11 Pim Techamuanvivit Recipes From Red Curry to Panang Short Ribs From fiery Thai curries to bright shrimp salad, the Bangkok-born chef shares recipes rooted in tradition and bold, balanced flavor. By Molly McArdle Molly McArdle Molly McArdle is Food & Wine's Updates Editor. She has written and edited stories about food, wine, culture, place, and technology for more than 15 years. Her work has appeared in Travel + Leisure, GQ, Esquire, Oxford American, The Believer, Bookforum, and many more. Food & Wine's Editorial Guidelines Published on September 26, 2026 Add Us On SAVE ALL RECIPES NEW! Save as a collection on MyRecipes Close Credit: Victor Protasio / Food Styling by Torie Cox / Prop Styling by Lydia Pursell “I see myself as a link in a long chain of Thai women cooking to feed our families and keep our cultural heritage alive,” chef Pim Techamuanvivit tells Food & Wine. The Bangkok-born restaurateur came to the United States in the 1990s to study cognitive science before finding work in Silicon Valley for companies such as Netscape and Cisco. When she launched her influential food blog, Chez Pim, in 2003 (still early days for the growing blogosphere), she found an audience for her thoughts on restaurants and recipes, including Thai dishes she researched through family, old cookbooks, and trips home. “When I decided to live overseas as an adult, I knew that if I wanted to keep those cherished taste and flavor memories alive, I had to learn how to replicate them for myself,” she told the magazine. “That’s why I started learning as much as I could about Thai food.” Techamuanvivit transitioned to full-time food writing in 2005 and published her first book, The Foodie Handbook: The (Almost) Definitive Guide to Gastronomy, in 2009. She went on to produce a line of award-winning preserves under the Chez Pim name before opening her first restaurant in 2014: San Francisco’s Kin Khao. It earned its first Michelin star the following year. Since then, she’s opened another San Francisco restaurant, Nari, and taken over a third in Bangkok, Nahm. Each has a Michelin star. This year, she’s publishing her second book, Cooking Thai: Heritage and Modern Recipes from My Kitchen Notebooks, with food writer Andrea Nguyen. “You know how people talk about Gen X being the last generation that knew childhood without the internet?” she told Food & Wine. “I feel that way about Thai home cooking. Mine is that bridge generation. Now, not as many people get to grow up with homemade dinners and intricate curries done from scratch. I’ve had the good fortune to see all that and to learn so much about it.” The recipes here span from foundational Thai preparations to dishes served at Techamuanvivit’s restaurants and longtime personal favorites. Start with her recipe for prik gaeng ped, a red curry paste that becomes the base for fiery kua kling, a quick chicken curry, and rich panang beef short ribs. From fragrant gaeng rawaeng, a silky golden curry made with coconut milk that transforms a whole roast chicken, to fudgy baked chocolate puddings, these dishes show the breadth of her cooking. “I’m writing it all down and passing it on,” she told the magazine. “In the recipes that follow here, I share that legacy with you.” Love these recipes? Join MyRecipes — your personal home for recipes — to easily save and organize your favorites, plus thousands more, in one convenient place. 01 of 11 Prik Gaeng Ped (Thai Red Curry Paste) Victor Protasio / Food Styling by Chelsea Zimmer / Prop Styling by Julia Bayless Prik gaeng ped, or red curry paste, is a cornerstone of Thai cooking, combining chiles, garlic, shallots, lemongrass, galangal, makrut lime zest, shrimp paste, and spices into an aromatic base for countless dishes. The paste can also be adapted for other curries, with peanuts added for rich panang curry or turmeric for a Southern Thai-style paste used in Hunter’s Dry Curry. Making it from scratch takes some effort, but the result delivers fresher, more nuanced flavor than store-bought versions; make a large batch and freeze it for months to streamline future curry dinners. Get the Recipe Save 02 of 11 Gaeng Rawaeng Victor Protasio / Food Styling by Torie Cox / Prop Styling by Lydia Pursell At Nari in San Francisco, Techamuanvivit serves gaeng rawaeng as a whole Cornish game hen bathed in a fragrant golden curry with flaky roti alongside for soaking up the sauce. This home version swaps in a small chicken, which gently cooks in velvety coconut milk flavored with green chiles and citrusy, piney galangal. Refrigerate the coconut milk before cooking and avoid shaking the cans so the cream and liquid remain separate, and adjust the mix of green chiles according to your preferred level of heat. Get the Recipe Save 03 of 11 Kua Kling (Hunter’s Dry Curry) Victor Protasio / Food Styling by Chelsea Zimmer / Prop Styling by Julia Bayless Kua kling is an intensely spicy dry curry from southern Thailand. Traditionally made with smoked game during extended hunting trips, it’s now commonly prepared with ground pork. Without coconut milk to temper the heat, its curry paste delivers concentrated chile, savory depth, warm spices, and a touch of palm sugar. Techamuanvivit streamlines the dish by building a Southern Thai-style curry paste from her red curry paste, adding ingredients such as turmeric and fragrant makrut lime leaves for layers of earthy spice and chile heat. Get the Recipe Save 04 of 11 Yum Goong (Thai Shrimp and Lychee Salad) Greg DuPree / Food Styling by Chelsea Zimmer / Prop Styling by Christina Daley This recipe for yum goong pairs lightly charred grilled shrimp with juicy lychees, fragrant herbs, and crunchy cashews in a bright nam yum dressing. The floral sweetness of the lychees contrasts with the savory shrimp and tangy dressing; fresh fruit is excellent in season, though canned lychees work well, and longans or mango can be substituted. Serve the salad as a starter or light main with sticky rice or crisp lettuce leaves for wrapping. Get the Recipe Save 05 of 11 Nam Yum (Basic Thai Salad Dressing) Greg DuPree / Food Styling by Chelsea Zimmer / Prop Styling by Christina Daley Nam yum is an essential Thai dressing that balances lime juice, fish sauce, chiles, garlic, and palm sugar for a bright combination of sour, salty, spicy, and sweet flavors. Rather than following a strict formula, Techamuanvivit adjusts each component to complement the salad, adding more lime or fish sauce to offset sweeter ingredients or more sugar to temper heat. Traditionally pounded with a mortar and pestle to release the aromatics of the garlic and chiles, nam yum is especially good with Thai shrimp or glass noodle salads. It can also dress vegetables, accompany grilled seafood, or serve as a dipping sauce. Get the Recipe Save 06 of 11 Quick Roast Chicken Red Curry Victor Protasio / Food Styling by Chelsea Zimmer / Prop Styling by Julia Bayless Inspired by gaeng ped sai polamai, a Thai red curry traditionally prepared with Chinese roast duck and fresh pineapple, Techamuanvivit’s streamlined version uses rotisserie chicken for quicker results. Cooking coconut cream with red curry paste before adding the remaining coconut milk produces a rich, velvety sauce, while nectarines or plums provide sweetness and acidity to balance the chile heat. Get the Recipe Save 07 of 11 Red Curry with Squash and Thai Eggplant Victor Protasio / Food Styling by Chelsea Zimmer / Prop Styling by Julia Bayless Roasted delicata squash brings caramelized sweetness to this red curry while keeping its shape, and small Thai eggplants add a substantial, meaty texture as both vegetables soak up the spicy sauce. Makrut lime leaves and Thai basil lend fresh, aromatic notes, and steamed rice makes it a satisfying main course. Please note: This dish isn’t vegetarian because Techamuanvivit’s homemade red curry paste includes shrimp paste. Get the Recipe Save 08 of 11 Panang Beef Short Ribs Victor Protasio / Food Styling by Chelsea Zimmer / Prop Styling by Julia Bayless These panang beef short ribs turn homemade red curry paste into a deeply savory braise with layers of chile, coconut, and warm spice. Roasted peanuts add nutty richness and body to the coconut milk sauce, while slow braising renders the short ribs fork-tender and infuses the curry with beefy depth. Fragrant makrut lime leaves provide a bright finish. Get the Recipe Save 09 of 11 Blistered Green Beans with XO Sauce Alanna Hale Techamuanvivit makes her own take on XO sauce, the Hong Kong condiment known for its savory, briny depth from dried seafood. Her version brings concentrated umami flavor to blistered green beans and calls for dried shrimp and scallops, both readily available at Asian markets. Make the XO sauce ahead and refrigerate it for up to two weeks. Get the Recipe Save 10 of 11 Rich Baked Chocolate Puddings John Kernick These deeply chocolatey puddings bake with firm edges and soft, fudgy centers before being finished with whipped cream and chocolate shavings. Techamuanvivit likes to bake and serve them in mismatched jam jars, though ramekins work just as well. Pair the puddings with Armagnac, a French brandy whose prune, spice, and vanilla notes complement the dark chocolate, and refrigerate any leftovers for up to three days. Get the Recipe Save 11 of 11 White Rice with Wild Mushrooms and Merguez Wild mushrooms and spicy lamb merguez give this savory baked rice enough heft to serve as either a substantial side or a main course. Techamuanvivit, who often cooks rice in a clay pot from Thailand, combines earthy mushrooms with chunks of richly seasoned sausage for layers of savory flavor. Serve it alongside lamb chops or enjoy it on its own. Get the Recipe Save Explore more: Food World Cuisines Southeast Asian Cuisines Thai Cuisine Was this page helpful? Thanks for your feedback! Tell us why! Other Submit