“My happiness is being in the kitchen in my free time” said my guest, Supaluck Ongcharoen (Jum).
Please join me in welcoming my first ever guest blogger who has similar life experiences to mine. Born and raised in Thailand, she is an expat in Australia and, most importantly, shares a passion for food and cooking.
Let have a chat and try her chicken mussaman curry recipe – Charinya

Charinya:Please tell us a little bit about yourself.
Suphaluck: My name is Suphaluck Ongcharoen, born in Bangkok. I graduated as Master of Business Administration (Marketing) from Sripathum University, Thailand. I worked in the automotive industry for 10 years. My last position was as import and export manager. After I moved to Sydney in 2012, I was helping my partner to run a yoga studio in Sydney until 2016. We moved to Adelaide in 2017, where I work as a carer in a nursing home. When I have free time, I love cooking and baking in my kitchen, and sharing in social media such as Instagram and Facebook. That is my hobby.

C :What inspired you to create your page “Suphaluck’s Plate “?
S: I wanted to share my food pictures and delicious recipes with people who love food and I would like to learn the food from the people too. I enjoy cooking new recipes, and modifying them so they become foolproof.

C: Name three things you have to use in most recipes?
S: Fish sauce,garlic, oyster sauce.

C: What are your cooking inspirations? A famous chef, your mom, a cookbook, a blog?
S: I got a lot of inspiration from my parents, who were both excellent cooks. I used to work beside my father in his food business, and learned many secrets for creating traditional Thai food. I love spending time in the kitchen. It’s how I relax.

C: What advice would you like to give to people who want to start cooking?
S: I would like to tell everyone that if you want to start cooking you have to ask yourself that what food you like and what dish you would like to cook. What would inspire you to learn about equipment, recipes and ingredients. Follow the recipe first then you can adapt it to suit your taste based on that recipe. Practice is important to improve your dishes. After a while you’ll learn a lot about your stove’s personality. Share your results on social media, and many pages, including mine, are happy to give advice and tips.

C: What is your signature dish and why? Please show us how to make it.
S: I love massaman curry (chicken beef and tofu) It is easy to cook quickly and easy to find the ingredients in the local shops. I like the taste and flavor of massaman curry, the creaminess of the coconut milk and balanced sweet sour and spicy flavours. Massaman curry can be cooked in a slow cooker and in a stove-top pot too.

Recipe of massaman curry chicken

Ingredients

2 cans coconut milk
3 tbsp massaman paste (I use Maesri brand)
500g chicken thighs or beef or drum sticks.
300g potato, peeled, cut into 3cm pieces
1 handful unsalted roasted peanuts
2 tbsp vegetable oil
2 bay leaves
2 tbsp brown sugar
2 tbsp fish sauce
1 tamarind puree
steamed jasmine rice, to serve

Method

1. Heat vegetable oil in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add massaman curry paste, cook and stir for about 2-3 minutes or until aromatic.
2. Add 1 coconut milk and stir until well blended. Add sugar, fish sauce , roasted peanuts, bay leaves and tamarind, bring to a boil.
3. Add onion and chicken then reduce to a simmer. When chicken is white and cooked through, add another can of coconut milk and bring it back to boiling.
4. Add potatoes and stir until everything is well mixed. Cover and simmer for about 15 minutes or until potatoes are soft in the middle.
5. Serve hot over steamed jasmine rice.

Check out Suphaluck’s awesome work here:
Facebook page: https://facebook.com/Jumskitchen/
Facebook group: https://facebook.com/groups/914129041977466
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/suphalucksplate