Tom kha pasta bake

This tom kha pasta bake represents another bash at Thai-Italian culinary fusion, inspired by a cookbook I picked up on my most recent trip to Thailand.

"Italian with Thai flavours" is the rough translation of the title. My curiosity piqued, both by the book's contents and by how many Italians it would probably offend (at least I've yet to find any mentions of pineapple), I made a beeline for the checkout. Of the many recipes I later bookmarked to veganise, the tom kha macaroni was one of the first to catch my eye. The original uses bucatini, chicken, and confusing instructions. This tom kha pasta bake is my simplified take, made without animals.

I anticipated intriguing ideas on the pages of the cookbook for a few reasons.

One of my go to dinners when I'm staying around Sukhumvit in Bangkok is from Talalaks: spaghetti stir fried with chunky and crunchy vegetables, chillies, and salted faux fish. They also sell both green curry and pad kee mao (drunken noodles) with spaghetti as the main component. A memorable Isaan spaghetti, with spicy tomato sauce and sai krok (fermented sausages), once featured on Vistro's menu. Tom yum macaroni cheese has been having a moment for the past few years, with vegan options available from both Veganerie and Nature's Charm. Pad macaroni has long been a household favourite. In other words Thais have already integrated pasta into their own culinary canon, and with excellent results.

Another reason I was inclined toward confidence in the book's concept: a few of you may recall the Ithailian (our corny compounding of Italian + Thai) supper club menu I put together several years ago with Emilia Leese, an Italian friend and author of the brilliant book Think Like a Vegan. We served bagna lon, in which we included the classic Piedmontese dish bagna càuda made with vegan pla ra (fermented fish paste) alongside the Thai coconut relish lon. Other dishes included butter bean lap with olive oil, nam prik on(g) crostini, and chilli jam tamarind glazed fried tofu with polenta and salted coconut cream.

The long and short of it is I've already had experience with Thai and Italian cuisines playing well together, and was excited to see a volume dedicated to this particular hybrid of foods. I look forward to veganising more of its contents, but for now I hope you'll try and enjoy this tom kha pasta bake. And in case anyone is curious, the cheese I used was the mozzarella from The Vegan Creamery by Miyoko Schinner.

Tom kha pasta bake

This Thai fusion pasta bake combines the creamy coconut and aromatics of tom kha with the comfort of a bubbling cheesy casserole. Most short pasta shapes will suffice.

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Ingredients Method Notes

Ingredients

  

• 160 grams dried pasta
• 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
• 1 ½ packed tablespoons minced lemongrass cut from the lower â…" of the stem
• ½ packed tablespoon packed tablespoon finely minced fresh galangal
• ½ packed tablespoon finely minced makrut lime leaf
• 1 tablespoon all purpose flour
• 2 cups crumbled extra firm tofu see notes
• 180 millilitres full fat coconut milk (â…" cup + 4 teaspoons)
• 1 tablespoon thin soy sauce
• 2 teaspoons fresh lime juice
• 1 teaspoon granulated sugar
• ½ teaspoon mushroom seasoning powder
• 1-1 ½ cups shredded vegan mozzarella
• Spring onions, coriander, and/or sliced chillies for topping (optional)

Method

 

Cook the pasta

1. Preheat your fan (convection) oven to 180°C (350°F). If you don’t have a fan, preheat to 200°C (390°F).
2. Bring a pot of 1% salted water to the boil. That’s 10 grams of salt (about 1 rounded teaspoon) per 1 litre water.
3. Cook the pasta until it’s 1-2 minutes shy of al dente (it will finish cooking in the oven). Drain (don’t rinse).

While the pasta is cooking, make the sauce

1. In a wok or large skillet, heat the oil over medium-low heat. Add the lemongrass, galangal, and lime leaf. Fry for 1-2 minutes until fragrant.
2. Add the flour and stir continuously for 1-2 minutes, forming a clumpy paste.
3. Pour in the coconut milk, stirring constantly to dissolve the paste. Stir in the soy sauce, lime juice, sugar, and mushroom seasoning, followed by the crumbled tofu.
4. Remove the skillet or wok from the heat and add the drained pasta, stirring thoroughly until evenly coated with the sauce.

Assemble and bake

1. Transfer the mixture to an oven safe baking dish and sprinkle evenly with the cheese. Cover the dish with aluminium foil and bake for 20-25 minutes, until the cheese is melted.
2. Remove the foil and bake for an additional 5-10 minutes, until the top is golden and bubbly. Alternatively, switch the oven to grill/broil and place the uncovered dish underneath for a few minutes, watching closely to avoid burning.

Serve

1. Sprinkle spring onion, coriander, and chillis (if using) on top to serve.

Notes

Two cups of the tofu brand I use for this recipe (Tofoo) equates to 250 grams, but I've opted to provide this measure by volume; tofu densities vary, so in this case a cup measurement gives a more consistent quantity than weight.