For Spice I Am dressing, pound garlic and birds-eye chillies with mortar and pestle to make a smooth paste. Mix with palm sugar, fish sauce, lime juice and olive oil. Stir well and set aside.
Combine Thai cooked king prawns, lemongrass, green onions, spring onion, kaffir lime leaves, mint leaves and cashews together in a bowl. Add 2 -3 tablespoons of dressing and toss well to coat.

Tip: I suggest you use  a circular salad stack (or PVC ring), sprayed with oil, if you wish to achieve the same shape – and that you reduce the quantity of chillies if you don’t like too much heat (in fact I suggest you start with just one or two chillies and add more to taste!).  Look for farmed Thai prawns, which are both affordable and free from chemicals and antibiotics. If you use the circular salad stack, move the salad to a platter by sliding a flat spatula underneath.  Ease it out then carefully remove the stack.

Heat the oil in a large heavy bottomed pan.  Add the top of the coconut milk (from both tins) and simmer for five minutes.  Add the red curry paste and simmer another five minutes, stirring frequently.
Add the remaining coconut milk to the pan, bring to simmering point, then add the chicken.  Let simmer 5 – 10 minutes.
Add the chicken stock and pumpkin and bring back to simmering point.  Add the Thai fish sauce, sugar, salt to taste, kaffir lime leaves, lemongrass, pea eggplants and chillies and leave to simmer very gently until chicken and pumpkin are cooked, about 20 minutes.  Be careful not to overcook. It should taste hot, sour and sweet.
Can be garnished with red chillies.  Excellent served with steamed jasmine rice.

Tip: for a spicier dish, don’t remove the seeds from the chillies.