Tag Archives: thai food

Fish, Thailand

Thai Style Tamarind Fish

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While in Australia, I made this recipe while waiting to get back to our boat in Thailand. We were missing Thai food, and one of our favourite dishes is tamarind fish. There are several places in Phuket where we enjoy this fish, so I decided to recreate it to eat at home. It turned out just like the fish at one of our favourite restaurants (which has unfortunately since closed down). It is unfortunate how the COVID-19 virus has hit places that rely on tourism!

Ingredients

1 whole fish (we used barramundi)
6 coriander roots
6 garlic cloves
2 small hot chillies
1 teaspoon of salt
2 tablespoons of finely chopped fresh ginger
1/2 cup tamarind paste
4 tablespoons of brown sugar
2 tablespoons of fish sauce
Bran oil for deep frying
1/2 cup of plain flour
1/2 cup of rice flour or cornflour

To Garnish

1 long red chilli, sliced
Coriander, chopped
Fried garlic slices (fried and removed before I add the fish to the oil)

Method

Prepare the fish

Scale the fish and then cut a fillet from both sides of the whole fish, leaving plenty of meat still on the frame. Rinse both the fish and frame under running water. Chop the fillets into bite-size chunks.

For the sauce

Pound the coriander, garlic, chilli and salt in a mortar and pestle to a paste. Add 1/2 tablespoon of oil to a wok or pan over medium heat and stir-fry for the paste for a minute to release the fragrance.

Add the ginger and stir-fry for another minute. Add tamarind, sugar and fish sauce and a few tablespoons of water. Mix well and let boil. If the sauce gets too thick, add more water to get the consistency you desire.

Set the sauce aside (you can reheat the sauce when you are ready to serve).

Cook the fish

Heat the bran oil for deep frying.

Mix the plain flour and rice flour with salt and pepper and coat the fish carcass. When the oil is hot, use tongs to submerge the fish in the oil and cook until crisp and golden. Remove and drain on paper towels. Place on a serving dish.

Coat the cubed fish pieces with the flour mixture and cook in the hot oil in batches until crispy and golden. Drain on paper towels.

To serve

Place the crispy fish cubes on the concave fish frame and drizzle the dressing over the fish and fish cubes. Sprinkle with finely sliced chilli, chopped coriander and some fried garlic. You can serve excess fish on another serving plate.

You can make this recipe with fish fillets instead of a whole fish if you prefer. Just serve the crispy golden chunks of fish on a serving dish, drizzled with tamarind sauce and garnished with chilli, coriander and fried garlic.

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Thailand Thai Style Fish

Fish, From the galley, Thailand

Thai Fish Cakes

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I have been making these fish cakes for years. They are quick and easy to make, and very tasty when served hot with a nice salad. I have also used this recipe to make finger food, which I can serve cold at picnics or when out sailing (did you know we live on a boat?) and they have been well received. Swap your dipping sauce flavours to add variety and get creative with garnishes. Spriggs of coriander look pretty or add different texture by sprinkling with deep fried basil leaves.

Thai style fish cakes - white fish, rice flour, coriander, egg, fish sauce, red curry paste - easy to ensure gluten-free (choose gluten-free curry paste)

Ingredients
500g firm white fish fillets
1 egg
1 Tablespoon fish sauce
3 Tablespoons white rice flour
½ cup fresh coriander leaves
3 teaspoons red curry paste
4 – 5 green beans, very thinly sliced
2 spring onions, very thinly sliced
oil for cooking

Method
Process fish in a food processor until well minced and then scoop it into a mixing bowl.

Next place the egg, fish sauce, rice flour, coriander leaves, and curry paste into the food processor and process until well combined. Add this mix to the fish along with the beans and the spring onion. Mix well.

Form one heaped tablespoon of fish mixture into small patties (use damp hands). Heat cooking oil in a frypan over medium heat and cook the fishcakes in batches, for a few minutes each side or until golden brown.

Drain on a paper towel and serve with a dipping sauce such as sweet chilli sauce or Nam Jim.

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Fingerfood, From the galley, Pork, Thailand

Larb Moo Tod

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Larb Moo Tod are Thai-style fried pork balls. Made with similar flavours like the popular larb moo which is a Thai (or initially a Laos) salad made with pork mince and herbs, they are delicious. We first tried these pork balls at “The Deck” which is the restaurant/bar at Phuket Yacht Haven Marina. We both love these tasty morsels, so I set to work decoding the Larb Moo Tod ingredients. Below is the recipe I created, and Dwayne and I both think it tastes as good as the original.

Larb Moo Tod - Fried Pork Balls Thai style. Displayed in a white bowl. They are being served on a boat and the background has a red and black headsail furler rope in it.

Ingredients

3 Tbsp raw glutinous or sticky rice
4 lemongrass stems (soft white part only)
1 clove of garlic
1 small red onion, finely diced
8 kaffir lime leaves, finely sliced and diced
1 red chilli, finely diced
2 spring onions, finely sliced
500g pork
2 Tbsp fish sauce
1 Tbsp Lime
1 tsp brown sugar
2 Tbsp flour
Oil for deep-frying

Larb Moo Tod - Fried Pork Balls Thai style. Displayed in a white bowl. They are being served on a boat and the background has the headsail furler rope in it.

Method

Firstly you need to roast and grind the rice (Khao Khua). Heat a wok to medium heat and add the rice. Cook while frequently stirring until the grains are toasted and golden; this will take about 5 minutes and might smoke a little. Let the rice cool down for a few minutes before grinding it, with a mortar and pestle, into a coarse powder (or you can use a spice grinder).

Using a mortar and pestle (or a food processor) mince up lemongrass and garlic and transfer it to a large mixing bowl.

Add to mixing bowl all remaining ingredients (apart from the oil) and mix well to combine.

With wet hands, shape the mixture into small balls (don’t be fussy any shape will do!). Heat enough oil in a wok to deep-fry the balls in batches.

Fry the lab moo balls for approximately 5 – 7 minutes, until crispy, browned and cooked through.

Remove with a slotted spoon or tongs and place on paper towels to drain.

Serve with or Nam Jim or sweet chilli sauce.

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Larb Moo Tod - Thai style fried pork balls - easy to make, savoury snack. Delicious, bursting with flavour and full of texture. #recipe #thai #pork #chilli