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1
Place the fish fillets in a food processor and process to a smooth, extremely fine paste — no visible flakes or lumps should remain. The paste at this stage will be soft and show no elasticity; this is the necessary starting point before the real working begins in the next step.
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2
Add the red curry paste, fish sauce, egg, and sugar to the processor and continue to process for 3–4 full minutes without pause, so the fish paste builds the dense, sticky cohesion that gives the cakes their characteristic bounce — the mixture must become extremely sticky and begin to pull away from the bowl. This is where the dish lives or dies: to test, take a small amount of paste between thumb and forefinger and pull apart slowly — correctly worked paste stretches 2–3 cm before tearing cleanly, with the elastic resistance of soft mozzarella, while under-worked paste tears immediately with no stretch and must be returned to the processor.
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3
Transfer the paste to a bowl, add the chiffonaded kaffir lime leaves and sliced long beans, and fold in by hand until evenly distributed, so the leaves and beans remain in distinct pieces rather than being pulverised into the paste. Do not return the mixture to the processor.
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4
With wet hands — so the paste releases cleanly rather than tearing against dry skin — form the mixture into patties approximately 5 cm in diameter and 1 cm thick; the paste should hold its shape without cracking at the edges. The patties may be covered and refrigerated for up to 24 hours at this stage, which allows the gel network to tighten further and gives a noticeably firmer, springier result after frying.
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5
Combine all dipping sauce ingredients — sweet chilli sauce, diced cucumber, shallots, ground roasted peanuts, lime juice, fish sauce, and palm sugar — and stir until the sugar is dissolved. The balance of sweet, sour, and salt should be distinct, with the cool cucumber evident against the sauce's body.
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6
Heat the neutral oil to 175 °C in a suitable deep vessel, then lower the patties in batches without crowding, so each cake is surrounded by actively bubbling oil rather than sitting in oil whose temperature has dropped. A vigorous, consistent sizzle should establish immediately and hold throughout the 3–4 minute frying time; as the cakes approach correct colour, the sizzle moderates perceptibly as interior moisture reduces.
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7
Fry for 3–4 minutes until the exterior is deeply golden brown, then lift and drain briefly. The interior should offer a spring-and-release on the first bite — initial resistance, then a clean yield — with the aromatics of the curry paste releasing in the moment of yielding; a flat, soft result without spring indicates under-processed paste, while a hard, dry interior indicates over-frying.