Miles Collins

Southern Asian Curry Sauce for Fish

As I was tending to a polytunnel full of chillies this afternoon it occured to me that it had been some time since I posted any recipes. Looking back over recent posts there has been a distinct kitchen garden/photographic feel to the site, some might say bordering on a monopoly!

Maybe it was the sight of the chillies and the underplanting of my Thai basil that got me thinking about Asian food and curries in particular, actually it was probably because my old mate, Superglazer mentioned trying out a new Thai restaurant next week. Either way I started to think about fish curry-my absolute favourite.

Making an authentic red curry paste can be a time consuming affair. If you have the patience and the use for a lot of different spices in your store cupboard then I would recommend you buying the ‘bible’ of Thai food, David Thompson’s encyclopedic ‘Thai Food’. It doesn’t get any better than this, if it’s not in there then it’s not worth bothering with. His recipes work, try them if you can.

Making a curry paste isn’t practical for everyone, if you live on your own or are the only one in the house that will eat it you are better buying a jar of good quality shop bought paste. There’s no point in being snobbish about it.

I am one of those who lives on my own but I like to make my own pastes, it is easier for me. The ingredients are there, I know what I am doing so it doesn’t take me long and, most importantly, I enjoy making it. This recipe is quite simple, it does contain a couple of stranger ingredients but they are worth searching out. Just a note on the chillies, use as many or as little as you see fit. You will need dried chillies but don’t use the tiny dried birds eye because they will make the paste too hot. You are better going to your nearest Chinese supermarket and buying a bag of large, glossy red chillies, or, even better your own grown chillies which you have dried yourself. Shrimp paste is readily avaliable nowadays, you can buy it in small quantities and it lasts an age. Keep the lid on it because the smell is hardly akin to lavender

An authentic easy red curry paste recipe:

8-10 large dried chillies soaked in warm water, seeds removed. Two lemongrass bulbs thinly chopped. Half a teaspoon of coriander/cilantro seeds dry roasted until fragrant. Four cloves of choped garlic. Half a cup/2oz chopped red shallots. One tablespoon grated lime zest. Three tablespoons chopped fresh galangal or ginger if not avaliable. One and a half tablespoons shrimp paste roasted in tin foil until fragrant (or stinking!) Salt and pepper.

Grind the coriander seeds into a powder, add the other ingredients and pound together in a mortar or food processor until you have a smooth paste. Keep refrigerated.

This is an easy red curry paste recipe designed for those with little spare time, I shall post a more complex one for meat and game dishes in due course.