Clams and pineapple red curry, or kaeng kua hoy saparot

This very sweet curry is a specialty from the Central Plain of Thailand. For a fancy presentation, serve the curry in individual half-pineapple.

Recipe for 4 persons

Curry paste (medium spicy according to westerner palate)

4 dried spur chilies, seeds removed

2 bird eye chilies 4 lemongrass stalks, roughly cut 1,5 cm galangal root, sliced

4 small shallots

4 garlic cloves 1/2 teaspoon shrimp paste Re-hydrate the large chilies in hot water for about 10 minutes then drain and pound. Add, little by little, the other fresh ingredients into the mortar and pound to achieve a smooth paste. Add then the shrimp paste, mix and reserve.

Clams and pineapple curry

1 kg clams or 500 grams clams meat

400 ml coconut cream

2 small and sweet pineapple, cut in half and hollowed out. Flesh cut in 1 cm cubes

8 kaffir lime leaves, finely sliced

1,5 tablespoon fish sauce

1 tablespoon coconut sugar (optional)

1. Bring 100 ml of water to the boil in a saucepan, pour the clams in then put a lid and cook on medium heat for about 2 minutes. Drain, throw clams that have not opened and set the opened ones aside.

2. Heat carefully few spoon of coconut cream in a saucepan, add the curry paste and mix well. Cook for few minutes then add the rest of the coconut cream, the pineapple, fish sauce and kaffir lime leaves. Cook for 3 more minutes and taste to decide if some more fish sauce is needed. It's not always necessary to add sugar in that recipe, it will depends on your pineapples (some varieties are much sweeter).

3. Remove from the heat and serve in half-pineapple.