Thom Khem | Lao Caramelized Pork Egg Stew
Make this traditional Lao food comfort meal for your family! It’s a authentic Lao dish that is enjoyed with freshly cooked jasmine rice and topped with green onions and sliced bird eye chili peppers if you want the heat. This is my go to fast and easy recipe and it never fails.
WHAT IS THOM KHEM?
Thom khem braised pork and egg stew is a beloved and comforting Lao dish. All Lao kids love eating this dish. It is made with caramelized sugar, fish sauce, seasoning sauce, ginger, and garlic with pork and eggs swimming in the liquid until it evaporates and the protein is golden brown.
I remember always fighting with my siblings for the last egg because they were so good! My mom made it every morning on the weekends. We drenched the freshly cooked jasmine rice with the sweet pieces and the liquid. Left overs are even better so if it can sit over night, you got a thom khem that is even tastier.
This is one of the sweeter dishes in Lao cuisine. A lot of Lao food is very spicy, pungent, and sometimes bitter so it is refreshing to have thom khem to remind the palette of the sweet flavors of Laos. Its an easy dish to whip up fast and your family will love it! It will be the best thom khem they will ever have.
HOW TO MAKE THOM KHEM
Perfectly cook hard boiled eggs: There are many methods of making the best hard boiled eggs. Here are a few suggestions:
My go to hard boiled egg method is put the eggs in a soup pot, cover it with water, bring it to a boil, place a lid on top, and then turn off the heat and let it sit for 15 minutes. You can then rinse it and let it sit in an ice water bath until it is ready to peel.
You probably noticed that some eggs can be hard to peel and you get a lot of the egg white stuck to the egg shell. One solution is using old eggs to hard boil so choosing 2 week old is is perfect. Typically, eggs can last up to 3-5 weeks after the sell by date so don’t throw your eggs away too soon. You can use it for thom khem!
If you don’t have time to wait and only have fresh eggs, then you can steam the fresh eggs in a steamer basket for 15 minutes and they should be ready to easily peel.
If the eggs are still hard to peel, try slightly cracking the cooked eggs and letting them sit in water for a few minutes so the water can seep through the shell making it easier to peel.
Caramelize the sugar: Heat the pot on medium with added oil and then add the sugar. Continuously mix the sugar until it starts melting and it will slowly turn yellow and then gold. It caramelizes fast so once it turns golden brown, add in the diced garlic and ginger. It should saute for about 1 minute.
Add the pork: First, add the pork and mix it up until all the sugar mixture has coated the pork then add the water. Bring the mixture to a boil and mix well until all the sugar is melted. Add in all the sauces and mix well.
Add the hard boiled egg: Add the hard boiled eggs and gently stir and try to get the hard boiled eggs into the liquid so it can soak up the flavor and color. Bring it to a low simmer and let it cook for 30 minutes with a lid.
SERVING THOM KHEM
The best way to enjoy thom khem is eating it with freshly cooked jasmine rice. Make sure to drizzle some of the sauce over the rice so it soaks up all the caramelized juices. Occassionally, I’ll also bring out sticky rice to dip into the juices as well. Garnishing with fresh herbs like cilantro and green onion can also level up the flavors. If you’re feeling extra spicy, add some slices of bird eye chili peppers.
TIPS & TRICKS TO MAKE THE BEST THOM KHEM
There are many variations of thom khem and here is what I found that works to make the best thom khem:
Fat is flavor; make sure to have a few pieces of fatty pieces of pork like pork belly.
I grew up always having spare ribs in my stew to chew on and still add it to this day.
There are new additions to thom khem like adding daikon, quail eggs, and even bamboo shoots; some even use chicken as the protein.
The longer you let your stew sit, the darker in color and more delicious it will look.
STORING AND REHEATING
Make sure to double this recipe as you will want to have left overs since eating it the next day will taste even better as all the flavors get to sit and soak into the meat. Place the left overs in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.
To reheat, place it in a pot and over medium-high heat for 5 minutes until warm.
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