Sweet & Authentic Thai Chilli Jam Recipe - Nam Prik Pao • Home Cooking with Somjit (2024)

Have you ever heard of “chilli” jam? It certainly sounds very unconventional, doesn’t it? The Thai Chilli Jam (or “Nam Prik Pao” in Thai) is a thick chilli paste that is dark red in colour, with a jam-like consistency (usually) flooded with flavoured oils.

The chilli jam can be classified as 2 types – the spicy type and the non-spicy type. The spicy version adds dried Cayenne chilli (add an additional cup to this recipe), while the non-spicy version uses only Guajillo Peppers (prik yuak heng) which is known for their sweet, non-spicy taste and deep red colour that is lent to the jam. They appear to be shorter but wider than the usual Cayenne chilli (prik chee fah), and many times larger and darker than the Bird’s Eye chilli (prik ki nu).

Read more about chillis here.

As Thai children, we enjoyed having the Thai Chilli Jam with plain glutinous rice for our meals, or as jam to spread on toast for our breakfast.

As mothers and home cooks (chefs even!), we will keep a jar of this staple jam in our fridges to use in our cooking – often the oil will add a depth of flavour to other Thai dishes, such as Tom Yum, stir fry meats and vegetable dishes. In an airtight container, the jam will last a few months as the oil prevents air from going to the jam.

As the Thai Chilli Jam can be kept for a few months at a time, I would usually make a big batch of it for prolonged consumption. I often add more oil to the chilli jam as well, so that it makes it easier to cook stir-fry vegetables or to have it with bread for breakfast.

Nam Prik Pao Recipe

Ingredients

Firstly, prepare the ingredients. The main star is the dried Guajillo peppers, which should be dark red in colour. The stems and seeds should be removed so that the jam is smooth. Chop the shallots and garlic into smaller pieces to aid in the frying and processing later on.

Method

Prepare a large strainer over a larger bowl for straining the shallots later on. Set aside.

In a large frying pan, add cooking oil over medium-high heat. Add the shallots and fry until the fragrance is released and the shallots start to turn brown.

Immediately turn off the heat. Pour the shallots into the strainer to remove the excess oil.

Set the shallot oil aside. With the strainer, spread the shallots over a wide heat-proof area (oil splash screens are a great tool for this). This is to slow down the cooking process as the shallots will continue to cook from the residual heat. The darker the caramelization, the darker the colour of the Thai Chilli Jam.

Repeat this process for the chopped garlic, adding a new batch of cooking oil for the garlic. With this process, we will have extra shallot and garlic oil for future use – a wonderful by-product of making Nam Prik Pao.

Add the rest of the cooking oil to the frying pan over medium-high heat. Add the chillis and fry for about 30 seconds to infuse the flavour into the Thai chilli jam oil.

Remove the chillis once done and add the fried shrimp to the oil. Fry for another 30 seconds to 1 minute, or until the prawns appear dry. Turn off the heat, remove the prawns and set them aside.

Turn on the heat. Add the shrimp paste and fry until the fragrance is released and the paste has melted into the oil.

Carefully add tamarind water and continue to stir until it comes to a boil. Add the paste sugar.

Slowly stir to melt it into the mixture. Continue to stir until it comes to a boil.

Carefully add the water to the sides of the pan. This is to avoid scalding as the steam escapes from the pan. Once the water has been added, carefully stir the Thai Chilli Jam oil mixture until it has fully combined. Turn off the heat and allow the oil mixture to rest.

Blending the Thai Chilli Jam Fried Ingredients

By now, all the fried ingredients set aside should have cooled down. Add the shallots, garlic and dried shrimp into a food processor. Blend the ingredients to the desired granularity. Finer paste makes for a smoother jam.

Scrape down the sides of the food processor as necessary. Next, add the dried chilli to the food processor and continue to blend until well incorporated.

Cooking it all Together

Add the blended paste into the oil mixture, stirring to combine well.

Turn on the heat and continue to cook until the Thai chilli jam appears to be separated from the oil. Taste the jam to determine if there is enough taste.

Note: if there is a lack of taste, add the fish sauce and continue to stir until well-incorporated and adjust as desired. As my dried prawns are slightly salty, I found that the Thai chilli jam at the taste-test point to have sufficient balance of saltiness with the sweetness and sourness of the jam.

Turn off the heat. Transfer the jam into a heatproof bowl to cool.

Adding Oil to Cover the Thai Chilli Jam

As I prefer having that extra oil from the chilli jam to infuse other dishes, I decided to convert some of the shallot oil to the chilli jam oil.

Without washing the frying pan (as the essence of the Thai Chilli Jam is still present), add the shallot oil and turn on the heat. Allow the oil to come to a small boil.

Turn off the heat and carefully add the oil into the Chilli Jam.

Allow it to sizzle and bubble for a little before mixing it all up with a heatproof spoon.

Allow it to cool before transferring to an airtight container. The Thai Chilli Jam can be stored in the fridge for roughly 6 – 8 months, but I am sure that it will be devoured within that time period. 😉

Nam Prik Pao is delicious eaten as a topping with rice, or as a spread with toast. It is delicious when paired with foods that have a subtle taste and is not heavy on the palate.

So give it a try, you won’t be disappointed 😉