Inauthentic Thai & Ramps

Spring finally seems to have arrived for real in the Frozen North (despite the snow last weekend)*. I’ve been to the Public Market twice now, and although the local produce is still curled up in its vegetable beds, the ramps are out. I can’t remember where I first read about ramps, but this is the first place I’ve lived where I can actually buy them. They smell super-garlicky, but they taste much milder depending on how they’re cooked.

Normally, I steam and saute ramps** and eat them with pasta. However, this week was playing peekaboo with Spring, and so I wanted to try something a bit more substantial. I’ve seen a couple of recipes for Thai green curries with greens (of the kale-esque sort), so I thought ramps might be an interesting experiment. Let me echo the disclaimer of the title: this dish is in no way authentic, and I’m no expert.

Inauthentic Thai Ramp Green Curry

ramps (the equivalent of 3 generous bunches of spring onions)
4 fist-sized purple eggplants
Thai green curry paste***
1 14oz can coconut milk
Thai fish sauce, to taste
brown sugar, to taste

1. Wash ramps. Because most ramps are foraged, they can be (gasp!) very dirty. Soak root ends in a couple changes of cold water, allowing dirt to settle between changes. Trim roots and rinse once more. Once ramps have dripped dry, cut leaves into 2″ ribbons, leaving the bulb ends whole.
2. Slice eggplants into halfmoons about 1/2″ thick. Heat vegetable oil in large frying pan until shimmers. Add eggplants and fry until golden and soft. Set aside.
3. Wipe pan out to get rid of excess oil. Return to heat. Add about a quarter cup of coconut milk to the pan and then add the green curry paste. (You may need to add a bit more coconut milk if it all boils off.) Mix the coconut milk and curry paste to make a thick slurry. Cook a bit (1-2 minutes) to release flavor.
4. Add the ramp bulbs and saute a few more minutes. Add eggplants, the ramp leaves and the rest of the coconut milk. Bring to a gentle simmer, cover and let cook until ramp leaves are tender.
5. Add about a tablespoon of Thai fish sauce and about a tablespoon and a half of brown sugar. Start with these amounts and adjust to taste. The fish sauce will give the curry a salty, earthy grounding, and the brown sugar will add a balancing note of sweetness. (If you’re sharing your meal with vegetarians [as I was this time], you can bring the fish sauce and sugar to the table and let everyone doctor their own.)

Serve with jasmine rice or thick rice noodles, along with slices of lime.

*This is now a couple of weeks ago. The post mysteriously got lost, and I was too lazy to rewrite it. But then I found it again! Yay!
** I don’t know if this is a recognized technique. Generally, I started by sauteing [whatever– ramps, brussel sprouts, etc] in a bit of oil. After a couple of minutes, I add about a quarter cup of water and cover, effectively steaming [whatever]. Once the [whatever] is to its desired state of crispiness/tenderness, I remove the lid, allow the liquid to boil off and some browning to occur. Like I said, I suspect a less lazy person might separate this into two pots: blanch, saute.
**There are so many different brands of green curry paste available– from the local supermarket generic brand to the Asian market imported– and they all vary so widely in strength/heat, that it’s impossible to really give an accurate amount here. Some pastes you only need a teaspoon of to produce a sweat-inducing, lip-numbing sauce; others, you’ll need half the (small) bottle. Experiment with some varieties until you find one you like. Alternately, you can grow your own lemongrass and make your own.