I first had this appetizer as street food, near a market in Bangkok. The combination of raw ingredients normally used as flavoring agents for cooked dishes was intriguing and refreshing. The betel leaf used to hold everything together gave an additional bite to the dish. Betel leaves are impossible to find here, but the dish remains delicious with spinach leaves or even lettuce. If you’re not familiar with Thai fish sauce (nam pla), see page 500. You put it all together at the table, so it’s kind of fun. Serve this as the start to any meal featuring other food from Southeast Asia.

　　

Ingredients

makes 4 servings

　　One 1 1/2-inch piece fresh ginger, peeled and chopped

　　1 tablespoon shrimp paste (page 9) or dried bay shrimp

　　1/4 cup palm or brown sugar

　　2 tablespoons nam pla

　　3/4 cup unsweetened shredded coconut

　　1/4 pound medium to large shrimp, peeled

　　4 shallots, minced

　　One 1-inch piece fresh galangal or more ginger, peeled and minced

　　4 fresh chiles, preferably Thai, stemmed, seeded, and minced

　　1 lemongrass stalk, trimmed, smashed, and minced (page 143)

　　1/4 cup chopped roasted peanuts

　　8 betel, spinach, butter, or Bibb lettuce leaves

　　2 limes, cut into wedges

　　

Step 1

Put the first four ingredients and 1/2 cup of the coconut in a blender. Blend until smooth, keeping the blender running and adding just enough water, about 1/2 cup, to produce a saucelike consistency. Set aside.

　　

Step 2

Bring a small pot of water to a boil. Add the shrimp and cook until pink, 2 to 5 minutes. Drain, rinse under cold water, drain again, and chop into small dice.

　　

Step 3

Serve at the table. Each guest should put a bit of the shrimp, shallots, galangal, chiles, lemongrass, peanuts, and remaining coconut in the center of the betel or other leaf. Spoon some of the sauce and squeeze some of the lime onto the filling, wrap loosely, and eat.

　　The Best Recipes in the World by Mark Bittman. © 2005 by Mark Bittman. Published by Broadway Books. All Rights Reserved.MARK BITTMAN is the author of the blockbuster The Best Recipes in the World (Broadway, 2005) and the classic bestseller How to Cook Everything, which has sold more than one million copies. He is also the coauthor, with Jean-Georges Vongerichten, of Simple to Spectacular and Jean-Georges: Cooking at Home with a Four-Star Chef. Mr. Bittman is a prolific writer, makes frequent appearances on radio and television, and is the host of The Best Recipes in the World, a 13-part series on public television. He lives in New York and Connecticut.