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Thai green curry

  
   The green curry is my favourite of all the Thai dishes. I really wanted to make it 100% from scratch, but unfortunately due to covid restrictions, delivery delays and changes I couldn't pick up Thai basil from Malaga central market. So I'm going to share instructions on both how you could make it from scratch if you are able to source all ingredients, or how to utilise bottled or pastes for maximum flavour. On this occasion I'm going to make it with chicken, but you can make it with other meats or vegetables, or  mixed. You can try various combinations such as chicken, aubergines and peas, or peppers and bamboo shoots.


Paste Ingredients (if making from scratch)
1 - 1.5 cups of Thai  basil
30g approx. galangal (or ginger)
2 lemongrass sticks
1/2 cup kaffir lime leaves
a few cloves of garlic
1/2 onion/ or shallots
a few green chillies (the traditional paste uses up to 10 chilies! But I only add 1-2)
1/2 cup coriander (cilantro) leaf stems

The basil needs to be fresh, but galangal, lemongrass and kaffir lime leaves can be purchased frozen).

Sauce ingredients (if using a precooked green curry or have some of the ingredients)
Thai green curry paste/bottle (I find the pastes are better) 
(plus any fresh/frozen  galangal, lemongrass, or kaffir lime leaves you can get hold of)

You can also use lemongrass paste if  you can't get hold of lemongrass.

Rest of the ingredients
Chicken (I've used 8 pieces)
1 tsp cumin
1 tsp coriander
1-2 tsb Thai fish sauce (optional)
1 tsb  Thai shrimp paste (optional)
1/2 large onion
400ml coconut milk
200-250ml water approx.
salt, pepper
sunflower oil
fresh green chillies (optional, if you are using a mild paste to give the dish a bit of heat)
lime (optional)
coriander (cilantro) leaves  - optional, if you haven't got any kaffir or basil

Important 
If you can't source galangal you can replace it with ginger.

As I wasn't able to source fresh Thai basil on this occasion, I used a green curry paste, and I believe this is quite an authentic brand as comes from Thailand. The only thing I would point out is that it is 30% green chilli, and having lived in Spain for a couple of years now I can't handle Asian food as hot as I used to😅. So if you're going to use about the same amount of chicken as I have, I would marinate the chicken with only half of this paste ,and not add any green chillies.  But if you can handle the heat, of course you can add more paste! 
If you are using a mild curry paste, then you can add some minced green chilli.

Here's the authentic paste I used. It's also available on Amazon.
50g paste 
1. If you are preparing the paste 100% from scratch, add the ingredients into a food processor and process until a smooth paste is produced (or you can use a mortar & pestle).
2. Marinate the chicken with the curry paste, shrimp paste, cumin, coriander powders, salt and pepper. As mentioned before, I used 25g from this 50g paste. Ideally set aside in the fridge for a few hours if you can.
3. Slice the onion, mince some galangal (or a bit of ginger), cut a few lemongrass stalks.


left to right - galangal, kaffir, lemongrass

 
4. Heat some oil in a saucepan and add the onion, galangal, lemongrass, and green chilli (if your paste is mild), stir and cook until the onions are slightly golden. I love the fragrance at this stage.
5. Add in the marinated chicken, and cook on high heat for about 10-15 minutes, stirring continuously.


6. Add the water, coconut milk and some kaffir lime leaves (if you have some). Stir and cover with lid. Cook over high heat for a further 30-35 minutes approx. until the chicken is thoroughly cooked, reducing the temperature to medium towards the end. Also, during the last 5 minutes add the fish sauce (optional).  Adjust salt levels if required.

 

 
7. Enjoy with any type of rice, jasmine rice in particular, and sprinkle some lime and minced coriander leaves before serving. 


 




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