Moo Pad Med Mamuang Himmaparn (Pork fried with cashew nuts)

I love the Thai name for cashew nuts- mamuang = mango, himmaparn = paradise. Mangoes from paradise! How did we end up with that? It’s not a healthy dish as the pork is deep fried, in fact it’s very much like a something you’d get from a Chinese takeaway, from where this dish originates. I remember eating this stir fry on the night train from Bangkok to Chiang Mai back in 2006. Along with traders hopping on and off the trains to try and sell you snacks, there’s also a kitchen car on board and at some point in the journey a man will come round with a laminated menu, you pick what you want and some hours later at dinner time, your styrofoam box arrives with your order…

For 3 portions use:

• 300g of lean pork, cut into small chunks


• a small handful of green beans, chopped into inch pieces


• 1 small onion, cut into big pieces


• 4 dried red chillies


• a big handful of unsalted cashews


• 3 spring onions, cut into inch long pieces


• 4 cloves garlic, finely chopped


• 1 cup plain flour


• a big splash of soy sauce


• a big splash of oyster sauce


• a small splash of dark soy sauce


• a small splash of sesame oil


• a small splash of fish sauce


• a pinch of sugar


• vegetable oil for deep frying/ frying

Start by heating some oil in a frying pan. Throw in the dried red chillies and heat on high, the chillies will turn darker, but don’t let them burn. After 30 seconds, take them out and drain on kitchen paper. Keep the oil on and now fry the cashew nuts, this will take about 2 minutes, keep them moving and again, don’t let them burn but let them take on some colour. Spoon out and drain on kitchen paper. Put the flour in a bowl or clean plastic bag and add all the pork, shaking it about so it’s fully coated in flour. 

In a deep pan or wok, heat enough oil up to deep fry. When it’s very hot, add the pork, shaking off the extra flour. Do it in batches if you need to and deep fry until crispy for about 3-4 minutes. Once again, when all the pork is fried, put it into kitchen paper to drain.

Back to the frying pan, and add a little bit more oil if it needs it. Start by frying the onions, let them get a bit of char, after 2/3 mins add in the garlic and green beans. Fry for 2 more mins and now throw in the cooked pork and spring onions. Cook for 2 more minutes and add the cashews and chillies, stir for a minute or so more before adding in all the sauces and seasoning. Just a few more minutes of stir frying and it’s ready to eat!