The Nation

I have finally come around to writing about Thai curries, which I would like to put their cooking techniques into a category of their own. We use the boiling technique to make curries but before Thailand or Siam in those days traded with the West; Portugal being the first Western nation that came to Thailand, we did not use coconut milk in our curries. The original Thai curries were more of what is known today as Gaeng Pa or Jungle style curries. Coconut milk was used exclusively for making desserts. In fact, everything that has to do with the coconut, its’ meat, juice, milk and sugar were used primarily for making Thai desserts which came in basic forms of dumplings or certain fruits in coconut milk sauce.

Ingredients for Gang pa nua

With the arrival of the Portuguese came a food culture that uses milk and cream in their cooking. Coconut milk was then incorporated into Thai curries in the 18th century or around the time of King Louis XIV of France. Many of Thai dishes were influenced by the arrival of the Portuguese and other Farangs. Thailand would never have baked desserts like Khanom Mor Gaeng which is basically an adaptation of European baked custard or French Flan. Today I am going to give you two recipes, one of the original Thai curry, Gaeng Pa Nua (beef curry, jungle style) and the now ever famous Thai green chicken curry or Gaeng Kiew Wan Gai, which uses coconut milk.

Gaeng Pa Nua (Beef Curry Jungle Style)

Ingredients:

Beef, sliced into bite size pieces 1 kg

Thai Eggplant, Ma Kua Proh, quartered ½ cup

Pickled Bamboo shoots, sliced ½ cup

Nam Prik Gaeng Pa, Gaeng Pa Curry Paste 2 Tbsp.

Vegetable Oil 2 Tbsp.

Fresh chili peppers, sliced, green and red 10 each

Thai Basil leaves, picked ½ cup

Fish Sauce as needed

Palm Sugar as needed

Chicken stock 1-2 cups.

Fresh Green peppercorns as needed

Krachai, Wild ginger as needed

Directions:

1. Put a pot on the stove, heat up oil over medium heat and add the curry paste and cook until fragrant and cooked over medium to low heat.
2. Do not burn the curry paste. Add the sliced beef and stir to mix. The beef does not have to be cooked through before adding the chicken stock and bring it to boil.
3. Once the liquid boils add the Thai eggplant and the pickled bamboo shoot slices.
4. Adjust the seasoning with fish sauce for saltiness and palm sugar for sweetness. It should taste salty with a very small hint of sweetness.
5. Finally add the peppercorns, Krachai and Thai basil. Stir to mix and turn off the heat. Served with steamed rice and Thai omelet.

Tips:
a. Curry paste or all kinds of curries are easily available in all Thai or Asian grocery stores in cans, vacuumed packed packages and plastic containers.
b. Other kinds of vegetables can be used but try to select vegetables that gives the curry different texture without affecting the aroma or taste.
c. When making any kind of curries you have to taste the curry before seasoning it. The saltiness of the curry will depend on the quality of the paste. More salty, the lesser the quality. It is for this reason that I do not give an exact amount for seasonings such as fish sauce or sugar.

Gaeng Kiew Wan Gai (Thai Green Chicken Curry)

Ingredients:

Chicken meat or bone in, cut up 300 grms

Coconut cream 1 cup

Coconut milk 1 cup

Kiew Wan Curry Paste 1 Tbsp.

Palm Sugar 2 Tsp.

Fish sauce 1-3 Tsp.

Kaffir Lime Leaves, torn 3-4 leaves

Red chili peppers, sliced on a bias 3-4 each

Thai Eggplant, Makua Proh, quartered 5 each

Thai basil leaves, picked ½ cup

Chicken stock, optional as needed

Directions:
1. Place a pot on the stove and bring coconut cream to a boil and reduce heat.
2. The coconut cream will start having a sheen on the surface, which means that the coconut fat is beginning to separate from the coconut cream. At this time add the curry paste and spread and stir to cook over medium heat until the curry paste is cooked and fragrant. Do not use too high a heat.
3. Add the chicken pieces into the paste and stir to cook. The chicken does not have to be cooked trough before adding the coconut milk.
4. Bring the liquid to boil and boil until the chicken is cooked. Adjust seasoning of the cooked curry with fish sauce and palm sugar. Then add the eggplant cook one more minute and add the sliced chili peppers and basil leaves. Stir and take the curry off heat. Serve with steamed rice.

Tips:
a. The difference between coconut milk and coconut cream is that, coconut cream has more fat than coconut milk. Visually the cream will be thicker than the milk. If you bought coconut milk in a can or UHT carton, the coconut cream floats on top of the container and the milk is on the bottom of the container.
b. If you use chicken with bones in. The curry will taste better and naturally sweeter from the blood in the bones.
c. Chicken stock can be added if the curry is too rich but remember to adjust the seasonings accordingly.