Kapi (Thai Shrimp Paste)

Method

1. Dissolve a spoonful of the salt in 500 ml of water and swirl 250 g of tiny shrimp through it to wash off sand and weed. Drain in a fine sieve or cloth for 15 minutes, pressing gently — the shrimp must go into the salt damp, not wet.
2. Spread the drained shrimp in a thin layer on a bamboo tray or flat basket and set in full midday sun for about 3 hours, turning once with your hand. They should shrink, turn dull pink and feel tacky rather than juicy; bring them in before they go brittle.
3. Tip the shrimp into a stone mortar with 60 g of coarse sea salt — roughly one part salt to four parts shrimp, the ratio that keeps the paste safe — and pound steadily for 10 to 15 minutes to a coarse, glistening paste with no whole shrimp left visible.