May 14

Cookbook 39: Thai Cooking

So I cooked from the Family Circle, step-by-step Thai Cooking recipe book.  It was good, though not particularly vegetarian friendly (lots of fish sauce).  The green curry with chicken was a favourite, though watery – again the fault of our coconut cream and not the recipe.  The book overall has great recipes, good photos of intermediate steps, and helpful information and tips about ingredients.  Overall I’d give this book 4 out of 5 stars and I have requests to make the green curry again already.

Green Chicken Curry

Ingredients:

  • 1 tablespoon oil
  • 1 onion, chopped
  • 1 – 2 tablespoons Green Curry Paste
  • 1 1/2 cups coconut milk
  • 1/2 cup water
  • 500g chicken thigh fillets, cut into bite-sized pieces
  • 100g green beans, cut into short pieces
  • 6 kaffir lime leaves
  • 1 tablesppon fish sauce
  • 1 tablespoon lime juice
  • 1 teaspoon finely grated lime rind
  • 2 teaspoons soft brown sugar
  • 1/4 cup fresh coriander leaves

Method:

  1. Heat the oil in a wok or a heavy-based pan.  Add the onion and curry paste to the wok and cook for about 1 minute, stirring constantly.  Add the coconut milk and water to the wok and bring to the boil.
  2. Add the chicken pieces, beans and kaffir lime leaves to the wok; stir to combine.  Simmer, uncovered, for 15 – 20 minutes or until the chicken is tender.  Add the fish sauce, lime juice and rind, and brown sugar to the wok; stir to combine.  Spring with fresh coriander leaves just before serving.  Serve with steamed rice.

Notes on this recipe:

  • It was quite watery for us, but we think that was the fault of the coconut milk.  If you are also using watery coconut milk, don’t add all the water called for in the recipe.
  • This was quite delicious.

Steamed Rice

Ingredients:

  • 2 1/2 cups jasmine rice
  • a few drops of oil

Method:

  1. Place the rice in a fine strainer and wash it thoroughly under cold, running water until the water runs clear.
  2. Place the rice in a heavy-based saucepan.  Add enough cold water to come about 3cm above the rice.  Add the oil to the pan and bring water to a gentle boil over a medium heat.
  3. Boil until the water is level with the rice and tunnels or bubbles appear; cover pan.  Turn heat as low as possible; cook for 10 minutes, shaking the pan from time to time.  Remove pan from the heat and set aside for 5 minutes before serving.

Notes on this recipe:

  • Fairly straightforward and quite tasty.  I was a bit unsure about the 3cm above the rice, but settled on using my finger as a guide and that worked well.

Spicy Roasted Eggplant with Tofu

Ingredients:

  • 4 small lady-finger eggplants (about 400g)
  • 250g silken tofu or soft bean curd
  • 2 – 4 small fresh red or green chillies
  • 4 cloves garlic, crushed
  • 4 coriander roots, chopped
  • 1 small brown onion, chopped
  • 3 teaspoons soft brown sugar
  • 2 tablespoons lime juice
  • 2 tablespoons fish sauce
  • 1 tablespoon oil
  • 1/2 cup Thai basil leaves
  • 2 teaspoons dried shrimp, finely chopped (optional)

Method:

  1. Heat a medium frying pan or wok until hot, add the eggplant, cook until the skin begins to char, turning to cook all sides.  Remove from the hat, cool.  Slice the eggplant diagonally into 2cm thick slices.  Drain the tofu and cut into 3cm cubes.
  2. Using a food processor or a blender, blend the chillies, garlic, coriander roots, onion, sugar, lime juice and fish sauce until smooth.
  3. Heat the oil in the same pan or wok, add the paste and and stir over high heat for 1 minute or until fragrant.  Add the eggplant, stir to combine and cook, covered, for 3 minutes or until just tender.
  4. Add half the basil leaves and the tofu and gently stir through.  Serve garnished with remaining basil leave and dried shrimp, if desired.

Notes on this recipe:

  • This was actually my favourite for the whole night.  What not to love with both eggplant AND silken tofu?
  • If you can’t find the slender Lebanese eggplants, it might be best to roast the eggplants (whole) in the oven for about an hour until they are quite tender.

Spicy Steamed Corn

Ingredients:

  • 4 corn cobs or 16 baby corn spears
  • 5cm piece fresh ginger, grated
  • 3 cloves garlic, chopped
  • 1 – 3 teaspoons chopped fresh red chillies
  • 2 teaspoons green peppercorns, crushed
  • 2 tablespoons water
  • 2 tablespoons fish sauce

Method:

  1. Remove the husks and all the silk from the cobs.  If using corn cobs, cut them into smaller pieces.  In a bowl, place ginger, garlic, chillies, peppercorns and water; mix well.
  2. Press the spice mixture onto the corn cobs and place in a steaming basket lined with banana leaves or baking paper.
  3. Place basket over a wok or pan of boiling water; cover and steam for 20 minutes, or until the corn is tender.  Sprinkle the corn with the fish sauce and serve immediately.

Notes on this recipe:

  • It didn’t quite work, the ginger was overpowering and… well I’m not 100% sure, but it wasn’t really what I had hoped when I saw this recipe.

Spiced Coconut Custard

Ingredients:

  • 2 cinnamon sticks
  • 1 teaspoon ground nutmeg
  • 2 teaspoons whole cloves
  • 300ml cream
  • 1 cup water
  • 1/2 cup palm sugar, chopped
  • 280g can coconut milk
  • 3 eggs, lightly beaten
  • 2 egg yolks, lightly beaten

Method:

  1. Preheat the oven to 160C.  Place spices, cream and water in a medium pan.  Bring to simmering point; reduce heat to very low and leave for 5 minutes to allow spices to flavour the liquid.
  2. Add the sugar and coconut milk to the pan; return to low heat and stir until the sugar has dissolved.
  3. Whisk the eggs and egg yolks in a medium bowl until combined.  Pour the spiced mixture over the eggs; stir to combine.  Strain into a jug; discard the whole spices.  Pour the custard mixture into 8, 1/2-cup dishes.  Place in a baking dish; pour in hot water to come halfway up the sides.  Bake for 40 – 45 minutes.
  4. Insert a knife in the centre of one of the custards to check if they are set; the mixture should be only slightly wobbly.  Carefully remove the custards from the baking dish.  Serve hot or chilled.  Serve with a little whipped cream and toasted coconut shreds for a special occasion.

Notes on this recipe:

  • I used 6, 1 cup dishes with the same baking time, it still worked out well.
  • I think this dish would benefit from using some ground cinnamon and cloves as well.  The ground nutmeg drowned out the hints of cinnamon and cloves.