Recipe: Miriam Al-Noah’s Thai Prawn Laksa Packs a Midweek Punch

Weeknight cooking can take some of the joy out of the kitchen. At times, you might be lacking inspiration or feel rushed – particularly if you’re entertaining guests. But if you’re looking for a midweek pick-me-up that’s great for entertaining or meal prep, all you need is a jar of Valcom’s premium curry paste and some Thai aromatics.

We’ve got an easy recipe straight from Miriam Al-Noah (aka @mealswithmim), who has always had a passion for cooking. What began as cooking online with friends during lockdown has evolved into a popular Instagram page sharing simple, ingredient-focused recipes that are easy to recreate at home, as well as cooking collaborations and a successful side-hustle in catering and recipe development to supplement her marketing career.

Thai prawn laksa is one of her favourite dishes to cook for midweek get-togethers or as something fun to make solo.

“I’m always experimenting in the kitchen and typically I’ll use Valcom for my Thai curries,” Al-Noah says. “This dish is a great way to use curry paste in a different way, and it’s much more convenient on a weeknight, or when you’re entertaining, to go for a paste that’s partly ready-made.”

Unlike Malaysian, Singaporean or Indonesian variants, this laksa uses Thai aromatics and ingredients like lemongrass, makrut lime leaves, fish sauce (“it makes such a difference to this recipe – don’t skip it, even if you’re not the biggest fan”), and fresh coriander and mint. It helps that Valcom’s Thai red curry paste is also made using other staples of the cuisine, like shallots, galangal and shrimp paste (the latter is particularly hard to find in other supermarket pastes, but it’s a crucial Thai ingredient).

Al-Noah likes to fry the red curry paste at the start, along with other ingredients, to release more of the aromas, though it’s flavourful enough that you don’t even need to.

“Typically, you’ll wait for the oil to heat up before you add ingredients. For this recipe, I like to add the ginger in with the cold oil and let it heat up slowly to prevent it from burning. The same goes with the [lemongrass], and even curry paste – though some people prefer the flavour you get from adding it late.”

Her preference is to use Japanese or Kent pumpkins, as they hold their shape better in the soup. “When you’re choosing one, look for a smaller, organic pumpkin. Large ones are eye-catching but the smaller pumpkins tend to be more flavourful.”

If you’re serving the dish to guests, she also recommends keeping the prawn tails on for bonus presentation points, and to plate it in a big, deep bowl so it stays warmer for longer. And if you’ve got extra aromatics on hand, you can use them in a drink to tie all the flavours together.

“I’ll often use the leftover [makrut] lime and leaves to make a spritz or a gin and tonic on the side,” Al-Noah says. “It pairs really nicely with the laksa and it’s fun to sip on while you’re cooking.”

Miriam Al-Noah’s Thai prawn laksa

Serves 4
Preparation time: 15 minutes
Cooking time: 35 minutes

Ingredients

2 tbsp coconut oil or vegetable oil
4–7 tbsp Valcom Red Curry Paste
1 tbsp finely minced lemongrass
2 tsp fresh ginger, finely grated
400ml coconut milk
4 makrut lime leaves
300g pumpkin, peeled and cut into 2cm cubes
1 cup chicken bone broth
150g snow peas or green beans, trimmed and cut into bite-sized pieces
250–300g thick rice noodles (or noodles of choice)
2 tbsp fish sauce
1 tbsp honey
600g raw prawns, peeled and deveined
Juice of 1 makrut lime
1 cup bean sprouts
2 large handfuls fresh coriander leaves
2 large handfuls fresh mint leaves
1 makrut lime, cut into wedges, to serve

Method

Place oil, Valcom Red Curry Paste, lemongrass and ginger together in a large wok or saucepan, then turn heat on to medium. Cook for up to 2 minutes until fragrant, stirring constantly.

Pour in coconut milk and add makrut lime leaves. Bring to a gentle simmer.

Add cubed pumpkin to your saucepan and cook for 10–12 minutes until almost tender.

Add chicken broth and snow peas (or green beans). Simmer for a further 5–7 minutes until the pumpkin is soft and the peas are tender-crisp.

While your pan is simmering, cook noodles to packet instructions. Drain and divide between 4 serving bowls.

Add fish sauce and honey to your broth. If it’s becoming too thick, add extra chicken broth or water.

Add prawns and cook for 2–3 minutes. You want to remove your pan from the heat as soon as the prawns turn pink. Stir through some lime juice.

Ladle the curry broth, prawns and vegetables over your noodles.

Top with bean sprouts, coriander and mint. Serve with lime wedges on the side.

This article is produced by Broadsheet in partnership with Valcom.