Thai Vegetables in Coconut Milk, Phak Tom Kati / ImportFood.com Thai Recipe

Thai Vegetables in Coconut Milk, "Phak Tom Kati"

The name literally means 'vegetables boiled in coconut milk'. Small Thai eggplants that resemble crunchy garden peas are used, however this may not be available. As a replacement we suggest you use tender garden peas, raw. If you can only get frozen peas, then drop them in hot, not boiling water, until defrosted, then transfer to ice water to stop the cooking and then strain thoroughly. There are plenty of vegetables you can experiement with to create this dish. Tomato, bell peppers, broccoli, and others can easily be used depending on your taste. Green peppercorns are sold in Thailand on the stem, making them easy to discard before serving, but we suggest that if you can only get loose peppercorns, that you put them in a small muslin bag or 'spice ball'

Ingredients

1 cup coconut milk
1/2 cup garden peas (see above)
1/2 cup long beans (green beans), broken into 2" pieces
1/2 cup mushrooms, sliced
1 cup cabbage, shredded
2 tablespoons shallots/purple onions, sliced finely
1 tablespoon light soy sauce
1 tablespoon palm sugar
1 tablespoon red thai (birdseye) chiles, finely sliced
1 tablespoon green peppercorns
4-5 kaffir lime leaves, shredded

Method

In a saucepan bring the coconut milk to a gentle simmer and mix in the sugar and soy sauce, and stir in the lime leaves. Add the shallots and pepper, and gently simmer for 1-2 minutes until aromatic. Taste for the balance of sugar and salt, and adjust if necesary. Add the vegetables, and return to the boil. Simmer gently until just cooked (If using garden peas, do not add them until the other ingredients are almost cooked, and then serve as soon as they are warmed through.

Serve with either rice or noodles.