Recipes Inspired by the Mothers of Celebrity Chefs and Cookbook Authors

Ingredients:

• 1/4 cup vegetable oil
• 1/4 cup Sugar
• 2 tsp Salt
• 2 Tbsp Fish sauce
• 2 cups Water
• 1/4 cup Fish powder
• 5 Kaffir lime leaves, deveined
• 1 1/2 lbs pork, fresh ham, Cut into pieces 2 inches long by 1 1/2 inches wide and 1/2 inch thick
• 2 tsp Shrimp paste
• 1 tbsp Lime juice, freshly squeezed
• 1 fresh pineapple slightly underripe, about 1 lb., peeled, cored and julienned
• 2 1/2 Coconut milk
• Fresh sweet basil leaves for garnish

Paste:
• 1 stalk lemongrass, thinly sliced
• 2 large shallots, coarsely chopped
• 4 garlic cloves, coarsely chopped
• 10 Kaffir lime leaves, deveined
• 1 tbsp. Galangal, peeled and coarsely chopped
• 1/4 tsp. Turmeric
• New Mexico chilies, dried, soaked, seeded, and deveined
• 2 tbsp. cilantro stems, chopped
• 1 cup water

2). To make the paste: blend all the ingredients in a blender until smooth, 2 to 3 minutes. Set aside.

3). Heat the oil a large skillet over medium high heat. Add 1 cup of the coconut milk and cook, stirring constantly, until the oil separates from the milk, 2 to 3 minutes. Add the spice paste and shrimp paste and cook, stirring occasionally, until the aromas of the spices are fully developed, about 5 minutes.

4). Stir in the pork, sugar, fish sauce, and salt and cook for about 5 minutes. Add the water and the remaining 1 1/2 cups coconut milk and bring to a boil.

5). Reduce the heat to low, add the pineapple and simmer for 10 more minutes. Add the fish powder and kaffir lime leaves and cook until pork is tender, 5 to 10 minutes more. Remove from the heat.

6). Stir in the lime juice, garnish with sweet basil leaves and serve with steamed jasmine rice.