AT THE TABLE: B G O FEAST 75

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1 AT THE TABLE: B G O Amy Chanta, founder of Sydney s popular Chat Thai restaurants, takes us on a culinary tour of her home city, and shares the secrets of this vibrant cuisine from mastering pad Thai to a perfectly balanced som tum. FEAST 75

2 SLUG SECTION AT THE TABLE Som tum (green papaya salad), recipe page 81 GAENG KEAW GAI CHICKEN GREEN CURRY With chicken on the bone, Thai apple and pea eggplants, and an authentically iery paste, green curry has never been so lavoursome. For a true lavour of Bangkok, add congealed pork blood into the mix, then spoon the rich coconut sauce over the dainty balls of rice noodles. recipe page 81 All over Bangkok, food vendors pound together this irresistible combination of green papaya, chillies, fish sauce and lime. Make this salad as tradition dictates with a large mortar and pestle to really amalgamate the flavours. 76 FEAST FEAST 77

3 SLUG SECTION SLUG SECTION AT THE TABLE Apple eggplants KHAO KUK GRAPI THAI STIR FRIED RICE This deconstructed fried rice is presented with all its elements separated so you can combine each mouthful to your taste, combining just enough heat and freshness to the sticky caramelised pork belly. recipe page 82 Pad grapao gai (stir-fried minced chicken with holy basil), recipe page 82 Thai sweet basil (left) and holy basil (right) Gluay buadt chee (stewed bananas in coconut 78 FEAST cream), recipe page 82 FEAST 79

4 SLUG SECTION PAD THAI NEUA BEEF PAD THAI recipe opposite AMY CHANTA CHAT THAI Here, founder and owner of Sydney s Chat Thai restaurants shares a few dishes from her home city. While Amy says the pad grapao gai (stirfried minced chicken) is her ultimate comfort food, it s pad Thai which she thinks is the quintessential example of Bangkok cuisine, a relatively new creation that was the result of a competition to ind a new noodle dish combining the varied tastes of Thailand. Many in luences have left their mark on the food in Bangkok, explains Amy, including outside in luences such as Chinese, Indian, Malay and even Portuguese, as well as the regional styles, all of which play a hand in making Bangkok cuisine so diverse and interesting. Bangkok takes it, transforms it and, eventually, owns it. PAD THAI NEUA BEEF PAD THAI Serves 1 The secret to pad Thai is to stir-fry one serve at a time. Start a day ahead to soak the noodles. 2½ tbs sun lower oil 1 egg, lightly beaten 1 tsp dried prawns* 1 tbs ish sauce 1 tbs tamarind water (see Cooking Notes) or tamarind purée* 3½ tsp caster sugar 1 tbs oyster sauce 100g beef eye- illet, thinly sliced 100g thin dried rice noodles, soaked overnight 1 tsp chopped pickled turnip (hua chai bpoh)* 1 tbs ground roasted peanuts 4 garlic chives, plus extra, to serve 20g (½ cup) bean sprouts, plus extra, to serve Lime wedges, to serve 1 Heat oil in a wok over high heat until slightly smoking. Add egg and prawns, and cook, stirring occasionally, for 2 minutes or until just cooked. Remove and reserve. 2 Combine fish sauce, tamarind, sugar and oyster sauce in a bowl. Add beef to wok and cook for 2 minutes or until browned. Add fish sauce mixture and noodles, and cook, stirring, for 1½ minutes or until liquid has evaporated. 3 Add pickled turnip, peanuts, garlic chives, bean sprouts and reserved egg mixture, and stir for 30 seconds or until just combined. 4 Serve pad Thai with lime wedges and extra garlic chives and beansprouts. * Dried prawns and pickled turnip are from Asian food shops. If using packet dried prawns, as opposed to buying by the scoop, soak for 20 minutes to soften the hard centre. * Tamarind purée is from supermarkets. KHANOM JEEN GAENG KEAW GAI CHICKEN GREEN CURRY WITH FERMENTED RICE NOODLES Don t shake coconut cream can to ensure as much cream separates from water as possible. 2 red bird s-eye chillies, thinly sliced 2 tbs soy sauce 60ml (¼ cup) sun lower oil 400g can coconut cream 1.2kg whole chicken, jointed into 12 pieces (see Cooking Notes) 250ml (1 cup) chicken stock 100ml ish sauce 2 tbs grated palm sugar 8 apple eggplants*, trimmed, quartered, soaked in acidulated water 200g pea eggplants* stems removed, soaked in acidulated water 15 ka ir lime leaves, tough inner stems removed, leaves roughly torn 1 bunch sweet Thai basil or holy basil* 350g khanom jeen (fermented rice noodles)* or somen noodles* AT THE TABLE Green curry paste 1 large lemongrass stalk, white part only, thinly sliced 5 Asian red eschalots*, roughly chopped 2 garlic bulbs, cloves peeled ½ ka ir lime* or regular lime, zested 5cm-piece galangal*, peeled, thinly sliced 1 tbs shrimp paste* 15 green bird s-eye chillies*, chopped 2 tbs vegetable oil 1 To make curry paste, using a mortar and pestle, pound ingredients until smooth, adding enough oil to make a thick paste. Or, process in a blender until smooth. Makes 1¼ cups. 2 Combine chillies and soy sauce. Set aside. 3 Heat oil in a large heavy-based pan over medium heat. Add curry paste and cook, stirring, for 5 minutes or until fragrant and the oil starts to sit on top of the curry paste. 4 Add the thick settled cream from coconut cream can, reserving thinner coconut water underneath, and cook for 20 minutes or until oil separates from the cream. Increase heat to high, add chicken, stock and reserved coconut water, and cook, covered, for 10 minutes or until chicken is cooked through. 5 Reduce heat to medium, add fish sauce, palm sugar and eggplants, and simmer for a further 5 minutes or until eggplants are just tender. Remove from heat, add kaffir lime leaves and basil, and stir to combine. 6 Meanwhile, cook noodles in boiling water for 1 minute or until al dente. Strain. When cool enough to handle, twist portions of noodles into balls. Serve green curry with noodles and the chilli and soy sauce. * Apple and pea eggplants, sweet Thai basil, holy basil, Asian red eschalots, kaffir limes, galangal and green bird s-eye chillies are from selected greengrocers and Asian food shops. * Khanom jeen (fermented rice noodles) are available from selected Thai food shops. They can be hard to find in Australia, so substitute somen noodles (thin Japanese wheat noodles). * Shrimp paste (belachan) is from Asian food shops and selected supermarkets and delis. SOM TUM GREEN PAYAYA SALAD 1 large green papaya* or green mango* 2 tbs grated palm sugar 3 large garlic cloves 2 red bird s-eye chillies 80 FEAST FEAST 81

5 AT THE TABLE 1 tbs dried prawns (see note page 81) 1 tbs roasted peanuts, plus extra, to serve 4 grape or cherry tomatoes, halved 2 tbs ish sauce 2 tbs lime juice 100g green beans, cut into 2.5cm lengths Curly lettuce leaves, to serve 1 Finely shred papaya, then soak in iced water. Drain and refrigerate until needed. 2 Using a large mortar and pestle, pound sugar, garlic and chillies to a rough paste. Add dried prawns and peanuts, and pound until crushed. 3 Add tomatoes and gently crush. Add fish sauce, lime juice, papaya, and beans, and toss to combine. Spoon papaya salad into lettuce leaves, to serve. * Available from Asian food shops. PAD GRAPAO GAI STIR FRIED MINCED CHICKEN WITH HOLY BASIL Serves 4 2 tbs sun lower oil 4 garlic cloves, crushed 3 long red chillies, 1 inely chopped, 2 sliced on the diagonal 6 red bird s-eye chillies, inely chopped 400g minced chicken 1 tsp soy sauce 2 tsp dark soy sauce 1 tsp ish sauce 1 tbs oyster sauce ½ tsp caster sugar 10 green beans, thinly sliced 4 large Asian red eschalots (see note page 81), thinly sliced 1 cup holy basil leaves (see note page 81) Steamed rice and 4 fried eggs, to serve Dipping sauce 4 thinly sliced red bird s-eye chillies 125ml (½ cup) soy sauce ½ Asian red eschalot, thinly sliced ¼ cup holy basil leaves (see note page 81), inely chopped 1 To make dipping sauce, combine all the ingredients in a bowl and set aside. 2 Heat oil in a wok over high heat. Add garlic, 1 chopped long red chilli and all the bird s-eye chillies, and cook for 30 seconds or until fragrant. Add chicken and cook, breaking up lumps, for 4 minutes or until cooked through. 3 Combine soy, fish and oyster sauces and the sugar in a small bowl. Add to wok with with beans, sliced long red chillies and eschalots, and cook, stirring occasionally, for 1 minute or until heated through. Add basil and remove from heat. Serve the stir-fry with rice and dipping sauce and top with a fried egg. GLUAY BUADT CHEE STEWED BANANAS IN COCONUT CREAM Serves 8 The ripeness of the bananas is crucial for this recipe. Ideally, they should be almost ripe; too under-ripe and they can be too starchy and coarse; too ripe and they will disintegrate into the coconut milk. 10 almost-ripe gluay nam wah bananas* or small lady inger bananas, unpeeled 2 x 560ml cans coconut cream 220g (1 cup) caster sugar 1 pandan leaf*, knotted (optional) Toasted sesame seeds, to serve 1 Place bananas in a large pan and cover with water. Bring to the boil and cook for 10 minutes or until softened and skins darken. Drain, and reserve pan. Refresh bananas in a bowl of iced water, then peel. Halve bananas lengthwise, or quarter if large. Set aside. 2 Place coconut cream, sugar, 1 tsp salt and pandan leaf into the reserved saucepan and bring to the boil, stirring to dissolve sugar. Add bananas and cook for 3 minutes or until heated through. Remove from heat and discard pandan leaf. Cool mixture slightly. 3 Serve bananas with coconut cream sauce sprinkled with toasted sesame seeds. * Available from Asian food shops. KHAO KUK GRAPI THAI STIR FRIED RICE Serves 4 At the restaurant, Amy uses Tra Chang shrimp paste, which she says makes a notable difference to the taste of the rice as it has the perfect balance of salt for the recipe. 500g (2½ cups) white or brown rice, steamed, cooled 2 tbs shrimp paste (see note page 81) 1 tbs caster sugar 60ml (¼ cup) sun lower oil 150g (1½ cups) dried prawns (see note page 81) 4 eggs, lightly beaten 3 small limes, halved 8 red bird s-eye chillies, inely chopped 6 Asian red eschalots (see note page 81), thinly sliced 1 Lebanese cucumber, peeled, sliced into strips 1 green papaya or green mango (see note far left), cut into julienne 2 bunches coriander, sprigs picked Mhu waan (caramelised pork belly), to serve (recipe follows) 1 Place rice, shrimp paste and sugar in a large bowl. Using your hands, mix until combined. 2 Heat 2 tbs oil in a large wok over low heat. Add prawns and cook for 2 minutes or until light brown and crunchy; be careful not to overcook prawns as they continue to cook once removed from pan and can go hard. Using a slotted spoon, remove from pan and set aside, reserving oil and wok. 3 Add rice mixture to wok. Increase heat to high and cook, stirring, for 4 minutes or until reheated and fragrant. Set aside. 4 Wash wok, then place over high heat with remaining 1 tbs oil. Add eggs, swirl to coat pan and cook for 2 minutes or until just set. Transfer to a chopping board, roll up and slice. 5 Serve rice with limes, shredded omelette, chillies, eschalots, cucumber, papaya, coriander and caramelised pork. MHU WAAN CARAMELISED PORK BELLY Choose a pork belly piece with a greater meat to fat ratio. 2 tsp vegetable oil 1kg pork belly, cut into 2.5cm cubes, fattiest pieces set aside 2 bunches coriander roots, scraped clean, smashed with the heel of your knife 2 garlic bulbs, cloves peeled, roughly smashed with the heel of your knife 4 Asian red eschalots (see note page 81), inely chopped 135g (½ cup) grated palm sugar 110ml ish sauce 2½ tbs soy sauce ½ tsp ground white pepper 1 Heat oil in a heavy-based frying pan over high heat, add fattiest pork and cook for 4 minutes or until fat has liquified. Add coriander and garlic, and stir for 2 minutes or until golden, then add remaining pork, eschalots, palm sugar, fish sauce, soy, pepper and 60ml water. 2 Cook, stirring occasionally, for 40 minutes or until pork is browned and almost tender. Reduce heat to medium, half cover and cook, stirring occasionally, for a further 40 minutes or until sauce is sticky. Remove coriander roots and discard. RECIPES AMY CHANTA PHOTOGRAPHY BRETT STEVENS AND KATIE KAARS AMY CHANTA PORTRAIT FOOD PREPARATION AMY CHANTA AND ATOM PAKCHAI, CHATTHAI.COM.AU 82 FEAST