Thai Red Curry Chicken & Asian Slaw

Here is a recipe to try, Chicken in Thai red curry sauce with Asian slaw salad. This uses a red Thai curry spice that is citrus based, and is mild compared to some other curry seasonings.


Some of the key ingredients........


Thai Red Curry Chicken

Four boneless chicken breasts
One 14 oz. can of Coconut Milk
1 Tbsp. Red Thai Curry Seasoning
2 Tbsp. Fish Sauce
2 tsp. Lime juice
2 tsp. Lime zest
1 Tbsp. Garlic Chili Sauce
2 small Plum tomatoes, diced
3 small Scallions, white - julienned, green - chopped
2 Tbsp. Lobster Mushrooms, diced
2 Tbsp. Yellow Bell Pepper, julienned
1 Tbsp. Sesame Oil
Fresh Cilantro to garnish

Combine 1 Tbsp. Red Thai Curry Seasoning (Nam Prik Krung Kaeng Ped), available from www.thespicehouse.com, with 1 Tbsp. of Fish sauce to form a paste. Cover and set aside for three hours to let the spices work. I usually do this the night before and let stand overnight. (There is a commercial brand of Red Curry Paste made by Roland that is very good, but it incorporates Shrimp Paste which I do not particularly like.)

Combine Coconut Milk, 1 Tbsp fish sauce, red curry paste, garlic chili sauce, lime juice and lime zest in a glass bowl and mix well. Let stand for at least one hour at room temperature. Reserve about 2/3rds in a glass bowl, cover and refrigerate until needed. Leave the remaining 1/3rd in the original bowl to marinate the chicken.

Prepare the chicken breasts by trimming off all fat and skin. Fillet each breast into two approx. 4 oz. pieces. They should be about 1/4th inch thick so they will grill quickly. Place the chicken in the bowl of marinade, turning each piece to ensure good coverage. Pour the chicken and marinade into a 1 quart freezer bag, press out as much air as possible, seal and place in the refrigerator for at least three hours or as long as overnight, turning occasionally.

Chicken in Red Curry Marinade......
When ready to cook:

Remove chicken from the refrigerator and let return to room temperature while preparing the sauce.

Prepare a pan of boiling water. Cut an "X" into the end of each tomato, blanch in boiling water about one minute, or until the skin starts to peel. Remove from boiling water and immerse in ice water to stop the cooking process. Peel the tomatoes, cut in half lengthwise, trim the ends off each piece, remove seeds and dice. Set aside.

Clean three small scallions. Cut the white portions into approx. one inch pieces and julienne. Finely chop the green portions. Set aside.

Chop enough lobster mushrooms to yield approx. 2 Tbsp. (If you cannot find fresh, dried mushrooms can be reconstituted. If you cannot find lobster mushrooms, shitake mushrooms can be substituted.) Set aside.

Clean a section of yellow bell pepper that will yield approx. 2 Tbsp. Cut into 1 inch by 1 1/2 inch pieces and julienne. Set aside.

Tomatoes, mushrooms, scallions and bell pepper, chopped and at the ready.....

Place reserved sauce/marinade in a saucepan and gently warm until it begins to slightly thicken. Pour 1 Tbsp. of Sesame Oil into a saute pan and place on heat. When oil is hot, add bell pepper and mushrooms. Saute for 1-2 minutes, or until the peppers begin to soften. Turn off heat and add scallions and tomatoes, lightly toss together. When the tomatoes and scallions have just warmed, add this mixture to the saucepan with the sauce/marinade. Reduce heat to lowest setting just to keep warm.

Grill chicken on a very hot grill. This should take about 3 minutes per side depending on the thickness. (Make sure the chicken is cooked through, but not to the point of being dry.)

Chicken on the grill.....
Remove chicken from the grill and cut into strips.

Serve over rice with some sauce over the top and garnish with some fresh chopped cilantro.

Served over rice, ready to eat.....

Asian Slaw (sorry no pics)

1 cup shredded Napa cabbage
1 cup shredded Red/purple cabbage
1 cup shredded bok choy
1 cup Mung bean sprouts
1/2 cup shredded carrot
1/2 cup julienned zucchini
3 scallions, julienned

Combine above ingredients in a large, chilled, glass bowl. Toss with dressing (see recipe below).

Thai Dressing

1/2 cup water
3 Tbsp. white wine vinegar
1 Tbsp. soy sauce
2 tsp. honey
1 1/2 tsp. cornstarch
1 Tbsp. peanut butter
1 Tbsp. fresh chopped cilantro
1 clove minced garlic
1/4 tsp. crushed red pepper

Combine water, vinegar, soy sauce, honey and cornstarch in a saucepan. Bring to a boil, stirring constantly, until the dressing thickens. Remove from heat, add peanut butter and stir until smooth. Add cilantro, garlic and crushed red pepper. Let cool. Chill until needed.