Ganguillet Laurent - The food of Thailand: 72 easy-to-follow recipes with detailed descriptions of ingredients and cooking methods

Salted Fish and Coconut Dip
Kapi Kua

2 dried chilies, cut open, deseeded and soaked

5 shallots, sliced

3 stems lemongrass (inside of thickest part of stem only), finely sliced

3 slices galangal

1 teaspoon minced krachai (page )

3 tablespoons dried shrimp paste, roasted

1/2 cup (90 g) salted fish, soaked in water for 15 minutes and coarsely chopped

4 cups (1 liter) coconut milk

1/2 tablespoon palm sugar

1/2 tablespoon fish sauce

1-3 red chilies

Grind together the dried chilies, shallots, lemongrass, galangal, krachai and shrimp paste with half the fish until well mixed. Heat the coconut milk and simmer until oil comes to the surface and the quantity has reduced. Add the paste and continue cooking until fragrant. Add the rest of the fish, sugar, fish sauce and chilies and cook over low heat, stirring frequently, until the sauce has thickened and reduced. Yields 11/4 cup.

Preparation time: 25 mins
Cooking time: 15 mins

Pork and Prawn Coconut Dip Tau Jiew Lon

1 cup (250 ml) coconut cream 1/2 cup water

3 shallots, sliced

3 tablespoons salted fermented soy beans (tau jiew), mashed

5 fresh prawns (about 2 oz/70 g), shelled, deveined and chopped

2 oz (60 g) minced pork 1/2 tablespoon palm sugar 1 egg (optional), beaten

3 red chilies, chopped (or 1-2 teaspoons dried chili flakes)

Fresh coriander leaves (cilantro)

Add coconut cream to water and bring to a boil. Add shallots, salted soy beans, shrimp, pork and palm sugar. Mix well and stir in egg, if using, stirring constantly. Cook until slightly reduced, then add chili shreds and garnish with coriander leaf. Yields 21/2 cups.

Preparation time: 5 mins
Cooking time: 25 mins

Spicy Grilled Fish Dip
Nam Prik Pla Yaang

3-4 bird's-eye chilies

1 dried chili, cut open, deseeded and soaked

3 cloves garlic, grilled in skin until blackened, then peeled

2 shallots, grilled in skin until blackened, then peeled

1/2 teaspoon dried shrimp paste, roasted (page )

2 tablespoons (30 g) cooked or fried fish, flaked

2 tablespoons lime juice

1 tablespoon fish sauce

1 teaspoon sugar

1 kaffir lime leaf, thinly sliced

Grind together bird's-eye chilies, dried chili, garlic, shallots and shrimp paste. Add flaked fish, lime juice, fish sauce, sugar and sliced kaffir lime leaf. Mix well to obtain 3/4 cup of dip. Serve with vegetables and grilled or fried fish.

Preparation time: 10 mins
Cooking time: 10 miins

Green Peppercorn Prawn Dip
Nam Prik Thai Orn

2 tablespoons green peppercorns

3 cloves garlic, sliced

1 teaspoon sugar

1/2 tablespoon dried prawns, soaked in warm water for 10 minutes and drained

2-3 tablespoons lime juice

6 sour fruits such as green mango or green apple, sliced

If using bottled or canned green peppercorns, wash off brine thoroughly first Grind together the garlic and 1 tablespoon of peppercorns. Add sugar, dried prawns, lime juice and the remaining tablespoon of peppercorns and grind to yield 1 cup of dip. Serve with sour fruit, vegetables and fried or grilled fish.

Preparation time: 15 mins

Shrimp Paste and Chili Dip
Nam Prik Kapi

1 tablespoon dried prawns or shrimp, soaked in warm water for 10 minutes and drained

5 cloves garlic, sliced

4-6 bird's-eye chilies

1 tablespoon dried shrimp paste, roasted (page )

1 teaspoon shaved palm sugar

1 teaspoon fish sauce

2-3 tablespoons lime juice

Grind dried shrimp, garlic and chilies together. Add shrimp paste, palm sugar, fish sauce and lime juice and mix well to obtain 1/4 cup of dip. Serve with raw or cooked vegetables and fried or grilled fish.

Preparation time: 15 mins

Green Chili and Salted Fish Dip
Nam Prik Noom

1 tablespoon dried salted fish, soaked in warm water for 10 minutes, drained and chopped

4 tablespoons oil

5-10 green chilies, chopped

10 cloves garlic, chopped

6 shallots, chopped

1 ripe tomato, sliced

2 tablespoons hot water

1 tablespoon chopped spring onion

1 tablespoon chopped coriander leaves (cilantro)

1 teaspoon fish sauce, or to taste

Fry the salted fish in the oil over medium heat for about 7-10 minutes and drain thoroughly. Dry-fry the chilies, garlic and shallots for about 8-10 minutes, stirring frequently, until fragrant. Pound lightly or blend briefly with the fish, then add the tomato. Pound or blend to break up the tomato, then add water, spring onion and coriander leaf. Mix well to obtain 1 cup of dip. The sauce should be of a reasonably liquid consistency and a touch salty; if not. add more water or fish sauce as required. This very hot dip is traditionally served with sticky rice as well as raw cabbage, sliced cucumbers, raw green beans and/or fried or roasted fish.

Preparation time: 5 mins
Cooking time: 20 mins

Pork and Tomato Chili Dip
Nam Prik Ong

5 dried chilies, cut open, deseeded and soaked in hot water for 10 minutes

1 teaspoon salt

1 tablespoon sliced galangal

3 tablespoons chopped onion

1 teaspoon dried shrimp paste, roasted (page )

5 cloves garlic

3 oz (75 g) ground pork

1 cup (170 g) ripe tomatoes, diced

2 tablespoons oil

3 cloves garlic, chopped

1/2 cup (125 ml) water

1 sprig coriander leaf (cilantro), chopped

Raw vegetables: cucumber, long beans, carrot, cabbage

Steamed vegetables: long beans, eggplant (aubergine), pumpkin, cabbage

Grind the chilies, salt and galangal in a mortar and pestle or blender. Add the onion, shrimp paste and garlic cloves and grind thoroughly. Add the pork and continue processing. Add the tomatoes and mix. Heat oil in a wok, then fry the chopped garlic until fragrant. Add ground mixture and continue frying over low heat, stirring, until the ingredients take on a gloss. Add the water and continue cooking, stirring until much of the water evaporates and the mixture becomes fairly thick. Transfer to a bowl, then sprinkle with chopped cilantro. Serve with fresh vegetables or boiled vegetables or both. Yields 1 cup.

Preparation time: 25 mins
Cooking time: 30 mins

Spicy Salted Egg Dip
Nam Prik Gai Kem

3 cloves garlic, sliced

3-4 red chilies, sliced

2 salted eggs, shelled

2 tablespoons lime juice

1/2 tablespoon fish sauce

1 teaspoon sugar

Grind garlic and chilies together in a blender or mortar and pestle. Add salted eggs and grind until well blended. Season with lime juice, fish sauce and sugar. Mix well to obtain 1/2 cup of dip. Serve with raw vegetables and fried or grilled fish.

Preparation time: 20 mins

Leaf-wrapped Savory Morsels
Mieng Kum

This is a snack or appetizer eaten at home, rather than at streetside stalls or in restaurants, and goes very well with beer or cocktails. In Thailand, various edible tree leaves are used to wrap the fillings, but soft lettuce leaves like butter lettuce or red lettuce make a fine substitute. The point is to wrap a selection of flavorful tidbits in a lettuce leaf with a touch of sauce and pop the whole packet in your mouth.

1 small head of lettuce (preferably a soft-leaf lettuce like butter or red leaf)

5 tablespoons freshly grated coconut or unsweetened dried coconut, roasted in moderate oven or dry-fried in wok or frying pan until light brown, 1-3 minutes

3 tablespoons diced shallots

3 tablespoons diced lime (if thin-rind calamansi or young limes are available, leave rind on)

3 tablespoons diced fresh ginger root or galangal root (or both)