Coconut Prawn Curry

My flatmate swore that the pictures of this originally were not the best looking prawn curry she'd ever seen...but it was by far the most delicious once I finally made it!  This recipe is simple but require a wide variety of spices, so I adapted the recipe to my less formal university flat.

Coconut Prawn Curry

(Serves 2 fairly hungry individuals)

A.

500g of prawns [cleaned & deveined]

1 medium onion [finely chopped]

3/4 C coconut milk

1 C water

1 1/2 tsp tumeric powder

1 tsp fennel seeds [may use cumin as a sub]

1 TB curry powder

pinch of salt

pinch of sugar

Chopped chilli 

B.

2 garlic cloves

1/2 inch of ginger root

pinch of salt

Take all of the B. items and chop them very finely, then set aside for later use.

In a pot/wok, heat up 2 TB oil with the onion, curry, and fennel seeds on medium heat.  Saute until the onion become a golden brown color.  Then add the B. items that you chopped up earlier. Saute until aromatic.  Then add 1/2 C water to the pot and cook on low heat until water and oil begins to separate.

Toss in the prawns quickly and coat them with the spices on low for 1 minute.  (Add more water if borrom starts to stick).  Next add coconut milk and 1/2 C water and let simmer until boiling point.  Add the pinch of salt and sugar just to taste.  Use the chopped chilli to garnish if you are up for a little bit of spice! 

Additionally for a more filling meal, use this curry dish as a sauce on top of jasmine rice (instant or a rice cooker if you have one).  It's perfect!

Recipe adapted from: http://www.fussfreecooking.com/meat-recipes/coconut-prawn-curry/

Thai Coconut Curry Soup

This next one is truly close to my heart, seeing as it is one of the first things I made, and have shared with many people since I learned how to make it!  Another great thing about this recipe is it is very versatile and therefore can be made often--but never with quite the same taste!

Thai Coconut Curry Soup

2 medium onions [finely minced]
2-4 cloves of garlic (depends on how much garlic you like!)
1 Tbs Curry
2 tsp cumin
1/2 tsp coriander
1/2 tsp red chili powder (if you like spicy!)
1 can coconut milk
2 Tb fish sauce
2 large carrots
2 medium potatoes [cubed]
2 broccoli
1 red pepper
salt & pepper for flavor
Meat of your choice

Saute the onions, and with one minute left, add in the garlic.  Next turn the heat on low and add the curry, cumin, coriander, and optional chili powder--let these cook for about 2 minutes).  After 2 minutes, add the coconut milk and fish sauce.  Bring the entire soup to a boil, and add the potatoes.

While this is cooking, you can start the meat and other vegetables.  For the carrots, make sure you cut them julliennd style (matchstick sized) and peel the broccoli stalk and also julliennd.  For the red pepper, slice it and add at the very end--don't cook longer than 3 minutes or it will become mushy!

***Just as a side note, to create a thicker base add cream, or to thin it out add water or vegetable stock!


For the meat, there are several variations:

Chicken:
Use ~5 pieces of chichken thighs, peeling off the fat.  You will want to place 3-4 slices into the thighs and add paste*.  Rub the paste into the cuts in the chicken, and add to the pot.  Your curry is done with the chicken is!

*Paste:
1 Tb chili powder
1 tsp lemon
1 tsp oil
pinch of salt

Striploin Steak/Minced Beef:
You can additionally try striploin steak (steak cut really thinly) or minced beef.  Seeing as minced beef where I currently live is cheap, I tend to use this as the best type of meat.  Minced beef you can cook alongside with the onions, to get a great sautéed flavor!


Add desired amount of sat and pepper at the end for flavor, and there you have it!  You can easily experiment with different types of vegetables--also with the types of spices! Even changing the amount of curry or chili powder can greatly change the taste! Enjoy :)