If you ever sit in an Isan Street stall you may wonder what’s the smoky smell, the answer is grilled pork neck it’s one of the food Thai people always order when they go to Isan Street stall. This dish is completely different from what you would imagine you would find in Isan stall, it’s not a spicy, hot, and hard to eat dish. This is a simple marinated pork neck grilled on charcoal and served with jaew sauce, and it’s one of the main protein dishes you can find in these stalls. When you combine grilled pork neck with Nam Tok (spicy salad), it elevates Nam Tok’s flavor to another level. The sweet and salty flavor from grilled pork neck works perfectly with the heat and balanced flavor of Nam Tok and when you eat it with sticky rice and flesh vegetables that is a perfect combination for this this. You can experience everything in a single bite and understand what Isan food represents.
Key ingredients
- Pork neck = ½ Kg.
- Grounded black pepper = 1 tablespoon
- Garlic = 3-4 cloves
- Soy sauce = 1 tablespoon
- Palm sugar = 2 tablespoons
- Oyster sauce = 2 tablespoons
- Fish sauce = 2 tablespoons
- Lime juice = 1 ½ tablespoons
- Chili flakes = 3 tablespoons
- Toasted rice powder = 2 tablespoons
- Shallots
- Mint leaves
- Coriander
- Spring onions
Cooking process
1. Marinate slices of pork neck with fish sauce, palm sugar, grounded pepper, soy sauce, oyster sauce and let it rest for 30 minutes to 2 hours.
2. Start the fire and grill pork necks over charcoal until outside starting to turn brown and the fat caramelize. Then slice your pork neck into small pieces.
3. Get a bowl and combine lime juice, fish sauce, chili flakes, and toasted rice powder, then add grilled pork neck in the bowl and stir until your pork is coated with the sauce.
4. Add shallots, mint, and the remaining herbs in for aromatic. Give it a taste and adjust its flavor to your taste.
5. Serve on a plate along with sticky rice and flesh vegetables like cabbage, cucumber, and long beans.
It’s an easy menu to make, you can even make it on your own at home if you are able to find these ingredients above. However, its flavor is balanced and complicated with sweetness, sour, spicy, savory, and aromatic from rice powder and herbs. This dish truly shows that we can mix two different types of menus together and it became balance and delicious, that’s the art of Thai cuisine. If you crave something smokey and have flavor and complexity in one bite, I recommend you should try this one (If you can handle the spice). They are so easy to find, they’re sold at every Isan Street stall or even grilled pork neck shop in the market sometimes sell this too. I am sure will fall in love with this dish and maybe it could be a gateway for you to go try another Isan dishes.
