Posted on 12th Jul 2025

Gaeng Hung Lay

A rich Northern Thai curry made with tender pork, ginger, garlic, and warm spices, no coconut milk, just deep, savory-sweet flavor with a tangy kick.

Cuisine

Time

2 hours mins

Servings

2 people

Ingredients

10 dried chilli, soaked (deseeded if you want it less spicy)
25g galangal
2 stalks of lemongrass
25g ginger
2 garlic cloves
5 thai shallots
1 tsp of tumeric
2 tbsp of garam masala

For the curry
250g pork belly, blanched to remove impurities, cut into large chunks.
(You can use pork ribs as well in the curry if you like, just cut into small pieces)
5 garlic cloves, peeled, whole
8 thai shallots, peeled, whole
300ml stock or water

Seasoning
1-2 tbsp fish sauce
1-2 tsp of palm sugar
1 tbsp tamarind puree

50g fresh ginger, julienned and soaked in cold water, for garnish.

Method

To start, finely chop the curry paste ingredients and then use a pestle and mortar to pound them into a smooth paste. It is a good idea to introduce the ingredients one at a time, starting with the harder aromatics like dried chilli, lemongrass, galangal and then moving onto the ginger, turmeric, garlic, and shallots. This staggered approach will mean that you get to a paste much quicker. Once you have a smooth paste, add the garam masala and mix it well.

(Tip: adding a tsp of salt to the pestle before you start will help to break down the ingredients, the salt acts as an abrasive and also helps to draw the moisture out of the ingredients.)

Alternatively, you can use a food processor to make your paste, but you may find that you need to add a bit of water to help it come together into a paste.