Thai Green Curry

It's a long weekend, Rory has been out at a photo shoot and I have been left to my own devices for the day. In all honesty there is a long list of school reports that I should  be writing but after a somewhat productive morning I decided it was time for a break and more importantly my poor little blog has been a bit neglected lately. It is time to make amends...
The original plan was spinach and ricotta triangles but after a filo pastry fail at the supermarket I did a rethink and settled on Thai Green Curry. This has been a long time favourite dish of mine, just the smell of it reminds me of great dinners with a good friend from home (though we never cooked it, we always went for the home delivered option). Ugh, I'm getting homesick at the thought! This curry has a lot to live up to!

Easiest ingredient prep ever,
chuck it in the blender and press go!

This is that sizzle I mention in the recipe!

I really wish I could attach the smell of this to the picture

Vegetables going in, rice on the boil just below.

Dinner is served

Thai Green CurryServes: 4

Prep Time: 15mins Cook Time: 20 mins

For the Paste:
2 jalapeños (Thai Green chillis would have been ideal but I'm on the wrong side of the world for that)
1/4 cup chives
4 cloves of garlic
1 thumb sized piece of ginger
1 stalk of lemongrass
1/2 tsp cumin
1 cup of fresh coriander (leaves and stems)
1/2 tsp white pepper
3 tbsp fish sauce
1 tsp brown sugar
2 tbsp lime juice

1. Place all ingredients together in the blender (I think this is what attracted me to the idea of making this, I didn't need to spend forever dicing, mincing and crushing ingredients) Process to a paste. Set aside.

For the Curry:
700g chicken (thinly sliced)
1 can coconut milk
1 tsp grated lime zest
1 red capsicum (diced)
1 zucchini (diced)
basil
oil

1. Warm a large wok, on medium-high heat then add the oil and swirl around. Carefully add in the curry paste (I say "carefully" for a reason there was a fair bit of sizzle that happened here, as the pictures attest, and you really don't want jalapeño in the eye...)

2. Stir-fry for 30 seconds or until the aroma is released then add in the coconut milk, keeping 2-3 tbsp in reserve.

3. Add the chicken, stirring to ensure it is all covered and then bring it to the boil then reduce heat to medium-low until you get a nice simmer.

4. Cover and allow to simmer until chicken is cooked through, stirring occasionally.

5. Add the capsicum, zucchini and lime, stir everything through and allow to simmer for another 3 minutes until vegetables have softened but still firm and colourful.

6. Serve on a bed of rice, top with remaining coconut milk and basil leaves.

This was exactly what I had hoped it would be, colour wise it was a bit greener than the stuff I've had in restaurants but I think that's because I chose to use chives rather than using an actual onion. The recipe I drew my ideas from made some suggestions about altering the taste; more fish sauce for a saltier curry, more sugar for a sweeter version, more lime juice if it's too salty and more coconut if it's too spicy, but I was happy with my original flavour. The perfect balance of salty, sweet and spicy.

News Flash: There's something big and exciting brewing on my bucket list in the coming weeks (provided I manage to pull it off) so stay tuned!