Nahm Prik Pao

Nahm Prik Pao is is a roasted chili paste used to flavour many Thai dishes, but is also an excellent condiment or dip on its own. The initially sweet smooth taste is followed up a few seconds later by some scorching heat.

The traditional treatment of Nahm Prik Pao includes a small amount of Fish Sauce (Nam Pla) and Dried Shrimp Paste (Trassi), so if you're a Vegan, you'll want to make this version rather than purchasing from a Thai grocery store.

Serve with rice crackers or vegetables for dipping with water nearby. This recipe courtesty of Nancie McDermott's Real Vegetarian Thai.

Ingredients:

1/2 cup (approx. 32) small dried hot red chiles
1/2 cup shallots (Un-Peeled)
8 garlic cloves (Un-Peeled)
1/2 cup peanut oil
3 tbsp palm sugar
1 tbsp tamarind paste
1 tbsp soy sauce
1 tsp sea salt

Soak the tamarind paste in 1/4 cup of boiling water. Let sit while preparing other ingredients. When ready to use, squeeze the paste to extract all of the moisture. Discard the left over paste and retain the liquid.

In a heavy skillet or a wok, dry-fry the chilies over medium-low heat until they become dark and brittle (approx. 3-5 minutes). Keep the kitchen well ventilated, as the smoke that the chilies release is very aggravating to the throat. Allow to cool on a plate.

Increase the heat of the pan to medium and dry-fry the unpeeled shallots and garlic, turning occasionally until they are soft, and slightly blistered (approx. 8 minutes). Allow to cool on a plate Stem the chilies and shake out most of the seeds. Trim the shallots and garlic, discarding the peel and ends. Place chilies in a blender with the shallots and garlic (you can also use a mortar and pestle in the traditional way) and blend until coarse. Add 1/4 cup of the peanut oil and continue to blend until smooth.

Pour remaining peanut oil into skillet/wok and heat over medium heat until hot. Add chili paste and cook, stirring occasionally until the paste darkens (about 5 minutes). Place paste in a small bowl.

Combine in a small bowl, the palm sugar, tamarind liquid, soy sauce and salt. Stir well. Add this mixture to the chili paste and stir to combine. Serve at room temperature. Can be kept for up to one month in the refrigerator in a sealed jar. As it is quite oily, stir well before each use.

Notes on Ingredients:

Chilies For this recipe, ask for dried Thai Chilies at a South-East Asian or Chinese Grocery store.

Palm Sugar Sugar extracted from Palm Trees (Coconut usually). Exceedingly luscious, don't substitute regular sugar for this recipe as I believe the Palm Sugar to be the key ingredient.

Tamarind Paste The tamarind plant is native to India, and produces a pod similar to a pea-pod containing a dark brown, almost black pulp. It is plucked from the plant and the fibrous, sticky pulp is compressed into small cakes, and is available in South and South-East Asian as well as Chinese shops (although the quality of brands from Thailand seems to be best). It is used as a souring agent in many meals. The pulp is soaked in boiling water, to release the flavour, and only the resultant liquid is used.

Shallots Shallots are similar to a richer, milder version of onion, but with the appearance of large purple/gold cloves of garlic. Commonly used in French cooking also, they are readily available at most grocers.