Thai Coconut Curry + Jasmine Rice

 I am an enthusiast of Thai food. I used to depend on Tom Kha Gai to brighten my every saturday night. And in high school, when I had a multitude of friends that grew up in Thailand, I would dream of traveling to Bangkok and eating the bags of mango sticky rice on the beaches.

In my opinion, Thai cuisine is one of the most difficult to replicate at home. It is not just that the recipes come with a long list of requisite ingredients but that these ingredients are usually impossible to find. From the kaffir lime leaves to the galangal, unless you live next to a fully stocked asian market and don't skip on these ingredients your recipe will most likely end in diseaster.

I tried to use just enough thai essentials that you can find in your run of the mill grocery store and replacing the rest with things you will hopefully already find in your cupboard. You could make some substitutions in this recipe (throw in peas? take out mushrooms? more tofu!) but most of the seasonings are essential to the recipe. I would have loved to try this recipe  to go with the curry but ran out of time and just ended up using the leftover coconut milk in my rice.  All in all, I was pleasantly surprised with how this curry turned out. It definetely has a flair of thai essence and curbs my craving for a phad thai take out night.. for now anyway.



Thai Coconut Curry

• 20 oz. coconut milk
• 2/3 cups finely chopped shallots
• 4 1/2 in. chunks of peeled ginger
• 2 tsp. chopped garlic
• 2 Tbls. fish sauce
• 2 tsps. nutmeg
• 1 cinnamon stick
• 1 Tbls. cumin
• 1 Tbls. turmeric
• 1 Tbls. hot chilli paste
• 2-3 Tbls. golden brown sugar
• 1/3 cup peanut butter
• large slices of zest from one lime
• 1 cup vegetable broth
• 1 tsp. sesame oil
• 1 package of extra firm tofu
• About three carrots thinly sliced
• 1 red bell pepper thinly sliced
• About 6 button mushrooms thinly sliced

Saute your shallots & ginger in the sesame oil. Pour in coconut milk and vegetable broth. Add in ginger, nutmeg, cinnamon, cumin, turmeric, chilli paste, fish sauce, brown sugar & peanut butter. Simmer sauce for about twenty minutes. Add in lime zest, tofu & your vegetables. Simmer on low heat until your vegetables are tender.

Coconut Rice

• 1 1/2 cups jasmine rice
• 1 1/2 cups coconut milk
• 1 1/2 cups water
• 1 tsp. salt

Bring all ingredients to a small boil. With lid on, turn heat on low and cook for about twenty five minutes until done.