Chiang Mai Chicken Jungle Curry

Wow! It is such a beautiful day here! Definitely a nice break from the dreary overcast days that we have seen so much of here in the Southern part of British Columbia. If you saw my post from a couple days ago about the Green Beans with Sticky Soy Cashews, then you'll be excited for this post. This curry goes so great with those green beans, so be sure to make them together and you'll have a divine meal for you and your friends and family. Tomorrow is going to be a busy day for me! I've got to be up bright and early so that I can make the trek to downtown Vancouver to participate in the Vancouver Sun Run. The Sun Run is a 10km run that brings out over 50,000 participants! It is quite the event and the downtown area of Vancouver is just packed full of people of all kinds. Since tomorrow is going to be so busy, I got some cookies baked today and have planned out my dinner menu for tomorrow so that I don't have much left to do tomorrow other than enjoy the run. Hopefully this beautiful weather carries over to tomorrow so that the run will be enjoyable too. :) Do you have anything exciting planned for the remainder of this weekend? Chiang Mai Chicken Jungle Curry Adapted from Meals in Heels by Jennifer Joyce Ingredients:

• 2 tsp vegetable oil


• 2 tbsp soft brown sugar


• 100g tamarind puree (or you can mix equal parts of lime juice, soy sauce and brown sugar and add that instead)


• 2 tbsp fish sauce


• zest and juice of two limes


• 800 ml coconut milk


• a coupe chicken breasts cut into bite size pieces


• toasted coconut shavings and cilantro leaves for garnish


• 2 long red chillies, seeds removed and chopped


• 1 1/2 inch knob of ginger, peeled and chopped


• 2 garlic cloves


• 6 lemongrass stalks, bottom inner third only, finely chopped


• 1 tbsp curry powder


• one bunch cilantro stems roughly chopped

Method:

1. Place the red chillies, ginger, garlic cloves, lemongrass stalks, curry powder and cilantro in a blender (or food processor) and blend until a smooth paste forms.


2. Heat the oil in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add the chicken and brown until almost cooked through. Add the curry paste and stir continuously for 5 minutes or until fragrant. Add the sugar, tamarind, fish sauce, lime zest and juice and coconut milk and simmer for 15 minutes or until thickened. Scatter over the toasted coconut and cilantro leaves and serve with rice & Green Beans with Sticky Soy Cashews.

I hope you enjoy this one! It really was delicious and authentic tasting. I think the key is making the homemade curry paste. It was so aromatic and flavourful. The original recipe calls for using prawns instead of chicken, but hubby is allergic to prawns so I sadly could not make it with the prawns. :( Oh well, I usually get my fix of prawns when I go out of town! Feel free to try it with whichever you prefer. I'm sure with chicken or prawns it will turn out delicious.

Happy Cooking my Friends! I hope you enjoy this recipe & the rest of the weekend.