Thai Red Chicken Curry

This is a great recipe for when you have a group of friends around for dinner. I last cooked it for a DVD evening with mates and it went down a storm. The combination of fresh fragrant flavours make it a popular meal. It is also easy because it is a one bowl dish which is warming in winter yet light enough for a summer evening.

While you can make your own curry paste, there are some great premade ones around these days making life a lot easier so I don’t bother to make up my own any more. But not all pastes are made equal – I like Thai Taste or Mae Ploy, which are available at the supermarket or Asian food stores.

It is easy to adapt this recipe too using whatever meat or vegetables you fancy. You can also substitute  the red paste for green if you prefer.

I have posted this especially for Anaïs and Philip who have been nagging me for this recipe – I hope you  guys enjoy it and I will be judging your efforts!

INGREDIENTS

2 tbsp Thai Taste red curry paste
500g skinless, boneless chicken cut into bite sized pieces
2x 400ml tins coconut milk
225g bamboo shoots
6 shitake mushrooms finely chopped
2 tbsp fish sauce
1 tbsp palm sugar (can be substituted with brown sugar)
4 kaffir lime leaves cut into thin strips
½  red pepper cut into fine strips

To serve

Fresh basil and coriander roughly hand torn
Jasmine or basmati rice

METHOD

Heat the curry paste in a large saucepan for a minute and then add a splash of coconut milk. Blend well and simmer for two minutes. Add the chicken and cook for two minutes. Add the rest of the coconut milk and the rest of the ingredients apart from the red pepper and simmer gently for 20 minutes. About five minutes before the end of cooking add the red pepper.

Serve over rice with a sprinkle of fresh herbs on top.

If you like it hot, add some red chillies cut into thin strips with the rest of the ingredients.

[picture credits: kinalaya / Ulka; Dan Wuh; Lazarius / Hwan Hong; Additive Theory]