Pad Cha Talay
4 servings
30 minutes
Pad Cha Talay is a vibrant and aromatic dish from Indian cuisine that embodies a passion for spices and fresh seafood. Its roots trace back to East Asia, where similar stir-fry recipes adorn tables in numerous coastal regions. Tender shrimp, squid, and fish sautéed in a spicy sauce with garlic, chili, and herbs reveal a deep, rich taste of the sea complemented by subtle citrus notes of kaffir lime. The heat of the pepper harmonizes with the sweetness of the chili and the balanced saltiness of fish sauce, creating an explosive flavor ensemble. This dish can be served with rice or glass noodles, allowing everyone to enjoy its spicy richness in their own style. It's perfect for lovers of exotic and intense flavors.
1
We clean the squid and shrimp, leaving the tail on the latter for beauty. To make the squid beautiful too, we use an ancient Asian technique: we make cross cuts on the inner side of the squid meat, but do not cut all the way through. Covered with this mesh, the squid will curl into appetizing 'hedgehogs' when fried and absorb the sauce better.
- Cooked peeled prawns: 100 g
- Squid: 100 g
2
We crush garlic and chili in a mortar or chop them finely. We cut sweet chili into rings across, beans into small pieces, and shred the cabbage into strips if it is whole.
- Chili pepper: 3 pieces
- Garlic: 3 cloves
- Fingerroot (krachai): 50 g
- Chinese long beans (yardlong beans): 100 g
3
We start heating oil in a wok, mixing it with nam prik pao. Once the mixture heats up, we fry garlic and chili over medium heat until a fantastic aroma appears, then add green pepper, onion, and krachai (on the branch) after a couple of minutes. Stir to prevent burning.
- Garlic: 3 cloves
- Chili pepper: 3 pieces
- Green peppercorns: 2 g
- Shallot: 1 piece
- Fingerroot (krachai): 50 g
4
Add seafood and fry on high heat until almost fully cooked (maximum 5 minutes). Pour in fish sauce, add sugar and sweet chili, and place kaffir lime leaves.
- Cooked peeled prawns: 100 g
- Squid: 100 g
- Fish fillet: 100 g
- Fish sauce: 1 tablespoon
- Sugar: 1 tablespoon
- Chili pepper: 3 pieces
- Kaffir lime leaves: 2 g
5
We stir our stir-fry for a couple more minutes to let everything soak in the sauce, adding the basil leaves just before turning off the heat.
- Basil: 1 bunch
6
Such stir-fry can be served with rice or noodles: glass or again rice.