Thai Pork Larb

As much as I appreciate living in central Berlin and having easy access to a wide range of good restaurants and different cuisines the one thing that still upsets me is the lack of good Thai or Vietnamese food in Berlin. And what is more upsetting is the fact that every street is full of restaurants serving up Thai or Vietnamese dishes but are sadly generally awful. I am talking about dishes that are bland, lacking in spice and just some kind of generic coconut curry or a simple noodle dishes smothered in a cheap peanut sauce or topped with some mango and chillies. I miss good and delicious Thai dishes, food that has a bit of fire to it and flavours that explode. It was only until recently that we found a delicious Thai restaurant that really does serve up some brilliant food. My Thai fix is now sorted but it is still one of my favourite cuisines to cook at home.

I am the first to enjoy a Green Curry or a Pad Thai but I avoid ordering these dishes when eating out. I always go for the salads and because of that we often end up with fantastic service because we look like we know what to really order! So instead of going for the sloppy coconut curry we always go for a selection of ‘salads’. This Thai Pork Larb is a classic example with larb basically meaning a ‘meat salad’. I love ordering a plate of cooked meat such as pork or duck that is seasoned and fried with fresh spices and plenty of chillies lemongrass. I really love making the pork at home as it is so quick and easy to make but whenever we go out we also go for the duck with plenty of rice and sauces on the side.

This is one of my go to midweek dinners as it literally takes minutes to make. Serve with some basmati on the side and you have yourself a delicious quick and easy meal!

Thai Pork Larb

 

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Prep time

7 mins

Cook time

7 mins

Total time

14 mins

 

Serves: 4

Ingredients

• 500g mince pork
• Small bunch coriander (finely chopped)
• Small bunch Thai basil leaves (roughly torn)
• 1 tbps size fresh ginger (peeled and grated)
• 2 cloves garlic (peeled and crushed)
• 1 small onion (peeled and finely sliced)
• 1 red chilli (finely sliced)
• 2 lemongrass stalks (out layer removed and finely sliced)
• 1 tbsp light soy sauce
• 1 tsp fish sauce
• Juice of 1 lemon
• Black pepper and salt
• Sunflower oil

Instructions

1. Heat a dash of sunflower oil in a wok. Once hot add the onions and cook for a couple of minutes until golden and soft. Then add the garlic, ginger, lemongrass and chillies. Add the pork and keep stirring so that the meat breaks up.
2. As soon as the meat is broken up and starting to brown add the fish sauce and soy sauce. Keep on a medium heat and stir regularly. In total the pork needs just 5 mins to cook.
3. Take the wok off the heat and add the lime juice, coriander and Thai basil. Season with a little salt and pepper and mix everything together. Serve immediately.

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