Thai squash soup

Lets go make the Thai squash soup

Ingredients

• 1 onion, chopped
• 1 lemongrass stalk, bashed and shredded
• 1-2 red chillies, roughly chopped
• 1kg butternut squash, peeled and diced
• juice 1 lime
• 125ml coconut milk
• small bunch coriander, leaves picked

Method

1. Fry the onion, lemongrass and most of the chilli in a large pan with a splash of water for 2-3 mins until softened – add more water if it starts to catch. Tip in the squash and stir. Cover with 1 litre water, bring to the boil and simmer for 15 mins until the squash is tender. Add lime juice, remove from the heat and blitz with a hand blender until smooth.
2. Pour in the coconut milk, season, then return to the heat to gently warm through. Ladle into bowls and serve with coriander and the remaining chilli.

Thai beef curry

Lets go make the Thai beef curry

Ingredients

• 2-3 tbsp groundnut oil
• 2kg beef short ribs (bone-in ribs left whole), or brisket, cut into large chunks
• large bunch coriander
• 2 lemongrass stalks, 1 bashed, 1 roughly chopped
• 3 garlic cloves, chopped
• 1-2 green chillies, roughly chopped, deseeded if you like
• 2cm-piece galangal or ginger, peeled and chopped
• 50ml rice wine vinegar
• 50ml fish sauce
• 2 tbsp palm or light brown sugar
• 400g can coconut milk
• 2 star anise
• 6 kaffir lime leaves
• juice 2 limes, plus wedges to serve

Method

1. Heat a little of the oil in a large pan and brown the beef in batches, removing to a plate after, reserving any juices. If your slow cooker has a browning function, use this instead. Meanwhile, in a mini chopper or food processor, whizz half the coriander, the chopped lemongrass, garlic, chillies and galangal with the rest of the oil until you have a rough paste.
2. Turn the slow cooker to High. Heat the paste for a few mins, then add the beef and all the remaining ingredients, apart from the remaining coriander and lime juice. Turn slow cooker to Low and cook for 8 hrs, or until the meat is falling off the bone.
3. If using beef ribs, remove bones from the beef, then shred the meat with 2 forks. If the sauce is too thin, strain it off and boil it to reduce. Stir in the remaining coriander and lime juice, then season with more fish sauce or sugar.

Thai pumpkin soup

Lets go make the Thai pumpkin soup

Ingredients

• 1½ kg pumpkin or squash, peeled and roughly chopped
• 4 tsp sunflower oil
• 1 onion, sliced
• 1 tbsp grated ginger
• 1 lemongrass, bashed a little
• 3-4 tbsp Thai red curry paste
• 400ml can coconut milk
• 850ml vegetable stock
• lime juice and sugar, for seasoning
• 1 red chilli, sliced, to serve (optional)

Method

1. Heat oven to 200C/180C fan/gas 6. Toss the pumpkin or squash in a roasting tin with half the oil and seasoning, then roast for 30 mins until golden and tender.
2. Meanwhile, put the remaining oil in a pan with the onion, ginger and lemongrass. Gently cook for 8-10 mins until softened. Stir in the curry paste for 1 min, followed by the roasted pumpkin, all but 3 tbsp of the coconut milk and the stock. Bring to a simmer, cook for 5 mins, then fish out the lemongrass. Cool for a few mins, then whizz until smooth with a hand blender, or in a large blender in batches. Return to the pan to heat through, seasoning with salt, pepper, lime juice and sugar, if it needs it. Serve drizzled with the remaining coconut milk and scattered with chilli, if you like.

Phat Thai

Lets go make the Phat Thai

Ingredients

• 400g thick, dried, flat rice noodles (banh pho), we used Thai Taste rice noodles from Waitrose
• 4 large garlic cloves, finely chopped
• 1 small bunch coriander, stems or roots finely chopped, leaves reserved
• 50ml vegetable oil
• 200g raw prawns, peeled
• 85g pickled turnips, chopped (optional)
• 1 tbsp sugar
• 3 eggs, beaten
• 2 tbsp oyster sauce
• 2 tbsp fish sauce
• 300g beansprouts
• juice 1 lime
• 1 bunch spring onions, sliced on the diagonal
• 100g roasted peanuts, crushed
• 3 red chillies, deseeded and finely chopped

Method

1. Soak the noodles in cold water for up to 2 hrs, then drain and set aside. Using a pestle and mortar, pound the garlic with the chopped coriander stems or roots.
2. Heat the oil in a wok over a high heat. When shimmering, add the garlic and coriander mix. Stir for a few moments, then add the prawns and pickled turnip, if using. Cook for 30 secs, then add the sugar. Add the noodles and stir for 1 min, making sure everything is well mixed. Add the eggs and cook for 2 mins more.
3. Pour in the oyster and fish sauce, then add the beansprouts, lime juice, most of the spring onions, most of the roasted peanuts and most of the chilli. Toss and cook for around 2 mins, then serve scattered with coriander and the rest of the chilli, peanuts and spring onions.

Thai beef stir-fry

Lets go make the Thai beef stir-fry

Ingredients

• 2 tbsp vegetable oil
• 400g beef strips, or steak cut into thin strips
• 1 red chilli, deseeded and finely sliced
• 2 tbsp oyster sauce
• handful basil leaves

Method

Heat a wok or large frying pan until smoking hot. Pour in the oil and swirl around the pan, then tip in the beef strips and chilli. Cook, stirring all the time, until the meat is lightly browned, about 3 mins, then pour over the oyster sauce. Cook until heated through and the sauce coats the meat. stir in the basil leaves and serve with plain rice.

Thai green chicken curry

Lets go make the green chicken curry

Ingredients

For the green curry paste

• 1 stalk lemongrass, thinly sliced
• 1 tbsp lime juice
• 1 tsp whole peppercorn
• 1 tsp coriander seed
• ½ tsp cumin seed
• 6 green bird's-eye chillies, trimmed and halved
• 4 garlic cloves, peeled
• 5 shallots (use Thai if possible)
• 3cm piece galangal or ginger, peeled and sliced
• 1 rounded tsp shredded kaffir lime peel (if you can get it)
• 2 tbsp chopped coriander stalks
• 1 tbsp chopped coriander leaves
• 1 level tsp shrimp paste
• 2 tbsp vegetable or sunflower oil

For the curry

• 2 x 400g cans coconut milk
• 2 heaped tbsp green curry paste
• 500g skinless, boneless chicken breasts, cut into thin strips
• 100ml chicken stock, plus extra if necessary
• 1-2 tbsp fish sauce
• 2 tsp palm sugar (or light muscovado)
• 4 kaffir lime leaves
• 50g fine green beans, halved
• 100g baby aubergines, diced (or Thai pea aubergines)
• handful Thai basil, shredded

Garnish

• coriander leaves
• 1 red chilli, thinly sliced
• 1 spring onion, shredded and left to curl in ice cold water
• lime wedges

To serve

• Thai fragrant rice

Method

1. To make the Thai green curry paste, put the lemon grass and lime juice into a small bowl and leave to soak for 30 mins. Put a small pan over a medium heat and add the peppercorns, coriander and cumin seeds. Dry fry for about 1 minute until fragrant then tip onto a saucer to cool.
2. Put the lemongrass, spices and all remaining curry paste ingredients into a mini food blender or small food processor and pulse the mixture. Scrape down the sides from time to time. Process as smooth as you can – the mixture will be slightly coarse and not as green as the purchased variety. Put the paste into a lidded jar and store in the fridge up to a week or freeze in portions.
3. To make the curry, open the cans of coconut milk and carefully remove the thick cream and spoon it into a warm wok or large frying pan (see tip below). Cook it slowly, stirring all the time, until it reduces to a thick paste and the oil starts to separate. Add the green curry paste and cook for 1-2 mins. Add the chicken and stir until well coated in the paste.
4. Slowly add the coconut water remaining in the cans together with the chicken stock. Add all the remaining ingredients and cook over a medium heat for about 10 mins until the chicken is cooked. Add more stock if necessary - the sauce should be slightly thinner than single cream.
5. To serve spoon some rice into a bowl, pour over the curry and sprinkle with the coriander leaves, sliced chilli and spring onion. Add a wedge of lime on the side.

Pad Thai

Lets go make the Pad Thai

Ingredients

• 125g (half a 250g pack) rice noodles
• 3 tbsp lime juice about 2 limes
• ½ tsp cayenne pepper
• 2 tsp light muscovado sugar
• 2 tbsp fish sauce (nam pla)
• 2 tbsp vegetable oil
• 200g cooked and peeled tiger prawns, tails left on
• 4 spring onions, sliced
• 140g beansprouts
• 25g salted peanuts, finely chopped
• a small handful of coriander leaves

To serve

• 1 or 2 lime, cut into wedges
• sweet chilli sauce

 

Method

1. Put the noodles in a large heatproof bowl, pour boiling water over them and leave for 4 minutes, then drain and refresh under cold running water.
2. Put the lime juice, cayenne, sugar and fish sauce in a bowl and mix well. Have all the other ingredients ready by the cooker.
3. Heat the oil and fry the prawns until warmed through. Add the spring onions and noodles and toss around. Tip in the lime juice mixture, then stir in the beansprouts and half the peanuts and coriander. Cook for 1 minute until everything is heated through.
4. Pile into a large dish, scatter with the rest of the peanuts and coriander, and serve with lime wedges and sweet chilli sauce.