Curry Laksa

[TasunkaWitko]

Curry Laksa

When The Beautiful Mrs Tas and I went to Australia last October, one of our first meals there was a bowl of Laksa from Jimmy's Recipe, an eatery in the Gateway Plaza at Circular Quay that specializes in Malaysian street food.

It was something entirely new to us, but we both were amazed at how good it was and how different it was from anything we had ever had.

You can read about our experience here, if interested:

http://foodsoftheworld.activeboards...45&PID=40150&title=dining-out-in-sydney#40150

I immediately made it a personal goal to try to make my own Laksa in the same style as the Laksa that we enjoyed at Jimmy's Recipe. Almost from the moment we returned to Montana, I began to learn all that I could about Laksa while slowly gathering most of the necessary ingredients. The Beautiful Mrs. Tas was also enthusiastic to experience this wonderful meal again.

This list of links is in no particular order and represents most of the sources that I could find on the subject:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Laksa

https://www.facebook.com/notes/mala...in-from-jimmys-recipe-sydney/150930581633201/

https://www.facebook.com/jimmysrecipe/



https://akitchencat.com.au/curry-laksa/

https://www.sbs.com.au/food/article/2017/02/01/think-you-know-laksa-think-again

https://www.sbs.com.au/food/recipes/malay-curry-laksa-laksa-lemak

https://www.sbs.com.au/food/article/2013/09/06/breakdown-malay-curry-laksa-laksa-lemak

https://www.recipetineats.com/laksa-soup/

https://imstillhungry.net/jimmys-recipe-nobody-makes-laksa-like-this/

https://www.smh.com.au/entertainment/the-lure-of-the-laksa-20110217-1axwp.html

http://www.onebitemore.com/2009/03/jimmys-recipe-malaysia/

https://www.weekendnotes.com/jimmys-recipe-malaysian-restaurant/

https://www.broadsheet.com.au/sydney/restaurants/jimmys-recipes

https://www.theurbanlist.com/sydney/a-list/sydneys-best-laksa

http://dumplinggirlandcheesecakeboy.blogspot.com/2011/05/jimmys-recipe-world-square-sydney.html

http://simonfoodfavourites.blogspot.com/2009/07/jimmys-recipe-malaysia-laksa-sydney-7.html

http://simonfoodfavourites.blogspot.com/2009/12/jimmys-recipe-malaysia-seafood-laksa.html

https://weekendfoodescapes.blogspot.com/2016/04/jimmys-recipe-sydney-cbd.html

https://www.sunset.com/recipe/chicken-laksa

Most of these links were quite helpful in providing background information on Laksa as well as some information on the specific type of Curry Laksa that is served at Jimmy's Recipe. A few of the links also contain recipes for Laksa, with varying degrees of difficulty and use of ingredients. Over time, I might weed out some of the less-useful links that are not as relevant; however, that's what I have, for now.

One of the most useful links contained some very helpful advice from Alvin Wong, whose father founded Jimmy's Recipe; here, he describes a general procedure for making the Laksa that is served at their restaurant:

The most important part of laksa is the soup. You can use the noodle of your choice, any meat or vegetables.

1. cook the chicken stock soup (you can cook it yourself or get it from the supermarket)

2. while heating up the chicken stock until it boils, pan-fry the laksa paste (which you can get from supermarkets, any brand is ok. I don't favour any particular brand….).

3. keep stirring the paste so it doesn't burn and stick on pan. As soon as it is hot, you should be able to smell the fragrance of the paste.

4. then put it into the chicken stock soup and add milk and coconut milk (just a small portion).

5. add sugar and salt for taste.

6. then pour your laksa soup into a bowl with the cooked noodles, meat and vegetables

7. enjoy!

From what I have learned, Laksa can be as simple or as complicated as you want it to be; for instance, someone with access to a good Asian market should be able to make their own Laksa paste - the base of the meal - from scratch, and could also add a few specialised ingredients and components that could add to the over-all experience. Having said that, one can also make very good Laksa with a few basics or ready-made components. Armed with the knowledge that I gleaned from my research, the first thing I did was order some Laksa paste; there are a few varieties out there, but I chose this one because I remembered seeing it at a grocery store in Sidney and because I knew for sure that it contained enough to make one meal of four servings of the type of Laksa that I wanted to make:

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00AKA862E/ref=oh_aui_search_asin_title

Here are a couple of other options:

https://www.amazon.com/Laksa-Paste-7oz-Pack-1/dp/B009I0UGWA/ref=sr_1_1

https://www.amazon.com/Prima-Taste-Laksa-6-6-Ounce-Boxes/dp/B009629ZSQ/ref=sr_1_3

Another key ingredient that is needed is fried tofu puffs, which serve as a topping for the soup (similar to croutons). A key part of of the Laksa experience is enjoying the tofu puffs, which have soaked up the wonderfully-flavoured curry broth. I found these to be surprisingly difficult to find, but did locate a couple of sources:

https://www.ebay.com/p/Hodonoshoten-Matsuyamaage-Age-Aburaage-Soft-Texture-Japan-45g/2197619596

https://www.harrisfarm.com.au/products/fortune-fried-tofu-puff

Another option is to make your own tofu puffs; recipes abound on the Internet.

Unfortunately, through a series of ridiculous events, I never did pick up any tofu puffs for my first attempt; however, I did find an acceptable stubstifute and will elaborate on that later.

One final product that I ordered was something that is probably readily available in most bigger towns, but not so much where I live. This is Sambal Oelek, which is a chili sauce that can be added to the Laksa when it is served, for added heat and flavour:

https://www.amazon.com/Sambal-Oelek-Chilli-Paste-18oz/dp/B000JMDHCC

I picked up a few other ingredinets, which were fairly easy to find even in my limited area, and then began to put a plan together in my head on how I would proceed. When I was ready to give it a try I asked The Beautiful Mrs. Tas what type of Laksa she wanted: beef, chicken, seafood, vegetable, or a combination thereof. In reply, she said that she wanted a combination of beef, chicken and shrimp, so I picked up those meats and a few other last-minute essentials.

On Sunday, 17 March, I prepared this for lunch, with a much better degree of success than I expected. I neglected a couple of things, but for the most part I put it together fairly well and it tasted absolutely great. It was not quite the same as what we had at Jimmy's Recipe; however, it was actually very close, and I immediately was reminded of our experience in Sydney. Even better, I was able - through actually doing it - to get my mind wrapped around some of the procedures, which are in my opinion important when making this dish. Best of all, The Beautiful Mrs. Tas enjoyed it, as well!

In my next post, I'll outline how I made the Laksa, with as much detail as I can think of, and with a few ideas for next time.

 

[TasunkaWitko]

Alrighty, let's make some Laksa ~

I'll say right at the outset that this post is going to be more of a shopping list and a rough sketch of a procedure, rather than a recipe; it's important to keep in mind that this type of food is totally new to me, and a lot of things were going on while I made this for the first time. There are also a couple of things that I neglected and intend to do next time. Having said that, the Laksa turned out very good, and I felt like I grasped the basic procedure fairly well. If anyone has any questions, comments, suggestions or other feedback, please do feel free to post them, and I'll address them as best as I can.

Here is what went into my first Curry Laksa; for some ingredients, I am including a link to an online shopping source:

To serve 4 to 6:

2 chicken breast halves, sliced very thinly across the grain
Approximately 1 pound of sirloin, sliced very thinly on the bias
1 pound of raw shrimp, thawed, peeled and de-veined
2 to 3 shallots, sliced very thinly
Salt and pepper, to taste
Sesame oil, for frying
Minced garlic; perhaps 3 or 4 cloves
1.5 litres of chicken stock (I used Roasted-Chicken-Flavoured Better Than Bouillon)
One 200g/7oz envelope of Laksa Paste*
About half of a 13.5oz can of coconut milk (I used 150 to 200ml)
One 14oz box of stir-fry rice noodles (see note below)
1 "bunch" of scallions, sliced very thinly, for garnish
French-fried onions, for garnish
Sambal Oelek, to serve with the Laksa**

*https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00AKA862E/ref=oh_aui_search_asin_title
**https://www.amazon.com/Sambal-Oelek-Chilli-Paste-18oz/dp/B000JMDHCC

Here are a few things that should have gone into my Laksa; unfortunately, I either forgot at the time or wasn't able to get them:

Milk; the amount needed is currently undetermined, but perhaps 2 cups is a good starting point
Bean sprouts
A little palm sugar might possibly be required to balance the broth
Tofu Puffs*

*https://www.ebay.com/p/Hodonoshoten-Matsuyamaage-Age-Aburaage-Soft-Texture-Japan-45g/2197619596

I can't say for sure; but judging by the photo in the link above, you might need to cut these tofu puffs into quarters. Making your own fried tofu puffs is also an option.

In addition, there are many options for vegetables in the Laksa, as well as toppings or garnishes. The links in my post above can elaborate on this.

Finally, you can of course make your own Laksa paste, from scratch, rather than using a pre-packaged mix. This requires a few specialty ingredients that are probably available at any good Asian grocery, and the links above contain recipes that seem fairly representative.

A note regarding the noodles: The noodles that I used were stir-fry rice noodles, because that's what I was able to find locally:

https://www.amazon.com/Thai-Kitchen-Gluten-Free-Noodles/dp/B003VYDE00/ref=sr_1_3

They were just fine, but seemed a bit thick to my taste for making Laksa, and were definitely thicker than the noodles that were in the Laksa that we had in Sydney. From what I can determine, Jimmy's recipe uses two types of noodles in their Laksa, which is a fairly standard practice with Curry Laksa. I am no expert on Asian noodles, but the two types of noodles used by Jimmy's Recipe seemed to be thin, flat rice noodles and a sort of vermicelli. The next time I make this, I will endeavour to find noodles that might suit this dish more; or, failing that, I will simply use Ramen noodles. Having said that, I am guessing that any noodles you can or would like to use will be alright, if not strictly "proper."

In putting the Laksa together, I probably made it more complicated than it actually was; however, here is what I did. One note on terms: I am using the word "stock" to describe the liquid that I poached the chicken (and later the shrimp) in. Once that was done and I added the Laksa paste and coconut milk to the stock, I begin using the term "broth" to describe the liquid that actually comprised the soup.

1. I heated the chicken stock up to a simmer, then dropped the chicken in to begin poaching. At the same time, I heated some sesame oil in a cast-iron pan and began frying the slices of beef, along with the sliced shallots and some salt and pepper. I also began heating a pot of water for the noodles.

2. Once the chicken was poached, I added the shrimp to the stock and simmered it just long enough to cook the shrimp, only a few minutes. I then strained the chicken and shrimp out of the stock, and set them aside, covered, to stay hot. By now, the steak was just about done frying, so I reduced the heat and added the minced garlic.

3. By now, the pot of water was boiling, so I added the noodles, then shut off the heat and let the noodles cook in the hot water for 9 minutes.

4. I brought the strained stock to a boil and then added the Laksa paste to the stock. As the broth returned to a boil, I added the coconut milk. I made a judgement call regarding this; the instructions on the Laksa paste said to add 150ml, but a little more seemed necessary. In all, I added just a little more than half the can. When the broth came to a boil, I reduced the heat so that it could simmer while I finished the rest of the preparation.

5. When the noodles were ready, I strained them and put an equal portion in each of four large bowls. I used more than half of the noodles to do this, but not all of them. I also divided the chicken, steak and shrimp equally among the four bowls.

6. I ladled the Laksa broth into each of the four bowls until they were full; I then topped with sliced scallions and the French-fried onions and served the Laksa with the Sambal Oelek on the side so that each diner could spoon some in, if desired.

As mentioned above, everyone enjoyed this very much. The moment I tried it, I realised that I had hit fairly close to my desired mark; it wasn't quite the same as the Laksa that we had in Sydney - and it wasn't quite as good, either - but it was awfully close, and I was impressed with my first attempt. It even looked quite a bit like the Laksa that we had, except the broth didn't have the beautiful creamy quality to it, due to my forgetting to add some milk.

We had some broth and noodles left over, so I put them in the refrigerator and told the kids that they could have it for lunch or after school. I noticed last evening that the leftovers were almost gone, so they must have liked it, too.

This pretty much wraps up my first attempt at Laksa, and I would call it a fair success, with room for improvement. Looking back, it all happened fairly quickly, and while it wasn't really that complicated, it was rather intricate and time-sensitive. There were a few relatively minor execution errors, and I neglected at least one important ingredient. Here are a few things I would do differently, next time:

1. After straining the chicken and shrimp out of the stock, I will also run it (the stock) through a fine mesh strainer, so as to remove the small bits and "floaties" that appeared as a result of poaching the chicken.

2. Nearly all accounts and recipes mention frying the Laksa paste a bit in some oil, in order to bring out the aroma and flavours. The instructions on the package of Laska paste did not say to do this, so I did not fry the curry paste on my first attempt. I will probably give this a try next time, in order to add a layer of sophistication to the finished Laksa.

3. I will add milk to the finished broth, as Jimmy's Recipe adds milk to theirs. I am not sure of the amount needed, but I'll give two cups a try and see how it goes.

4. If needed, I'll add a bit of palm sugar (or Turbinado sugar, if no palm sugar is available) to the broth, in order to bring out just a bit of sweetness and balance.

5. I'll add bean sprouts to the bowls; I assume that I'll need to give them a quick dip in the chicken/shrimp stock, until they are tender. I might add a few mushrooms, too - just because.

6. I'll make sure I have the tofu puffs, adding them to the broth just before serving so that they can soak up the broth and make the dish a little extra-special.

7. In general, I'll try to improve the procedure and timing so that things flow a little more smoothly.

That's what I have for now; as I mentioned above, I am quite open to feedback on this, especially if anyone has experience with Curry Laksa. I hope that these posts have sparked an interest in this wonderful dish. If anyone would like to try making their own Laksa, the blueprint that I have outlined here should get you solidly on your way. If someone is already fairly familiar with preparing this type of food, you might even want to try making your Laksa paste from scratch. If anyone gives this a go, I'd strongly suggest that you also try the "improvements" that I have outlined in my after-action report.

Enjoy!

Ron

 

[TasunkaWitko]

The Beautiful Mrs. Tas recently expressed the desire to have some more Laksa, so last week I ordered the Laksa past and tofu puffs to make it happen. The Laksa paste arrived yesterday.

When the tofu puffs arrive, I'll make this again as soon as I am able, and will incorporate as many of the "improvements" mentioned above as I can; with luck, I may get a photo or two, as well.

 

[Evilgrin]

Try Prima Taste laksa paste if you can find it. Por Kwan brand would be another. A jar of GOOD crab chili paste (Pantai brand) is a nice touch but not required or authentic. Goes well with seafood versions though. Look for one that lists 50%-60% crab if you want to try it with the crab paste too.

Prima Taste is from Singapore so it can be a pain to get in the states. Their ramen is available in laksa and its excellent. Tau pok is a must imo. Got to have those fried tofu puffs

Grow your own laksa leaf plant. They are simple to grow and clone in just a jar of water. I take cuttings from mine every year for next years plant. They wont survive a winter and you must keep them watered. Other than that they are super easy to grow.

Try this just for grins. Doctor it up a little with some additions. I add shallots to the paste. and fry them both in a little coconut oil. A little Redboat40n and fresh laksa leaves. Chicken or seafood. Usually leftover rotisserie chicken or shrimp. They do sell the Prima taste laksa paste on Amazon also but its EXPENSIVE.
https://www.amazon.com/Prima-Taste-Laksa-Mian-185g/dp/B00B5NOPT8

It makes a pretty good laksa with little effort. This one is just fish balls and tau pok. Fresh laksa leaves and salad burnet for garnish. (taste a little like cucumber)

 

[TasunkaWitko]

That looks great, and sounds even better!

The Laksa leaves that you refer to - are those the Vietnamese mint, or something else? If they are that easy to grow, I might see if I can find a live plant, and add it to my herb garden.

This is truly great stuff, and it certainly opened up a world to me. I'd only had a few isolated examples of southeast Asian cooking before we tried Laksa, but they were nothing like this. Impressive, for sure!

Ron

 

[InspectorJon]

I can't believe this post came up. I made Laksa for dinner last night. This is the recipe I use. I understand it is Singapore style (more coconut milk I think).

Ingredients - 4-6 main dish
3 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 recipe for Laksa Paste (see below) or 1 Jar of Prepared Laksa Paste
6 cups chicken stock or broth
1 tablespoon palm or brown sugar
1½ pounds chicken (breast or thigh meat) cut into bite-sized pieces
1 pound raw large shrimp (peeled )
2 cups thick coconut milk (do not use “lite”)
12 fish balls (optional - available in the frozen section of the Asian Market)
1-2 cups fried tofu- (optional- available in the refrigerated section at the Asian market) sliced
3-4 cups fresh bean sprouts
1- 1½ pounds fresh thin rice noodles (refrigerated section at the Asian market)
Lime Juice to taste ( 1-2 limes)
Fish Sauce to taste (for salt)
Garnishes:
cilantro
sambal chili paste
fried shallots

Homemade Laksa Paste
4-5 dried red chilies
2 tablespoons dried shrimp (available at Asian Markets)
5 shallots (about 1 cup) roughly chopped
3 garlic cloves
2 tablespoons galanga - finely chopped
2 large lemongrass stocks - finely chopped (1/2 cup chopped)
1 teaspoon fresh turmeric (or ground is OK, too)
6 candle nuts or substitute cashews, brazil nuts or macadamia (optional- you can leave the nuts out)
1 tablespoon shrimp paste (or shrimp sauce)
2 teaspoons coriander
1 teaspoon cumin
1 teaspoon sweet paprika
3 tablespoons vegetable oil

Instructions
Make the Laksa paste (or use store-bought). See notes below.
In a large heavy bottom soup pot or dutch oven, heat 1 tablespoon oil over medium high heat. Add all the Laksa Paste, and saute, stirring constantly until it becomes very fragrant, about 2-3 minutes. (turn stove fan on).
Add chicken broth and sugar.
Bring to a boil. Add chicken, lower heat to a simmer, and cook for 4 minutes. Add shrimp. Cook for 1-2 minutes, add coconut milk, fish balls and tofu. Simmer until heated through.
Squeeze lime juice, starting with a ½ a lime, and more to taste.
Add fish sauce to taste, adding a teaspoon at a time (this is salt).
In a separate pot, heat enough water to cover the fresh rice noodles. Once water is boiling add the rice noodles, turn heat off, and let rice noodles stand, heating up for 2 minutes, drain.
Divide noodles among bowls. Ladle soup over top of noodles. Top bowls with an handful of fresh bean sprouts, fresh cilantro and mint and a sprinkling of crispy shallots. Serve with chili sauce and lime wedges.
NOTES: To make Laksa Paste: Seep dried chilies and dried shrimp in boiling water for 20 minutes. Prep and place all the other ingredients, except oil in a food processor. Drain shrimp and chilies and add to food processor. Blend until finely chopped, scraping down sides as needed. Add oil and continue blending until it becomes a fine paste. Don’t let the smell or taste scare you. It will all balance out in the end.

Shopping list for the recipe X8 for a big group.
Roasted chickens - 4
Shrimp, raw - 50-60 count, 2-3 per bowl
Coconut milk - 1gallon
Fish balls - 250 small
Fried tofu - 250 small
Bean sprouts - 5 lb
Rice noodle - 10 lb
Limes - 16
Cilantro - 2 bunches
Sambal chili paste
Fried Shallots
Dried chilies - 10
Dried shrimp - 1 cup
Shallots - 8 cups chopped
Garlic
Galanga - 1 cup
Lemongrass - 16
Turmeric - 3Tbs
⅓ cup candle or cashew nuts
shrimp paste - ½ cup
Coriander
Cumin
Paprika
Fish sauce

 

[Evilgrin]

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Persicaria_odorata

The plant i got was labeled as Vietnamese Coriander. Rau Ram is another common name for it. Laksa leaf tastes very much like cilantro but it will never bolt on you in unless you live in a tropical climate. MUCH easier to grow than culantro which is also commonly used in Vietnam and Thailand. It also tastes very much like cilantro but its stronger. REAL pita to germinate and grow in some climates.

What i do is every time i cut off a stem i leave a couple leaves on it. (near the end of the season). Place those stems in a glass with a couple inches of water in it. They will start to produce roots within a week....Never seems to fail. If you want laksa leaf over the winter you can plant them in a small pot. Mine grow fine on a window sill.

Seriously
TRY THE Prima Taste Laksa Lamian. My local market sells 4 packs for around $10 and about a buck more for the whole grain version. Its the best freaking ramen ive ever had. Even Ramenrater says so for 4yr in a row Their whole grain noodles are freaking killer.
https://www.theramenrater.com/top-ten-best-ramen-2019/

 

[Evilgrin]

Ideas for the protein
Thai Fish Cakes.....FANTASTIC in laksa
Korean and other fish cakes are good too
Fish/Squid/Shrimp balls are easier to find...i cut them in half first if they are large.
Tau Pok in triangles. I cut them in half first to suck up the awesome broth faster.
Argentine red shrimp...the bigguns. WAY cheaper than tiger prawns
Any precooked dark meat chicken. I buy Costco rotisserie chicken leg quarters just for stuff like this.
Good roast beef lunch meat like Boars Head London Broil cut into strips
Leftover pot roast (pulled into strips)
A piece of steamed, poached or grilled firm meat fish added on top right at serving time.
Thai style beef meat balls made with Thai red curry paste. They can be made with ground chicken or turkey too.

 

[TasunkaWitko]

@InspectorJon and @Evilgrin - great replies, and I am really enjoying them...some great ideas here!

I will give the Prima Taste a try, sometime; I don't mind paying a little extra if the experience is worth it.

All I can say is thank goodness for Amazon - where I live, most ingredients are very hard to come by.

 

[Evilgrin]

Ive tried lots of curry pastes. You could sub some Mae Ploy or Maesri red or yellow paste with additions. That is pretty much what curry laksa uses. Both are SUPER common pastes but the Maesri has no shrimp paste in it. Large tubs of Mae Ploy are cheap. Little cans are very cheap.

The Prima Taste laksa paste is pretty much spot on but is also about $8-9 a pack. Needs more heat for my taste but it aint mild. Walmart online has it sometimes cheaper. They are out of stock atm.

I jack up the heat using Spice Island red curry powder sometimes. Great flavor and one of the hottest powders ive found at the typical grocery stores. You dont need much and it has no added salt. https://spiceislands.com/products/curry-powder-red

Problem is most are the "sauce kits". They sell just the paste but i cant find it anywhere in the USA. Por Kwan sells just the paste. Its a Thai company. Yeo (Thai) sells it too. Neither actually have laksa leaves listed under ingredients. Prima Taste does though.

This is right off the pack of the Laksa LaMian they sell on Amazon. You will be amazed how good it taste even though it uses coconut powder. I use the powder all the time. Its cheap and easy to get. Make sure you cook the noodles exactly as listed....7 minutes

 

[Evilgrin]

Good recipe for making your own Thai fish cakes. Catfish works really well for this too.
https://importfood.com/recipes/recipe/4-spicy-thai-fish-cakes-tod-man-pla

Im spoiled by having several Asian markets rather close. Two are Thai owned. One place has a fish ball section thats larger than some seafood sections. They even sell them in bulk. Its not overly hard to make them. The main difference is most Asian fish/meat cakes/balls are turned into paste instead of being flaky like a salmon patty.

That entire row on the right is all seafood/meat balls. Both sides and an end cap with loose bulk too.

Tau Pok section

Soy and other sauces...this isle is over 50ft long

 

[TasunkaWitko]

I could spend a couple of hours (and more than a few dollars) browsing those aisles!

 

[Evilgrin]

That store is further away but still close enough. If they dont got it then no one in STL will except maybe the one across the street. The 2 top shelves, right side of the bottom pic is all curry pastes for about 15+ feet down the isle. The normal sized 14oz tub of Mae Ploy paste is about $4.50-$5. A little less than 2oz is enough to season 1 can of coconut milk and a cup of stock or water.

So its pretty cheap when you consider how many bowls of curry it makes. A 3 pack on Amazon is around $13-$15 or about $10 for a 2lb tub. The ingredient list is very similar to laksa paste minus the laksa leaves. Red and Penang would be the closest. Yellow has no shrimp paste and massaman has a different flavor but its wonderful for chicken and potato "soup". Panang is a tiny bit milder than the red and has a slightly nutty flavor. Its often used with beef in Thailand.

Beef Penang rocks btw


I would suggest the Mae Ploy red paste if you want something more versatile and cheaper. Directions are in English on the tub. Fry the paste in some coconut oil or just use the fat from a can of coconut milk. Fat floats to the top of the can if you leave it alone for a few days and dont shake it up.

Any oil will work actually. You only cook the paste for a minute or 2 to bring out the aromatics before adding anything else.

The key part is DONT use lite coconut milk. Get unsweetened with no emulsifiers/thickeners if possible. Aroy-D, Mae Ploy and Chaokoh all offer good coconut milk from Thailand....Thai Kitchen brand is usually over priced but their organic isnt bad. Walmart might have Goya brand pretty cheap and its good for the money. It just has less fat than the good Thai brands.

 

[Evilgrin]

If you want to grow fresh herbs i highly suggest these two. You could try Holy Basil also but the flavor is totally different.

Thai Basil, specifically Siam Queen variety. It quite strong and an attractive plant too. Pretty sure you can get Burpee seeds at places like Lowes and maybe even Walmarts with a garden center. Baker Creek has it too and its free shipping.
https://www.burpee.com/herbs/basil/basil-siam-queen-prod000461.html
https://www.rareseeds.com/siam-queen-thai-basil/

Lime Basil. I fell in love with this one within the last couple years. The lime aroma is amazing. The anise flavor is milder than Siam Queen also. Kaffir lime leaves are hard to find and this helps when you cant get them fresh.
https://www.burpee.com/herbs/basil/basil-lime-prod000456.html
https://www.rareseeds.com/lime-/

There is a lemon version also https://www.rareseeds.com/lemon-basil/

And just a FYI, if you grow cilantro.....save the roots if you want to make curry paste from scratch....Yeah they are a pain to clean and work with but that is a very common ingredient. The flavor is VERY intense.

 

[TasunkaWitko]

Many thanks for the links and the video above. I'm sure that I've seen the lemon basil locally, but the lime is something now, and sounds great. We're a few days of hitting the "official" beginning of our growing season up here, so I'll check out some local garden centers and see what I can find; if not locally, then as you say there are good online sources, as well!

 

[Evilgrin]

Lemon basil would be more authentic to some of these dishes. Use as a garnish or add just before serving. Personally i prefer regular Thai basil for beef and the others at times for fish or chicken. Plain old Thai basil though aint bad for any of them.

Even for me though one item is uncommon and REALLY expensive...Kaffir lime leaves. I can only get them frozen and a tiny pack with maybe 10 leaves is about $3. It blows my mind cause i can get a huge bag of fresh curry leaves for the same amount of money. We cant grow either here so what gives?

Basil really isnt a make it or break it part of most curries from that region but it is nice sometimes. Pretty easy to grow and its an attractive item in the herb garden. Must have though for stuff like pho and some stirfries.

I got to go get some of my herbs today. Still a tiny bit early to plant some from seeds. They germinate better when its warmer but seedlings will do ok now. Globe basil i do from seedlings and Asian basil i do from seeds but the seedlings are fine too. Seedlings will just bolt faster and it gets expensive fast compared to a couple bucks for a pack of seeds.

One of my laksa plants last year

This is how simple it is to clone them...nothing but water

Siam Queen from seed. Would have cost well over $10 for that many seedlings.

I grow Sichuan and Thai large orange instead of Prik Chee Fah or Birds eye. I prefer the flavor and they are milder. Prik Chee Fah aka Facing Heaven peppers are a little easier to grow and a little more productive too.

 

[InspectorJon]

Even for me though one item is uncommon and REALLY expensive...Kaffir lime leaves. I can only get them frozen and a tiny pack with maybe 10 leaves is about $3. It blows my mind cause i can get a huge bag of fresh curry leaves for the same amount of money. We cant grow either here so what gives?

I have a Kiffir lime tree my wife bought me a few years ago. It snows here occasionally in the winter. Last frost is typically in mid to late March but can be early April. The tree is in a 5 gallon pot and I bring it inside in October before any frost and put it in front of a sunny window. I just put it back out in the garden a couple weeks ago. It does fine as long as I don't forget to water it while it is indoors. The sprinklers take care of it outside. It even made fruit last year. I forgot to water it for a few weeks this winter and it got dry and most of the leaves fell off so I have a lot of them in the freezer now. This spring it has a lot of new sprouts and leaves now so I am hopeful. It is a flavor that has no substitute. It likes filtered sunlight or partial shade. It is not happy with hot afternoon direct sun exposure.

Kaffir lime leaves go in a lot of Thai and Indonesian dishes I cook but not in Laksa.

 

[Evilgrin]

Depends on the region. Some do use lime leaves and lemon basil. I dont add it to mine either but i do add basil sometimes for garnish.