Listen to the Thai name pronunciation
The name of thae phoh curry comes from the black ear catfish (pangasius larnaudii) (in Thai: thaeh phoh, ปลาเทโพ). Hard to catch, this elusive freshwater fish is an essential and much sought-after ingredient for this dish, with its belly the preferred cut to use. It was cooked together with water spinach (phak boong, ผักบุ้ง) or with deep-fried vegetables. Thai cooks sometimes resorted to other meats, due to the difficulties in obtaining the black ear catfish, but the dish retains its name.
Thae phoh curry is a spicy and salty Thai red curry with sour-sweet flavor shades. Thae phoh falls into the category of the gaaeng khuaa (แกงคั่ว) style of Thai red curries, as it contains no dry spices except white peppercorns. Instead, smoked dried fish meat is added to the red curry paste to accentuate and widen its umami-smoky savory flavor base.
Thae phoh curry is renowned for its flame-red broth – a broth redolent of the light and distinct citrusy aroma of kaffir lime leaves and juice. Its surface is jeweled with red oil drops released from the golden fish belly, suggesting an appetizing spicy feast to come. The curry’s distinct appearance earned it a poetic passage in the culinary poetry of King Rama II: “Gaap heh chohm khreuuang khaao waan” (กาพย์เห่ชมเครื่องคาว – หวาน), in which the King vividly describes the desire to take a sip from heavenly foods at the sight of the golden fatty fish belly:
เทโพพื้นเนื้อท้อง เป็นมันย่องล่องลอยมัน
น่าซดรสครามครัน ของสวรรค์เสวยรมย์
These days, many would consider this dish to be a coconut-based Thai red curry; however, it can also be cooked as a water-based curry. This is because thae phoh curry evolved from a water-based sour curry called gaaeng chak sohm (แกงชักส้ม). But the practice of adding coconut cream to thae phoh curry makes culinary sense, as it underscores the oily rich properties of the ancient version.
This eel curry includes a greater-than-usual quantity of aromatics used over three stages. First, the eel is cleaned and sliced into segments; then it is fried with a generous amount of lemongrass, galangal, kaffir lime leaves and shallots. These help to counter its muddy and somewhat iron-like odor, which disappears along with the liquids and the aromatics.
This eel curry recipe is adapted from the vintage book: “Gap Khaao O:H Chaa Roht” by Ging Ga Nohk) (กับข้าวโอชารส โดย กิ่งกนก – กาญจนาภา พ.ศ. 2485). This rare book was written in 1942 during WWII, a period of global turmoil in which Thailand was invaded by the Japanese. That same year marked a decade from the ending of absolute monarchy rule in 1932, and one generation away from the peak of the Siamese culinary renaissance that flourished in the court of King Rama V (1868-1910): a nostalgic era for its children who are still with us to remember and reflect on those times.
Thai red curry is a broad term describing any curry that is red in color, although variations exist among the dish’s ingredients or their ratios. Today’s menu features a Thai red curry paste to which we add higher quantities of coriander root and kaffir lime zest; this creates a more aromatic character that will enhance the smokiness of the grilled pork meat and the mild sweetness of the unripe green bananas.
For the khanohm jeen saao naam version that we present today, we turn again to the writing of Thanpuying (Lady) Gleep Mahithaawn for her unique take on the dish. Her version is quite similar to the common recipe encountered nowadays, but Lady Gleep enhances it with more ingredients, elevating the dish yet another notch to the level of a majestic masterpiece.
Considered by some to be the most famous, and the most delicious, dish in Thai cooking, the story of Massaman curry is interwoven with trade, politics and religion in 17th-century Siam. The story is filled with mighty kings, legendary explorers and unsolved mysteries, adding an air of magic and power to this already-heavenly perfumed dish, and thickening the plot of this full bodied, coconut-based curry’s birth.
If we could strip away the spices, the seasonings, the vegetables and the herbs from savory dishes we could uncover their naked flavor profile core. There, we would encounter a strong savory-umami, sometimes coupled with other basic elements of smoke and fat. This flavor core is, for us humans, the sought-after taste of protein; our first sip of mother’s milk, and the primal experience of burned game meat on the fire.
Today we would like to highlight a powerhouse for umami creation: the fermentation process. We will focus on fermented fish innards from southern Thailand (dtai bpla ไตปลา), one of about a dozen fermented products used in the country. We will show you how chefs for the capital’s elite, as early as or, before the reign of King Phra Phutthaloetla Naphalai (Rama II, 1767-1824), harnessed its wild nature and created a dish similar to what we present today – a salad with infused fermented fish innards dressing.
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