Khoon Muaang Raatniguun’s Fried Dried Fish with Watermelon and Pineapple
The ideal summer dish should be refreshing and cooling. It should also be unintimidated by the relentless summer heat, and able to withstand being left outside on the kitchen table without spoiling.
As such, it would make sense to use fewer ingredients, and choose only those which store well.
Here is a summer dish that showcases the wisdom of creating complex flavors through simplicity. Using just lightly salted semi-dried snakehead fish, golden deep-fried shallots and a sweetening agent (either sugar or coconut), we create a condiment that partners perfectly with pieces of sweet juicy watermelon.
The dry fish is rinsed, let to dry again, and then its meat is separated from the bones and skin. It is crumbled until it is fluffy, and then roasted or fried until completely dry. The final product is seasoned to a sweet-salty mixture which is sprinkled on top of cold, juicy and refreshing watermelon, pineapple or even sticky rice enriched with sweet coconut cream and a pinch of salt (khaao niaao naa bplaa; ข้าวเหนียวหน้าปลา).
The Modern Version
is called bplaa haaeng dtaaeng mo:h (ปลาแห้งแตงโม), in which the fish is roasted to a dry powdery form before it is seasoned with granulated white sugar and mixed with deep-fried crispy shallots.
Fried Dried Fish with Watermelon
Khoon Muaang Raatniguun’s version – Early 19th century
Coconut cream is slowly cooked until it cracks and separates to oil (khee lo:h ขี้โล้); to this, crumbled dried fish meat is added, with the fish bestowing its saltiness and umami essence to create an unusually complex flavor. It is slowly fried in the coconut oil until it caramelizes, absorbing the sweetness of the coconut. Once crispy and brown, it is mixed with sweet and crispy shallots deep-fried in khee lo:h oil for extra crunch and sweetness, and served either on watermelon or on pineapple.
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.
This recipe would probably change your perception about the term “salad”, maybe because its dressing has a multi layered, curry-like personality, rather than the common sour vinaigrette-like dressing, or maybe because it takes some good few hours to prepare, somewhat longer than simply opening a bag of hydroponic greens.
This salad is the fruit of the dedication of court ladies from aristocratic households, that for centuries perfected and elaborated on the art of cooking through detailed and calculated process, to create sophisticated dishes that are not only delicious but also very healthy and visually pleasing.
These ladies made a very large commitment for small things, and they attended all their time and efforts to make minor things better and getting the small things just right.
Naam phrik lohng reuua (น้ำพริกลงเรือ) – Literally translated as “boat embarking chili relish”, this particular boat seems to have drifted a long way from port and these days, the actual dish served in Thai restaurants is far away from the original version. We want to tell you the real story behind this dish and to present you with the original version’s recipe in its true character – as if the boat is still moored at the dock.
This Thai spicy catfish recipe gives catfish a new and fabulous spin. You can either use farmed or game fish with the same phenomenal results. The intensity of the wild ginger combined with aromatic fresh peppercorn will turn even muddy flavor fish into a delicacy.
Slice the fish are first, then role it in flour and deep-fry it to a crispy crunch. Quickly stir-fry the crispy fish with wild ginger and the peppercorns releasing their aromatic oils, creating wonderful flavors. While seasoning with light soy sauce and oyster sauce, our fish is now regaining heavenly moisture without losing its tempting crispiness.
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