. Add the cream and lime juice and season well.
8. Spoon onto warmed plates and serve with chili oil and extra Parmesan.
Thai Stuffed Chicken Wings
Ingredients
- vegetable oil, for frying
- 8 chicken wings, trimmed and boned
For the batter:
- 2 tsp baking powder
- 150g plain flour
- 50g rice flour
- 2 tbsp sesame seeds, (black by preference)
For the filling:
- 50g vermicelli noodles, soaked and chopped into 1cm pieces
- 200g minced chicken
- 3 stalks of lemongrass, finely chopped
- 4 clove garlic, finely chopped
- 3 Thai shallots, finely chopped
- 2cm knob of ginger, grated
- 1 tbsp coriander roots, chopped
- 4 thai lime leaves, sliced
- 1 tbsp soy sauce
- 1 tbsp sugar
- freshly ground white pepper
To serve:
- salad leaves
- sweet chili sauce
Method
1. To make the batter, sift the baking powder and flours together into a large bowl. Stir in the sesame seeds. Gently whisk in enough cold water to produce a batter like consistency.
2. In a separate large bowl, combine all the ingredients for the filling. Place a small amount of filling into each wing and secure with cocktails sticks.
3. Heat some oil in a deep fat fryer or wok to 180°C. Dip the wings in the batter and fry for about 7 to 8 minutes, until they are cooked through. The wings should float when they are cooked.
4. Drain on kitchen paper and serve immediately with salad leaves and a sweet chili dip.
Thai Chicken Wraps with Nam Jihm Dressing
Ingredients
- 1 small chicken breast, cooked and cut into small dice
- 2 tbsp fish sauce
- 1 tbsp coriander leaves
- 1 tbsp deep fried shallots
- 1 tbsp roasted peanuts
- 1 tbsp roasted coconut
- 1 small bird’s eye chili, chopped
- 1 tbsp mint leaves, roughly torn
For the Nam Jihm Dressing:
- 1 bird’s eye chili
- 5 red chilies, seeded and chopped
- 2cm knob ginger, finely chopped
- handfuls coriander, including roots
- 4 clove garlic
- pinch of salt
- juice of 6 limes
- 60g palm sugar
- fish sauce, to taste
To serve:
- 4 betal leaves, iceberg wedges or gem lettuce
- 100g thai rice, dry roasted until golden then grind to powder
Method
- Make the Nam Jihm dressing. Using a pestle and mortar, pound the chilies, ginger, coriander and garlic with the salt.2. Add to this the limejuice, sugar and fish sauce. It should taste hot, sour and sweet.
3. For the wraps, mix the chicken together with the remaining wrap ingredients and stir in 2 tablespoons of the Nam Jihm dressing.
4. Spoon the mixture into the chosen leaves, sprinkle with the rice powder and serve immediately.
Thai Dumplings
Ingredients
For the filling
- 2 cloves garlic
- 2 tbsp coriander stalks, roughly chopped
- 1 x 500g tinned water chestnuts
- 600g boneless, skinless chicken breasts
- 4 tbsp light soy sauce
- 2 tbsp white sugar
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1 tsp ground white pepper
To make the wontons
- 50 wonton wrappers
For the sweet soy sauce
- 225ml dark soy sauce
- 2 tbsp white sugar
- 125 ml white malt vinegar
- 1/4 tsp salt
For the golden fried garlic
- 3 tbsp vegetable oil
- 6 cloves garlic, peeled and roughly chopped
Method
1. Using a pestle and mortar, lightly pound the garlic and coriander stems to a paste.
2. Place all the ingredients for the filling in a bowl and mix together until thoroughly combined.
3. Working with one wonton wrapper at a time, place ½ teaspoon of the chicken filling in the centre, then pull up the edges and press the edges together to seal. Repeat until the entire filling has been used up. Lay the dumplings on a greased tray
4. Put the dumplings on a steamer placed over a pan of simmering water and steam for 20-30 minutes, until cooked (cut one in half to see if the chicken is cooked through).
5. For the fried garlic, heat the vegetable oil over a low heat and fry the garlic until golden. Remove from the oil and set aside.
6. Stir all the ingredients for the sweet soy sauce together.
7. Drizzle the warm dumplings with sweet soy and a dash of cooking oil from the garlic. Scatter with the fried garlic before serving.
Thai Lamb Cubes with Sake and Jasmine Rice
Ingredients
- 500 g lamb fillets, cut into 2cm cubes
- 3 tbsp vegetable oil
- 2 tbsp water
- 2 tbsp light soy sauce
- 2 tsp fresh green peppercorns
- 1 tsp white sugar
- 1 small red pepper, cored, seeded, and chopped
- 1 small orange pepper, cored, seeded, and chopped
- 2 carrots, peeled and cut into thin batons
- 2 tbsp sake
- 2 tsp sesame oil
Method
1. Bring a saucepan of water to the boil. Add the lamb cubes and boil for 2-3 minutes. Drain.
2. Heat the oil in a wok over a high heat and add the drained lamb. Stir-fry for 2-3 minutes.
3. Stir in the water, soy sauce, peppercorns and sugar.
4. Add the chopped pepper and carrot batons; stir-fry for 2 minutes or so, until they are tender, but still crisp. Stir in the sake and sesame oil. Serve immediately.
Thai Fruit Salad
Ingredients
- 1 star-fruit, sliced
- 1 honeydew melon, peeled, deseeded and cut into chunks
- quarter watermelon, pips removed and cut into chunks
- 1 pineapple, peeled, cored and cut into chunks
- 4 passion fruit
- juice of 3 limes
- 2 tbsp caster sugar
- pinches chili powder
- 200g freshly grated coconut
Method
1. Place the star fruit, honeydew melon and watermelon into a large bowl. Add the pineapple chunks.
2. Cut each of the passion fruits in half and scoop the pulp into a separate bowl. Add the lime juice, sugar, chili and coconut and stir together until the sugar dissolves.
3. Pour the sauce over the fruit and mix well. Serve very chilled.
Thai-Inspired Monkfish with Prawns
ingredients
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 2 shallots, diced (or ½ red onion)
- 2 clove garlic, finely chopped
- 2 cm ginger, finely chopped
- 1 tsp ground cumin
- 1 tsp ground coriander
- 1 tsp ground saffron
- 1 tsp turmeric
- 2 thai lime leaves, shredded finely
- 2 stalks lemongrass, split lengthways
- 1 red chili, hopped
- juice of 1 limes
- 300g monkfish, e-skinned, de-boned and cut into 1cm pieces
- 400 ml tinned coconut milk
- 1 tbsp fish sauce, (Thai fish sauce)
- 125 g baby sweetcorn, sliced lengthways
- 225 g raw tiger prawns, peeled and de-veined
- 1 red pepper, iced
- 225g spinach leaves, chopped or torn, stalks cut off
- large bunch of coriander, chopped
- 1 tsp ground black pepper
- cooked noodles, to serve
Method
1. Heat the olive oil in a heavy-based saucepan. Add in the shallot, garlic and ginger and fry for 2 minutes, stirring often, until softened but not coloured.
2. Add in the cumin, ground coriander, saffron, turmeric, lime leaves, lemon grass, chili and lime juice, mixing well. Fry for one minute, stirring often.
3. Add in the monkfish and coat with the spices.
4. Add in the coconut milk and stir through.
5. Add in the nam pla and baby corn and cook for 2 minutes, stirring and bringing the coconut milk to the boil.
6. Add in the tiger prawns and red pepper. Simmer for three minutes.
7. Add in the spinach and chopped coriander, reserving a little of the coriander for garnishing.
8. Cook for a further minute or until the prawns have turned pink and opaque.
9. Season with the black pepper and remove the lemon grass.
10. Serve on a bed of noodles, garnished with the reserved coriander.
Thai style cauliflower and carrot terrine with chili and peanut dressing
Ingredients
- 250g cauliflower, steamed
- 4 tsp grated ginger
- 2 limes, zest only
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 150ml coconut cream
- 30 g ground almonds
- 250g carrots, peeled and cooked
- 1/2 tsp sugar, (optional)
For the dressing
- 4 tsp grated ginger
- 2 tbsp sweet chili sauce
- 2 tbsp chopped fresh mint
- 40g slated peanuts, very finely ground
- 3-4 tbsp lime juice
Method
1. Preheat the oven to 190C/Gas 5.
2. Put the steamed cauliflower together with 2 teaspoons grated ginger, zest of 1 lime, ¼ teaspoon salt and 5 tablespoons of the coconut cream into a food processor and process for about 20-30 seconds. Turn into a bowl and mix in 3 tablespoons of the ground almonds.
3. Put the steamed carrots with 2 teaspoons grated ginger, zest of 1 lime, ¼ tsp salt, and the remaining coconut cream into a food processor and process for about 20-30 seconds. If the carrots are not very sweet, add ½ tsp caster sugar. Turn out into a separate bowl and mix in the remaining 2 ½ tablespoons of ground almonds.
4. Grease a 450g non-stick loaf tin and line with baking parchment. Divide both vegetable mixtures into two, and layer them in the prepared loaf time starting with the carrot mixture. (It is easier to put each layer on top of the other by blobbing the mixture all over the previous layer and then spreading it gently over, rather than putting all the mixture in at once.)
5. Bake the terrine in the preheated oven for about 30 minutes until well set. Half way through, cover the top with tin foil if it starts to brown. Let it cool in the tin for about 10 minutes before turning out and cooling completely. Chill well in the fridge before serving.
6. For the dressing: mix all of the dressing ingredient together. The dressing should be quite thick rather than runny.
7. Serve the terrine in slices with a spoonful or two of the dressing on the side.
Thai Shrimp Wraps
1/2 tsp. canola (or other vegetable) oil
Dash of salt
1/2 c. instant rice
1 c. peeled and de-veined cooked tiny bay shrimp
1 med. carrot, shredded
2 scallions, thinly sliced
1/4 c. bottled Asian peanut sauce
2 Tbsp. chopped fresh cilantro
2 Tbsp. chopped fresh mint
1 Tbsp. fresh lime juice
1 tsp. soy sauce
2 burrito-size flour tortillas, preferably spinach-flavored
In a small saucepan, bring 1/2 c. water to a boil over med. heat. Add oil and salt. Stir in rice. Cover and remove from heat. Let stand, covered, until water is absorbed, about 5 mins. Fluff rice with a fork, transfer to a bowl and set aside to cool.
Add shrimp, carrot, scallions, peanut sauce, cilantro, mint, lime juice and soy sauce to rice. Toss gently to mix.
Wrap tortillas in damp paper towels and heat in a microwave oven on high until soft, about 15 seconds. Spoon half of shrimp mixture onto lower third of one tortilla to form a 2 x 5-in. rectangle. Fold in sides to enclose filling, then firmly but gently roll up. Repeat with remaining tortilla and filling. Cut wraps in half on the diagonal and serve.
Weeping Tiger (Thai Marinated Beef)
Ingredients
For the steak
- 1 clove garlic, sliced
- 4 coriander stalks
- 1.5 tsp fresh green peppercorns, available from specialist stores
- 1 tsp fish sauce
- 1 tsp light soy sauce
- 1 tsp sugar
- 1 x 280 g sirloin steaks
- 150g thai rice, soaked in cold water for 5-6 hours or overnight
For the chili sauce
- 1 thai rice
- 3 fish sauce
- 3 lemon juice
- pinch dried red chili flakes, ground to a powder
- 2 sugar
Method
1. To make the ‘weeping tiger’, pound together the garlic and coriander in a pestle and mortar. Transfer to a large mixing bowl and combine with the peppercorns, fish sauce, soy sauce and sugar. Add the steak to the bowl and rub with the marinade. Leave in a cool place for 20 minutes.
2. For the chili sauce, toast the rice in a dry wok over a low heat, until golden brown all over. Grind to a fine powder using a mortar and pestle.
3. Transfer the toasted rice powder to a small bowl, add the fish sauce, lemon juice, crushed chilies and sugar, stirring until the sugar has dissolved. Leave on one side.
4. For the steamed sticky rice, rinse the soaked rice and drain well. Line a steamer with muslin or a piece of thin cloth. Place over a pan, half-filled with boiling water. Place the rice on top and fold over the cloth to completely enclose it. Cover and steam for about 20 minutes, over a high heat, until the sticky rice becomes transparent.
5. For the steak, preheat a grill until hot, and lightly grease a grill rack. Grill the steak for 1½ – 2 minutes on each side, if you like your steak rare. Cook it for about 3-4 minutes on each side for well-cooked steak. Leave the steak to stand for a few minutes before slicing into strips.
6. Serve the steak with the chili sauce and accompany with the rice.
Thai Fried Noodles with Pork and Peanuts
1 lb. fokien noodles
2 tsp. Thai red curry paste
1 lb. pork fillet, thinly sliced
1 Tbsp. peanut oil
1 small chicken stock cube
1 Tbsp. soy sauce
2 tsp. fish sauce
2 tsp. corn flour
1/2 c. water
1/3 c. unsalted peanuts
2 Tbsp. chopped fresh coriander
Add noodles to large pan of boiling water; drain immediately, and pat dry with absorbent paper. Rub curry paste over pork Heat half of the oil in wok. Add pork in batches; stir-fry until tender, remove. Heat remaining oil in wok add noodles until hot. Add crumbled stock cube, sauce and thicken slightly. Add pork, peanuts and coriander; stir until hot.
Chile-vinegar sauce
Serve with stir-fried noodle dishes such as Pad Thai.
1/2 c. rice vinegar
2 to 3 Tbsp. sugar
1/2 mild chile (such as Cubanelle, Hungarian
wax or banana chile), sliced into rings
Put the vinegar in a small bowl and stir in the sugar until it is completely dissolved. Add the chile rings. Serve with a small spoon so guests can spoon a little onto their noodles.
Stored in a sealed container in the refrigerator; this will keep 4 to 5 days.
Makes about 1/2 c. sauce.
Thai Chili-Garlic Basic Sauce
Makes approximately 4 c. of sauce
4 to 6 Thai finger peppers
8 cloves garlic
4 Tbsp. fish sauce
5 Tbsp. soya bean sauce
1 Tbsp. black bean sauce
4 Tbsp. sugar
3 c. water
3 Tbsp. canola oil
1 ounce sweet basil leaves
1 Tbsp. cornstarch
Pound pepper and garlic in a mortar.
Heat oil in a wok. Stir-fry pepper and garlic mixture, until it starts to cook. Add fish sauce, soya bean sauce, oyster sauce, black soy sauce, sugar, and water. Continue to stir-fry until it comes to a boil.
Add cornstarch to thicken the sauce. Add sweet basil leaves.
Serve on top of crispy fish, cooked steak, or add to your favorite meat or vegetables, and eat with cooked jasmine rice.
Thai Sweet-Chili Sauce
1/2 c. vinegar
1 1/2 (one and one-half) c. water
1 1/2 (one and one-half) c. sugar
1 tsp. salt
2 cloves pickled garlic, sliced
3 or 4 dry Guajillo chiles
Soak dry chili in hot water until soft, seeded. Bring all ingredients to a boil. Cool the sauce and blend until smooth. Pour the sauce through a strainer.
Tofu Sauce
1 c. palm sugar
3/4 c. white vinegar
1/2 c. water
1/4 tsp. salt
2 serrano chiles, finely chopped
3 Tbsp. roasted peanuts, ground
3 cilantro sprigs, chopped
Mix the first five ingredients in a pot and bring them to a slow boil over moderate heat. Cook, uncovered or without a lid, until the mixture thickens slightly, about 15 mins.
When ready to serve, pour the mixture into a small serving bowl. Garnish with peanuts and cilantro.
This dip is intended to be served with deep-fried tofu. If keeping in the refrigerator, keep without the garnish. In a sealed jar it will keep for 2 months.
Thai BBQ Marinade
This is what makes Thai Barbecue Chicken taste so good…
4 Tbsp. fish sauce
2 Tbsp. rice wine
1 Tbsp. sesame oil
4 Tbsp. sugar
2 Tbsp. garlic, chopped
2 Tbsp. ginger, grated
2 Tbsp. honey
Combine all of the ingredients together, then beat with a fork. Marinate your chicken for at least 8 hours for full flavor.
Well on that note, enjoy the cooking adventure and be sure to let me know how it goes!
Happy Cooking!
Jax
