East Asian food is hot right now, thanks in part to the UK s flourishing street fo od movement.

Exotic creations from Taiwan, Korea, Malaysia and even regional Chi na (forget flavours adapted to Western tastes, we re all about authenticity now), have lured us away from south-east Asian flavours. But no matter how novel the l ikes of a pillowy gua bao or a sour asam laksa, I will never tire of the sea of spices and coconut that is a humble Thai green curry. Nigel Slater s green curry of prawns and Thai aubergines looks soothingly aromatic in The Kitchen Diaries, so I start my search for the ultimate recipe there. Mos t green curry paste recipes include green chillies, lemongrass, kaffir lime leav es, coriander, garlic coconut milk and ginger. Slater does too, specifying bird s eye chillies. But where others recommend anything up to 800ml of the rich milk, he pours in just 250ml. The food writer s garnish is also original it s a verdant garden of lime, basil, min t and coriander leaves that makes his curry particularly fresh. I love it althou gh I m not convinced by the small milk proportion. My version of his dish radiates beautiful, intense flavours but is a little dry. Rick Stein s recipe from The Poj Spa ever realised pepper was significant ercorns (Slater includes 2tbsp green green ones dried in the sun but they Kar Restaurant in Bangkok is interesting. I n in this curry but Stein adds ten black pepp peppercorns). Black peppercorns are simply tend to be more pungent and complex.

The peppercorns give both Slater and Stein s curries an exciting and distinctive h ot and numbing spiciness. I ll be opting for piquant black ones in my final recipe . An unusual ingredient worth considering is turmeric root, a knobbly cousin to gi nger and galangal. Nooror Somany Steppe, the doyenne of Thai royal cooking of th e Blue Elephant Cookery School in Bangkok, put me on to the use of this member o f the rhizome family in Thai cuisine when I had lessons with her. I include some when I try the green curry recipe from blueelephant.com. It imparts a slightly bitter earthiness, balancing the coconut s sweetness, and is a serious contender. But for me, there s one last must-have ingredient shrimp paste. Some of us are fun ny about fermented fish but I don t make a Thai dish without it. It s a brilliant fl avour enhancer and works a little like anchovies melted with lamb. There s no hard core fishiness in the final result, just a vital umami richiness. Now, how to make the paste? The serious curry cognoscenti recommend doing it by hand with a pestle and mortar. So is blending cheating? The flavours aren t obviou sly affected unless your blender is so ancient it heats up while blitzing. But t here is something engaging about working directly with your ingredients so I und erstand why purists like it. The outcome of your dish will also be affected by the order in which you cook yo ur ingredients. Instead of searing the meat first, blueelephant.com instructs me to pop the chicken straight into the coconut milk followed by pea aubergines, s ugar, fish sauce, kaffir lime, basil leaves and chilli. It is a breakthrough. I wish I understood the science behind it but the coconut milk tenderises the chic ken, making it seductively succulent. Some recipes add stock. Atul Kochhar s dish from Curries Of The World (taught to h im by Thai culinary guru David Thompson) includes 300ml stock with 500ml coconut milk. The flavours are vibrant but it s almost a soup and not what I am yearning for. Interestingly, none of the British chef s formulas apart from Stein s Bangkok s feast include sugar, yet the Thai ones do. A pinch of sugar transforms the spicy broth

, so it s making my final cut. Chloe s recipe Ingredients (serves 2-3) 3-4 free-range chicken thighs, boneless and cut into 2.5cm pieces 180g baby aubergines, chopped or Thai pea aubergines 500-600ml coconut milk 1tbsp fish sauce 2tsp level sugar 1tsp fresh coriander seeds, ground 1tsp fresh cumin seeds, ground 2 kaffir lime leaves, shredded Paste: 3 lemongrass stalks, chopped 3 hot green chillies, chopped 3 kaffir lime leaves, shredded 6-8 garlic cloves, chopped 2 shallots, chopped 10 black peppercorns 1tsp shrimp paste or 1tbsp dried shrimps in 20ml water 5cm ginger, peeled and chopped 1tsp chopped fresh turmeric root or tsp ground turmeric 1 large handful fresh coriander leaves tsp salt 20-40ml water Garnish: 1 handful Thai basil leaves, torn into pieces 1 handful coriander leaves, chopped extra red and green chillies Method: Step 1 Pop all the paste ingredients in the blender and blitz or pound t ogether in a large pestle and mortar. You will need to add 20-40ml water to help turn it into a smooth paste. If you re rehydrating dried shrimps, reuse that wate r for extra flavour. Set aside. Step 2 On medium heat, heat 20ml vegetable oil in a wok or deep frying pan until hot. Add the ground coriander and cumin and fry for 1min. Then add the paste. S tir-fry for 2min until it is aromatic. Step 3 Lower the heat and pour in the coconut milk a little at a time until it i s all added. Allow this to simmer for 2min, stir in the chicken pieces and auber gine. Simmer until the chicken is cooked through and the aubergine soft they tak e about 15min and should be ready at the same time. Season with the fish sauce, sugar and shredded kaffir lime leaves. Try a spoonful and add salt and pepper if needed. Step 4 Garnish with finely sliced chillies and the fresh herbs, finely chopped. Serve with rice