Monday 18 November 2013

Thai Pork Leg Stew (Khao Kha Moo): AFF Thailand


The Asian Food Fest (AFF) kicked off last month with Japan and this month it's Thailand in the limelight. Though I love Japanese food, I have not attempted any Japanese dishes at home hence my absence from AFF Japan. But Thai food, ah...that is another matter! I love Thai food very much too but it is something more familiar to me on the home front. 



I have heard quiet a bit about Thai Pork Leg Stew, how delicious it is and that it is a hawker fare in Thailand. Looking at the ingredients, it is quiet similar to our local "Tau Yu Bak" but with additional aromatics such as corriander root, star anise and five spice powder. I had been wanting to attempt this dish for a very long time. It is only now with AFF Thailand as a motivating factor that I finally cooked this very fragrant and delicious stew.



There are many versions of this recipe on the internet. Some recipes call for the aromatics to be sauteed while others say to just simply add them to the boiling water. Since there are two methods, I chose to saute the ingredients as I believe this brings out the flavours and aromas.  The pork leg is supposed to be deep fried first before being simmered but I skipped this step as I find it rather cumbersome.



Verdict? Ooohhh.....yummilicious! The gravy is sweet, salty and so aromatic. It goes so well with plain white rice and the tender pork meat (and fats!) was melt-in-your-mouth bliss! If you are an egg lover like me, be sure to add more hard boiled eggs. They taste pretty good after being simmered in the gravy. This dish tastes even better the next day after the flavours have developed and matured.



In my excitement, I forgot to prepare the chilli sauce that accompanies the stew. But that will have to wait until next time and I can be sure that next time will come in no time!










Thai Pork Leg Stew
Recipe source : Adapted from here

Ingredients :
- 1kg pork leg, cut to chunks
- 1 litre water
- 5 fresh coriander roots
- 5 cloves garlic
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 cinnamon stick
- 2 star anise
- 8 black peppercorns
- 1 tbsp thick dark soya sauce
- 6 tbsp light soya sauce
- 2 tbsp fish sauce
- 2 tbsp palm sugar
- 1 tsp five spice powder
- 5 hard boiled eggs

Method :
1. Pound garlic and corriander roots together with salt and black peppercorns into a paste.
2. Heat oil in pot and saute the pounded paste together with cinnamon stick and star anise until fragrant.
3. Add pork leg and fry until meat changes colour.
4. Add water, light and dark soya sauce, palm sugar, five spice powder and eggs.
5. Bring to a boil and then lower heat to simmer for about 2 hours until meat is tender.
6. Serve with white rice.








I am submitting this post to Asian Food Fest Thailand November 2013 hosted by Lena of Frozen Wings.

56 comments:

  1. I still struggling what to cook for this month Thailand AFF. As most of the dishes are spicy and sour which my kids and hubby dislike. This dish is great! I'm sure they will love this. Thanks for sharing!

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    1. Vivian, your family will love this dish. Very similar to "tau yu bak" and so fragrant and delicious!

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  2. Hi Phong Hong, So ho liao. Thought of cooking it but dropped it cos' I'm going for a blood test around this time. Maybe will cook it before the results are out, hehehe!

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    1. Kimmy, scared the "too khar" will mess up your cholesterol reading, huh? Do blood test first, eat later hee..hee..

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  3. Ah........delicious! I want to eat! Seriously! I was craving for this dish when I was pregnant with my son & at that time, I was still working. Just happen that there is a Thai shop selling this dish, so I always went there to satisfy my craving. Eating pork knuckle is good for me who has joint issue. I want to be your guest, I want to be your guest, haha!

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    1. Jessie, I don't blame you for craving this dish. It was seriously good! You can be my guest anytime!

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  4. Hi Phong Hong
    My eyes glance in a flash while I'm browsing in my reading list blog and saw a pic with some eggs dish, my first instinct is the post must be Phong Hong and it is true! Because I know you love eggs alot.Oh my, I really love, love pork leg....drooling now in fact looking another round of your photos!

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    1. Hah! Hah! Mel, you are so right! Me and eggs are inseparable :) If you love pork leg then you should try this dish. And cook more rice :)

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  5. Now that is so cruel! Look! You've made me drool all over the place! Just found a very very nice Thai place here, nicer than any that I've been to even in KL. I wonder if they cook this. Must KIV - gotta go there again soon, the food's so nice.

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    1. Arthur, didn't realise that it would have such a profound effect on you hee..hee...If the restaurant serves this dish, do try it. If not your missus can cook this at home. Very simple only but very delish!

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  6. My gosh, that is one good looking stew pork. I can eat a whole lot of rice with it :)

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    1. Hi Gertrude! I can eat two plates of rice with lots of the aromatic gravy. With sambal belacan even better!

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  7. This is my kinda dish! LOL! Look at the succulent pork leg! I have always used the coriander roots for other dishes but not this type of tau-yu braised dishes. Must be very fragrant!
    Two bowls of rice, or I could just "rata" the pork leg on its own!
    Am wondering, does the word "rata" is used by Trengganu Nyonyas? meaning, to eat the dish on it's own, without any rice. This is the word, the Malacca Babas and Nyonyas frequently used. I'm just curious! :)

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    1. Hi Joyce! It was so fragrant that it made me so hungry. This recipe is a keeper. Oh yes, we also use the word "rata". Only thing is we pronounce it differently. In Terengganu, instead of "rata" we say "gatoh". And in my family we love to "gatoh" hee..hee...

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  8. oh wow... your stew looks absolutely appetising!

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    1. Thanks, Victoria! It is not good for dieting hee..hee...

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  9. oooo....this is sooo Obscene ....what do you have to do to detox :p

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    1. Cousin, let's just enjoy the "too khar" first! Detox belakang kira :D

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  10. Habislah...someone gonna ask me cook this liao

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    1. Hee..hee...hee...don't worry! It is very easy to cook and good to eat!

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  11. I am a big fan of Thai cooking and my husband loves pork legs which means that maybe it's a good option for both of us?:)

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    1. Ola, I know you love Asian food and this dish is definitely for you!

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  12. So, this is the thai version of tu kha, even the name sounds similar khao kha, wonder if it means the same? Looks delicious!

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    1. There are similarities that I noted like chicken they call it "gai". This tu kha is very, very delicious. I can't wait to cook it again!

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  13. PH, this looks awesome.... love tau yew bak so I am sure I would love this. YUMs.

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    1. Thanks, Yen! Yes, you and your family will love this dish. Guarantee!

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  14. Phong Hong, this is amazing dish!Love the egg and pork meat (but no fats) please!!! hehe...

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  15. I used to love this dish to bits when my MIL cooks them (almost) every weekend because she knows I love it like there's no tomorrow. I tell her I only like fat pieces. But when I was pregnant with my 1st kid, I could not even look at this dish, let alone consuming it. I guess it was becoz of the fats and all. But when I entered into the 3rd trimester, everything went back to normal and I started to fall in love with this again. Until now.

    MIL still cooks it frequently because I only get to eat there once a week. So almost every week, there will be this dish. We call it the "Hakka Lou Chue Yok" (hakka braised meat).. And yes, I can eat up to 4 eggs each time and 2 bowls of gunung rice! I only choose the very very fat ones and I love biting into the fatty skin. Collagen.

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    1. Hi Louiz! Wah, you get to eat this almost every week! That's nice and four eggs at a time? I salute you! I had an ex-colleague who used to bring this dish (cooked by her MIL) in a tiffin carrier to work. She was expecting and gets hungry before the official lunch time. When she is hungry, she just open up her food right at her desk and eat. Everybody in the office will look in her direction and get hungry too. Anyway, I love the fatty skin too and yes, good for our complexion!

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  16. This stew looks delicious and flavourful! I wish I had rice to go with it.

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    1. Hi Mich, please cook extra rice for this stew. It is really appetizing!

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  17. It looks yum must try best eat with hot sambal belachan with young mango

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  18. Yum, I can taste the stickyness of the sauce...another bowl of rice for me please :)

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    1. Hi Vi Vian! Sure, extra bowls of rice all round!

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  19. i'll have the egg not the pork, very fat la.

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    1. Cquek, aiya you don't know how to appreciate the fat!

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  20. wow, finger licking good!!!
    i love it when it melted and literaary shuckaable rather than chewed.....
    great job!

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    1. Thanks, Dentist! Fat tastes so good :)

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  21. Looks good but I also will have the eggs and the meat without the fat. Haha, so wasteful and people who appreciate it will ban me from eating it. :D

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    1. You can always pass the fats to someone who appreciates it!

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  22. Hi Phong Hong,
    Now is lunch time, looking at your pork trotter dish my tummy is rumbling like a drum ... Hahaha
    I wanna be your guest too! My bowl of rice with eggs and fat pork trotter please :p
    mui

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    1. Hi mui mui! Hah! Hah! Glad that you like this fatty but yummy dish!

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  23. HI Phong Hong, Wow, I need extra rice for this. Just the gravy and the eggs itself is already enough to send me asking for 2nd or 3rd round of rice!!! Thanks so much for such a delectable recipe! do have a wonderful day :)

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    1. Hi Ivy! I agree with you that the eggs and gravy alone would make a great meal. I wish that I could eat more rice :)

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  24. hi phong hong, sorry to came by late ..just back from holidays and very happy to see your entry! yes, this is something like our tau yew bak, i made these too, not sure if i hv time to post it up..i'm glad you made this to introduce this dish to our friends and your readers to share it with AFF thai, thx so much for your participation!

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    1. Hi Lena, don't worry about being late! I am finding it hard to catch up with everyone's post. I am glad I tried this recipe. It is so delicious!

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  25. I'm coming late...as well, Phong Hong! It's been quite hectic for the last week for me.
    (car problems, computer tech. issues, and just everyday life!)
    I love your Thai inspired pork stew; in fact love every exotic dish, and wonderful desserts you make:)

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    1. Hi Elisabeth! Better late than never! Thank you for your compliments, you always make my day :)

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  26. I had a similar dish like Tao Yu Bak in Ho Chi Minh too, but I have yet to try Thai version..must find one day try in Thailand..

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    1. Sonia, I hope your next trip to Thailand you get to try the authentic Thai version and let me know how good it is!

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  27. Hi Phong Hong, I think I pass the pig trotter except for the eggs and sauce. LOL

    Have a nice Sunday.

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    1. Amelia, no problems. More trotters for me!

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  28. Hi
    The dish looks delish!
    BTW, what is coriander root? Is it what Chinese call the "wang sui"? How do you use the roots?
    Tks

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    1. Hi Bh Kk! Yes, it is "wang sui" or in Malay it is called "daun ketumbar" or another name is cilantro. To use the roots, simply snip off the roots (and wash it) and pound it as per recipe.

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