Thai Red Curry

This dish can be spicy, depending on which curry paste you use.  It makes a lot of sauce, so make lots of rice to go with it.  Jasmine rice is best for this curry.  With fresh basil it makes a nice colourful meal.

• 1 packet, or 2 tbsp red curry paste
• 1 can coconut milk
• 1 onion, chopped
• 1 clove garlic, pressed
• 1 pkg tofu, marinated, cubed and fried (or 3-4 chicken breasts)
• 1 red pepper
• ¼ of a pineapple, chopped
• other suggested additions:  1 can baby corn, chopped; 6-8 mushrooms, sliced; 8-10 cherry tomatoes, halved
• fish sauce or tamari, to taste
• fresh basil leaves

Put on the rice to cook.

Heat the curry paste in about a ¼ can of the coconut milk.  Fry onion and garlic in this mix.  If the tofu/chicken is not yet cooked, fry with this stuff.  Add rest of coconut milk, veggies, and basil.  Cook for about ten minutes more, and serve on rice.

Thai Coconut Soup

This is a relatively close approximation of my favourite restaurant soup, Tom Kha Gai.  If you are looking for real Thai food, look elsewhere.  This is adapted to things I can readily find at a mainstream grocery store.  Much as I’d like to make it with galangal, I’ve never been able to find it, even in Chinatown.

• 2 cans “lite” coconut milk
• 3 or 4 chicken breasts, or other protein in bite size pieces
• 1 – 2 tsp red curry paste
• 3 or 4 lemongrass stalks, peeled and thinly sliced
• about 7 mushrooms, sliced
• 3 tbsp roasted red pepper, chopped
• 3 – 4 green onions, sliced
• handful of fresh cilantro, chopped
• 3 tbsp fish sauce (or a ½ tsp of sea salt)
• optional:  1/3 can of baby corn, sliced lengthwise

Bring the coconut milk to a boil and add chicken or protein (tvp chunks would work well for this, although you’d need to add a bit of water to hydrate them).  Stir in curry paste and lemongrass and turn down heat to simmer for 10 minutes.  Do not cover, or the coconut milk may curdle.

Add mushrooms, red pepper, and corn (if you’re using it) and continue cooking another 5 minutes.  Stir in green onion, cilantro, and fish sauce (or salt).

Makes 4 dinner servings, or 6 soup course servings.