Tapioca Balls with Filling

Ingredients

• Minced chicken or mushroom- 270g
• Minced sweet radish- 100g
• Roasted peanuts (coarsely crushed)- 55g
• Palm sugar- 150g
• Vegetable oil- 1tsp
• Light soy sauce or salt- 1tbsp
• Pearl tapioca- 250g
• Coriander roots- 2
• Garlic- 3 cloves
• Pepper- 1 tsp

Method

• In a mortar add the coriander roots, garlic and pepper. Pound them together till it turns into a paste.
• Over low heat, add oil and the paste into a pan. Stir the paste until it releases an aroma.
• Add chicken or mushroom and continue stirring till the dish is almost cooked. The add palm sugar, light soy or salt and continue stirring until dry.
• Let it cool and then mould into small balls. Rinse pearl tapioca in a pot of water and leave for five minutes. Add warm water to the pot and stir until the tapioca expands.
• Pour the pearl tapioca into a meche strainer and drain.
• Wrap the balls with pearl tapioca. Put a steamer on a stove and bring water to boil.
• Place the balls on oiled banana leaf in a steamer, half inch apart.
• Steam over fast boiling water until the pearl becomes clear — about 15 to 20 minutes.
• Remove the strainer from the stove and leave for 5 minutes for the balls to dry slightly before
• transferring to a serving dish. Sprinkle with crushed fried garlic. To make crushed fried garlic, firstly, pound peeled garlic. Then heat oil in a pan (medium heat). Next, stir the garlic till it gets golden brown. Finally use a slotted spoon to transfer the garlic onto blotting paper to drain the oil. Once cooled, the garlic will be crispy.

*Should be served with vegetable salad, coriander and fresh chillies as a snack.

Thai raw papaya salad Telegraph picture

Thai Papaya Salad

Ingredients

• Grated raw papaya- 1½ cup
• Fish sauce or light soy sauce- 2tbsp
• Palm sugar- 1½tbsp
• Tamarind juice- 1tbsp
• Lime juice- 1tbsp
• Dried shrimp- ½tbsp
• Roasted peanuts- ½tbsp
• Tomato (small pieces)- ½cup
• Green beans (small pieces - ½cup
• Garlic- 5 cloves
• Chillies (fresh/ dried)- 3-5

Method

• Place the roasted peanuts, garlic, dried shrimps, green beans and chillies in a mortar and pound till they are crushed.
• Add tomatoes, palm sugar, fish sauce or light soy sauce and then lime juice and tamarind juice to the mortar. Pound until blended.
• Add grated papaya into the mortar and mix everything together. Avoid pounding too hard.
• Garnish with additional crushed peanuts if desired.

*This menu should be eaten with steamed sticky rice (recipe below), fried chicken or grilled chicken.

Steamed sticky rice

• Soak the sticky rice for 10 to 20 minutes. Next, scoop the sticky rice into a bowl, filling it to half. Add water into the cup, about 0.5cm above the sticky rice. Microwave for two minutes.
• Take it out and add a little more water (not too much) and microwave for another minute.

Note: Suggested measurements can be adjusted to taste.

Thai green curry Telegraph picture

Thai Green Curry

Ingredients

• Green curry paste- 2tbsp
• Chicken slices (or 1 cup aubergine cut in round slices)- 300g
• Coconut cream- 1 cup
• Coconut milk- 1 cup
• Stock (veg or chicken)- ½ cup
• Pea aubergines- ½ cup
• Apple aubergines (round shaped)- 4
• Kaffir lime leaves finely shredded- 2-3
• Red and green chillies
• Handful of Basil leaves
• Fish sauce or salt

Method

• In a pot, bring the coconut cream to simmer and stir in the green curry paste. Add the kaffir leaf slices.
• Add chicken and stir until almost cooked through. (Skip this step for vegetarian recipe). Add coconut milk and stock. Bring to boil.
• Add all the aubergines and simmer until cooked through but not soft.
• Add chillies, basil leaves and fish sauce or salt to taste. Turn off the flame.
• Enjoy with steamed rice or roti.