How to make Hackney-based (previously pop-up) Thai restaurant Som Saa’s stir-fried duck signature dish .

Hackney-based Thai restaurant Som Saa was one of London’s most popular “pop-ups” last year – a term often synonymous with passing fads. But this pop-up went permanent this week after a £700,000 crowdfunding campaign allowed it to move from its temporary home in Climpson’s Arch to Commercial street, Shoreditch. Since it’ll be damn hard to get a table, we asked head chef Mr Andy Oliver – who cut his teeth at legendary Bangkok restaurant Bo.Lan – for a recipe to recreate the experience at home.

INGREDIENTS (serves two)

300g boneless duck meat 5 garlic cloves 6-10 bird’s-eye chillies (scuds), to taste a small pinch of salt 150-200ml chicken stock 2-3 tbsp of fish sauce 1/2 tsp of caster sugar 3 tbsp of vegetable oil 2 generous handfuls of picked holy basil leaves

For the crispy eggs (kai dao)

4-5 tbsp vegetable oil 2 free-range eggs

For the fish sauce accompaniment (prik nahm pla):

5 tbsp fish sauce 5 bird’s eye chillies (scuds), sliced  2 garlic cloves, finely sliced 1/4 of a lime, sliced roughly into 3 pieces

To serve

freshly cooked jasmine rice chillies   fish sauce

METHOD

1. First, prepare the fish sauce accompaniment. Combine the fish sauce, chillies and sliced garlic in a bowl, and then squeeze in the lime pieces. Set aside.

2. Now make the paste for the stir fry. Use a knife or meat cleaver to hand mince your duck meat until you get a coarse but fairly even mince. Now, in a pestle and mortar, pound the garlic with the chillies and pinch of salt into a coarse paste. Remove the paste from the pestle and mortar and set both this and your minced duck meat aside ready to stir fry.

3. To make your crispy eggs, place a wok over a medium heat and add the vegetable oil. When the oil is hot and starting to shimmer, break in one of the eggs and shallow fry until crispy around the edges and still runny in the middle. Carefully lift out the egg with a slotted spoon and place it on some kitchen roll to absorb any excess oil. Now fry the other egg in the same way. Discard the oil and keep the eggs warm while you make your stir fry.

4. To make the stir fry, clean and dry the wok and place it back on a high heat and add the oil. Once the oil is hot, add your garlic and chilli paste, stir fry it for a few seconds on a high heat, and quickly add your meat. Keep the heat on high and stir fry the meat and garlic chilli mix for about one minute. Now add the fish sauce and sugar, followed by about 3/4 of the stock.

5. Cook for 30 seconds more and throw in all the holy basil and the rest of the stock if your pan is looking a little dry. Cook for just enough time for the basil to wilt (about 20 seconds) and turn off the heat. Taste the stir fry – it should be rich, hot, salty and fragrant. If it needs a touch more fish sauce, feel free to add and toss through.

6. To serve, place some warm jasmine rice on each plate, top with the stir fry, reserving a little, then add the crispy egg, followed by a final spoon of stir fry and any juice over the top.