Thai Green Curry

Total Time: 35 mins Preparation Time: 20 mins Cook Time: 15 mins

Ingredients

• Servings: 2
• 3 large green chilies, seeds removed & finely chopped (to taste)
• 1 teaspoon grated galangal (ginger is a good substitute)
• 2 teaspoons lemongrass, finely chopped
• 3 kaffir lime leaves, finely chopped
• 1 garlic clove, finely chopped
• 2 teaspoons shallots, finely chopped
• 1 pinch salt
• 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
• 1 cup thai sweet basil, roughly chopped
• 2 skinless chicken breasts, cut into small pieces
• 400 ml coconut milk
• 1 green curry paste, recipe (see above)
• 1 tablespoon vegetable oil (for frying)
• 2 tablespoons fish sauce
• 1 tablespoon sugar
• 1/2 cup green beans, cut in half
• 1 (220 g) can bamboo shoots
• 1/2 cup basil leaves, for garnishing
• red chili pepper flakes (to garnish, optional) (optional) or finely chopped fresh red chili (to garnish) (optional)

Recipe

• 1 first make the paste. take all the ingredients for the paste (chillies, ginger, lemongrass, lime leaves, garlic, shallot, salt, basil) except the oil and put them into a pestle and mortar and give them a good bashing. add the oil and continue to pound the ingredients until you have a smooth paste consistency. you can use a food processor if you like but i just love using my pestle and mortar (i think i just get enjoyment from bashing things!). i usually use all of the paste in one go, but if you want to make extra, you can stick the paste into a container, cover with oil and it should last for a week or so in the fridge.
• 2 now for the curry itself. on a low heat, add the oil and all of the green curry paste into a pan and mix well. add the chicken and fry on a low / medium heat until almost cooked through. give the can of coconut milk a good shake and add to the pan, along with the fish sauce and the sugar and simmer for 2 minutes. add in the green beans and bamboo shoots and simmer until the beans are cooked then you are ready to dish up.
• 3 i usually serve this curry with brown rice, although it works just as well with noodles or some type of roti / flatbread. garnish the curry with a few basil leaves, a wedge of lime and a sprinkle of chopped red chilli flakes.
• 4 note: it actually doesn’t matter if you use only red chillies as it is the basil that gives the colour, not the chilli - in fact i think a mixture gives a great colour to the dish.