Name: Gaeng Het (Thai Mushroom Curry)
Yield: Serves 4–6
Cuisine: Thai
Ingredients: 6 tablespoons cooking oil; 4 stalks lemongrass, ends trimmed and finely sliced; 2½ teaspoons ground cumin; 2½ tablespoons fish sauce (nam pla); 1 cup (250 ml) coconut cream, mixed with 1 cup (250 ml) water; 20 bird’s eye chillies; 10 red bird’s eye chillies; 1 stalk polygonum leaves; ½ teaspoon ground white pepper; 2 teaspoons salt; 4 kaffir lime leaves; 5 cloves garlic, peeled; 1-cm knob galangal, peeled and sliced; 1 small kaffir lime, grated for zest; 4 green chillies; 8 shallots, peeled; 500 g fresh oyster mushrooms; 1¾ cups (435 ml) water; 2 coriander roots; 1-cm piece dried prawn paste (gapi), roasted and crumbled

Preparation info

Serves
4–6

Difficulty
Easy

Appears in

The Little Thai Cookbook

By Marshall Cavendish

Published 2014

About

Mushrooms are often touted to be the ‘meat’ among vegetables, because of their firm, chewy texture and naturally savoury flavour. In the street food category, you’ll find two versions of this curry—one made rich with coconut cream, and another without. This simple but hearty curry will satisfy even the appetite of a hardcore meat lover.

Ingredients

6 tablespoons cooking oil
500 g fresh oyster mushrooms
1¾ cu

Method

Prepare the curry paste. Using a mortar and pestle or blender, pound or process the ingredients into a fine paste.
Heat the oil in a wok and add the curry paste. Stir-fry until the curry paste is fragrant.
Add the mushrooms and water. Bring to a boil and boil for about 10 minutes.
Add the kaffir lime leaves, polygonum leaves and bird’s eye c