CURRY FAVOUR:The nation's favourite meal, as voted by viewers of Corrigan Knows Food on RTÉ 1, is Thai green curry. Who would have thought it. Not Paddy Power bookmakers anyhow; the winning dish was backed in from 150/1 to end up a short-priced favourite, leaving Chinese stir-fry; Indian curry; bacon and cabbage; and steak and chips languishing in its wake.
Good news then for the Wexford-based owners of Thai Gold, the new food products sourced, manufactured and packaged in Thailand and distributed on the Irish market by Norman Ruddock, his Thai wife Penn Thaiphithak, and James Brady. The Thai Gold label can be found in supermarkets (Dunnes Stores, Superquinn and some SuperValus), delicatessens and health food shops all over Ireland. The products, which where possible are organic and Fairtrade, embrace just about everything you'll need to make the nation's "favourite" meal, including green curry paste, coconut milk, fish sauce, and both white and brown jasmine rice.
"Jasmine rice is Thailand's gold," says Norman Ruddock. But it seems that we don't treat it with the respect it deserves. "The Irish are a bit afraid of cooking rice. We treat it like spuds and boil it aggressively, whereas it should be gently simmered or steamed. We have a rice cooker and my kids make rice for breakfast, it's that simple." And much healthier than a bowl of sugar-laden cereal, too. (See "I Want One Of Those" for details of a good-value rice cooker).
THAI GOLD GREEN CURRY PASTE (€1.75)The small-sized jar is appealing, as it won't be hanging around the fridge for too long, and the price is extremely competitive. A quick comparison with the tub of Mae Ploy paste in the fridge reveals that in the main the ingredients are the same, although Thai Gold doesn't have any shrimp paste. But once in the pan it becomes clear that Thai Gold is considerably less hot than Mae Ploy, although just as aromatic. "Mae Ploy is a catering brand in Thailand," Ruddock explains. "And anyhow you shouldn't be relying on the paste for heat." Fresh chopped chillies added with the vegetables or sprinkled on the finished curry are the way to get extra heat if you want it. For recipe ideas devised by Penn Thaiphithak see www.thaifood.ie. New Thai Gold products in the pipeline include massaman, Penang and tom yam pastes, and plum sauce.