Ingredients
| CURRY PASTE | |
| 20-25 spicy small dried Thai chillies, deseeded | |
| 1 tablespoon turmeric, finely chopped | |
| 2 tablespoons lemongrass, finely chopped | |
| 3 tablespoons garlic (about 1 head), finely chopped | |
| 2 tablespoons shallots, finely chopped | |
| ½ teaspoon whole black peppercorns, ground | |
| 1 teaspoon shrimp paste | |
| zest from 1 small lime (keep the juice to finish the curry) | |
| FOR THE BEEF | |
| 2 tablespoons fish sauce | |
| 500g scotch fillet or sirloin | |
| FOR THE CURRY | |
| 1 tablespoon coconut oil | |
| 750ml coconut milk | |
| 2 tablespoons fish sauce | |
| 1 teaspoon palm sugar (or brown sugar) | |
| 7 large betel leaves (or use Thai basil or lighly sautéed kale) | |
| a squeeze of lime juice | |
| jasmine rice, to serve |
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Instructions
| 1. | CURRY PASTE |
| 2. | Soak the chillies in warm water for about 10 minutes to soften them, then chop finely – the finer you chop them, the easier it will be for you to process the curry paste. |
| 3. | If you want to go the ultra-authentic route, you can pound the paste in a Thai granite mortar and pestle – I’d suggest pounding each ingredient individually, then combining them and pounding a bit more to blend. |
| 4. | Otherwise, toss all the ingredients into a small food processor or blender and blitz into a fine paste. |
| 5. | BEEF |
| 6. | Rub the fish sauce onto the meat and leave it to marinate for a couple of hours. |
| 7. | Then grill at a high heat just to sear both sides. |
| 8. | It’s OK if the meat is still quite rare inside. |
| 9. | CURRY |
| 10. | Sauté the curry paste, coconut oil and a couple of spoonfuls of the creamy part of the coconut milk over a medium heat until the paste is fragrant. |
| 11. | Add the rest of the coconut milk a little bit at a time – keep stirring and watch for a layer of bright red oil emerging before adding more coconut milk. |
| 12. | Add the fish sauce and the sugar – some brands of fish sauce will be saltier than others, so use your judgement here and use enough fish sauce for the curry to taste right to you. |
| 13. | Be mindful that this will be eaten over jasmine rice so it should be a little on the saltier side when tasting alone. |
| 14. | Cut the meat into about 1cm slices, add to the curry and turn the heat off. |
| 15. | Tear the betel leaves into large pieces and fold into the curry. |
| 16. | Add a squeeze of lime juice to brighten and serve with jasmine rice. |
Recipes & food styling Pim Techamuanvivit / Portrait & recipe photography Tony Nyberg / Restaurant photography Adahlia Cole, Anson Smart