Recipe
Saraman Curry (recipe)
Dry-roasted spice and coconut paste pounded with fresh aromatics, then simmered with beef, peanuts and coconut for hours.
This recipe for Saraman Curry, the Cambodian beef curry of roasted spices, coconut and peanuts, follows the version Terence Carter published on Grantourismo.[1] The curry, also called cari Saramann, is Cham rather than Khmer in provenance, and Cambodia's Cham Muslim people consider it their dish.[1] Grantourismo calls it the richest and most complex of the Cambodian curries.[1]
Carter adapted the recipe from Authentic Cambodian Recipes, from Mother to Daughter by Sorey Long and Kanika Linden, and revised it over nearly ten years. The paste is marked by star anise, dry-roasted grated coconut and roasted peanuts. It calls for shrimp paste, as the modern Cambodian cookbooks consulted for the recipe do; some older Cambodian cooks told the authors they use prahok (fermented fish) instead.[1]
Ingredients
For the saraman curry paste (about 150 g):
- 2 tbsp coriander seeds
- 2 tsp cumin seeds
- 3 pieces star anise, lightly cracked
- 4 cloves
- 3 green cardamoms
- 5 cm (2 in) cinnamon stick, broken up
- 2 tsp coarse salt
- 5 dried red chilies, soaked, drained, seeded and chopped
- 4 lemongrass stalks, outer layers removed and very finely chopped
- 5 shallots, peeled and chopped
- 15 cloves garlic, peeled and chopped
- 3 tsp galangal, peeled and chopped
- 1 tsp kaffir lime zest
- 2 tsp shrimp paste
- 1 tsp coriander root, cleaned and chopped
- 0.5 tsp fresh turmeric, peeled and chopped
- 100 g grated coconut, dry roasted[1]
For the curry:
- 150 g saraman curry paste
- 250 ml coconut cream
- 250 ml coconut milk
- 500 g beef fillet, cut into 5 cm (2 in) cubes
- 100 g roasted unsalted peanuts, plus extra to serve
- 1 tbsp palm sugar
- 1 tbsp fish sauce
- 1.5 tbsp tamarind water
- A little vegetable oil
- A couple of lightly crushed bird's eye chilies, optional[1]
Method
The published recipe serves four to six and allows 20 minutes of preparation and two and a half hours of cooking.[1]
- Dry-roast the whole spices over low heat, separately or together.
- Shell the cardamom, discard the pods and grind the roasted spices.
- Add the roasted coconut and pound everything with the fresh aromatics into a fine paste, starting with the hardest ingredient, the lemongrass.
- Roast the shrimp paste in a banana leaf or aluminum foil over low heat and work it into the paste. The paste keeps for a couple of days in the refrigerator and can be frozen.
- Heat a wok over medium heat with a little vegetable oil and a teaspoon of the curry paste. Add the beef cubes and brown them all over, about ten minutes.
- Lift out the beef, lower the heat, and cook the coconut cream with the remaining paste until combined.
- Return the beef, bring the sauce almost to a boil, then simmer for one hour. Add water or stock if the sauce no longer covers the meat.
- Add the palm sugar, fish sauce, tamarind water and peanuts and leave the curry uncovered on a light simmer for a further hour, until the sauce thickens and separates from the oil.
- Keep cooking until the beef is tender, which may take another hour or more depending on the cut. Add the coconut milk gradually as the sauce reduces, and adjust the seasoning with palm sugar or fish sauce.
- Add the crushed bird's eye chilies near the end if using. Garnish with peanuts and serve with steamed rice, pickled vegetables or a baguette.[1]
Served family-style, the curry sits among other dishes such as rice, a soup, vegetables and perhaps a salad.[1]