Recipes for lockdown: Thai red duck curry

I know, I know – duck curry is an extravagant dish to be posting in the middle of a global crisis, but in this set of recipes I'm aiming to use things that you can easily procure at the supermarket. As I said in my last blog post, I have had difficulty getting the basics, but more expensive, luxury items are fully stocked.

Coconut milk, like most tinned goods, have often run out at the big supermarkets, but try your local ethnic corner store. We have a Pakistani one near us, which is fully stocked with all sorts of spices, curry pastes and plenty of coconut milk.

I'm also trying to use up odds and ends that you might have in your cupboards. This is my excuse for using store bought red curry paste – I’ve had half a jar of it in the back of the pantry for some time. Since it is old, it has probably lost a bit of flavour, so I added some fresh garlic, ginger and lemongrass to my curry to revitalise it. I’ve marked these as optional in the recipe, since you don’t need them if you have fresh curry paste.

If you want to make your own red curry paste, then I highly recommend David Thompson’s recipe, though some of the ingredients will only be available in a Thai supermarket. If that is difficult, then this recipe by Nagi on Recipe Tin Eats is a great alternative. It is based on Thompson’s recipe, but with a slightly simplified ingredients list, most of which you should be able to get easily. The only thing I haven't often seen in the shops here is galangal, but you can substitute fresh ginger.

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Mum's Vietnamese Chicken Salad

To call this ‘Mum’s Vietnamese salad’ is slightly misleading because (a) she isn’t Vietnamese and (b) she acquired the recipe from a friend called Jane many years ago. However, it has become a family favourite, which has morphed and evolved over the years, each of us adding our own details. And what makes a recipe your own, if not refining an old favourite to suit your tastes? Surely this is how all the best home recipes have been developed.

When I asked Mum to remind me of the recipe a few years back, I was surprised that she said she puts coriander in it. I once did that many years ago much to the distaste of my younger sister. She’d said she preferred it without and, being an annoying older sister, I decided to put it in anyway to see if she could tell. Of course she could, it's such a distinctive flavour. Now that I am much older, I can admit that she was right. It is more subtle and refined with just mint and that has become my preference.

My main addition to Mum’s recipe is that I have started pickling the onions rather than adding them fresh. I got the idea from Uyen Luu, who has a similar recipe in her cookbook, My Vietnamese Kitchen. I think it lifts the dish and makes it something really special.

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Pozole Rojo

This recipe first appeared on the Borough Market website as part of a 3 part series I am writing exploring lesser-known religious traditions in December from around the world.

This spicy soup with hominy and slow-cooked pork shoulder is a party favourite in Mexico. It is often served at Las Posadas festivities, celebrated from 16^th to 24^th December.  However, the religious significance of the dish precedes this Christian festival. Corn was a sacred plant for the Aztecs, so they cooked pozole to mark special occasions.

It is a great party main because it is easy to make in large batches (this recipe serves about 8-10 people) and there are lots of garnishes that guests can add to customise their bowl of soup.

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Harissa

Harissa, if you haven’t discovered it yet, is a vibrant Middle Eastern condiment that can be added to many dishes to give them a zesty hit of sweet and spice and all things nice.

It goes particularly well with lamb. I often use it as a condiment alongside roast lamb, coated lamb chops in it, slathered it on burgers and my new favourite, in a bun with merguez sausage, mayo and rocket.

It can also work with chicken or a meaty fish, like monkfish or hake, so long as you are not too heavy handed. I love adding a tablespoon or two to a tomato-based stew, such as my chicken, chorizo and chickpea stew or albondigas. You can also stir it through mayonnaise or yogurt to give them a bit of a kick.

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Banh mi, Sydney style

I was so excited when I first saw bahn mi in London. They were one of my favourite lunches when I was a growing up in Sydney. There was a Vietnamese bakery next to my school where most kids used to load up on doughnuts and cream cakes. I preferred to spend my pocket money on 'Vietnamese pork rolls'.

For $2.50 you could get a Vietnamese baguette slathered with pate and mayo, crammed full of cold pork cuts, salad and pickles and finished with soy sauce, a few sprigs of coriander and a sprinkling of chilli. 

I have found few places in London that make them like this, perhaps because the French and Asian flavours sound like such a bizarre combination. Actually, I think that’s what makes it unique and interesting. It speaks to Vietnam’s colonial heritage and is a great example of fusion cuisine that really works.

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