Prik King
A dry Thai curry: prik king paste fried hard with pork or chicken, green beans and kaffir lime leaves. No coconut milk, no broth. Eaten with jasmine rice.
Overview
Prik king paste fries hard in oil until aromatic and the oil splits. Thinly sliced pork (or chicken) joins; sears for 4 minutes. Green beans (snake beans, French beans or fine green beans) go in for 5 minutes; fish sauce, palm sugar and torn kaffir lime leaves finish. Served over jasmine rice with fresh herbs.
Ingredients
Prik king paste (or use 4 tbsp store-bought)
- 8 dried Thai red chillies (de-stemmed, soaked 15 min in hot water, drained)
- 4 garlic cloves
- 4 shallots (small)
- 1 stalk lemongrass (white part only, sliced)
- 1 thumb galangal (sliced)
- 1 teaspoon shrimp paste (kapi)
- 4 kaffir lime leaves (de-stemmed)
- 1 teaspoon ground coriander
- ½ teaspoon ground white pepper
Stir-fry
- 500 g pork shoulder (or chicken thigh, sliced very thin)
- 300 g green beans (snake beans if you can find them - cut into 4 cm pieces)
- 4 tablespoons vegetable oil
- 3 tablespoons fish sauce
- 2 tablespoons palm sugar (or soft brown sugar)
- 4 kaffir lime leaves (extra, torn)
- 2 long red chillies (sliced, optional)
To serve
- 4 servings jasmine rice
- Thai basil leaves
- Lime wedges
Method
Stage 1 - Paste
- If making from scratch: pound soaked chillies, garlic, shallots, lemongrass, galangal, shrimp paste, kaffir lime leaves, coriander and pepper to a thick paste in a mortar (or pulse in a small processor).
Stage 2 - Fry paste
- Heat oil in a wide wok or pan over medium-high heat.
- Add the paste (or 4 tablespoons store-bought); fry 4-5 minutes, stirring, until the oil splits and the paste is deeply aromatic.
Stage 3 - Meat
- Add the sliced pork; toss in the paste 4 minutes until just cooked.
Stage 4 - Beans
- Add green beans; toss; cook 4-5 minutes until tender-crisp.
Stage 5 - Season
- Add fish sauce, palm sugar, torn kaffir lime leaves and red chillies (if using).
- Toss for 1 minute to glaze.
Stage 6 - Serve
- Plate over jasmine rice; scatter Thai basil.
- Lime wedges alongside.
Notes
- Dry curry, no liquid: Prik king is NOT a wet curry. Don't add stock or coconut milk. The paste glazes the meat.
- Beans tender-crisp: Overcooked beans go limp. 4-5 minutes is right.
- Paste source: Authentic homemade paste vs store-bought: home-made is fresher and more vibrant, but a good Thai brand (Maesri, Mae Ploy) works well.
Storage
- Refrigerate 3 days; reheat in a hot pan.
- Freezes 2 months.
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