Taste Buddies - A Sydney Food Blog

Thai Beef Massaman Curry

Rasa Malaysia is one of my favourite blogs. I have been clicking on her award-winning photography and mouth-watering recipes for years. It is no exaggeration that Bee (who is Rasa Malaysia) is one of my inspirations and reasons for starting Taste Buddies in June 2007.

Since then, Bee and I have become blog-buddies. Today, I am very proud to tell you that she has asked me to be a guest writer on Rasa Malaysia.

Since I am half Thai and spent many years growing up there, Bee asked me to make a Thai dish.

Hailing from Southern Thailand, near Bee's homeland of Malaysia, comes the Massaman Curry. Literally "Muslim Curry", the dish was born from the Arab spice merchants who settled in the region a thousand years ago.

To read more about Gaeng Massaman, and to see the recipe, please visit Rasa Malaysia.

Satay Nuea: the perfect beer snack

Satay Nuea, otherwise known as beef satay, is my idea of the perfect beer snack. Found on many a street corner in Bangkok, the smell of satay barbecuing over hot coals is everywhere. The only difference is that the satay is more often pork than beef.

Satay is thought to have originated in Indonesia but it is widely eaten across South-East Asia. Thais tend to serve it with satay sauce made from fresh peanuts and another dipping sauce made up of vinegar, cucumber, red chilis, shallots and sugar.

This time round, I didn't make the second dipping sauce and chose instead to serve the satay sauce with a side of shallots and cucumbers - just as delicious. The shallots add a real kick to the flavours but not too much as to mask the fragrant meat which had been marinated in coconut milk, coriander and curry powder for several hours.

I kind of cheated with the satay sauce - I used peanut butter instead of fresh peanuts in the recipe. Oh well, why not when I have a massive jar of it just sitting in the pantry screaming out to be eaten!

If you have a barbecue to cook the satay then great but not to worry if you don't - the stove will work just as well. Try to use a heavy-based griddle pan if possible as this just helps with cooking meat evenly.

I am submitting Satay Nuea to this week's Weekend Herb Blogging being hosted by Claudia of Fool For Food.

Crying Tiger

Crying Tiger, a Thai dish otherwise known as Seua Rong Hai is sliced barbecued beef accompanied by a Nam Jim dipping sauce of which there are several different variations. The name 'Crying Tiger' is thought to be attributed to the small yet extremely potent red bird chilis in the sauce that are hot enough to bring tears to a tiger's eyes. The particular Nam Jim I prepared consisted of toasted rice powder which gives the sauce a nutty taste.

The meat used in this dish should always have a thin layer of fat on it, which when flamed grilled, adds to its smokey and delicious flavour.

Thai Beef and Bamboo Shoot Curry

This simple yet always filling Thai red curry consists of ground beef, bamboo shoots and Thai basil. I often plan to make it if I know I am going to be home late and need to whip something up quickly. And in that case, I use canned bamboo shoots instead of fresh ones. To be honest, the canned version taste just as good and manage to retain their fantastic crunch. The beef can be substituted with chicken or pork but I find beef makes it a little more hearty. The recipe is from the comprehensive Thai Table website.