How One of Thailand’s Most Iconic Dishes is Made | Passport Kitchen | Epicurious

fish sauce

🥗Healthier: soy sauce

💰Cheaper: salt

Soy sauce is lower in calories and provides umami flavor.

ground meat

🥗Healthier: ground turkey

💰Cheaper: ground chicken

Ground turkey is leaner, while ground chicken is often less expensive.

Toast dried red Thai chiles, whole black peppercorns, coriander seeds, star anise, Sichuan peppercorns, whole cloves, broken cinnamon sticks, dried dee plee peppers, whole nutmeg, and cardamom pods in a medium sauté pan over medium-low heat until aromatic, about 2 to 3 minutes. Transfer to a mortar and pestle and let cool completely. Add salt and pound into a fine powder.

In a large bowl, combine ground pork and liver with laab chile until just mixed. Set aside.

In a wide sauté pan, heat ¼ cup of the oil over low heat. Add garlic and cook slowly until golden and fragrant, about 3 minutes. Transfer crispy garlic and oil to a small bowl and set aside.

Add remaining ¼ cup oil to the pan, add chiles, and cook until darkened in color, about 2 minutes. Transfer crispy chiles and oil to a second small bowl and set aside.

In the same pan over medium-high heat, sauté the pork mixture just until no longer pink, about 3 minutes. Add 1 tablespoon of fried garlic along with lemongrass and makrut lime leaves and cook until fragrant, about 1 minute. Stir in the two kinds of mint, culantro, scallions, and cilantro and cook, stirring, for another 2 minutes, until fragrant. Off the heat, season with fish sauce to taste.

Transfer to a platter and garnish with makrut lime leaves, lemongrass, shallots, crispy pork rinds, remaining fried garlic, fried chiles, chopped cilantro, and scallions. Serve with cucumber and cherry tomatoes.

Cooking Techniques

Equipment Needed

Spice Level:

Allergens