Wednesday 30 July 2014

[3 recipes] Thai-style Steamed Pomfret, Seafood Tom Yum and Thai Basil Minced Pork

Seafood Tom Yum and Thai Basil Minced Pork
Most of us who loves Thai cuisine are usually fans of spicy and sour food. And in Thailand, Tom Yum Talay (hot and spicy seafood soup) is known for its health benefits and is often equivalent to the chicken noodle soup which we used to have it when we are not feeling well. Moreover this delicious one pot soup is also pretty easy to make once you have all the necessary ingredients.

In this post, I would be sharing 3 common homecook Thai dishes which you can easily prepare them at home with ingredients that are available from leading supermarkets or Thai grocery stalls.  



THAI-STYLE STEAMED POMFRET


Thai-style Steamed Pomfret
Steaming is the best way to enjoy fresh fish which is gently cooked till tender plus with a few  on the fish also allow quick cooking as well as flavour to be season to the meat. For this Thai-style steamed fish dish, it has a light citrus and lemongrass fragrant that whet your appetite plus some chopped bird-eyes chilli also add contrast and flavour to the overall taste too.   


(Yield: 2 servings | Preparation: 5 minutes | Cooking: 8-10 minutes)

Ingredients:
  • 1 Medium (about 450 - 500g) White Pomfret
  • 2 Clove Garlic, minced
  • 2 Stalks Lemongrass, thinly sliced
  • 2 Bird's Eye Chilli, chopped
  • 2 Tablespoons Freshly Squeeze Lime Juice
  • 1 Tablespoon Fish Sauce
  • 1/2 Teaspoon Sugar
  • 2 Tablespoons Hot Water
  • Some Chopped Spring Onion
  • Coriander and Lime (sliced), for garnish

Method:
1. Arrange 1/4 portion of the chopped lemongrass on plate, place fish on it and steamed on medium heat for 8 minutes.

2. Meanwhile in a small bowl, mix lime juice, fish sauce, water, spring onion and sugar together.

3. Sauté minced garlic and lemongrass together with chilli till fragrant. Remove and add it into the lime mixture and mix well. 

4. Next remove fish from pot, pour away the steaming juice. Drizzle prepared lime mixture on fish, top with sliced lime and continue to steam for another 2 minutes.

5. Serve fish immediately with garnish.



SEAFOOD TOM YUM vs THAI BASIL PORK


Ingredients for Seafood Tom Yum and Thai Basil Pork

(Yield: 2 servings | Preparation: 10 minutes | Cooking: 20 minutes)

Ingredients:
Seafood Tom Yum
  • 10 Medium Prawns
  • 200g Fish Fillet, sliced
  • 250g Chicken Fillet, cut into strips
  • 2 Medium Squid, sliced
  • 2 Thumb-size Galangal, lightly pound
  • 6 Kaffir Lime Leaves
  • 8 Thai Chilli Padi, sliced
  • 70ml Thai Green Lime Juice
  • 60ml Thai Fish Sauce
  • 1.2 Litre of Water
  • 4 Stalks Lemongrass, cut into 3" sections
  • 6 Shallots, halved
  • 1/4 Piece of Knorr Chicken Stock Cube, optional
  • 1 Tomato (optional), cut into wedges

Thai Basil Minced Pork
  • 300g Minced Pork
  • 1 Cup Thai Sweet Basil Leaves
  • 4 Cloves Garlic, finely chopped
  • 4 Shallots, finely slices
  • 2 Tablespoons Cooking Oil
  • 4 Thai Small Chilli, roughly chopped
  • Seasoning:
  • 2 Tablespoons Thai Fish Sauce
  • 1 Teaspoon Dark Soy Sauce
  • 1/2 Teaspoon Sugar
  • 2 Tablespoons Lime Juice/Water


A short demo clip on how to prepare Seafood Tom Yum Soup and Stir-fry Thai Basil Pork.

Seafood Tom Yum (clear soup)
Method:
1. Lightly marinate fish, chicken and squid with some cornflour, cooking wine and fish sauce. Set aside.

2. Bring water to boil in a soup pot, add lemongrass, galangal, onion, stock cube (if using) and simmer for 2 minutes till fragrant.

3. Next add in kaffir lime leaves, chillies, Thai fish sauce and lime juice then simmer for another minute before adding in the rest of the ingredients (except tomato add in during the last 30 seconds of cooking time) and boil for another 2 - 3 minutes till meat cooked through.

4. Ladle into serving bowls, top with some coriander and served together with extra condiments (cut chillies, Thai fish sauce and lime juice) to adjust the taste according to your preference.

Method:
1. Rinse and pick the clean leaves from Thai basil stalks, discard the hard stems and set the leaves aside.

2. Heat up frying pan with oil till hot, throw in chopped garlic, shallot and chillies, sauté the mixture till fragrant and lightly brown.

3. Add in minced pork and cook until the pork changes colour (try to loosen the pork while cooking to prevent lumps) then add in seasoning and cook till pork absorb the sauce flavour (do not over cooked).

4. Lastly toss in basil leaves, stir for a few seconds until leaves started to wilt, add dash of pepper.

5. Remove and serve with steamed white rice and fried egg.

English Sweet Basil vs Thai Basil Leaves
Above are two different types of basil from my neighbour's garden. The one shown on the left side is English sweet basil which is commonly used in pasta or pizza whereas the one on the right is Thai Basil which has light purple-white flowers and it is usually used in Thai or Vietnam dishes.

Thai Basil can be found in some vegetables stall in wet market or certain leading supermarkets such as Sheng Siong or NTUC Fairprice.


Lastly hope you would like these 3 quick home cook Thai-style dishes. For more recipes ideas on Thai cuisine, you can refer to our list here.

2 comments:

  1. super like! will try the stir fry basil pork :)

    ReplyDelete
  2. I can only say Yum, Yum and Yum! All those dishes look mouth-watering good. I think I would love the minced pork with basil and the Tom Yum.

    ReplyDelete

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