Thai Red Curry
The classic Thai dish of meat and vegetables cooked in a spicy coconut sauce.
Using Thai red curry powder for this recipe allows this wonderful dish to be cooked without resorting to 8 or 9 different spice ingredients. The traditional recipe has been modified here to allow this dish to be cooked using ingredients that these days are commonly found in even the smallest of local supermarkets. The coriander leaf can be omitted if you can't get it.
| Serves | : 4 |
| Preparation Time | : 10 minutes |
| Cooking Time | : 20 minutes |
Ingredients
1 1/2 lbs / 675 g chicken or beef, cut into chunks or strips7 oz / 200 g green beans, chopped into 1 inch pieces
1 aubergine, diced
2 tbsp vegetable oil
1 tin of coconut milk
juice of 1 lime
1 tbsp fish sauce (optional)
Herbs & Spices
1 tbsp Curry Thai Red1 tbsp dried Coriander Leaf or small bunch fresh Coriander Leaf
Cooking Instructions
If you normally like to salt your aubergines and drain the juice before using them, then please do so before proceeding with the recipe. If this isn't something you normally do, then move straight ahead to the recipe below.Heat 2 tbsp of oil in a wok or large heavy based pan. Add the diced aubergine and fry for 5 minutes until the aubergine starts to soften. It will have become translucent as it soaks up the oil. Remove aubergine from the pan and put to one side.
Over a medium heat, fry the green curry powder for 2 minutes in the remainder of the oil, until fragrant. Take care not to burn the spices. Add the coconut milk to the pan and bring to a gentle simmer. Add the chicken or the beef and allow to gently cook uncovered for 5 minutes. Add the half-cooked aubergines and cook for a further 5 minutes before adding the beans. Continue to cook until the meat is done. By this time, the coconut milk should have reduced and be slightly thickened.
Add the lime juice, chopped coriander leaf (if using) and 1/2 of the fish sauce if using. Stir well and then taste. Adjust by adding more fish sauce if necessary. If not using fish sauce, then adjust seasoning to taste with salt (although take care with this is you salted your aubergines to begin with).
Serve with plain boiled rice.