Thai Spicy Basil Shrimp

I love fresh Thai basil. Its unique flavor gives any dish such a wonderful freshness. Unlike Italian basil, Thai basil has stronger aroma and sweeter peppery flavor. The most commonly used of Thai basil is Sweet Basil ("Bai Ho Ra Pa") which has a strong exotic scent. It is used in all kinds of curry and stir-fried dishes.

In this recipe, besides fresh shrimps, you can also use any other kind of meats. And you can adjust the heat to your preference by cutting or adding the red chili peppers.

You will need:

• 1 lb. fresh shrimp, peeled and deveined
• 7-8 garlic cloves
• 7-8 Thai red chili pepper (or adjust to your preference)
• 1 cup yellow onion, thinly sliced
• 1/2 cup carrot, cut in matchstick pieces
• 1/2 cup green/red/yellow bell pepper, julienned
• 2 cups basil leaves, loosely packed
• 3 Tbsp vegetable oil
• 2 Tbsp oyster sauce
• 2 tsp light soy sauce (or fish sauce)
• 2 tsp sugar
• 1/4 cup water
• grounded white (or black) pepper

Directions:

1. Pound garlic cloves and chili peppers together using mortar and pestle. Or you can mince them together using a knife.
2. Heat oil in a wok or large skillet over medium-high heat. Add chili garlic mixture and stir until lightly browned and fragrant.
3. Add prepared shrimps and stir well to evenly mix everything together. Once the shrimps start to turn pink - but still translucent in the middle !! (pictured above), add onions, carrots, and bell peppers. Stir to get vegetables cooked real quick, you want them to be a bit crisp, not all soft.
4. Then, add oyster sauce, light soy sauce, sugar, and grounded white/black pepper.
5. Stir quickly to mix the seasonings into ingredients. Then add water, and stir to get everything coated with sauce.
6. Turn off the heat, add the basil leaves and give it a good stir. Transfer to serving dish. Great over rice!

Fish Ball Green Curry

Thai green curry has a unique character for its heat. Compared with other types of Thai curry dish, green curry is quite spicy, and also has great flavor and aroma of all fresh herbs and ingredients used to make green curry paste. Today, I used pre-made fish balls found in Oriental Market frozen food section, and bamboo shoots - as main ingredients.

This dish is another variation of green curry, besides ones with chicken, beef, or pork. Other ingredients, and method of cooking are pretty much the same as some of the green curry dishes I blogged earlier - like Tofu & Enoki Mushroom Green Curry. It goes well with bamboo shoot, however you can add Thai eggplant as well. It is as popular and delicious served with rice vermicelli noodle, as with steamed rice.

Tom Yum Goong

Last night quick dinner..
Thai Hot & Sour Shrimp Soup, or
"Tom Yum Goong"

Recipe? Coming soon.
A little too busy lately..

Stir-fried Snow Peas with Shrimps

I can eat vegetable stir-fry everyday! And I can make it with an endless variety. The combination of protein (meat, tofu, or seafood), and vegetable in light sauce makes a flavorful dish.

So, I first stir-fried ground pork with garlic in oil until cooked. Then, I added snow peas and shrimps. Both only need a short cooking time so that the sweet peas are tender-crisp, and the shrimps just turn pink and firm. Then, I seasoned them with oyster sauce, light soy sauce, a bit of sugar, and ground white pepper. I taste and season the dish while cooking, and adjust the flavor to my preference.

It is a simple quick dish I usually like to cook for dinner. Just have all the ingredients ready before I start cooking. ... All I need now, is a plate of steamed rice!

Chinese Broccoli & Shrimp w/ Oyster Sauce

This delicious and easy dish is one of my all time favorites. I have made it with shrimp, pork, and beef, and with and without Thai yellow bean sauce -- it's good either way. The trick is to not overcook the Chinese broccoli, so make sure everything else is finished (rice, whatever else you're making) and cook it just before serving. My mom always makes all her vegetable stir-fry dishes when we all are at the dinner table, ready to eat.

Chinese broccoli is a dark green leafty vegetable; also known as Gai Lan. It's eaten widely in Chinese and Thai cuisines. In this recipe, Oyster Sauce and garlic nicely compliment the bittersweet taste of this vegetable.

You will need:

• 3 tablespoons vegetable oil
• 4 garlic cloves, chopped
• peeled and deveined raw shrimp
• 1 lb Chinese broccoli, cut into 1 1/2-inch pieces
• 1/2 cup chicken broth
• 1 tablespoons Thai yellow bean sauce, use just the beans
• 2 tablespoons oyster sauce
• 1 teaspoons sugar
• freshly grounded black pepper, or white pepper powder

Directions:

1. Heat oil in wok over high heat until hot but not smoking, then stir-fry garlic until lightly browned.
2. Add shrimp and stir-fry until the color starts to change.
3. Add broccoli and stock and stir-fry, about 2 minutes, until the leaves become dark green and wilted. The stems should turn medium green when done.
4. Add bean sauce, oyster sauce, and sugar and stir-fry until broccoli is crisp-tender, 4 to 5 minutes.
5. Add pepper, and adjust the seasoning to taste. Serve with rice.