Thai-day Sunday...

It's a Sunday. Busy day for me as usual. Grocery shopping, cleaning and cooking. I decided to do Thai today... Tom Yum, Mango Kerabu and Fried Fish.

When I got home I cleaned the kitchen. I even cleaned the refrigerator... and that's when it happened. Wham! I had cleaned the cabinets but mindless me left the cabinet door ajar. I then proceeded to clean the fridge. As soon as I was done I stood up. Wham! Bang! I saw stars... literally... the pain was excruciating. Tears welled in my eyes. Serves you right for being so careless...

Here it is... it was swollen too... and yes, it bled. And I had my hair cut after I knocked my head... thankfully, the barber noticed it and was gentle with that part.

Anyway, despite my throbbing head I managed to clean the apartment and change the sheets and then started cooking.

This is the Mango Kerabu. A very simple version. You can add other ingredients to it to make it taste better like peanuts, ikan bilis or even dried shrimps. It's entirely up to you. Here's the recipe...

1 large young mango

6 shallots

1 serai

6 cili padi

2 limes, juiced

1 tbsp fish sauce

2 tbsp sugar

Julienne the mango and set aside. Slice the cili padi, shallots and serai finely. How much you use is a matter of preference. You can add or lessen the quantity. In a large bowl add all the ingredients and toss. You may need to add more sugar to taste. If you like you can add some chopped cilantro.

This is the Tom Yum. Plain looking as I was too lazy to chop cilantro for garnishing. Nak makan, bukan nak jual or enter a competition.

prawns
1 liter chicken stock
6 slices fresh galangal
2 serai, bruised
2 daun limau purut
10 cili padi
2 tomatoes, quartered
2 onions, quartered
4 limes, juiced
2 tbsp fish sauce
2 tbsp roasted chilli paste

In a pot bring your chicken stock to boil. Add the sliced galangal, serai, cili padi and onion. Tear the daun limau purut and add in. Add lime juice, fish sauce and roasted chili paste. Allow to boil for about 10 minutes or so for the flavours to infuse. Add tomatoes and allow to boil for a further 2 or 3 minutes. Add prawns, close lid and turn fire off. Done.

Adjust taste to your preference with lime juice and fish sauce. Lime juice for sourness and fish sauce for saltiness. Do not add more lime juice till after adding the tomatoes as the tomatoes will add to the sourness. Prawns has to be last and fire switched off immediately or it will be hard and overcooked. Oh... you can add other stuff in like oyster mushrooms, cauliflower and what not. Up to you lah.