Gaeng Tai Pla — Fermented Fish Entrail Curry / แกงไตปลา

Ingredients

• 150 g tai pla, fermented fish entrails, jarred; taste before using and adjust all other seasoning accordingly
• 1 litre water
• 8–12 dried red chillies, soaked and roughly chopped
• 3 stalks lemongrass, tough outer leaves removed, thinly sliced
• 30 g galangal, peeled and sliced
• 200 g bamboo shoots, canned; drained and rinsed thoroughly under cold water in multiple changes
• 1 tbsp fish sauce, use with restraint; tai pla is extremely salty

Method

1. 1
   Drain and rinse the canned bamboo shoots under cold running water in at least three changes of water, so the tinned liquor — which carries a metallic, sour edge — is fully flushed away and the shoots arrive in the pot tasting of themselves alone. Set aside; they must smell clean and neutral, with no trace of tin.
2. 2
   Pound or blend the dried chillies, lemongrass, and galangal to a rough paste, working the fibrous lemongrass and galangal thoroughly so they release their oils into the chilli mass rather than sitting as dry threads in the finished broth. The paste should be cohesive and deeply fragrant — the raw heat of the chilli and the sharp citrus of the lemongrass should be clearly present on the nose.
3. 3
   Bring the water to a boil in a wide pot, then stir in the paste and simmer for five minutes so the aromatics open fully into the liquid and colour it throughout. The water should be visibly red-orange and fragrant before you move on.
4. 4
   Add the tai pla and stir well, allowing the broth to return to a steady simmer. The fermented entrail character must be present in full — do not reduce the quantity in the hope of tempering it, because the funk and salinity of the tai pla are the dish's spine, and without them the broth reads as nothing more than a thin chilli soup. The kitchen will fill immediately with a funky, saline, deeply marine aroma; this is correct.
5. 5
   Add the rinsed bamboo shoots and simmer for ten to fifteen minutes, so the shoots draw the broth into their fibres and lose the last of their raw crunch, becoming tender throughout when pressed between two fingers. They should taste of the curry, not of themselves.
6. 6
   Taste the broth before reaching for the fish sauce, because the tai pla will almost certainly have provided sufficient salt and a second heavy hand will tip the balance past seasoning into brine. Add fish sauce only if the broth reads flat rather than salty — a small addition corrects balance without compounding the sodium. The finished broth should be thin, deeply savoury, sour, and intensely funky.