Squid and Fishballs in Green Curry
My Curry Experience in Thailand
It’s funny that I’ve been to Thailand so many times yet have not had a proper “curry meal.” I’ve been to the kingdom dozens of times the past ten years, yet have only tried a type of local “curry” perhaps only once. Meanwhile, I’ve tried almost every green (and red) curry I could find in most of our local Thai restaurants. Perhaps it is because of this healthy “fear” of eating overly spicy food. I actually like spicy food. But not the type that would make all your brain juice seep out of your nose, and leave your tongue numb for the next two days. Not to mention the frequent trips to the toilet!
My first trip to Thailand was in 1996, when my aunt visited her Thai friend, and brought me and my mom along. I was 15 then. It was during this trip that I first tasted authentic Thai curry. Auntie Noree, my aunt’s close Thai friend, brought us to a seaside seafood restaurant at Pattaya. She ordered the staple Tom Yum Goong, Grilled river prawns and Steamed Bamboo fish for us. She also ordered one of her local favorites – a clam curry. I believe the main ingredient was shelled razor clams in a turmeric – based southern curry that seemed to lack in coconut milk. The dish arrived during the middle of our meal, when we were already gluttonously devouring the plates of prawns with our bare hands. The orange color of the dish was so intense, it seemed radioactive! Its color was a forewarning of its lethal heat. But these unsuspecting tourists were too overcome with the hunger we so carefully fostered the last few hours, and did not succumb to that premonition. (We only had a small bowl of noodles each for lunch, by the way.) And so we dug in – each of us heaping a spoonful of the dish on our plates. My mom and my aunt both waived the white flag after one bite. As for me, I was not about to give up on a single serving of this southern curry. I was a growing man! I bravely and willingly shoved three spoonfuls into my mouth, finally finishing off my plate! By that time, my nose had clogged with secretions and my tongue was all numb. I was shoving in more white rice into my mouth hoping to wipe off whatever taste or sting left in my mouth. I used up almost a whole roll of tissue wiping my sweat and blowing my nose, while simultaneously groping for that glass of water! Auntie Noree offered a second helping to which I replied, “Please, no!” She took half, then passed on that plate to her driver Mr. Ung who heaped the remainder to his bowl of rice and devoured the whole thing! We watched with our mouths open (and me panthing).
And so, when the Thais say that this or that dish is “not too spicy,” then it IS very spicy! The best way to enjoy a dish without having to risk burning your tongue is to deliberately request that it be NOT spicy at all. Or simply say “no chili.”
Our local restaurants have adjusted their curries to suit the Filipino taste, more accustomed to sweet food. But by doing so, the Thai curries we get here seem to have lost that fresh herb-y taste. Perhaps because they use instant or ready-made Thai curry pastes, or they have diluted the seasonings to lessen the heat, or they simply put too much sugar.
The best place to sample curry, at least for non-Thais like me who can tolerate, or actually like some heat, is aboard Thai Airways (or on any flight that leaves Bangkok).
My father and I both agree that Thai’s pork panaeng curry is the best! It is a stew of tender pork slices with a smooth coconut milk sauce. It is spicy without overpowering the freshness of the citrus leaf taste.
Squid and Fishballs in Green Curry
Craving for some curry, I looked at my pantry and saw a small packet of green curry. Perfect! My favorite curry! All I had to do is raid our freezer for some seafood!
For this, is used up some fish balls and squid strips. I got the fish balls from Little Store at Wilson Street. I used up around ten balls, cut up in two. I bought the pack of ready-to-fry frozen squid (around 500g) from the grocery some days before.
(a pack of frozen and cut up squid ready for frying from a local supermarket)
I fried the squid prior to making curry to remove some of that fishy taste. The squid was actually good fried in itself (a la crispy calamares).
(the squid came out pre-seasoned, otherwise you can marinate it in some salt. pepper, garlic and lemon juice or vinegar before dredging and frying)
(crispy calamares can be enjoyed as is, or incorporated into other dishes like this curry)I am a veggie person so I had to put almost *everything* in the pot.
(cut up the eggplant and soak in salted water to prevent them from turning brown)I cut up a small carrot, one leek, two stalks celery, one eggplant, a thumb-size piece of ginger and around 3 cloves garlic.
(the aromatics all prepped-up prior to sauteeing)
I sautéed the garlic, ginger and leek stalks (white part) in two tablespoons of hot oil. I added the green curry paste (around two tablespoons). You can add as much as you like. I usually start with one tablespoon, then add more later after I have added the coconut milk (because that is the time when you can taste the stew and adjust the seasonings). I also added a tablespoon of fermented shrimp paste (bagoong – as the packaged green curries don’t seem to have enough).
Deglaze the pan with one can of coconut milk. (that is around 1 ½ cups if you like yours fresh). Add around half a cup of water together with the fish balls and squid. Simmer until thick – around 15 minutes.
Finally, adjust the seasonings with some fish sauce (patis), fresh lime juice (I use dayap), julienned kaffir lime leaves (one grows in my backyard) and cilantro leaves.
(some garnishings and final seasonings)Best served on top of steamed rice!
I saw this recipe from Maeve O'Maera's Food Safari. I just love that program! Anyway, I thought this dish was very Thai in its selection of ingredients, yet quite easy to do - without compromising flavor of course!
