Although I would definitely consider myself a “southern” girl… I have such a passion for so many different exotic/international foods. Thai food being one of them. Although I have never visited Thailand, I would love to someday. I love how culture and food of each and every country intertwine and showcase the roots of that country’s heritage. I am so intrigued by the history of food and do my best to read up on the dishes that I have come to love. Curry, being one of those.
I probably spent hours on Youtube and Google researching the most authentic Thai recipes. Oddly enough, Youtube is where I struck the jackpot. Pinterest was disappointing me in the “Thai recipe” search… so I turned to other media outlets. I’m so glad I did. What I found on Youtube were women (old and young) with deep roots to Thailand making videos of their recipes. They knew what they were talking about and I could tell instantly. This got me overwhelmingly excited. Finally… I found a recipe that could match up to my favorite Thai restaurants! Authentically, the curry paste will be made by hand. To me, that seemed like a lot of work. So I set out to find an asian market. If you are in the Atlanta area, I recommend you check out the Buford Highway Farmers Market. They have a massive selection of different asian ingredients, all separated by country. It was there that I found the best ingredients for my asian dishes. Including curry paste, coconut milk, chili paste, fish sauce, dark soy sauce, sweet soy sauce, etc. If you don’t happen to have an asian market nearby, you’ll still be able to find these ingredients in your local grocery store. I’ve pictured some of my farmers market finds and also a coconut milk and curry paste I found in my neighborhood Publix.
Curry is something I make often for my family, since it comes together quickly and is something we can all agree on. When I think of curry, I think of layers of spices and flavors. Although the ingredient list may be long, all the separate additions come together to create this beautiful coconut milk based broth. I mean, I could drink the broth all on its own! Yum! It’s heavy yet still tastes light on your tongue. You gets hints of ginger, lemongrass, soy, fish sauce and hot chili. All of those flavors shine through in the broth and truly create such a delicious meal. Since the coconut milk is the base of the dish, it’s so important you purchase the right one (reference picture 5 for my favorite). I recommend this brand because it is a full fat coconut milk and is very creamy and thick. If you use a low fat coconut milk, the broth won’t have as much depth and density. Keep this in mind when shopping for ingredients!
PINEAPPLE GREEN CURRY WITH CHICKEN
Prep time: 10 minutes
Cook time: 15-20 minutes
Total time: 30 minutes
Serves: About 4
INGREDIENTS:
- 2 cans coconut milk (CHAOKOH)
- 1/2 – 4 oz.jar green curry paste
- 2 inch chunk of fresh ginger, peeled
- 6 inch stalk lemongrass, hard outer layer removed
- 1 tbsp Thai chili paste, more or less to taste
- 1 tbsp granulated sugar
- 2 tbsp soy sauce
- 2 tbsp fish sauce
- 1 cup chicken broth
- 8 oz. can bamboo shoots, drained
- 20 oz. can pineapple chunks in juice, juice drained (Use 1-1.5 cups pineapple chunks. More or less to taste)
- 1/2 cup carrots, julienned
- 1 cup broccoli
- 1/2 cup french green beans
- 1 large chicken breast, thinly sliced into strips
Serve with:
- Jasmine rice
DIRECTIONS:
- Heat a large wok to medium high heat. Add in a touch of the coconut milk (a few tbsp.), curry paste and chili paste. Stir and cook till mixture is bubbling and aromatic. Add in the remaining coconut milk, chicken broth, soy sauce, sugar, fish sauce, ginger chunk and lemongrass stalk. Bring to a boil.
- Once boiling, add in chicken and turn heat down to a soft boil. Cook for about 5-7 minutes till chicken is almost cooked completely.
- Add in pineapple, bamboo shoots broccoli, french beans and carrots. Cook an additional 5-7 minutes till vegetables are tender. (Remove the ginger chance and lemongrass before serving). Turn off heat and serve hot with jasmine rice.