A Taste of Thailand

My love for seafood came, as I expect it did for many, from spending childhood Summers holidaying on the coasts of Cornwall. Apart from building the odd sandcastle and trying my hardest to stay upright whilst water skiing, I would spend endless enjoyable afternoons with the family picking mussels from the rocks on Harlyn Bay, near Padstow. Taking our catch home, we would cook a simple yet triumphant feast of Moules Marinières – a real fresh taste of the sea. With this new found love for seafood came the desire to become a fisherman, though this ambition was short lived after spending many tiresome hours dangling crab lines into Padstow harbour with very minimal results. Unfortunately, this was often timed impeccably with the local anglers returning with their infinitely more successful catch of the day; for a 7 year old, having to buy crab from a gloating fisherman who witnessed your fishing failure was something never to be lived down. Thankfully, any remnants of bitterness were soon forgotten with the first taste of succulent fresh crabmeat.

My knowledge of cooking seafood broadened whilst on a trip to Thailand a few years back. Thai people are big on cooking using the freshest ingredients, which is evident in the flavours in their cuisine. Whist staying on the island of Koh Samui, I watched chefs in restaurants cooking fresh fish which we could choose from a line of little fishing boats on the beach. Their catches would be all different shapes and sizes, some of which I had never seen before, and all best served with a simple Thai infused salad.

Attending a cookery course in Thailand was one of my most treasured foodie experiences; it enhanced my palette, increased my knowledge of flavours, and helped me to further understand the importance of fresh ingredients, which in turn brought to life my love for seafood.

Thai crab cakes with a Thai mango salad

Ingredients
Serves 4
400g white crabmeat
1 garlic clove, crushed
1tsp grated ginger
4 spring onions, finely chopped
1 large red chilli, seeds discarded, finely chopped
2tsp fish sauce
Bunch of coriander, roughly chopped
1 lime, juiced
2 kaffir lime leaves, stalks removed, finely chopped
200g mashed potato
50g flour
75g breadcrumbs
1 egg, beaten
Groundnut oil for frying

Method:

Mix crabmeat, garlic, ginger, spring onions, chilli, fish sauce, coriander, lime juice, lime leaves together

Mix in mashed potato

Separate the mixture into 8 portions, moulding each one into a burger shape before dusting with flour, dip in beaten egg and coat with breadcrumbs. Put them in the fridge for an hour to firm up

Heat oil in large pan, carefully fry until golden brown on each side and cooked through. Cook in batches and add more oil as you go.

Salad:

1 mango, skin/stone removed, chopped

½ white cabbage, finely chopped into strips
2 red peppers, core/seeds discarded, finely chopped into strips
2 large carrots, finely chopped into strips (L.6cm)
Bunch of coriander, roughly chopped

Dressing:

3tbsp lime juice

2tbsp soy sauce
1 tbsp sesame oil
1 tsp brown sugar
1 large red chilli, finely chopped
Method:

Prepare ingredients beforehand, as it’s then a case of mixing together. Do the dressing first to allow the flavours to combine – mix all the dressing ingredients together in a bowl

For the salad, add all the prepared ingredients into a bowl, drizzle with dressing and toss well

Serve the fishcakes warm with a wedge of lime, a generous helping of salad and sweet chili dressing for dipping

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