HOT THAI RECIPES

FRIED RICE AND PRAWNS (SHRIMP)
When you‘ve got one eye on the clock and a meal to make this the one! Made in a trice, yet simply stunning to look at, its taste belies its simplicity.

SON-IN-LAW EGGS
This recipe is supposedly so called because it is an easy dish for a son-in-law to cook to impress his new mother-in-law!


GREEN BEEF CURRY
This is a quickly made curry prepared with strips of beef steak, cubed aubergine (eggplant) and onion in a cream sauce flavoured with green curry paste. Serve with fluffy rice and a salad


PAW - PAW (PAPAYA SALAD)
Choose firm paw-paws – or papayas as they are something called – for this delicious salad.


(SHRIMPCELLOPHANE NOODLES WITH SHRIMPS & BEAN-SPROUTS
Cellophane or ‘glass’ noodles are made from mung beans. They are sold dried, so they need soaking before use.

MANGOES WITH STICKY RICE

This traditional South-East Asian dessert has to be included in this book, as every Thai cook knows how to make it, and it will round off any Thai meal perfectly.

Ingredients:


SERVES 4

125 g/4 oz/ generous ˝ cup glutinous (sticky) rice
250 ml/8 fl oz/1 cup coconut milk
60 g/2 oz/ ˝ cup light muscovado sugar
˝ tsp salt
1 tsp sesame seeds, toasted
4 ripe mangoes, peeled halved, stoned (pitted) and sliced

Directions

1.                  Put the rice into a colander and rinse well with plenty of cold water until the water runs clear. Transfer the rice to a large bowl, cover with cold water and leave to soak overnight, or for at least 12 hours. Drain will.

2.                  Line a bamboo basket or steamer with muslin (cheesecloth) or finely woven cotton cloth. Add the rice and steam over a pan of gently simmering water for about 40 minutes until the rice is tender. Remove from the heat and transfer the rice to a bowl.

3.                  Reserve 4 tablespoons of the coconut milk and put the remainder into a small saucepan with the sugar and salt. Heat and simmer gently for about 8 minutes until reduced by about one third.

4.                  Pour the coconut milk mixture over the rice, fluffy up the rice so that the mixture is absorbed. Set aside for 10-15 minutes.

5.                  Pack the rice into individual moulds and then invert them on to serving plates. Pour a little reserved coconut milk over each mound and sprinkle with the sesame seeds. Arrange the sliced mango on the plates and serve, decorated with pieces of mango cut into shapes with tiny cutters. 

  STICKY RICE
Glutinous or sticky rice is available from stockists of Thai ingredients, although you can try making this recipe with short-grain pudding rice instead.

COCONUT MILK

Canned coconut milk is widely available from supermarkets, or you can buy packets of coconut cream, which can be mixed with milk or water to make coconut milk. Dried coconut milk, which can be reconstituted with water, is also available.

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