Well...here is a fabulous recipe I took to the Relief Society Cultural Event Tuesday night. We were all asked to bring our favorite ethnic dish. Now I must say that my "favorite food" changes by the day but Thai food is delicious, unique and definitely very high on my list. The fusion of creamy, sweet, spicy, tangy, umami and salty performs an electrifying dance for the taste buds, don't you think? Of all the many Thai recipes there are, I believe that Curry blends all these flavors together in the most perfect way.
Side note: I once had a massage client who was Thai. I liked to pick her brain about Thai cuisine and once asked her about how she made her Curries. She said she never adds coconut milk to her curries because it waters it down and she likes it spicy! Crazy Thai people. Hehe, I love it!
Ok, ok back to the recipe. So for Tuesday's event I decided to make my favorite dish, Green Curry with Chicken and Brown Jasmine Rice, or as I have called it "Chiang Mai Green Curry Thai". I was in a hurry tonight and rushing through the cooking process which I usually don't do. But I must say that despite all of this hurrying it was in fact a fabulous curry! I even heard someone say it was restaurant quality. Is that not what every aspiring chef wants to hear? Yea, I was very happy!
This is pieced together by a couple different Thai recipes. I've made it a few times, and with each dish I have tweaked it a little bit more until Voila, Perfection! If you like curry I know you will enjoy this.
Bon Appetit!
Chef Caitlin
Chiang Mai - Green Curry Thai w/ ChickenRecipe By: Caitlin Hancock, adapted from the Mae Ploy Green Curry Recipe
Ingredients:
2 tbs. coconut oil or peanut oil
1 medium yellow onion, cut in 8 wedges
1 medium red bell pepper, cut into 8 wedges
5 Thai Eggplants (or 2-3 japanese eggplants, sliced and halved)
1 stalk lemongrass, white bulb only
2 kaffir lime leaves (optional)
1 tbs. coarsely chopped ginger ( I prefer Galangal, young thai ginger cut into large pieces)
2 1/2 cups coconut milk (a little more if desired)
¾ cup Chicken Stock
3 tbs. Green Curry Paste (start with 2 tbs. if you don’t like it too spicy)
Sea salt
3 Chicken breasts, cut in ½ inch strips
1-2 small thai chilies, whole (optional if you like it super spicy)
1 block Palm Sugar or Brown Sugar (to taste) 2-3 tbs. (Palm sugar is healthier)
Thai Fish Sauce (to taste) approx. 2-3 tbs.
Thai Basil (purple stems) 8-10 whole leaves
1 lime juiced
Cilantro and Lime Wedges, garnish
Brown or White Jasmine Rice or Rice Noodles
-Place a large, deep skillet or wok over medium-high heat and coat with the oil. Saute the onion, shallot bell peppers, and eggplant for 3 minutes to soften and brown slightly.
-Split the piece of lemongrass down the middle and whack it with the flat side of a knife to open the flavor. Add the lemongrass, ginger, curry paste and lime leaves to the skillet and stir for 1 minute. Add ½ cup coconut milk and stir until curry paste is well blended. Pour in the chicken broth and remaining coconut milk.
-Lay the chicken pieces in the mixture to poach; add a pinch of salt.
Stir together and simmer over low heat for 10 to 15 minutes. Add desired sugar and fish sauce and squeeze in the lime juice. Shower with basil and cilantro right before serving; serve in dinner bowls over rice or rice noodles with lime wedges. Enjoy! Serves 4.
The ingredients above can be found at any Asian Market. I personally like Uwajimaya in Bellevue/Redmond area or the one in downtown Seattle. The key to this fabulous recipe is buying the exact ingredients above and not substituting too much so it will taste as authentic as possible.
