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1.
SEASONED
PRAWN RELISH (MAN GUNG BRUNG ROT) By David Thompson Ingredients 6 large green king prawns Paste 1 garlic clove 1 coriander root (scraped) pinch of white pepper & salt 1 tbsp oil, pork fat or coconut oil 2 tbsp white sugar 1 tbsp fish sauce pinch of salt 2 tbsp kaffir lime juice or lime juice mixed with mandarin juice 2 red shallots (coarsely sliced) 2 tbsp ginger (shredded) 3 kaffir lime leaves (finely shredded) 1 young green chilli (finely diced) Method 1. Peel the prawns and de-vein. Squeeze the heads to extract the tomalley. 2. Heat the oil in a pan. Fry the garlic until golden, then add tomalley. Simmer until the tomalley has changed colour and has lost its raw, eggy smell. Season with white sugar and fish sauce. Continue to simmer for another minute or so. 3. Meanwhile, coarsely chop the prawn meat and bruise slightly. Work in the salt and lime juice. Marinate for 3 or so minutes until the flesh turns white and the acid has 'cooked' the prawns, then add them to the garlic paste. Simmer for a moment but do not cook for long or the prawns will become tough. The relish should taste rich, sour and sweet. Garnish with shallots, ginger, kaffir lime leaves and chilli. 4. Serve with some of the following: cucumber, white turmeric, sorrel, fennel or sprigs of coriander. |
| 2.
CRISPY
FISHCAKES (PLA FUU)
Method 1. Wash the fish and soak in salted water for 10 minutes. Roast on cake rack, over a tray lined with foil at medium heat, until quite dry and just beginning to colour. Cool. Blend with the smoked trout and salt in a food processor until the mixture looks like breadcrumbs. Do not add any hard or dried bits of the fish as by the time they are puréed, the rest of the fish will be over-processed. If the fish is ground too fine, then it will not 'clump' when it fries. Too coarse pieces will harden into little pellets. 2. Almost over salt fish crumbs, for when deep-fried, the salt will cook and give the fish a full flavour. Now bring plenty of oil in a wok to a medium-high temperature. The temperature must be right: too hot oil will scorch the fish, too cool and the collagen in the fish will not cook quickly enough to hold the fish floss together. 3. Deep-fry a small handful of the 'crumbs' at a time. Again, be careful: too much added at one time will over cool the oil too much and either prevent the collagen from bonding or saturate the cakes saturated with oil. Too little may scorch the fish or make the cakes too brittle. Rain a small handful into the moderately hot oil. When it has finished foaming, bring or pull the crumbs from the opposite of the wok into the centre. Repeat, pushing into the centre from the closer side. The collagen should now hold the fish 'cakes' together and it should smell cooked. Flip over, and when it is slightly golden in colour, remove and drain on absorbent paper. Repeat process until all mixture is cooked. 4. Crispy fishcakes keep for a day or so, but the flavour does not deteriorate. The cakes can be kept warm for some time after cooking, for instance above an oven. |
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| 3.
SWEET PORK (MUU
WARN) By David Thompson Ingredients 1 kg pork belly, with bone attached (steamed until cooked cooled) 200 g palm sugar 1 star anise 1 tbsp oyster sauce 4 tbsp fish sauce 2 coriander roots, (cleaned & chopped) handful of shallots (deep-fried ) handful of coriander leaves Method 1. Cube the pork into 2cm pieces. 2. Melt the sugar in a large pan. Add the star anise, sauces and coriander roots and the rest of the pork. Simmer gently until soft and sticky. Make sure it isn't too sweet. 3. To serve, sprinkle with deep-fried shallots and chopped coriander leaves. |
