Thai suki

A plain clear hotpot whose entire character is in the sauce, not in the broth.

Pork, Beef, Shellfish, Egg, Tofu. Not vegetarian — contains beef, chicken stock, pork, shellfish.

Ingredients

the broth

• 1.5 litres chicken stock
• 4 coriander roots, bruised
• 6 garlic cloves, bruised
• 1 tablespoon light soy sauce
• 0.5 teaspoon white pepper

the table

• 400 g pork or beef, thinly sliced
• 200 g prawns
• 200 g squid, scored
• 200 g glass noodles, soaked
• 4 eggs
• 500 g Chinese cabbage, morning glory and greens
• 200 g tofu, in cubes

the sauce

• 4 tablespoons red fermented bean curd
• 4 tablespoons chilli sauce
• 3 tablespoons lime juice
• 2 tablespoons palm sugar
• 8 garlic cloves, pounded
• 4 bird's eye chillies, pounded
• 2 tablespoons toasted sesame seeds
• 1 bunch coriander, chopped

Method

1. THE BROTH IS DELIBERATELY PLAIN AND THE SAUCE CARRIES EVERYTHING. That is the opposite of the chim chum on this site, where the pot is full of lemongrass and galangal and the dip is a sharp afterthought. Here the broth is almost clear and barely seasoned, so that each mouthful tastes of whatever it is dipped into.
2. A broth made interesting competes with the sauce and the result is muddled. Resist seasoning it.
3. Stock, bruised coriander root and garlic simmered 20 minutes, then strained. Soy and white pepper in. That is the whole broth.
4. SAUCE: the red fermented bean curd is what makes it this sauce and not a generic dip. Mash it completely smooth before anything else goes in -- it arrives in cubes and will stay in cubes.
5. Pound the garlic and chillies, then stir in the mashed bean curd, chilli sauce, lime and palm sugar until uniform.
6. Sesame and coriander in at the end. Rest it 20 minutes before serving so it comes together.
7. Make it strong. It is being diluted by broth with every mouthful.
8. At the table, keep the pot at a gentle simmer and cook a few pieces at a time, 30 to 60 seconds for thin meat.
9. Glass noodles go in near the end -- they swell enormously and will drink the pot if added early.
10. Crack the eggs in at the end and poach them in what is left, which by then has taken up everything cooked in it.

Our own recipe. This one was written for this site rather than taken from anywhere, so there is no source to point you at. The quantities and the order of the steps are choices, not the only way to do it.

Filed under Thailand · All recipes