Panäng Gai / Panäng Moo for Farangs

Ingredients for 3 servings:

• 2 tbsp curry paste (Panäng curry paste)
• 500 g pork or chicken (e.g. chicken breast, pork schnitzel…), finely chopped
• 1 bag(s) of coconut milk (approx. 200 ml)
• 3 tbsp fish sauce
• 1 bunch basil (Thai basil)
• 4 kaffir lime leaves
• 1 cup water
• 2 carrots
• 1 bell pepper(s)
• 1 tsp sugar
• 1 tbsp peanut butter or
• Peanuts, powdered
• possibly chili pepper(s)
• possibly water

Instructions

Working time approx. 25 minutes; Total time approx. 25 minutes

Thai red curry with pork or chicken, described in detail

Panäng Gai/Moo is an easy-to-cook, typically Thai recipe and contains fish sauce. This means no additional salt is needed, as the sauce is already quite salty. However, you shouldn’t be afraid of this ingredient, as the dish won’t taste of fish at all (at least, it shouldn’t). Generally, non-Thai people should be a little careful with the ingredients, as there are quite a few unfamiliar flavors (to Western palates) combined. Furthermore, many of the ingredients in this recipe are already found in some curry pastes. Therefore, it’s better to use a little less curry paste and fish sauce the first time than too much. If you notice afterwards that you didn’t have enough, you can add a little more just before the end (the ingredients dissolve beautifully in the dish). If there’s too much and the dish is too curry-heavy or salty, you can easily balance it out by adding a little more coconut milk and a small splash of water (it’s worth having a second carton of coconut milk in the house just in case). And you should always be careful with curry pastes from Asian import stores: These usually already contain chili, which can create an unbearable spiciness for Western palates when cooked (and sometimes with a quantity of “only” 2 tablespoons!). I find it better to use a curry paste without chili (you can sometimes find them in German supermarkets), because you can spice it up with fresh Thai chilies to your liking. This also results in a more pleasant, fruity spiciness than the curry paste. As a general rule, taste and season often while cooking, so there won’t be any unpleasant surprises afterward. Fry the meat in a large pan until cooked through. Then remove the meat from the pan and set it aside in a bowl (it will be used again later). Now add the coconut milk to the large pan with the cooking juices (it’s best not to add all of the coconut milk at once, but to reserve a small amount). Heat the coconut milk over medium heat until it’s just simmering (do not boil!). Now add 2 tablespoons of the curry paste to the coconut milk and stir until the paste has dissolved into the milk (don’t leave any lumps; reduce the heat if necessary). Continue stirring and add the 3 tablespoons of fish sauce to the curry coconut milk. Stir everything until smooth and add the meat from the bowl back to the pan. Then heat everything up a little (the meat should be warm). Now slice the carrots and dice the bell peppers. Pick the leaves from the Thai basil and tear them a little if necessary (do not chop them with a knife!) and add everything to the pan. If you like, you can also add 1-2 finely chopped chilies at this time. Either halve the lemon or kaffir leaves or roll them into a roll (a quid) and cut them into wafer-thin strips with a sharp knife. It depends on whether you like the lemon leaves so much that you want to eat them, or whether you prefer to pick them out and set them aside like bay leaves before eating. The leaves really only serve to give the food a fresh, lemony fragrance, similar to how you add bay leaves to a sauce or soup. However, I find they add a very interesting flavor component because, unlike bay leaves, they are not bitter! Add these leaves to the pan as well. Now cover the pan and cook for 3-4 minutes until the vegetables are slightly heated through. They should still be crunchy, though. Remove the lid, inspect the dish, and season to taste. The dish is now almost ready; all that’s missing is the finishing touch. Add a teaspoon of sugar for this. If the dish is very salty, you can also use a tablespoon of sugar. If it’s too dry, add a little more coconut milk and a splash of water. Now add the peanut butter or peanut powder and stir well again. The dish should have only a subtle peanut flavor, so only use a small amount of 1-2 tablespoons. Voilà, the panang is ready. If you use pork, it’s panang moo; if you use chicken, it’s panang gai. Basmati rice is the best side dish. The vegetables are interchangeable. You could just as easily add peas, snow peas, baby corn, or something similar. Some people even make it completely without vegetables, just with Thai basil. In my opinion, the only important thing is that you associate the vegetables with Asia (so I wouldn’t use vegetables like corn, tomatoes, etc.; that’s more “typically Western”). In Thailand, it’s not customary to put salt and pepper on the table. It’s served in a small bowl containing 3 tablespoons of fish sauce, a generous teaspoon of sugar, and a thinly sliced ​​Thai chili. This salty and spicy sauce is used if you want to add extra spice to the dish.