Thai Spicy Tuna salad

This spicy fresh salad ideal for lunch or picnic, taste should be spicy and sour, little salty.

Ingredients

1 tin tuna.
2 small red onion. sliced. (1 for salad)
1 small cucumber. sliced.
2 Tomato. quartered.
lettuce leaves.
bunch celery leaf.
pepper.
2 teaspoon fish sauce.
2 limes, juiced.
3 red chilli. sliced.
2 stalk lemon grass, finely sliced.

Recipe

arrange the salad on a dish, lettuce, tomato, onion, cucumber & add chopped celery leaf. prepare above ingredients. empty tuna into a mixing bowl, with little of juice, add chopped chilli, fish sauce, lemon grass, onion, lime juice, pepper and mix. taste and add more fish sauce if required, good if you can leave it in fridge for about an hour to develop the flavours, not to long as it will get more spicy. top the salad with the tuna mix. some recipes omit the lemon grass and celery leaf, but these are 2 main flavours, otherwise you will have a normal tuna salad.

Palo nua (five spice beef)

This classic Muslim dish combines the flavours of beef, egg and five spice, cinnamon, coriander and dark soy sauce. ideal with jasmine rice. or for special occasion made with duck.

Ingredients

200g stewing beef. diced lag.
3 coriander roots. and leaves.
1 teaspoon peppercorns.
4 clove garlic.
1 pkt palo mix with herb bag.
tablespoon oil.
2 tablespoon dark soy sauce.
water.
4 – 6 eggs.
1 tablespoon palm sugar,.
dry tofu, 6 -8 pieces.

Recipe.

Hard boil the eggs, leave to 1 side. add peppercorns, garlic and coriander root to pestle and mortar, mix to paste, add the palo herbs and mix. add oil to pan and fry herbs till you get a nice aroma, add beef and fry till brown, add dark soy sauce and water to cover, add eggs & tofu, simmer for approx 1 hr or till beef tender, keep water topped up. season with salt, palm sugar and serve topped with coriander leaf.

Hor Mok Plaa (Thai steamed fish cake)

Great supper dish, easy to prepare and can make in advance. If you make you own curry paste be careful you not make it to spicy. any white fish can be used, just remove bones and skin. Or for something extra special use salmon.

Banana leafs or ramekins.
4 fish fillets.
sprig of basil. (I use lemon basil to enhance the smell)
sprig of coriander. (optional)
teaspoon fish sauce.
1 tablespoons red curry paste.
1/2 kg coconut milk.
1 egg.
1 spoon cornflour.
3 kaffir lime leaves.(decoration)
1/4 shredded cabbage.
3 red chilli for (decoration.)

Recipe

fold the banana leafs or oil the ramekins. cut the fish into small pieces, to a mixing bowl add curry paste, egg, chopped kaffir lime leaves and coriander stems, chop basil and add, keep 4 or 5 tablespoons of coconut milk to 1 side add 1 spoon cornflour and heat till thick, set to 1 side. slowly mix the coconut milk into the mixture, to make a thick red paste, season with fish sauce and taste, add the fish and mix well. slice the cabbage and place a about 2cm into the bottom of each ramekin, and top with the paste mix. add 1 spoon of the coconut mix to the top, finely slice the chilli to decorate each one. and use remainder of coriander leaf for decoration also. steam for approx 30 -40 minutes till firm and set.

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Fish and Pineapple curry

This delicious recipe is creamy, spicy and sweet, the sweetness coming from the fresh pineapple. Any type of fish can be used, mostly white fish fillets, skinless and boneless. but you can use a fish steak if you prefer. The curry should be quite thick, the heat depends on the amount of red curry paste you use.

Ingredients

250g fresh fish fillets.
2 – 3 tablespoons red curry paste.
1/2 fresh ripe pineapple, diced.
1/2 kg thick coconut milk.
1/2 teaspoon palm sugar.
salt to taste.
chopped red chilli and sweet basil for decoration.

Recipe

dice the pineapple and cut the fish into pieces. add the curry paste to a wok or pan, add a couple of spoons of coconut milk, stir and wait for it to simmer, as it thickens keep adding more milk till you see oil on the top of the mix. once 80% of the milk is used and the curry is simmering add the chopped pineapple, simmer a few more minutes to slightly soften the pineapple, add the fish and cook for no more than 3 minutes or until the fish turns white, season with salt and add palm sugar if not sweet enough, serve and add chopped chilli and lemon basil for decoration.

Pad-ka-praw

Pad-ka-praw neua Beef Fried with chilli and spicy basil.
This dish is eaten everyday all over Thailand, at home or in the street.
Everyone has there own version and idea’s, The original recipe has no onion,and it’s normally served with a fried egg. but we like the taste and it softens the heat. The main meats are Beef, chicken or pork, normally minced meat is used but I prefer a better cut of meat sliced thinly. kha phrao is the basil to use, lighter green than sweet basil and has a peppery taste.

Ingredients

200g Beef sliced.
2 cloves garlic.
6 -10 bird chilli depending on taste.
tablespoon oil.
1 red onion, sliced.
fish sauce to taste (nam pla)
1/2 teaspoon palm sugar.
bunch spicy basil, leaves picked.
dash pepper.
1 fried egg.

Recipe

place the garlic in a pestle and mortar, break up, add bird chilli,hit 2 or 3 times to break the chilli if you mix to much the dish will be too hot. Heat the oil in a hot wok, add chilli mix and brown, add the sliced beef & onion, stir fry till beef brown, add fish sauce and sugar, stir, should be almost dry mix in wok, add the spicy basil and pepper, stir and serve with rice, I add some basil leaves to the steamed rice to give it a nice aroma, served topped with fried egg.

Beef fried in red curry paste

This simple quick dish can be made with Beef, chicken or Seafood or Tofu. Depending on how much red curry paste you add, depends on the heat. I add some coconut milk to the mix to lessen the spiciness and add more flavour.

Recipe

200g sliced beef.
1 tablespoon red curry paste.
1 small carton or 1 cup coconut milk. (optional)
1 teaspoon palm sugar.
1 dash fish sauce to taste.
6 green eggplant (quartered)(small aubergine) or other vegetable.
handful basil leaves .sliced finely.

Add the curry paste to a wok, add a dash of coconut milk and stir, repeat this several times, till oil appears on top of paste. add the beef, keep stirring till beef fried, add eggplant, stir till soft, top up with coconut milk if getting to dry, add palm sugar and fish sauce, taste should have some sweet and salty. finish with basil leaves and serve. should be quite dry not a wet sauce.
Any left over beef, can be used the next day to make spicy beef fried rice
fry some garlic in a wok with some oil, add more egg plant or vegetable, add the spicy beef till warm, add some cold rice and stir till rice covered, add fresh basil leaves and serve.

Yellow Rice

This Simple but tasty rice, is great for people who hate boiled rice, I serve it with curry or use it in a fried rice, make plenty and freeze it. or you can add peppers and peas to make a great vegetarian dish.
Also this can be used for a great muslim dish, add fried chicken legs when the rice is cooking, and use chicken stock instead of water to make Kow Mun Gai.

Yellow rice

1 cup jasmine rice.
2 cup water.
1/2 onion, diced.
1 garlic.
1 teaspoon Turmeric powder or saffron if you have it.
Salt.
1/2 teaspoon coriander seed.
piece of cinnamon stick.
Bay leaf.
1 knob of butter.
spoon of oil.

Recipe

Wash the rice 3 times, and add the 2 cups of water in the rice cooker or pan. add a pince of salt, and turmeric & bay leaf, cinnamon stick. in a frying pan add oil and coriander seeds, garlic and onion and fry. when the aroma rises add to the rice and stir. when the rice is cooked 20 minutes, fluff with a fork, and add the butter.

Red Curry Paste (nam prik kaeng)

This recipe is for the classic red curry paste of Thailand. great to make fresh fish cakes with and it can be kept frozen or in a container in the fridge.
12 large red dried chilli’s.
1 teaspoon salt.
2 red onion.
2 stalks lemon grass.
4 cloves of garlic.
1/4 teaspoon shrimp paste.
1 inch galangal.
1/2 teaspoon Coriander seeds.
skin from 1 kaffir lime.

If you have time make in a pok pok / mortar and pestle do not use a blender as the taste and texture will not be as good.

first de seed the dry chilli,soak in water for 5 minutes, and peel the onions, dice into small pieces.
add the salt to the mortar.
finely slice the lemon grass and add, to mortar,add the 4 garlic, finely sliced,and the shrimp paste, & kaffir lime skin .mix slowly, till you get a rough paste. add the chilli and coriander seeds. mix again,finally add the onion, this all takes time, please be patient. keep mixing till a almost smooth paste appears.

masala omelette

This quick fast omelette was a favourite in my restaurant in Goa, India, the local workers used to come in and ask for a one egg omelette on a piece of bread for a snack. If you dont like spicy just omit the chilli’s.

2 Eggs.
1 Sprig of fresh Coriander. chopped.
1/4 Diced Onion.
1/2 Diced Tomato.
1-3 chilli, depending on taste.sliced.
1/2 teaspoon Curry powder.
1 spoon oil.
salt to taste.

mix the eggs with the coriander and salt. add oil to a frying pan and add onion,chilli, tomato & curry powder fry for a couple of minutes till onions are clear.

Add the egg mix and leave to set.
serve immediately, ideal as a snack or breakfast item or served with rice.