Thai beef Curry Ghangkiewwannua Recipe

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The basic recipe for all curries can be found in my Thai Curry Talk article. The recipe is for 1/2 kilo, or about one pound, of meat. Today, I am making a little more than 2 1/2 pounds of beef, so we will double -with some modification- the measurements.


13-17 fresh large GREEN peppers - Long green peppers can often be found at oriental stores. If you have a hard time finding them there, look in your regular food store for green Mexican peppers, such as jalapenos. But please, do not buy the small Thai chili pepper,s unless you want your curry really very hot. First, take off the stems, and then cut the peppers length-wise and get rid of the seeds as well as the core in the middle (if any). Soak and rinse two or three times in a large bowl of water, letting them soak for at least half an hour each time.


4 teaspoons of kapi - shrimp paste. Please do not overdo.


14 small red onions, or 1/3 - 1/2 of one large red onion.


15 cloves of Thai garlic - It will be marvelous if you can put your hands on these aromatic tiny Thai garlic (usually in a large oriental store on the west coast of the US). Or, you may substitute with 3-4 smaller cloves of your typical everyday garlic - I know, boring! But, once more, please, clove - not bulb, there's a huge difference between them.


7-8 slices of galanga, julienned - Frozen is alright, fresh galanga is better, and powdered galanga doesn't do a good job so please avoid it.


4 tablespoons of finely-julienned lemongrass.


2 teaspoons of kaffir lime skins, thinly sliced then julienned. You are so lucky if you are in Florida, Texas or California. If you live on the east coast, like me, you have to wait for the summer to buy them (preferrably in large quantities) from NYC Chinatown and then freeze them. That, or order all year round from CA at a very high price.


2 teaspoons of coriander seeds.


2 teaspoons of jeera seeds.


1 1/2 - 2 teaspoons of black peppercorns.





Put all the ingredients in an electric blender. Add two tablespoons of olive oil (I like extra virgin olive oil) and 1/4 cup of water. Grind well until all is blended together.

2 1/2 pounds of beef - Anything from chuck all the way to tenderloin - just make sure there is some fat in the meat (that's right, fat). The more tender the meat the less time it needs to braise. Today, I grabbed two thick pieces of sirloin from the freezer, thawed them, then sectioned them in two or three strips length-wise, and sliced super thin (like Japanese shabu style) against the grain. ALWAYS SLICE AGAINST THE GRAIN - or your meat will be chewy.


3 cans of coconut cream (milk)


2 cans of sliced bamboo - Please taste to check the bitterness. If it's too bitter, boil the bamboo once in water. Rinse and drain. Green curry can be made with other vegetables such as small Thai (Asian) eggplants. But not your typical garden variety that you see often in a Chinese stir-fry dish. I will get into that some other days. In my kitchen today, bamboo was the only suitable veggie.


15-20 Kaffir lime leaves.


1 sweet red pepper for garnish. Get rid of seeds and rinse very well and slice very thin.


A fist full of basil leaves - Italian basil is pretty good, and Thai basil is superb (Oriental grocery)


1 packet of sweetener (I prefer Stevia or Sweet 'n' Low) or one teaspoon of sugar -Haha, here is your "wan" -sweet in ghangkiewWAN.


Nampla

1) Heat a large pot with a little olive oil on medium high heat. (By now, you must realize that this is my default setting.) Then pour in your paste contents.


2) Put in the sweetener, followed by one spatula of nampla. Stir.


3) Put the beef in the pot along with one can of coconut cream (don't forget to shake the can before you open). Keep stirring.


4) Add Kaffir lime leaves and stir.


5) Pour in bamboo and keep stirring. If your curry looks thick you may add 1/2 - 1 can of coconut cream. STIR.


6) Add the rest of the coconut cream.


7) When boiled, add one more spatula of nampla, mix and have a taste. Green beef curry is best eaten with steamed jasmine rice. Since it is NOT, by all means, a bland dish, you may want to add maybe 1/3 spatula of nampla. Is it good yet?


8) When your taste buds are happy: there should be a creamy taste plus a little on the nampla-salty side, and the bamboo is crispy while the beef is pratically melting inside your mouth with the heat of the spices all around, at this point you are almost through. Put in red peppers and let it cook for a minute. Turn off the heat. You may put basil leaves in the pot now, or put it in the bowls in which you serve.


Voila! Congratulations! You made your Thai green beef curry.





As I often say, a Thai I am, but a chef I'm not. Therefore, Chef-Me-NOT!


But I do make excellent curry XD


Enjoy!

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