Thai Sour Pork Soup

Thai Sour Pork Soup

Recipe only


Sour curries, simple to make, but slow cooked are considered street food in Bangkok, where they are served with pickles and steamed rice. Street vendors make inexpensive food readily available to busy workers and also provide a colorful source of the smells and tastes of this unique city's culture.


INGREDIENTS

1 tablespoon vegetable oil
1 kg pork neck
1 teaspoon shrimp paste
1/4 cup coarsely chopped coriander root and stem mixture
2 cm piece fresh galangal, peeled, chopped finely
5 dried long red chilies,soaked in hot water then chopped finely
3 fresh long red chilies, chopped finely
2 tablespoons fish sauce
3/4 cup tamarind concentrate
2 tablespoons caster sugar
2 cups (500 ml) chicken stock
1 litre (4 cups) water
1/2 cup fresh Thai basil leaves, chopped coarsely
4 hard boiled eggs, shelled and halved

METHOD

1. Heat oil in a large flameproof casserole dish; cook pork, uncovered, until brown. Remove from dish and set aside.

2. Preheat oven to moderately slow (170 C)

3. Add paste, coriander mixture, galangal and chilies to same dish; cook, stirring, until fragrant. Add sauce, tamarind, sugar, stock and water; bring to the boil. Return pork to the dish, cover and cook in the oven for 1 hour. Uncover and cook for a further hour.

4. Remove pork from the dish; cover and let stand for 10 minutes before slicing thickly, add the egg and stir in the basil. Serve with steamed jasmine rice.