Fermented fish products are a common ingredient in Southeast Asian cuisine and widely consumed by people from all walks of life. Therefore, it is not unusual to come across aristocratic recipes for fermented fish lohn. Given the lack of distinctive ingredients or cooking techniques in documented versions of higher cuisine, it is safe to assume that similar preparations of fermented fish lohn were likely enjoyed throughout the Central Plains, both in higher and common vernacular cuisines.
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Labeling this dish as aristocratic serves mainly to identify who authored the recipe, which is essentially similar in all the early Siamese cookbooks and follows the first recipe recorded by Lady Plean Passakornrawong (ท่านผู้หญิงเปลี่ยน ภาสกรวงศ์). For instance, Princess Sadap Ladawan (เจ้าจอมหม่อมราชวงศ์สดับลดาวัลย์), of the Sunandha Palace, prepares an identical dish but serves it in a polished coconut shell (ปลาร้าในกะลา; bplaa raa nai galaa).
Cooking tips:
Use fermented fish which has been aged for at least one year, ideally from snakehead fish.
While simmering the lohn, do not allow it to separate into fat.
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Ingredients
Simmer and reduce to yield 2/3 cups of fermented fish sauce (naam pla ra) (น้ำปลาร้า)
- 1/2 cup fermented fish meat (pla ra) (ปลาร้า) ideally fermented snakehead fish pla ra
- 2 cups coconut milk (หางกะทิ)
- 3 stalks lemongrass (ตะไคร้) bruised
- 5 slices galangal (ข่า) bruised
- 4 pieces fingerroot (krachai) (กระชาย) bruised
- 5 pieces shallots (หอมแดง) bruised
- 5 pieces kaffir lime leaves (ใบมะกรูด) hand torn
- 1 teaspoon kaffir lime zest (ผิวมะกรูด)
- 1 piece pandan leaves (ใบเตย)
- 6 cloves pickled garlic (กระเทียมดอง)
For the lohn
- 2 cups coconut cream (หัวกะทิ)
- 2/3 cups fermented fish sauce (naam pla ra) (น้ำปลาร้า) from simmering the pla ra in coconut milk
- 1/2 cup snakehead fish (ปลาช่อน) (optional) /or
- minced shrimp meat (เนื้อกุ้งสับ) (optional)
Season to a light sweet-salty
- 1/2 tablespoon wild bee honey (น้ำผึ้งป่า)
- 1/2 tablespoon palm sugar (น้ำตาลมะพร้าว)
- fish sauce (น้ำปลา) as needed
- kaffir lime juice (น้ำมะกรูด) for aroma only
Mix in
- 1/2 cup lemongrass (ตะไคร้) thinly sliced
- 1/2 cup shallots (หอมแดง) thinly sliced
- 1 tablespoon young galangal (ข่าอ่อน) sliced into thin juliennes
- 1 teaspoon kaffir lime zest (ผิวมะกรูด) thinly sliced
Garnish
- kaffir lime leaves (ใบมะกรูด) sliced into hair-thin juliennes
- three colors of chilies – red, green, yellow and chilies (พริกสามสี) sliced thinly, crosswise (optional)
- salted thick coconut cream (หัวกะทิเข้มข้น)
Serve with
- fresh vegetables (ผักสด)
- grilled catfish (ปลาดุกย่าง)
- pomelo (ส้มโอ)
- rose apple (ชมพู่)
- green mango (มะม่วงเปรี้ยว)
- santol (กระท้อน)
Instructions
- Wash the fermented fish thoroughly.
- In a pot, bring the coconut milk to a boil over medium-low heat.
- Add the aromatics – the lemongrass, galangal, fingerroot, shallots, hand-torn kaffir lime leaves and zest, pandan leaf and pickled garlic.
- Allow to simmer on low heat until the fermented fish dissolves and the liquids have been reduced by over half.
- Strain and discard the aromatics and fish leftovers. Set aside.
- Thicken coconut cream in a saucepan over medium-low heat, reserving a small amount for the garnish. Do not let the cream separate into fat.
- Mix the remaining coconut cream with the reduced fermented fish broth.
- Simmer on low heat until the mixture thickens, but do not allow the broth to separate into fat.
- Optional: add minced fish or minced shrimp meat for additional texture.
- Season to a light sweet-salty profile with honey and palm sugar.
- When you are satisfied with the seasoning and consistency, remove from the heat.
- Mix in the thinly sliced aromatics – the lemongrass, shallots, young galangal and kaffir lime zest.
- Pour into a serving bowl. Garnish with thinly sliced three colored chilies – red, green and yellow – along with kaffir lime leaves sliced into hair-thin juliennes, kaffir lime zest and a drizzle of the thickened coconut cream.
Serve with:
- Fresh vegetables, white turmeric, pink pomelo, rose apple, green mango or santol,
- Young leaves such as morning glory shoots, young hog plum leaves and young mango tree leaves,
- Grilled catfish or fried snakehead fish.
Rice Seasoned with Young Tamarind Relish, Sweetened Fish and Pickled Morning Glory (ข้าวคลุกน้ำพริกมะขามอ่อน ผักบุ้งดอง ปลาแห้งผัดหวาน และ ปลาดุกย่าง; Khaao Khlook Naam Phrik Makhaam Aawn Phakboong Daawng Bplaa Haaeng Phat Waan Lae Bplaa Dook Yaang)
Seasoned rice dishes have been a staple of rice-consuming societies almost since the first grains were cultivated. Adapted according to local resources, traditions and individual preferences, seasoned rice dishes are relished and savored across all walks of life. Within Siamese society, these dishes offer insight into the flavor instincts and eating habits across all demographics, revealing which food items were locally available and valued.
In this delicious seasoned rice recipe from the kitchens of the daughter of King Chulalongkorn, Princess Yaovabha Bongsanid (พระเจ้าบรมวงศ์เธอ พระองค์เจ้าเยาวภาพงศ์สนิท) (1884-1934), the Princess uses a variety of common preserved and inexpensive ingredients, clearly drawing inspiration from the cuisine of the Central Plains with nods to the rural and coastal living atmosphere.
Thai Relish of Fermented Fish, Grilled Catfish, Pork and Shrimp (ปลาร้าผัดทรงเครื่องสูตรสายเยาวภา ; bplaa raa phat sohng khreuuang, suut saai yao wa phaa)
Fish fermentation consists of a simple salt-curing process: mixing or coating a whole fish, sliced fish or minced fish meat with salt and rice husks (or ground roasted rice). The mixture is then allowed to rest and ferment for few months. This fermentation process creates deep, intense umami flavor agents accompanied by a strong stench. It is only with culinary sagacity and skill that cooks are able to harness and direct these powerful flavors within the context of an appetizing dish, and to constrain the odor to an agreeable intensity.
Spicy Salad of Grilled Tiger Prawns, Mackerel, Lemongrass and Aromatics with Infused Fermented Fish Innards Dressing (ไตปลาทรงเครื่อง ; dtai bpla sohng khreuuang)
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.
Southern Thai Ancient Fermented Fish Innards Curry with Grilled Catfish (แกงไตปลาปลาดุกย่างโบราณ ; gaaeng dtai bplaa bplaa dook yaang)
แกงไตปลาปลาดุกย่างโบราณ – Fermented fish innards curry is a dense curry made of fermented fish innards is dark coffee-brown in color – a salty, fiery hot dish, it grips the palate in an intense umami embrace. As the flagship dish in the repertoire of spicy southern Thai cuisine, it comes in different versions: some are water based; some have a base of coconut cream. But whatever the style, it is a fiercely hot dish that features both dried and fresh chilies.
c1933 An Auspicious fish ball curry with two basils (แกงเผ็ดปลาเล็กปลาน้อย; gaaeng phet bplaa lek bplaa naawy)
Typically, in Central-style curries, different types of basil are not used together. In higher cuisine, it is an unstated – but understood – practice to avoid blending the definitive scents of various basils. A curry’s final herbal identity is intended to remain definitively with its basil: the citrus notes of holy basil; the spicy-woody and pungent flavor of tree basil; the tart fragrance of lemon basil; or the cooling anise sensation of Thai basil.
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