Thai Green Curry Chicken 泰式绿咖喱鸡

I had my first taste of Thai green curry many years ago, not in South East Asia but in London. I was a student then and one kind friend brought this Thai takeaway and shared it with me on a cold winter's night. Needless to say, I was hooked from that fateful day. There is something about the blend of aroma from the herbs and spices with that creamy coconut milk that makes this so aromatic. It is not as intense a dish as its other curry counterparts, yet it holds its unique taste that is utterly addictive.

The Thai green curry got its name from the green yellowish colour of this dish. It is green because of the use of primarily green ingredients, namely the green chilli peppers and coriander in the making of the paste. The dish itself has a lot of gravy to the extend it is almost soupy. This is also one of the reasons why I like it so much. I could drown myself senseless in those aromatic creamy coconut gravy. When it comes to heat, this dish has the mildest sting. Yet, it is by no means less delicious. Among all the curries, I love this best. It has a more refreshing citrusy herbal taste compared to the intensity that comes with red or yellow curry. If you could get over that relatively pale colour, the most exciting taste awaits you!

Traditionally, the ingredients for the paste are grinded using a pestle and mortar until it becomes a fine green paste. This might take you thirty minutes to one hour depending on the quantity. In making this Thai green curry paste, I used an electric spice grinder for easier execution. Once the paste is on the way, the rest of the process is a piece of cake. This recipe uses chicken but it is replaceable with any other proteins that you like.

Thai Green Curry Paste
 

Ingredients

15 large green hot chillies (or green bird's eye chilli)
3 shallots, chopped
8 cloves garlic, chopped
1/2 inch galangal, chopped
1 lemongrass (whites only), sliced

1 kaffir lime rind, zested
1 sprig of coriander (with root), chopped
5 white peppercorns
1 tbsp coriander seeds
1 tsp cumin seeds

1/2 inch shrimp paste, toasted

Method

1. Toast the coriander and cumin seeds on a pan in medium fire until fragrant. Remove and toast the shrimp paste until pungent. In a spice grinder, add the toasted seeds and peppercorns and grind finely. Remove.

2. Using the same grinder, add all other ingredients except shrimp paste. Grind finely.

3. Add in the toasted seeds and shrimp paste and continue to grind until very fine.

Thai Green Curry Chicken 泰式绿咖喱鸡

Ingredients

1/2 portion Thai green curry paste (recipe above)

400 g chicken meat, sliced (marinade with 1 tbsp fish sauce and 1 tsp sugar)
10 pea eggplant, quartered
200 ml coconut milk
1/2 cup water
2 tbsp oil
6-7 kaffir lime leaves
2 tbsp Thai fish sauce
20 g palm sugar or to taste

1 tsp salt, or to taste
1 red chilli, cut diagonally
2 sprigs Thai basil leaf

Cooking Instruction

1. Saute green curry in a pan over medium heat until it is dry. Add oil and continue to saute until fragrant. Add 1/3 of the coconut milk and continue to fry until a layer of green oil appears.

2. Add kaffir lime leaves and continue to saute until fragrant. Add in coconut milk, water, palm sugar and fish sauce.

3. Add in eggplant and cook for about 3 minutes in medium fire.

4. Add chicken and let it simmer. When chicken is cooked, remove from heat. Sprinkle with red chilli and basil. Serve hot.



Note:
If you are unable to find pea eggplant, replace with other vegetables like snow peas, baby corns or cauliflower.