Kaeng ho, dry stir-fried curry with glass noodles from Northern Thailand
- InFusion
- Jan 11
- 3 min read
Kaeng ho, a dry stir-fried curry with distinctive characteristics
Kaeng ho is a dry stir-fried curry originating from Northern Thailand, still little known outside its region of origin. Historically, kaeng ho was prepared using leftovers from various curries. Today, it is cooked in a more structured way, using fresh ingredients and a curry paste specific to the North, hanglay curry paste, of Burmese origin. This paste gives the dish a very distinctive aromatic identity.
Kaeng ho also stands out for a feature that is rare in Thai cuisine, the direct incorporation of glass noodles into the curry. While most curries are served with rice or sometimes accompanied by noodles on the side, the noodles here are an integral part of the dish. Combined with a wide variety of vegetables, they turn kaeng ho into a complete dish, representative of Northern Thai cuisine, which is known for its diversity of plant-based ingredients.
By its construction, kaeng ho shares a common technical base with other dry stir-fried curries, while expressing a very specific regional tradition. It therefore provides an excellent entry point for understanding Northern Thai cuisine beyond its most famous dishes.
Stir-fried curry with glass noodles – Kaeng ho – แกงโฮะ
Serves two
Ingredients
2 tablespoons oil
2 tablespoons hangley curry paste (recipe below)
200 g pork, chicken or beef, thinly sliced
50 g pickled bamboo shoots
1 kaffir lime leaf, crumpled
20 g snake beans, sliced
20 g pea aubergines
20 g sweetcorn kernels or baby corn, sliced
1 Thai aubergine, sliced
10 g lemongrass, thinly sliced
Sliced bird’s eye chillies, to taste
200 g fresh glass noodles (or 70 g dried noodles, soaked in water for 10 minutes)
2 tablespoons coconut milk
2 tablespoons water
2 pinches of salt
10 g spring onion, roughly chopped
10 g coriander, roughly chopped
Hanglay curry paste
5 to 10 dried cayenne peppers, stems and seeds removed, soaked for 5 minutes then drained
10 g lemongrass, chopped
10 g galangal, chopped
10 g shallots
15 g garlic
1 tablespoon hangley curry powder (or massala powder as a substitute)
1 teaspoon shrimp paste
Pound the ingredients in the following order:
First the cayenne peppers
Then the firm ingredients, namely lemongrass and galangal
Then the softer ingredients, namely shallots and garlic
Finally add the curry powder and shrimp paste
Method
Heat the oil in a wok or wide pan. Add the hanglay curry paste, the meat and the pickled bamboo shoots. Stir-fry until the mixture becomes dry and the curry paste fully coats the meat.
Add the kaffir lime leaf, snake beans, pea aubergines, sweetcorn, Thai aubergine, lemongrass and bird’s eye chillies. Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly to ensure even cooking of the vegetables.
Add the glass noodles, then pour in the coconut milk and water. Continue cooking while stirring carefully, until the noodles are cooked and all the liquid has been absorbed. The dish should remain dry, with no sauce.
Taste and adjust the seasoning with salt if necessary. Add the spring onion and coriander, mix briefly, then transfer to a serving dish.
Going further
Kaeng ho can be placed in perspective with other Northern Thai specialities, notably khao soi, one of the very few other Thai curries that include noodles, although following a very different culinary logic.
This recipe also makes it possible to explore further the use of hanglay curry paste, which is emblematic of this region. It is also found in hanglay curry itself, offering a complementary reading of this aromatic base.
Finally, kaeng ho fits into the broader family of Thai dry stir-fried curries, alongside Southern khua kling and, for example, Central Thai stir-fried chicken with curry paste and herbs. Comparing these dishes helps to understand how a similar cooking technique can lead to very different expressions depending on the region.
This recipe is taken from the book Recipes from the North, and these techniques are also covered during our private Thai cooking classes on Koh Samui, where regional Thai cuisines are explored through hands-on practice.
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