Ma Haw ม้าห้อ Galloping Horses - Christmas Lunch 2011 Part 1

Finally I have got my acts together to start posting what I served on our Christmas lunch. Let's start with the hors-d'oeuvre - ma haw or galloping horses in Thai.

Thais have a poetic way of naming their dishes according to a particular legend or simply by the appearance of a particular dish (i.e waterfall beef, crying tiger and so on) and this dish was named in recognition of King Rama VII's (1910-1925) excellent horsemanship.

The sweet and savoury meat symbolized the rider while the horse is represented by a chunk of pineapple or other fruits. To me this is a truly elegant and sophisticated dish using the most basic ingredients in Thai cooking. Hopefully it will be on your menu list for your next cocktail party.

It was hot and humid when our guests B and A arrived bearing drinks and gift. Champagne was poured to accompany these delicious morsels and the party began.

P.S Part 2 to 4 will be posted right after my MM post on Monday so stay tuned!

makes 24
you'll need;
2 tbs of cooking oil
6 cloves of garlic, chopped
300 g of pork, chicken or veal mince
1/2 cup of palm sugar
3 tbs of fish sauce
2 tbs of roasted and crushed peanuts

For the galloping horses;
1/4 of pineapple, eyes removed and cut into thin slices
1 firm peach, cut into sections and made a pocket but making a slit lengthwise down the centre
1 firm nectarine, cut into sections and made a pocket but making a slit lengthwise down the centre
you may use figs, tangerine or other slightly tart fruits for this dish
coriander leaves for garnish
thinly sliced bird chili rings for garnish

Saute garlic with 2 tbs of cooking oil until golden then add in the mince. Stirring and breaking up large lumps as you go. When the mince is cooked through, remove and pour off any liquid and set aside. 

Next add the palm sugar and fish sauce in the pan and cook until the sugar is dissolved and the mixture turns syrupy.

Return the cooked mince and crushed peanuts to the pan and mix well. Cook for a further 5 minutes or until the mixture is quite sticky. Remove and allow to cool. This can be done the night before.

To assemble - shape meat mixture into little balls the size of a marble and place onto the pineapple slices. For the stone fruits, carefully insert the sweet meat into the cavity of each segment.

Top with coriander leaves and chili rings and watch them disappear from the platter!