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Saturday, January 10, 2009

Thai Coconut Curry



The flavors in this dish are really robust and pronounced, every bite is packed with amazing flavor. I read a bunch of online recipes, and compiled this to accomodate our taste buds and readily available ingredients. The result? Take a wild guess! Better yet, try it for yourself and let me know!


The chunky peanut butter adds bits of peanuts, and adding shredded coconut helps to bring out the coconut flavors without tasting sweet. The lime makes a HUGE difference in this dish, it really emphasizes all the other ingredients.

Ingredients
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-1 pound chicken breast, cut into 1 inch pieces
-2 tablespoons oil
-4 diced green onions, whites and greens
-6 cloves fresh minced garlic
- 1 inch piece fresh minced ginger
-1/2-1 teaspoon red pepper flakes
-1 can bamboo shoots
-1 can coconut milk
-1/4 cup water
-1/4 cup unsweetened shredded coconut (optional)
-1 1/2 tablespoons peanut butter (chunky is best, but creamy works too)
-1 teaspoon curry paste (optional)
-1 cup spinach (not authentic, but you can't taste it, and it adds nice color)
-1/2 cup packed fresh minced lemongrass (optional, but it makes a difference)
- 4 squeezed limes
-1 cup fresh minced basil

-salt to taste

Assembly
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-To make in the slow cooker, add all ingredients except for coconut milk and basil and turn on low for 4 hours. Stir in coconut milk and basil during last 15 minutes of cooking.

Stove top:
-Heat oil in pot. Add chicken, green onions, red pepper flakes, ginger and garlic and cook until chicken is halfway cooked.
-Add salt, coconut milk, water, bamboo shoots, lemongrass, peanut butter, curry paste, lime juice and spinach. Reduce heat to low and simmer for 25 minutes or until chicken is cooked through.
-Add basil and simmer for another 5 minutes. Serve!

5 comments:

  1. Just a note, I made this on the stovetop, and haven't tried it in the slowcooker. I plan on doing so soon, but if anyone else tries it first, please post and let us know how the coconut milk held up in the slowcooker. Thanks!

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  2. Ok, I made this again tonight and it was great! I tried it in the slowcooker, and wow, WHAT A DIFFERENCE in the chicken! It was soo tender and flavorful. I updated the assembly directions for the slowcooker to match the way I made it. Happy cooking :)

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  3. This looks so yummy. But is there a place that sells fresh basil leaves for cheap? One cup will cost me around $10!

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  4. $10 sounds like a lot for a cup of basil! What state are you in? Basil is very easy to grow at home and you can enjoy it for basically free :)

    Also, you can cut down on the basil quantity for the recipe, with all the other flavors it shouldn't make that big of an impact.

    Best of luck!

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  5. Just made this and it was FABULOUS. I left out the curry paste and for tonight's dinner I added some teriyaki sauce and jazzed it up so it wouldn't be like eating leftovers. I must say though, the flavors the 2nd day around are a lot more pronounced and still very delicious.

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