(NaturalNews) Capturing the essence of Thai food requires a handful of special ingredients that you likely do not have in your kitchen. This blend of plants is called Thai curry and contains natural preservatives while providing strong medicinal properties. Despite tremendous flavor, the purpose of a curry blend is primarily to prevent food spoilage. We’ll explore the main components of Thai curry in this article before providing three basic recipes to get you started making your own Thai dishes.
Thai Curry Paste Ingredients
While many imagine that Thai curry paste grows on the Thai curry tree, in reality the paste is a blend of many plant foods. The following blend will keep indefinitely so it is worth taking the time to understand and to prepare these ingredients.
* Kaffir Lime Leaves - Citrus hystrix (Rutaceae)
Kaffir leaves have antioxidant properties and contain volatile oil. A digestive aid, Kaffir leaves cleanse the blood while helping maintain healthy teeth and gums. Kaffir can be applied to the hair and scalp, and even prevents hair loss. It is used as a deodorant. The fresh lime fruits can also be used if available. Kaffir is the primary flavor found in Thai cuisine.
* Lemongrass - Cymbopogon citratus (Gramineae)
Lemongrass contains the volatile oil Citral along with Citronellal, both sedatives. Lemongrass detoxifies the liver, pancreas, kidney, bladder and the digestive tract. It reduces uric acid along with blood pressure, cholesterol, excess fats and other toxins. Lemongrass stimulates digestion, blood circulation, and lactation.
* Galangal Root - Alpina galangal (Zingiberaceae)
Galangal contains the volatile oils Alpha-pinene, Cineole and Linalool. Also known as Siamese Ginger, Galangal Root can be purchased fresh or dried. It resembles ginger root and is known as the “defisher” as it reduces the fishy smell of foods. Galangal stimulates digestion, alleviates motion sickness and nausea, and reduces inflammation of the stomach and ulcers. Galangal root boosts the immune system, treats colds and flu, reduces fever and rheumatism, and freshens the breath. Galangal has antibacterial and antispasmodic properties.
In most curry blends the above ingredients are mixed with Red Pepper, Garlic, Cumin, Cilantro and Coriander (see my article Homemade Superfood II: Guacamole and the Science of Salsa for more information on those ingredients).
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Thai Curried Coconut Milk Ingredients
Once we obtain a curry paste we can use it to quickly prepare Thai curried coconut milk by adding some additional ingredients. The following blend will keep for several days in the refrigerator:
* Coconut Milk - Cocos nucifera (Arecaceae)
Coconut Milk is combined with Curry Paste to form the base broth for many Thai dishes. The key is to use fresh coconuts or to buy organic canned Coconut milk. Most retail canned will contain dangerous preservatives like potassium meta-bisulfite. Coconut milk contains high quality fatty acids along with high Omega-3 coconut oil. Coconut milk boosts the immune system, regulates metabolic functions, and lowers cholesterol, while helping reverse the aging process by inhibiting free radical damage.
* Thai Basil - Ocimum basilicum (Lamiaceae)
Thai Basil has the volatile oils Cineole, Estragole, Eugenol, Limonene, Linalool, Myrcene, and Sabinene, along with Vitamin C, Vitamin K and Magnesium. Basil contains the antioxidants Orientin and Vicenin, both water-soluble flavonoids that stimulate the immune system and prevent DNA damage in white blood cells. Basil has antibacterial and antimicrobial properties.
* Thai Sugar - Saccharum officinarum (Poaceae)
Thai Sugar comes in a candy-like form that resembles a soft serve ice cream cone. Thai Sugar is whole sugar that contains some molasses, which is known to contain high concentrations of certain minerals.
* Fish Sauce - Engraulis encrasicolus (Engraulidae)
A favorite of ancient Romans, fermented fish sauce is a whole food that contains trace minerals along with high quality monounsaturated oils. Some of the highest quality fish sauce is said to be made on the island of Phu Quoc in the Gulf of Thailand, where anchovies are layered, salted, and fermented for 3 months in wooden casks. The juice is then tapped and basted back on top of the layered fish. The process is repeated and the highest quality first pressing is used as a condiment while the second and third pressings are used for cooking. Sadly, fish sauce has been phased out in most kitchens over the past century in favor of cheaper and less nutritionally balanced Worcestershire sauce. (Source: soupsong dot com).
* Shrimp Paste - Penaeus vannamei (Crangonidae)
Another complete and concentrated food, shrimp paste is fermented the way fish sauce is, however shrimp paste comes in a jar and resembles wax with a thin layer of lard on top. One jar will last nearly forever so it is a great food to have in your kitchen. Shrimp Paste has healthy polyunsaturated fatty acids including EPA and DHA and is a powerful antioxidant.
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Thai Cuisine Ingredients
After the coconut curried Thai broth is prepared, it can be used to prepare many combinations of Thai food in just minutes. Just add a few vegetables and (optionally) some meat and serve with rice. Despite the rumors that Thai food can cause an upset stomach, we can see that nearly every ingredient in Thai cuisine serves to aid digestion. However, mixing meat with rice is a bad idea in general and can upset the stomach (see Trophology (the science of food combining) for more details). I recommend eating meat as a separate course.
To make your own paste you will need the following tool:
* Mortar and Pestle
A mortar and pestle is essential if you enjoy preparing foods by hand. While you may be imaging a small wooden one, in Thailand they are made of granite and are about the size of a hollowed-out half bowling ball. Weighing 20 pounds and nearly indestructible, a mortar and pestle allows you to pulverize and even liquefy rugged foods like seeds, leaves, and bark. It is especially essential for making Thai curry paste because the key ingredients are not unlike the leaves, branches and bark from a large tree.
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Recipe for Panang Curry Paste
Ingredients:
* 1 cup of dried Thai chili peppers
* 6 cloves of garlic
* 5 kaffir lime leaves
* 1 stalk of lemongrass
* 2 Tbsp galangal root
* 1 Tbsp coriander seed
* 1 Tbsp cumin seed
Instructions:
* Working from driest to wettest, place each ingredient one by one into the mortar and pestle.
* Grind each ingredient until a soft consistency is achieved.
* This will take several minutes for the tougher ingredients.
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Recipe for Thai Curried Coconut Milk
Ingredients:
* 1 can of coconut milk
* 3 Tbsp Thai curry paste
* ˝ cup Thai basil, chopped
* 1 Tbsp palm oil or lard
* 1 Tbsp fish sauce
* 1 Tbsp Thai sugar
* 1 tsp shrimp paste
* 1 clove of fresh garlic, minced
Instructions:
* In a cast iron skillet, heat palm oil or lard.
* Add garlic and stir.
* Add curry paste and stir.
* Add fish sauce and shrimp paste – strong aroma will temporarily offer fishy smell.
* Stir in coconut milk and reduce heat.
* Add Thai basil.
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Recipe for Thai Cuisine
Ingredients:
* 1 cup of Jasmine rice (or brown rice)
* 1 cup of Thai coconut curry broth
* 1 carrot, diced
* ˝ cup of sugar snap peas (or pepper or broccoli)
* ˝ cup of diced pineapple (or bamboo shoots or morel mushrooms)
* (Optional) cooked chicken meat (or cooked beef or lamb)
* 1 kaffir lime (or lemon or lime)
* Sprig of cilantro.
Instructions:
* Prepare rice.
* Pan sear vegetables in a cast iron skillet.
* Add curry broth, reduce heat and simmer 10 minutes.
* Add meat last to avoid overcooking.
* Serve with rice, citrus wedge and sprig of fresh cilantro.
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References
For more fish tales check out http://www.soupsong.com/ffish.html.
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About the authorNeil McLaughlin is a computer scientist specializing in 3d graphics and simulation. He can be reached at naturalnews461 (at) yahoo (dot) com.
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