Haw Mok ห่อหมก is a cross between a curry and a custard. If this sounds strange, trust me, it is phenomenal. It's one of my favourite ways to eat curry (might even be my actual fave). The texture is silky and creamy, but has all the beloved flavours of Thai red curry. This unusual combination is a classic, traditional Thai dish that's one of my mom's favourite meals!

What is Haw Mok ห่อหมก?

In Thailand, haw mok (sometimes also spelled as hor mok) is a very popular dish you can find all over the country. You can find haw mok served in fancy sit-down restaurants, sold by street food vendors, or even in the supermarkets' ready-to-eat food section. you can find at many kinds of restaurants

It's a savoury custard (think quiche) that is made primarily of coconut milk, red curry paste, and eggs, and it most commonly uses fish as the protein, although other kinds of seafood can also be used. While you can use chicken or other meats, in Thailand they are usually made from fish and seafood only. The custard is added to a banana leaf cup or wrapped entirely in banana leaves packages and then steamed. They can also be grilled, in which case it is called haw mok yang (grilled haw mok).

Since making banana leaf cups is a pain, for my recipe I've made a hack by lining ramekins with banana leaves, so you can get the traditional aroma of steamed banana leaves without the hassle. You can also omit the banana leaves completely and the flavour of the haw mok will be mostly intact as the banana leaf aromas is quite mild.

Ingredients and Notes

Here are all the ingredients you need and important notes about them. For amounts, see the recipe card below.

Thai red curry paste. I recommend Maeploy or Aroy D brands as they have the strongest flavours and this recipe is made using these pastes. Other brands can also be used, but you may need to adjust the amount of the paste and saltiness. See my thorough review of common red curry paste brands here.
Coconut milk. See my post on how to choose good coconut milk here.
Palm sugar, finely chopped or grated. You can also substitute equal amount of light brown sugar for this recipe.
Fish sauce
Eggs, large.
Makrut lime leaves, finely julienned. If you don't have them you can omit.
Any kind of fish filet or seafood. The most common choice is white fish such as bass or tilapia, but salmon would also work. You can also use shrimp, squid, or shellfish (without the shells). If you don't eat seafood: You can sub bite-sized pieces of chicken, preferably dark meat but breast would be okay too. I don't recommend pork or beef or anything that would become tough if overcooked because you won't be able to control precisely how long the meat cooks in the custard.
Shredded cabbage or other sturdy leafy veg. The veggies are added at the bottom of the custard for texture, so you want to use sturdy veggies such as cabbage, kale or Chinese broccoli leaves.
Thai basil
Banana leaves, optional. You can buy banana leaves frozen at many Asian grocery stores.
Jasmine rice, for serving. Like a regular curry, haw mok is always eating with jasmine rice!

Garnish

Garnishes by default are optional, but without them it can definitely look a bit plain. Haw mok come with a standard set of garnishes to add some colour to the top:

Coconut milk
Cornstarch, this is to thicken the coconut milk so it stays put on the custard. It can be replaced with any other thickening starches such as rice flour or all-purpose flour.
Sliced red chilies or julienned red bell pepper
Cilantro or another green herb you've got on hand. To keep it simple you can julienne extra makrut lime leaves and use that as a garnish. You can also use Thai basil for garnish, but be sure to serve it right away as basil turns dark once it comes into contact with hot food for a while.

How to Make Haw Mok - Step by Step

Here's a bird's eye view of the steps to give you an idea of what's involved. For the complete instructions, see the recipe card below. If this is your first time, I recommend watching the video tutorial in the recipe card to ensure success.

Add a splash of coconut milk to the curry paste and stir to loosen the paste. Once the paste is loose, add the remaining coconut milk and stir until the paste is dissolved.
Add the eggs, fish sauce, sugar, makrut lime leaves and stir to combine.
Add the fish and stir to mix.
Line the ramekins with strips of banana leaves if desired, then line the bottom with steamed cabbage and/or kale and Thai basil.

Process shots for how to make haw mok steps 5-8

Distribute the pieces of fish evenly among the cups.
Ladle the custard over the fish, leaving at least ½ inch of headroom to allow for some puffing.
Steam on medium heat for 15-20 minutes or until set.
Garnish with thickened coconut milk, chilies and cilantro or more julienned makrut lime leaves.

Advance Prep and Storage

This is a great dish to make in advance of a dinner party or just for meal prep. There are a few ways to do it.

You can steam the whole thing in advance, then re-steam to reheat before serving. Leave the garnish until just before serving.
The custard mixture can be made ahead of time, without the fish, and kept in the fridge for a few days. Add the fish the day you're cooking.
If using banana leaves, I recommending cutting and cleaning them ahead of time. I find this part a bit of a hassle cuz it gets messy with all the banana leaf trimmings everywhere, so doing it on a separate day helps. Once cleaned and cut, store in a well-sealed container in the fridge to keep it from drying.

Any leftover haw mok can be kept in the fridge for up to a week. The best way to reheat is to steam, but you can microwave it as well. To microwave, I would use no more than 50% power to ensure the custard is evenly heated through and prevent it from exploding as eggs tend to do in the microwave...so cover it with something!

Haw Mok Modifications

This is a very flexible dish that you can exercise your creativity on. Here are some things to try:

Change the curry paste. Use green curry paste instead of red curry paste! You can also try other curry pastes as well but green would be the best pairing with seafood.
Change the protein. Instead of fish, try making haw mok talay which uses a mix of fish, squid, shrimp and sometimes mussels. You can do crab for a luxury version. You can even use chicken or pork, or opt for a no-meat version!
Change the size. You can make tiny little cups which are always cute and would cook quickly, just make sure you cut the fish down smaller. You can also do one large one in a big dish, which I have done and it ends up looking very impressive, but cooking time will increasing to about 50 minutes so be patient!
Add different veggies. In this recipe I use cabbage and/or kale, but you can definitely try other things that won't become too watery or mushy.