Taste Buddies - A Sydney Food Blog

Kao Thom: soup for sickies

 

Kao Thom with tasty, tender pork meatballs is the perfect 'I'm feeling sorry for myself' food. It is comfort food. And, it is the only thing I eat when I have a bad cold. What's more, it is very easy to make which is what you need when you're not feeling so crash hot. Most importantly, it is absolutely delicious. So delicious, that when I eat it, I forget I am sick.

Kao Thom is a Thai breakfast staple that is actually eaten at any time of the day. Another similar breakfast dish is called Johk which has more of a porridge-like consistency like Congee.

The standard condiments that are always served with Kao Thom include slivers of fresh ginger, a handful of Chinese celery leaves (normal celery leaves will do), crispy fried pieces of garlic and red chillies in vinegar sauce, otherwise known as Naam Som.

Kao Thom with Pork Meatballs Recipe
(Serves 4)

Soup

5 cups of organic chicken stock
2 cups of cooked white rice
1/4 tsp of Chinese White Pepper
2 tbs of Thai fish sauce
1.5 tbs of light soy sauce (I use Thai Healthy Boy brand)

Pork Meatballs

450gms of lean ground pork
2 tbs of grated ginger
3 cloves of grated garlic
1/2 tbs of fish sauce
1/2 tbs of light soy sauce
A dash of Chinese white pepper

Condiments

6 cloves of garlic, finely sliced
2 tbs of vegetable oil
Slivers of fresh ginger
Chinese celery leaves, roughly chopped
2 tbs of white vinegar
1 red chili, sliced with most of the seeds removed

Method:

1. In a large pot, heat the chicken stock on a medium heat. Simmer for 5 minutes.
2. Add fish sauce, soy sauce and white pepper to the stock. Stir well and reduce heat to low and cover.
3. Now for the meatballs. Mix together all the meatball ingredients in a large bowl. Mix thoroughly.
4. Once the ingredients are mixed though, roll small meatballs that are about 2cm in diameter. Set aside on a plate.
5. Time for the condiments. Heat the vegetable oil in a small fry pan over a medium heat. Add the garlic slices and fry until crispy and golden brown but not burnt. Drain the garlic and set aside.
6. Add the chili and vinegar to a small serving bowl and set aside.
7. Arrange the the ginger in a small serving bowl. Add the celery leaves to a small serving bowl. Set aside.   
8. Uncover the soup and turn the heat up to a medium high heat. When the soup starts to simmer, add the meatballs. Cook the meatballs for about 3-4 minutes or until they rise to the top which means they are ready.
9. The final stage in preparation for this recipe is to spoon about a cup of cooked rice into a soup bowl. Ladle on the soup and meatballs and then garnish with prepared condiments.

Szechuan Eggplant and Pork Mince Hot Pot

I first had this delicious dish at a Szechuan restaurant in Vancouver. It was baked in an earthenware hot pot and served sizzling and steaming. The dish consisted of perfectly cooked egg noodles (not too soft) baked with mince pork, eggplant and a mixture of spicy and flavoursome sauces. It was mouthwatering and a wonderful way to eat eggplant.

For this recipe, I tend to use the long, purple Chinese eggplants as they hold together better in the cooking process and draw in the complex mixture of flavours of this dish. Usually when cooking eggplants, you are told to  'degorge' them which means to extract their bitterness by covering them in salt for 20 minutes or so. I have never actually done this however I mostly use eggplant in Asian recipes so perhaps the strong flavours mask their bitterness.

The Szechuan Eggplant and Pork Mince Hot Pot perfectly balances the hot, sour, sweet and salty flavors and makes use of ginger, garlic and the key ingredient; chili bean paste. I use the Lee Kum Lee Brand. I also added a little roasted chili paste as well but this is optional. We like a bit of extra spice in this household.

The following recipe has a few steps to it but it is certainly worth the effort.