Thai food recipes: Aubergine salad with spicy coconut cream dressing

The humble coconut has always played an important role for the people of Ko Samui. Before the advent of tourism, it was coconut production which was the main revenue earner for the island. And today, coconut farming remains an integral part of life on Ko Samui. Coconuts are commonly used in Thai cooking and from his travels to Samui and Southern Thailand, Thai chef Nawamin Pinpathomrat, aka Dr Boss, brings you this delicious aubergine salad recipe with a spicy coconut cream dressing and Thai herbs. For more Thailand travel and food inspiration from Dr Boss, follow our Master Chef Turns Master Tour Guide series.

Ingredients

For the aubergine

• 2 aubergines (around 400-500g)
• 3 tbs of olive oil 
• 1 tbs of sea salt flakes

For the spicy salad dressing

• 3 tbs of chilli jam
• 3 fresh limes
• 3 tbs of good fish sauce 
• 2 tsp of caster sugar
• 3 tbs of coconut milk (a can of coconut milk)

Garnishes 

• 100g of roasted cashew nuts 
• 10g of fresh coriander
• 10g of fresh Thai basil
• 10g of fresh mint
• 2 stems of fresh lemongrass (need to be fresh)
• 1 shallot
• 3 fresh kaffir lime leaves (fresh is ideal, but frozen is OK)
• 10g of red chillies (2 chillies) 

Method

For the aubergines

• Cut off the top and the bottom of aubergines
• Vertically (from top to bottom) slice the aubergines around 1 cm thick
• Line the baking trays with cooking foil 
• Drizzle olive oil on the foil before lining with the sliced aubergines
• Season with salt and drizzle some olive oil again on the top of aubergines 
• Grill the aubergines in the oven at grill mode 240 C for 8-10 min until they are slightly burnt 

For the spicy salad dressing

• Juice the limes
• Add 3 tbs each of lime juice, fish sauce, coconut milk and 1 tbs of caster sugar to a big bowl, then mix 
• Add the chilli jam to the mixture 
• Mix and taste the dressing

To serve

• Mix the grilled aubergines with the spicy dressing
• Top the salad with the toasted cashew nuts 
• Decorate on the top with all herbs to garnish

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Follow the adventures of Dr Boss on his travels around Thailand on the Fan Club Thailand Facebook and Instagram channels.

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