INGREDIENTS

INSTRUCTIONS

This is a hot a spicy soup, part of a tradition of what might be
called "poacher's food" if they originated in the British  countryside,
though the term might be misunderstood here in Thailand:  specifically
a hearty simple production using "game" style animals,  such as wild
pig or venisen, as well as fish, and "free range"  poultry, as well as
game birds such as pheasant.  This dish is made from pork. Recent
monsoonal floods had made some  wild pigs a nuisance on a friends farm,
and the result was three  "suckling pigs" as well as an adult boar and
sow, neatly dressed out  and looking for a recipe. This then is my
wife's version of moo maw  fai, or pork hotpot.  It is prepared using a
"Mongolian Fire Pot" - the sort of soup heater  with a central funnel
that traditionally sits on charcoal, but today  is often gas fired. You
could also use a european style fondue set.  The pork is pre-cooked,
but diners may drop pieces into the hot  liquor to warm them, as well
as absorbing the flavour of the stock,  and usually ingredients are
either simply thrown into the pot and  then scooped out when cooked, or
placed in small bronze-wire baskets  and dipped in the steaming stock.
The eggplants should be either the pea sized makheua phuang or the
golf ball sized makheua pro, which are usually quartered. If Thai egg
plants are not available then use a purple aubergine, and carve ball
shaped pieces from it with a melon baller.  This traditional
preparation uses pig fat as the cooking oil for the  meat. If you
prefer you can omit the belly pork, increasing the  amount of
tenderloin, and frying it in vegetable oil or groundnut  oil. However
this traditional variant gives a fuller and richer  flavour.  METHOD:
trim the liver, kidneys, and tenderloin to bite sized pieces,
discarding the hard core of the kidneys. Carefully slice of the outer
layer of fat and skin from the belly pork, and dice it, then dice the
remaining belly pork.  In a wok, over medium heat, stir fry the pieces
of belly pork skin  with fat attached, until the fat begins to render
freely to form a  pool of oil in the bottom of the wok. Now add the
rest of the belly  pork and stir fry with the heat as high as possible
(bearing in mind  that pig fat smokes at a low temperature, so be
careful), to make the  meat and skin well cooked, and crispy, then
using a slotted spoon or  wok strainer, remove the meat and skin, and
place it on kitchen  towels to drain.  Sautee the shallots and garlic,
until golden and crispy. Remove,  drain and reserve.  (Continued in
part 2).

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