Nam Prik Ong (Northern Pork & Tomato Chilli Dip)
A mild, meaty dip of minced pork and tomatoes cooked with a dried chilli paste, eaten with crunchy raw vegetables and sticky rice.
- Region
- Northern Thailand
- Condiments
- Fish Sauce, Shrimp Paste, Palm Sugar
- Vegetables
- Yard-long Beans, Thai Shallots, Garlic, Dried Red Chillies, Coriander Leaves
Ingredients
- Paste: 6 dried long red chillies, deseeded, soaked and chopped
- Paste: 5 small shallots and 6 cloves garlic, chopped
- Paste: 1 tsp shrimp paste and ½ tsp salt
- 2 tbsp neutral oil
- 250 g minced pork
- 300 g cherry tomatoes, halved
- 1 tbsp fish sauce
- 1 tsp palm sugar
- 2 spring onions and a small handful of coriander, chopped
- To serve: cucumber, long beans, cabbage, pork crackling and sticky rice
Instructions
Nam prik ong looks like a Thai bolognese: minced pork and tomatoes cooked down with a red chilli paste into a thick, mild, slightly sweet dip. It is the friendliest of the northern chilli dips and a favourite with children, served with a big plate of crunchy raw vegetables.
Method
- Pound or blend the paste ingredients to a fairly smooth paste.
- Heat the oil in a wok or frying pan over medium heat and fry the paste for 2–3 minutes until fragrant and darker.
- Add the pork and break it up, stirring, for 3–4 minutes until it is no longer pink.
- Add the tomatoes and a splash of water. Simmer, stirring and pressing the tomatoes, for 10–12 minutes until they break down into a thick, rich sauce.
- Season with fish sauce and palm sugar. It should be savoury, slightly sweet and gently hot. Stir in the spring onions and coriander.
- Serve warm or at room temperature, with raw vegetables for scooping, pork crackling and sticky rice.
Cook’s tips
- In the north, a disc of fermented soybean (thua nao) is often pounded into the paste. A teaspoon of miso gives a similar depth.
- It keeps for 3 days in the fridge and is also good spooned over rice.
Aroy Mak Mak
Aroy Mak Mak is a small team writing about the food of Thailand and its neighbours: recipes you can cook at home, guides to the ingredients behind them, and places worth travelling for. The name means "very delicious" in Thai. Every recipe on the site lists its ingredients, timings and method in full, explains the techniques that matter, and suggests substitutes for ingredients that are hard to find outside Thailand. The guides to regions, condiments, vegetables and fruits explain what things are, how they are used and how to buy and store them. Place pages are researched from current sources, including the latest Michelin Guide Thailand, official websites and maps, and give addresses, opening hours and what to order. Where a detail could not be confirmed, it is left out rather than guessed.