Khao pad nam prik long ruea

Method

1. 1 Grill the shrimp paste wrapped in aluminum foil for 5 minutes to mellow the fishy smell.
2. 2 Fry the pork belly until crispy, then reserve the rendered fat in the pan.
3. 3 Simmer grilled shrimp paste with palm sugar, tamarind juice, and crushed chili peppers for 8 minutes to make a thick nam prik sauce.
4. 4 The sauce must be thick like soy sauce, not watery; that's what distinguishes nam prik long ruea from regular dipping sauces.
5. 5 Fry leftover rice in lard for 4 minutes, then mix in some of the sauce until the rice turns brown.
6. 6 Arrange the rice with the pork cracklings, fried egg, and mixed vegetables including green papaya and long beans, then set the remaining sauce aside.

With an appliance

• Air fryer 39 min

  Replace step 2: lightly spray oil onto the pork belly and fry in an air fryer at 200 degrees for 10 minutes, flipping at the 6th minute to make it crispy; save the rendered fat to fry the rice in step 5.