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Kanom jeen namya is a dish with a special place in my heart, as it is a dish I grew up eating in Southern Thailand. I have shared this recipe publicly, but that version involves making the curry paste from scratch, because namya curry paste isn’t something you can easily buy at the store. So as a busy mom, that’s not a recipe I make very often myself!
However, I came up with a shortcut! For this bonus recipe, I want to share my hack for how to make this dish without having the make the curry paste from scratch! And honestly…if you don’t tell me, I wouldn’t notice any difference! This saves so much time, and turns it from a weekend project into a weeknight friendly meal!
In the video (in the recipe card) I will also talk you through different kinds of noodles that you can try with this. I've also included instructions on how to make this without a mortar and pestle, plus other tips!
Easy Noodles with Southern Tumeric Fish Curry - Kanom Jeen Namya
An easier, quicker version of kanom jeen namya - noodles with turmeric fish curry! It's flavourful,easy,and healthy,and works with a variety of noodles.
This recipe may contain affiliate links.
Ingredients
Quick Semi-Homemade Namya Curry Paste
For Serving (all optional but I recommend at least some crunchy veg and pickled mustard greens)
Ingredients and Kitchen Tools I Use (affiliate)
Notes
2. Any mild flavoured, inexpensive white fish will work because we will smash it up into little bits. Don't use anything expensive!
3. Aside from Vietnamese rice vermicelli,you can also use somen,soba or even udon noodles. In my experience,anything that's tender and not too chewy works great.
FULL VIDEO TUTORIAL
All my recipes come with step-by-step video tutorials with extra tips not mentioned in the blog post, so make sure you watch the video to ensure success. If you enjoy them, consider subscribing to the YouTube Channel to not miss an episode. Thank you!
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Instructions
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Add about 1 inch of water to a medium sized pot (if you have some chicken stock or pork stock, you can use it instead of water for extra flavour). Bring the water to a boil. Add the fish and simmer just until the fish is cooked through (timing depends on the thickness of your fish). Turn off the heat and remove the fish from the water but keep the water in the pot on the stove.
100 g white fish filet
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In a mortar and pestle, pound the grachai into a fine paste. If using fresh turmeric, pound it into a paste along with the grachai. Then add the red curry paste, turmeric powder, and shrimp paste; pound to mix. Remove from the mortar, but don’t wash the mortar yet. If you don't have a mortar and pestle,you can use a blender or an immersion blender and blend all curry paste ingredients,adding just enough of the fish cooking water so it can blend until smooth.
50 g red curry paste,20 g grachai (fingerroot),1 teaspoon turmeric powder,1 teaspoon fermented shrimp paste
- Break the fish into smaller chunks and transfer it into the mortar and pound until fine and fluffy. If using a blender,you can blitz the fish on low speed in short bursts,just until there are no more big chunks,but do not turn it into a complete puree. Add more of the fish cooking water as needed to blend.
- Bring the fish cooking water in the pot to a boil,then add the curry paste and the pounded fish and stir to dissolve. Is you used a blender,pour all the blended ingredients into the pot and bring to a boil.
Add the coconut milk and season with 1 tablespoon of the palm sugar,1 tablespoon of the fish sauce,and 1 tablespoon of the tamarind paste (you will add the rest of the seasoning later). Simmer on LOW heat for 20 minutes,stirring frequently,until the sauce is thickened.
1 ½ cup coconut milk,1-2 tablespoons palm sugar,2-3 tablespoons fish sauce,1-2 tablespoons tamarind paste
Meanwhile,cook the noodles however your particular noodles need to be cooked. (The noodles are typically served room temp,but if you like things hot,you can wait to cook the noodles after the sauce is done.) If using rice noodles,I recommend separating the noodles into their own serving bowls as soon as you drain them as rice noodles are harder to separate once they are cooled.
200 g dry Vietnamese rice vermicelli
- Once the curry sauce is done,it should have a consistency of a thick soup that can hold onto noodles well. if the consistency is very runny,reduce it a bit longer. If it is too thick and gloppy,add a little more water. Once you've adjusted the consistency,taste and adjust seasoning with more of the sugar,fish sauce and tamarind paste as needed. It should taste primarily salty,with the sweetness just there to balance,and the acidity should barely be detectable but it’s there to brighten the overall flavour.*We leave final seasoning at the end because the sauce will be reduced to slightly different degrees for everyone. Also,different brands of curry pastes vary significantly in saltiness.
Ladle the sauce over the noodles and serve with all the garnishes. Enjoy
Fresh crunchy vegetables,Pickled mustard greens,Medium boiled eggs,Thai basil