I love Thai curries!!! And what I love perhaps more than eating Thai curries, is smelling Thai curries. If you have ever made one, you know what I am talking about.
This is perhaps one of the most aromatic dishes I have ever concocted - including RAW Granola Bars! I must admit, it took a bit of searching for a starter recipe - but they are out there folks, and good ones, simple ones....
After eating the amazing Green Chow Chow Curry at GreenDog Cafe in Columbia-Tusculum, my taste buds couldn't wait another moment. I had to cook this dish. With a little help from about.com I was able to create a curry worthy of making again...and again, and again...
Ingredients:
1 tablespoon olive oil
3-4 cups spinach, washed and whole
8 oz mushrooms (we went with Crimini...love Crimini), sliced 1/2 cup vegetable broth
3/4 can coconut milk
For the Green Curry Paste:
1 stalk lemongrass, thinly sliced
1/4 can coconut milk
1-3 jalapeno (depending on your spice ability)
1 compressed cup chopped cilantro, leaves and stems
1 shallot, chopped
4-5 cloves garlic
1 thumb-size piece ginger, peeled and sliced
1 tablespoon soy sauce
2 tablespoons lime juice
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon ground coriander
1/2 teaspoon ground white pepper
1 teaspoon brown sugar
For the Curry Paste - which is definitely worth making on your own. After your first wiff of it, you will understand. I am a total cheat - no mortar and pestle for me, just the ole' food processor. Feel free to combine these ingredients by hand - I am sure that you will extract more flavor this way, but for those like me with limited time and young ones - a food processor does just fine. Combine all Green Curry Paste ingredients into the food processor and puree until you get a nice paste. It will have a slight chunk to it, but should be relatively smooth.
For the final dish. Heat olive oil over medium heat in a medium pot. Add sliced mushrooms and cook, stirring occasionally until most of the water has evaporated (anywhere from 5-15 minutes depending on the mushroom). Then add ALL the green curry. Cook for 2-4 minutes, once the aroma is realeased, add vegetable broth and bring to a low boil/simmer and add spinach. Stir until the mixture is fully incorporated. Add remaing 3/4 can of coconut milk. Stir and let simmer for 2-4 minutes (it's hard to wait because it looks and smells SO GOOD!)
We eat this over brown rice to 'healthy' it up a bit with a Socca Pancake on top ↴
Ingredients:
1/2 cup chickpea flour
1/2 cup water
1 tablespoon olive oil pinch of cumin
Whisk ingredients together. The consistency will be like watery pancake batter. If you have a good non-stick skillet you won't need a drizzle of olive oil, but if
your's strays on the side of sticky then you will want it. Pre-heat skillet over medium heat. Pour a 1/4 cup of batter into the pan. Cook for about 2 minutes on each side and enjoy!