In northern Thailand, there’s probably no more prized seasonal ingredient than khai mot daeng, the eggs of a type of red ant. Visit any market in the region from February to May, and you’ll inevitably encounter vendors selling small plates piled with the delicate white pills. But the eggs, which are only available in the wild, typically in nests found high in trees, are notoriously difficult to gather.
“You have to see which way the wind is blowing,” explains Thongphian Pana, member of a ladies’ agricultural collective in the village of Ban Hat Pha Khon, in Nan, and the source of this recipe. “Otherwise the ants will fall on you and bite!”
Thongphian adds that stinging ant urine is another unpleasant obstacle to gathering the eggs, which is done by prying the nest loose with a long bamboo pole before knocking it into a basket. Yet despite all the fuss, even northern Thais will begrudgingly admit that ant eggs have relatively little flavor.
Instead, what draws northerners to the eggs is their poppy, crunchy mouthfeel. They’re typically served in a soup along with phak waan, the pale green, glossy, tender, subtly sweet (the name translates as ‘sweet vegetable’) and similarly crunchy leaves of a tree with no English name. Phak waan is also only available during a short window in the dry season, and both it and the ant eggs have a subtly unctuous flavor that Thais call man, but it’s no understatement to say that this highly seasonal soup is all about the texture.
Kaeng Phak Waan Sai Khai Mot
แกงผักหวานใส่ไข่มด
A soup of red ant eggs and phak waan
Serves 4
Ingredients
For the Curry Paste
1 stalk lemongrass (approximately 25 grams), exterior layer and upper green section discarded, lower pale section sliced thinly
1 teaspoon salt
8 medium fresh green chilies (approximately 8 grams total)
3 shallots (approximately 25 grams total), peeled and sliced
4 small cloves garlic (approximately 4 grams total)
1 teaspoon shrimp paste
For the Soup
100 grams phak waan
100 grams ant eggs
½ teaspoon sugar
2 medium tomatoes (approximately 200 grams total), cut into eighths
Thai Kitchen Tools
granite mortar and pestle
Procedure
Prepare the curry paste: To a mortar and pestle, add the lemongrass and salt. Pound and grind to a coarse paste. Add the chilies, pound and grind to a coarse paste. Add the shallots and garlic, pound and grind to a coarse paste. Add the shrimp paste, pound and grind to a fine paste.
Prepare the soup: Remove and discard the thick, woody stems from the phak waan. Rinse the ant eggs in water several times to remove the starchy coating, if present, and any ants. To a medium-sized saucepan over medium-high heat, add 1 quart of water. Bring to a rapid simmer and add the curry paste and sugar. When the soup reaches a rapid simmer again, add the ant eggs. Bring to a rapid simmer again and add the tomatoes. Bring to a simmer and add the phak waan. Bring to a simmer and taste, adjusting seasoning, if necessary; the kaeng phak waan sai khai mot should taste slightly spicy, and the phak waan and ant eggs should provide a crunchy texture.
Remove to a serving bowl and serve hot, with sticky rice, as part of a northern Thai meal.