Thai-style Green Curry

 This is essentially Pailin Chongchitnant's wonderful recipe with the adaptations I generally make when it is what's for dinner in my family. It's a gorgeous recipe - as most Thai recipes are! - and beautifully adaptable depending on your dietary needs. Definitely follow Pailin's original recipe, and make whatever adjustments work best for you!

Thai-style Green Curry

(3 servings)

Ingredients

400ml / 13.5 oz of coconut milk (reserve 1/2 cup)

1/2 of a yellow onion (sliced)

3 1/2 tablespoons of green curry paste*

Protein of choice**

1 cup of stock***

1 cup of frozen peas****

24g / #oz of palm sugar

1 1/2 tablespoons of fish sauce (to taste)

4 makrut lime leaves

1 cup of Thai basil leaves (if available)

1/2 of a red bell pepper (julienned)

Rice (to serve)

*Mae Ploy's green curry paste is what's easy for me to find locally, so I stick with that since I know how much to use. If you're trying a different brand, taste your curry before serving and if it's not flavorful enough, then sauté some extra curry paste in a small pan for a couple minutes before adding it to the finished curry to improve the flavor.

**If it's a normal day I usually go for about half a kilo (a pound) of cubed chicken thigh. If I'm going for pescetarian I use shrimp instead, if I'm making a vegan curry, then quartered tofu puffs are usually what goes in. To each their own!

***If I'm using meat as my protein I find chicken stock works nicely, but if you're making a pescetarian or vegan curry, then obviously use vegetable stock instead.

****I know, I'm weird! I like what I like though. Thai eggplant slices or bamboo shoots would be more normal - I've even been to a Thai restaurant in North America that added cucumber - but I just don't enjoy them that much, and at least the peas stick with the green theme! 

Directions

1) First heat the reserved half cup of coconut milk in your pan or wok until it begins to thicken and the oil starts to separate from the milk. (Some coconut milks are too processed for this to happen though, so if your coconut milk thickens and that's it, don't worry about it and move on to the next step!)

2) Add the onion and curry paste to the wok and sauté for a couple of minutes until fragrant, adding a little of the remaining coconut milk or a bit of stock to deglaze if necessary.

3) Stir in your meat (if using), then add the remaining coconut milk, stock, peas, palm sugar, fish sauce, and lime leaves. (If using, throw your tofu and any other veggies in at this point too.) Bring everything to a boil, then reduce the heat and simmer for about 15 minutes.

4) Taste and adjust the seasonings as needed (add more fish sauce, palm sugar, et cetera, if you feel your curry needs it), stir in the basil leaves and bell pepper, and bring everything back to a boil briefly. (If you like the bell pepper tender, add it a bit earlier or cook longer till it reaches your desired texture.)

5) Do your final taste test, serve with rice, and enjoy!