Recipe du jour

[chickenfeet]

OK. Last couple of days I've posted recipes for what I would consider mainstream Thai dishes. One might easily find something very similar on a restaurant menu in the West. The following recipe is a bit different. It's for a relish or condiment called Nam Prik Kapi and it's something you see a lot in Thailand, and there a myriad of variations. This is one is pretty basic. Nam priks are served with a platter of raw vegetables and sprigs of herbs alongside the rice and other dishes. One takes a spoonful of rice(1), a dab of the nam prik and some veggie and that makes a mouthful. It can also be mixed into warm cooked rice and eaten with some veggies as a breakfast or snack. This stuff is potent and a bit of an acquired taste but quite addictive!

Nam Prik Kapi

2 tbsp kapi(2), roasted (wrap it in foil and heat directly on the burner, turning frequently - have the extractor fan on its highest setting!)
1 tbsp dried shrimp
3 cloves garlic
5-10 thai chillies (red or green), stemmed
1 tbsp palm sugar
1 tbsp fish sauce
2 tbsp lime juice

Crush the solids in a mortar or pestle or pulverise in the food processor. Stir in the fish sauce and lime juice. Let sit for a bit before serving to let the flavours blend. It should be hot, salty, pungent and slightly sour. Adjust the fish sauce and lime juice if necessary.

fn1: This is much easier if one eats with a spoon in one's right hand and a fork in the left, as the Thais do. Don't ask me where the idea that Thai food should be eaten with chopsticks originates. Chopsticks, in Thailand, are for noodles.

fn2: kapi is essentially the the same as the Malay or Indonesian belachan which may be easier to find.

X-posted to gastrogasm

Comments

[tanuja.livejournal.com]

God that sounds good. I will try to get to Richmond and pick up some of the ingredients (I've been lazy and didn't want to buy spices/herbs/sauces) until we moved to our longer term rental.

Note to self: Must check out gastrogasm

[rhythmaning.livejournal.com]

Can I just say that likening kapi to belachan is - well, I find it it unenlightening.

*dashes off to wikipedia*

[rhythmaning.livejournal.com]

And wikipedia says kapi is a Spanish automobile, manufactured in the 1950s...

Still, belachan it says is fish paste. Not what I had guessed (some kind of fish), but at least now I know!

[chickenfeet2003.livejournal.com]

That isn't very enlightening. Kapi is made by fermenting tiny shrimps in the sun with lots of sea salt until a rather dry pungent paste is formed. This is usually formed into blocks of about 200g for sale.

[chickenfeet2003.livejournal.com]

OK but I can always find Indonesian or Malay blechan/belachan in stores here whereas it's hard to find actual Thai kapi.